Page:My Dear Pranav.pdf/54



15th July, 1999 My dear Pranav,

Vinoba believed that the future of mankind depends on Science and spirituality. His own personal development was based on both. ,

“My father was a scientist, my mother’s bent was towards spiritual knowledge. At school, science was my favourite subject, but I was also attracted by spiritual literature. These two streams of knowledge, the scientific and spiritual mingled together in my life. In my view they deserve equal respect and have one and the same significance. The subject matter of the one is the external physical world, while that of the other is the inner world of man. Together they present a complete and integrated picture of the nature of the universe.. I became convinced that the only way to establish the kingdom of God on earth is to unite Science and self-knowledge." (1)

Vinoba believed that we must read the most up-to-date books on science and the most ancient texts for self-knowledge. He was not an ascetic in the old Indian sense of a person who is a seeker of self-knowledge alone. He wanted science for progress, but self-knoweldge too. He believed that continuous questioning, a continuous quest must be pursued in both science and self-knowledge.

“Man, like a bird, has two wings - science and spiritual wisdom, and he needs both together for his happiness. The design of every machine provides two forces, one to generate energy for movement and the other to guide and control it. One cannot work without the other. A car has an engine and a steering wheel, so does a human being. We walk with our feet and not with our eyes, but the eyes show us where to go. Self- knowledge or wisdom is the

eye, science is the feet. With no eyes, man would not know

44 �