2 Pramanas

Pramanas 

By Peter Snyders (2.4.2026)

We come across many lies in the written documents. In them, the writers deride people from non-white countries. In their books, they treat the indigenous peoples with contempt and usually laugh at them as being backward, primitive, savages, and brutes, among other insulting, limited extents of their vision.

Many people believe what is written in a book because they are too lazy to check whether what they are reading is true. Religious devotees follow blindly what is in their Holy Book.  They may not know that the same Holy Book says in: English Standard Version
but test everything / (all things); hold fast (onto) what is good.
King James Bible: Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.
New King James Version: Test all things; hold fast what is good.
New American Standard Bible: but examine everything [carefully]; hold firmly / (fast) to that which is good,
Amplified Bible: But test all things carefully [so you can recognize what is good]. Hold firmly to that which is good.
Aramaic Bible in Plain English: Explore everything and hold what is excellent.
Contemporary English Version: Put everything to the test. Accept what is good
Cross References:

Galatians 6:10. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to the family of faith
1 Corinthians 14:29. Two or three prophets should speak, and the others should weigh carefully what is said.
Romans 12:9. Love must be sincere. Detest what is evil; cling to what is good.
1 Thessalonians 5:15. Make sure that no one repays evil for evil. Always pursue what is good for one another and for all people.
1 Thessalonians 5:22. Abstain from every form of evil.
1 John 4:1. Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God. For many false prophets have gone out into the world.
Matthew 7:15-20. Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves…
Source:  

The Lord Buddha says the same, but also that only after testing things do we know ourselves.: Know Yourselves.

Do not accept anything on mere hearsay, simply because it has been said for centuries or believed in through long traditions.

Do not accept anything just because it is thought to be part of sacred teachings

Supposition [inference from defective or presumptive evidence: a conclusion deduced by surmise or guesswork] is a poor basis for beliefs.

Taking things at face value can be misleading.

Never leap to conclusions.

To believe something simply because it sounds pleasant or easy is foolish.

Be careful not to be overly swayed by a friend [one attached to another by affection or esteem: acquaintance: one that is not hostile: one that is of the same nation, party, or group.

But when you know yourselves – (and) these things are immoral, blameworthy, censured [condemned sternly] by the wise, (and) these things when performed and undertaken are conducive to ruin and sorrow – then indeed you should reject them.

When you know yourselves – (and) these things are moral, blameless, praised by the wise, (and) these things when performed and undertaken are conducive to well-being and happiness – then do these things and act accordingly.

Lord Buddha

The question is: How will we know that something is untrue or a rumour or any of the host of deceptive methods? For example, when we read the writings of European callers at the Cape before Jan van Riebeeck, they say such things as: the Khoisan (Khoikhoi and Bushmen) are lazy, uncivilised, and have no religion. Antonio de Saldanha, 1503, and others say the Khoisan are treacherous and untrustworthy; Thomas Stevens, 1579, and others say they are savages, and Sir James Lancaster, 1591, and others call them brutes. But are all these despisings true?

Science can prove many things, but only if they can be measured. What about things like affection, doubt, aspirations, happiness, harm – not to speak of love, hate, wisdom, and humility? These things cannot be measured. The difference is that science and worldly knowledge have to do with physical or tangible matter. That which is not related to material existence we call spiritual. And since we prove things that science cannot prove, we call our manner of knowing ‘spiritual science’. 

Spiritual Science makes use of one or more of the six pramanas. (Please search this word on the internet.) Pramana means “proof” and “means of acquiring true knowledge.” Physical science makes use of two: Perception and Inference, the same as Buddhism.

Since this science is spiritual, religious philosophies like Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism all make use of this Epistemology (the study of knowledge). If you Google search “pramana” and copy the Wiki version, they give the sixteen schools that use this system.

In Sanskrit, prama is a root which, besides which we have already mentioned, also means ‘basis’ and ‘foundation’. This is where we begin our study of everything: at the root, the base; we establish a sound foundation (called a rock in the Bible). 

The first pramana is perception. Perception means to become aware of things through the six senses: sight, hearing, smell, taste, touch, and mind. It means to get an understanding of something. Supreme Master Ching Hai says, “Knowledge without understanding is not knowledge.” Knowledge without certainty is book knowledge, hearsay, propaganda, dogma, blind belief, and all the deceptions we will someday show you in The Theory of Error. 

So, to keep it simple, we will ask the person making any claims: Were you physically there? If so, for how long were you with your source? Did you actually see for yourself what you are saying? The same with hearing. Or is what you are saying just a fantasy you are creating in your biased mind?

So, when we discuss the Bushmen/San in one of our portals, we will be using only reliable sources, like Elizabeth Marshall Thomas, who wrote The Harmless People. She came to the Bushmen with a team of scientists three times, and once they stayed for a whole year.