[Advaita-l] Science and Brahman: What Vedas or not

[V. Krishnamurthy]

Namaste.

The discussion on Science and Brahman prompts me to quote
the following extract from my book on Science and
Spirituality:

At this point it is necessary to note that there is a
section of opinion which mistakenly holds the view that the
Vedas contain everything including certain scientific facts
or theories which were discovered or invented only in the
last one or two centuries.  Thus this kind of enthusiast
looks for references, even remotely, to, say, soaps and
safety-matches, laser-printing and machine-fast
calculation, open-heart surgery and what-have-you, in the
Vedas. Researches made in this direction yield some trivial
satisfaction to the enthusiasts who hold on to some straws.
Then one makes much of such findings to proclaim that the
Vedas contain everything that we know of today. This is
misguided loyalty. If the Vedas are divinely revealed
scriptures, which is what Hinduism believes, then man
cannot insult the Omniscience of God by presuming He would
waste the Vedas on man in teaching what He knows man will
learn in due time by himself through his rationale and
intellect! The Vedas are intended for the spiritual uplift
of man and that is their only purpose. They point out to
him what is beyond the intellect. This purpose would not be
served by any other means of knowledge. If incidentally the
Vedas also bring some knowledge about mundane matters like
a geometrical theorem through their sulva-sUtras or a
miracle cure for some yet unknown disease through their
mantras or a host of vedic short-cuts for mechanical and
arithmetical calculation, -- well, these are only
incidental; they do not imply that all of modern Science
was in the knowledge of the ancients!

PraNAms to all seekers of Truth.
profvk

Prof. V. Krishnamurthy

Latest on my website:  Shrimad Bhagavatam and advaita bhakti. Introduction. Chatushloki Bhagavatam. Vidura and Maitreya. Kapila Gita.
Dhruva charitam. JaDabharata, Ajamila Stories. Prahlada Charitram.

http://www.geocities.com/profvk/VK2/Bhagavatam_Introduction.html

and succeeding pages.