In Hindu tradition, revelation of truth is never closed

In Hindu tradition, revelation of truth is never closed

The world abounds with scriptures and literatures – sacred and profane – with religions and philosophies, schools of thought and systems. To these their adherents attach themselves with passion and exclusiveness and will have it that one or the other ‘book’ is alone the eternal Word of God and all others are either impostures or at best imperfectly inspired. It may be important, therefore, when approaching a scriptural text to indicate the spirit of our approach and what exactly we wish to derive from it that is of value to humanity and its future.

First of all, there is undoubtedly a Truth – one and eternal – which we are seeking; from which all other truths derive; by the light of which all other truths find their rightful place, explanation and relation to the scheme of knowledge. Precisely for this reason it cannot be shut up in a single formula. It is not likely to be found in its entirety in any single philosophy or scripture, or uttered altogether by any one teacher or prophet.

Secondly, this Truth expresses itself in Time and through the mind of man. Every scripture must, therefore, necessarily contain two elements, (a) one temporary and perishable, belonging to the ideas of the people of the period and the country in which it is produced, and, (b) the other eternal and imperishable, and applicable to all ages and countries. The intellectual expression and the psychological idiom are the products of time, while the permanent truths are capable of being lived and seen by a higher than intellectual vision at all times.

The vitality of a scripture consists in its power to produce from time to time men who confirm and correct from their own experience truths enunciated in it. All great doctrines, as they are repeated in the course of time are coloured by the reflection of the age in which they appear and bear the imprint of the teachers who restate them. They speak to us from experience and express in a new form, a form relevant to their age and responsive to its needs, the ancient wisdom of the Eternal Truth.

A case in point, the Supreme Teacher of the Gita declares that He is not stating any new doctrine but is only restoring the old tradition, the eternal verity, handed down from age to age.

“I taught this imperishable science to the Sun God, Vivasvan, who passed it on to Manu; and Manu, in turn, spoke it to Ikshvaku. Thus handed down from one to another, the sages knew it. But with the long passage of time, it was lost to the world. The same ancient knowledge, which is the supreme secret, has been today declared by me to you, because you are My friend and My devotee.”

The teaching is a renewal, a rediscovery, a restoration of knowledge forgotten; the perennial philosophy, the Sanatan (Eternal) Dharma which Augustine calls the “wisdom that was not made; but is at this present, as it hath ever been and so shall ever be.”

Revelation is never closed. So long as the human heart has qualities of devotion and love, God will disclose His secrets to us. Divine self-communication is possible wherever there is sincerity and a sense of need. Religious revelation is not a past event; it is that which continues to be, and a possibility for all. Truth needs no evidence to prove it true; it is self-effulgent.

Only those scriptures, religions and philosophies which can be constantly renewed, relived; their permanent truth constantly reshaped and developed in the inner thought and spiritual experience of a developing humanity can continue to be of living importance to mankind.

(Pandit Ramdial Balbadar is a prominent Aachaarya (Teacher) of Hinduism in Guyana. He is the compiler and author of many titles and has over 30 years experience in Pandits’ Training across Guyana. He is currently the President of the Sanatan Vaidic Dharma Pandits’ Sabha, Region 3).