Inner Knowledge: A Truth to Be Recognized

Inner knowledge does not come from an intellectual effort, but from a recognition. A true path is known by its fruits, just as a tree is known. Philosophy approaches this truth through thought, but The Path puts it into practice through sadhana: meditation, service, and satsang.

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Inner Knowledge
What cannot be produced

Summary: Inner knowledge does not come from an intellectual effort, but from a recognition. A true path is known by its fruits, just as a tree is known. Philosophy approaches this truth through thought, but The Path puts it into practice through sadhana: meditation, service, and satsang. By relating to an immanent principle — called God, Tao, or Holy Name — the observant discovers a knowledge that cannot be explained, but must be lived. The main obstacle is not the absence of truth, but the confusion of the mind (citta) that comes to disturb what is already there.

Satsang
A path known by its fruits

In a devotional hymn, it is said: “I walk on the true path.” It is true, we walk on a true path.

One of the characteristics of this path is that, when reading sacred texts, if they are well translated, it is recognized. I know what some might say about this explanation: “That does not prove it is a true path, at most that it is an ancient one.” And that is a fair remark. But here, I am speaking of a conviction, which can always be discussed.

That said, it is also said that a tree is known by its fruits. For a path, it is the same: it is known by its fruits. It is up to each person to consider the fruits of their observance. I will not describe mine, but I can say that they confirm for me that The Path is a good path.

Even so-called profane thinkers, philosophers, have had insights in which I recognize something of these fruits: Socrates, Epictetus, Marcus Aurelius, Immanuel Kant, Arthur Schopenhauer, Baruch Spinoza, and others.

What does this suggest? That there exists a universal, fundamental, and transversal truth.

What distinguishes The Path

Yet there is not always an obvious kinship between these thinkers — mystical or philosophical — and The Path, its Original Yoga. One can clearly distinguish them and think they are not comparable.

So what makes the specificity of The Path?

For philosophers, meditation often takes the form of reflection — more like Rodin’s Thinker than the lotus posture. On The Path, knowledge is not sought in the same place.

Blaise Pascal sensed this when he wrote: “The heart has its reasons which reason does not know.” This is not a rejection of intelligence. He clearly sees its power, but also its limits. He points to another mode of knowing, more direct, which does not pass through discursive reasoning.

What is different about The Path? It recognizes the existence of an immanent principle, which some call God, and which Lao Tseu called the Tao.

Another difference concerns the notion of the soul and reincarnation. This is not a minor point. When wisdom includes God, the soul, and reincarnation, the perspective changes deeply. To understanding is added an orientation, almost a promise.

Another specificity of The Path is the presence of a living master. It is he who delivers the satsang, one of the elements of the sadhana.

A knowledge that is recognized

On The Path, there is the active love of God for His creation, and the response of the human being in the form of devotion. It is said: “Bhakti is the pearl of the path.” When reason is imbued with this dimension, the fruits take on a different taste.

How can one be illuminated from within by Grace, rather than only by reflection, without recognizing this immanence? This dimension is essential. It marks a major difference with philosophy.

The inner knowledge in question does not come from outside. It is recognized by drawing closer to the essence of one’s own life, to its fundamental harmony (Rita). Some will say God, others the Whole, the Universe. The words vary.

But this knowledge cannot be explained. It cannot be formulated. It is recognized. One can bear witness to it, but not transmit it through concepts.

God does not speak like a human being. He does not explain. He does not reason. He does not write. And He is not a person in the human sense.

The obstacle and the turning

Through meditation, service, and satsang, this recognition becomes possible, provided one does not mix in too many thoughts, expectations, or emotions.

When the observant places himself at the center, inner knowledge does not disappear, but it becomes clouded: the mental confusion (citta) mixes with it, like mud added to clear water.

The main obstacle between you and this knowledge is you — not what you are in essence, but what you believe yourself to be: this constructed self, caught in the mind, in time, in the movement of citta.

To recognize oneself in the soul (purusha) requires a turning. One must “kill the old man to be reborn in spirit,” as Jesus said to Nicodemus.

A practice that continues

Some come to The Path to understand themselves. But The Path is not oriented toward self-analysis. For that, there is philosophy or psychology. The Path invites rather a surrender to contemplation, to the present moment.

One can use an image: the principle of life — which some call God, others the Tao, or the Holy Name — has a harmony. To be in tune with it, the mind must cease producing its own dissonances.

Deep meditation serves this purpose: not to produce a state, but to attune. One cannot enter meditation abruptly, after a day spent in dispersion. There is a continuity to be cultivated.

Service and satsang contribute to this. This is where sadhana finds its meaning. It is a matter of maintaining a link, an orientation, a presence throughout the day. Then meditation does not begin when one sits down. It continues.

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