What is Knowledge : Ch-3. Part-21.

Chapter-3. A Philosophic Outlook of Life

Part-21.

Certain systems of medical science tell us that every disease is the disease of the whole body.

Even if we sneeze, it is not only the nose that is sneezing; the whole body is sneezing, and any ache in any part of the body is an ache of the whole body.

All illness is a total illness.

There is no such thing as an ache only in the head.

It is a total ache of the entire psychophysical organism.

In a similar manner, philosophers have recognised and realised that any event in the world is not an isolated thing happening somewhere, unrelated to others; it is a total event.

The pain that we feel in the sole of our foot when a thorn pricks it is the pain felt by the whole body, and it is not only the foot that feels it.

Every event is so connected with all other factors because of the fact that the world, even physically speaking, is a single entity.

Because of this, and because of the fact that we are also involved in it as parts of nature – parts of the world – every question is a total question, and every situation is a universal situation.

We seem to be participating in a universal life, and not merely in a family life, a communal life – or much less, an individual life.

There is no such thing as 'your own' life, and 'my own' life, and 'his own' life or 'her own' life.

Such a thing is not possible, in the same way as our bodily organisms are not independent activities taking place of their own accord.


Swami Krishnananda
To be continued  ...