Being by nature inquisitive, a person has to inquire and inquire and inquire. He wants to know the cause of things. He wants to know why this flower grows, why the wall stands upright, and a million things of that nature. He thinks that by knowing the causes of exterior things he will be left somehow to find the causes of himself. Again his questing comes down to one question: “Who am I?”
Knowledge, as we know it, is an accumulation of facts with which we burden our little brains. But wisdom is a knowingness, and this knowingness that wells up from within cannot be acquired with a half dozen Ph.D. degrees. If it could, then every university professor of philosophy would be a self-realized man, and he is not. After having studied every possible philosophy, a professor of philosophy is often more confused than before, and less able to answer the crucial question: “Who am I?”
The main question inherent in all human beings is, “Who am I?” This question can go through many superimpositions, and our search begins by inquiring into various facets of life, such as science and the arts. To find the answer to the question, “Who am I?” a person starts searching outside of himself.
Now the modern scientist is no better than the primitive man—the only difference is that now he inquires in a more sophisticated way. Primitive man, searching outside himself, created the river gods, mountain gods, cloud gods, rain gods, and so forth, that could answer questions for him. The primitive man’s mind got involved in various superstitions. Modern scientists’ minds get involved in various dreams. The difference between superstition and dream is very fine. A superstition is but a projection. A dream is also a projection. The difference is that the superstitious primitive man believed in what he thought, while the dream of the scientist is devoid of belief until he can verify the dream.
The purpose of the acquisition of knowledge is to find oneself; everything else is secondary.
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