a thing which might be usefully utilized in the attainment of their objective. The wise
student of Yoga takes the various doctrines of philosophy and religion lightly, as tenta-
tive explanations and interpretations of truths beyond the realm of the intellect, but
uses them as best as he can in his direct discovery of those truths. Yoga is an essen-
tially practical science and the truths and experiences which it deals with are not de-
pendent upon the particular philosophy or philosophies which are put forward to pro-
vide a rational picture of the objective and the various processes which lead to it. We
do not know really the nature of electricity. There are many theories. But that does not
prevent us from utilizing this force for gaming our physical ends in thousand and one
ways. In the same way the philosophy which provides the theoretical background of
Yoga and its inadequacies does not affect materially the results which can be obtained
by the practice of Yoga. Let us give philosophy its proper place in the study of Yoga
and not mix it up with the practical and scientific part of the subject.
- The purpose of the coming together of the Purusa and Prakrti is gaining
by the Purusa of the awareness of his true nature and the unfoldment of powers inher-
ent in him and Prakrti.
It is generally thought that the idea of evolution is an entirely new contribution
made by Science to modern civilization, and Darwin is considered to be the father of
this idea. But as we often say there is nothing new under the Sun and the idea of evolu-
tion has come down to us in one form or another from the earliest times. It would be
really surprising if the master minds who lived in the past and who had such a wonder-
ful grasp of the essential realities of life had missed this important and all-pervading
Law underlying the manifestation of life. It is perhaps true that this Law was not stud-
ied and presented in the detailed form as we have it now but then nothing pertaining to
the phenomenal world which was not essential for real human happiness was studied