Is there a philosophical significance to the difference between the singular scripture and the plural scriptures?

In some of your Gita-daily articles, you use scripture in the singular and in others, in the plural. What is the basis for this choice?

Transcript

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Thank you. Question.
In one of your Gita Daily articles, you use the words scripture in singular and in other places you use it in plural. So is there any significance for using this sometimes in singular and sometimes in plural? Answer. Actually Prabhupada uses the word religion also sometimes in singular and sometimes in plural.
And there is a distinct connotation. When Prabhupada uses the word religion, he uses it to represent a principle. The principle of the laws given by God.
And that principle is universal. Whereas when Sri Prabhupada uses the word religions, then he uses it to talk about Christianity, Islam, Hinduism. And he says these are actually the various forms in which that singular religion may take.
So it’s not just when Sri Prabhupada uses the word religion and religions, it’s not just a matter of singular and plural. Rather it’s a one principle and it can have many expressions. The principle of there being the laws of God is eternal.
Whereas the expressions may be temporal. Prabhupada writes in Chetan Charita Amrit, in the purport of the Chand Kazi pastime, Chetan Mahapurana Chand Kazi Vedi pastime, that the scriptures of the lekshas and the yavanas, like say the Old Testament, the New Testament and the Quran, they are not eternal. These religions have a historical beginning at a particular time.
So they are not eternal religions. Whereas the principle of religion, that human, that being the laws of God with which humanity needs to harmonize, that is eternal. The same way when the word scripture is used in singular, it refers to the principle that there is the word of God which he has given for our guidance, so that we can live happily and fruitfully in this world.
And beyond that there are scriptures. So there can be different scriptures of different religions. Even within the Vedic canon there can be scriptures which are catered for people at different levels of consciousness.
Scriptures in goodness, there are Puranas for people in goodness, Puranas for people in passion, Puranas for people in ignorance. So like that there can be different scriptures. So scriptures in plural refers not just to the plural version of the scripture, singular, but it refers to the various manifestations of that principle.
So God can give guidance according to different levels of consciousness and according to different scriptures. So when I use the word scripture in singular, I follow Shri Prabhupada and I focus on the principle that scripture, it refers to the guidance that God is providing. That’s why I say one of the articles is experience is intelligence, real, right? Scripture, intelligence, front light.
So I’m talking about scripture, it’s talking about generic principle of the divine guidance the Lord has given to us, whereas scriptures refer to the various books which provide that guidance in different ways for the people at different levels of consciousness. So it’s not simply a grammatical difference between singular and plural. It is a difference of a universal principle and a specific expression of that principle because the specific expressions are many.
So there is a plural also used over there. Thank you.