Disclaimer: This translation does not guarantee complete accuracy, please confirm with the original page text.
The Tattvartha Sutra states that all who illuminate and accurately interpret subjects such as science, literature, and so forth possess right vision. Hence, the question arises: what is the basis for the previously mentioned knowledge regarding the relationship between knowledge and ignorance in spiritual texts?
The basis of spiritual texts is spiritual vision; it is not worldly vision. There are two types of souls: some are oriented towards liberation, and some are oriented towards the world. Among those souls oriented towards liberation, the degree of potential and self-awareness is present. Therefore, they use all their knowledge solely to support the potential for liberation and not for the validation of worldly desires. Hence, even if their knowledge is rather limited from a worldly perspective, it is still termed knowledge. Conversely, even if the knowledge of world-oriented souls is vast and clear, it is termed ignorance to the extent that it lacks the qualification of liberating potential.
Just as an insane person may mistakenly understand something valuable as worthless due to madness and is therefore unable to discern the difference between truth and falsehood, all of their so-called knowledge is considered empty or ignorant. Similarly, even if the world-oriented soul possesses significantly more knowledge, all of its worldly knowledge is deemed ignorance from the perspective of spiritual vision due to its blindness to the essence of the soul.
In summary, a mad person may accumulate more and perhaps even sometimes understand things correctly, but their madness only continues to increase.