The need for manana and vivēka: reflection, critical thinking, discrimination and judgement
In many recent comments on this blog, particularly on articles such as Our memory of ‘I’ in sleep , Why should we believe that ‘the Self’ is as we believe it to be? , Is there any such thing as a ‘self-realised’ person? and Other than ourself, there are no signs or milestones on the path of self-discovery , various friends have shown a tendency and willingness to accept uncritically whatever certain other people have written or said. Believing uncritically whatever we may read or hear is dangerous, even if we believe that whoever wrote or said it is an authority, because if we do not use our powers of critical thinking and discrimination ( vivēka ) we are liable to be misled into believing many mistaken ideas and interpretations, which would cloud and confuse our understanding and could divert us away from the straight and narrow path of self-investigation ( ātma-vicāra ). Manana in relation to śravaṇa and nididhyāsana Vivēka in relation to manana Critical thinking Perseverance is ...