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AUTHORITY AS A SOURCE OF KNOWLEDGE
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being long historical existence the other also can have the same and both cannot be true.
The second argument advanced in this respect is this old age is wiser than youth, because it possesses more experience. Similarly, old tradition is more reliable than the younger one. But, this argument is logically wrong. An old man is really wiser but the case of old traditions is different. The tradition is not the container of wisdom like the old man but an expression of wisdom. It is an expression of the wisdom of society and as it stands, the present society is older than the primitive society. The experience of the present society is richer than that of the old. It leads to the conclusion that the experience of the present society is riper and therefore, more reliable than that of the ancient society. Consequently, a new tradition contains more truth than the primitive society does.
The third argument advanced in this connection, is based on the belief in gradual deterioration. Almost all the religious systems believe that world is gradually moving towards deterioration. The ancient sages got inspiration direct from God. They used to have direct conversation with deities. But, the modern man has lost that contact. He is going further and further from God. Consequently, he is less reliable. But, this argument is contradicted by the principle of evolution supported by anthropology and other sciences which show that human being has gradually developed to this stage from the stage of animal.
E
Sankara, the propounder of Absolutism, also is a
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