Microsoft Word - Taimni - The Science of Yoga.doc

Subtlety, obscurity and remoteness to which reference is made in this Sutra are
all due to the limitations of the sense-organs. These limitations are sought to be over-
come by Science by enlarging the scope of the sense-organs through the use of highly
refined physical instruments. Thus enormous help is given to the eyes in seeing what is
distant by the use of a telescope, in seeing what is small by the use of a microscope
and in seeing what is hidden by the use of an X-ray apparatus. But these instrumental
aids afforded to our physical sense-organs, though wonderful in some ways, suffer
from enormous limitations of various kinds. In the first place, their sphere of observa-
tion, however enlarged it may be, is confined within the physical world. All the super-
physical worlds by their very nature will always remain hidden from the most sensitive
physical instruments that may be devised. And since the physical world is merely the
outermost shell of the manifested Universe our knowledge of this Universe is bound to
remain fragmentary and extremely partial. In the second place, it is never possible to
reach the final truth with regard to fundamental scientific questions in this way. Won-
derful though our knowledge is with regard to matter and energy we should not forget
that much of this knowledge is inferential and therefore subject to doubt and error. The
rapid supersession of different theories, one after another, which has marked the ad-
vance of Science in the fields of chemistry and physics has created so much confusion
and uncertainty with regard to the fundamental questions concerning the nature of the
manifested Universe that the scientist does not seem to be sure about anything now
except the empirical facts which he has obtained and utilized in such a marvellous
manner. This is inevitable as long as we continue to investigate, exclusively by physi-
cal instruments and mathematical analysis, a Universe whose foundations lie in the
realms of mind and consciousness.
Now, the Yogic method is entirely different. It discards completely all external
aids and relies on the unfoldment of inner organs of perception. These organs are pre-
sent in a more or less perfect state of development in all evolved human beings and
require only to be put to use by proper training through Yogic methods. The unfold-
ment of these organs, corresponding to all levels of consciousness and subtlety of mat-
ter, step by step, opens up naturally all the subtle realms of matter to the Yogi right up
to the last stage where matter disappears into consciousness. And incidentally, it pro-
vides him with the means of investigating the phenomena even of the physical world
and manipulating its forces far more simply and effectively than a scientist can do, as
the nature of many Siddhis clearly shows. It is true that the Yogic method is individual,