The Esoteric Significance of the Kathopanishad -1.3

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11/03/2018

The Esoteric Significance of the Kathopanishad -1.3

Chapter 1: The World is an Arena of Sacrifice-3.

3.1
Are we altruistic essentially or selfish essentially?

The social psychology, based on a social philosophy, seems to proclaim that without the positive manifestation of the social instinct, the individual may perish. At the same time, it appears that the human being is basically selfish and the social instinct is not an independent activity of the mind. It is an extended form of human selfishness, says psychoanalysis.

 Even our gesture of goodwill towards others may be a subtle expression of a secret selfishness which it tries to fulfil by a method which is very carefully projected onto the screen of public actions.

3.2
The question boils down to this fundamental crucial issue: Is man also a kind of animal if his basic instincts seem to be non-distinguishable from the animal instincts of self-preservation, even at the cost of everything in the world?

Are we tigers, snakes, lions walking on two legs? This has been accepted by certain political philosophers and psychoanalysts, to the discomfiture and consternation of all well-meaning people in the world. Man is a mystery. He cannot be fully studied by sociology or psychoanalysis.

He is not a mathematical equation. ‘A’ is equal to ‘B’, and ‘B’ is equal to ‘C’; therefore, ‘A’ is equal to ‘C’. This kind of argument will not hold good with human nature. It is a marvel in itself, and therefore, no scientific observation can study man.

If psychoanalysis and psychology are sciences, and sociology is also one of the sciences, call them humanities if you like, they will fail miserably in understanding what man is. He is more than all these sciences and arts. He is the creator of these.

To be continued ..

Swami Krishnananda

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