Vedanta and Science 1

Vedanta and science, unlike religion and science in the Western concept, are not miles apart. Rather they stand very near to each other. In ancient India there was no major distinction made between science and metaphysics. In fact one was considered as a subset of the other. Mundaka Upanishad talks about Para Vidya and Apara Vidya, the first one deals with realization and experience of supreme knowledge while the latter one with conventional knowledge. Science belongs to the realm of Apara Vidya. However Vijnan or special knowledge also refers to spiritual science or the knowledge of supreme. Gita's 7th Chapter is named as Jnana Vijnana Yoga, pointing to a close relationship between the two. The thoughts of Indian sages were never at odds with modern scientific thoughts. In fact they were very much scientists themselves. They never conjectured or theorized anything, never relied on dogmas, but rather on practices and direct realization. They were like the modern day scientists working in laboratories, engrossed with their experimentation.

Therefore it is no wonder that one of the highest philosophical and metaphysical accomplishment of ancient India, Vedanta or the Upanishadik thoughts is in perfect harmony with modern scientific thoughts.

One of the stark differences between Vedanta and modern science is that while Vedanta emphasizes on a universal divine consciousness pervading everything, scientific world does not acknowledge a phenomenon called consciousness beyond the material realms of sensory perceptions. Vedanta calls the universal all pervading consciousness as Brahman, which means literally the big one. The superimposition of this consciousness in the day to day world of names and forms, i.e. the visible, apparent universe or more simply the Nature and its laws, is called Maya. According to Vedanta it is this all pervading consciousness that is the only existence and it is the ultimate supreme bliss, the goal of mankind. Nature in the realm of Maya is said to be neither existing, nor non existing. It is existing because it is the only entity that we see, feel, and know in our day to day existence and live in it. It is non existing because when the knowledge of Brahman dawns, Maya vanishes, just as, in the language of Sri Ramakrishna, when the magic or illusion trick is known, the magician becomes real while his illusion is known to be an illusion and therefore does not exist.

Science on the other hand stresses on Nature and natural laws as the only existence possible as it can be perceived by the senses and mind. Science does not need to believe in any apparent universe as a projection of a real conscious entity as it deals only with this apparent universe. It postulates that nature, which inherently consists of matter and energy, which again are interchangeable, is inert, devoid of any intelligent will  that we loosely refer to as consciousness.