Some people with a poor fund of knowledge reject the Vedas, considering them to be an outdated text left by some primitive men of the stone age. However, the knowledge of even the scholarly historians about world history is limited to only a few thousand years: naturally therefore, their opinions about the ancient Vedas are of no value. The fact is that the Vedas constitute a complete wisdom handed over by God Himself at the dawn of ,hn rrpntion of the universe The Vedas are perfect: they are called apaiirusheya, indicating that they are not man-made. They are not meant for casual study like a novel or for idle armchair speculation; their injunctions arc meant to be heard and practiced in our daily lives so as to save ourselves from the continuous onslaught of material miseries and to achieve the eternal world.
People generally believe that modern science has brought a sophisticated brand of knowledge that makes the Vedas obsolete. But nothing could be further from the truth; neither are the Vedas obsolete nor is the modern scientific knowledge new as can be seen from the following incident from the Mahabharata. When Arjuna saved Maya danava from the burning Khandava forest, the danava offered to give Arjuna yantra-vidya (knowledge of machines and industry) in gratitude. But Krishna stopped him ,saying that the introduction of machine technology would cause the entire human society to be spoiled and that this technology was to be reserved for the dark age of Kali.
Thus gross technology was not unknown at any time, but in the Vedic society it was known to be low class and destructive and was therefore never introduced.Moreover, modern science teaches only jada vidya, knowledge about dead matter (earth, water, fire, air, ether, mind, intelligence and ego). It does not help one to get out of the sufferings of birth, death, old age and disease. The Vedas. on the other hand. Prescribe practical methods of spiritual practice for every age. including the present age of Kali. They are not bound by time, Place or circumstance. Advancement in science and technology has no bearing on the Vedic knowledge, as the Vedas are meant to deliver a suffering man from the ocean of nescience in the past, in the present and in the future. Anyone, at any point of time, can hear the Vedic knowledge, practice it, purify his life and return to the kingdom of God. It is therefore the duty of every sane human being to take advantage of the knowledge of the Vedas and achieve perfection.
Just like an instruction manual always accompanies a washing machine, a cooker or any other instrument to explain how it is to be operated, similarly the Vedas are the word of God which come along with the creation and which are given to man so that he may understand how to most effectively utilize his human form of life to achieve an eternal life full of knowledge and bliss.
The Vedas teach us who we are, who God is and what our relationship with Him is. They also teach us the method by which we can revive our lost relationship with God. We should learn all these things from the Vedas and put them into practice to achieve the ultimate goal of life.
Hence a sincere seeker of truth, who wants to know more about himself and God should not waste his valuable time in researching with his own limited brain; rather he should cultivate the knowledge of the Vedas by approaching a guru. The guru or spiritual master is like a walking scripture; he has thorough knowledge of the essence of the Vedas and he can impart this wisdom to a sincere disciple, who hears from him submissively and serves him.
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