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The third stage is the decisive or inferential stage. With the help of many particulars obtained about a white flag or a bird on the spot or from independant sources, one infers it decisively to be a bird as it flies up and down or flaps its wings. The process involves analytical studies of observations, classifying or seperating them under various heads. Similar observations are put under same head and others under different heads. The decision is taken after analysing the observed points and applying them to the object. The name given to this stage is Avaya. Some have called it Apaya as it excludes others for deciding on one object.
The fourth stage for the process of knowing is to retain what already had been decisively learnt in stage 3. This retention leads to communication and application of this knowledge to other similar or dis-similar objects. This stage is named as Dharana and its meaning seems to have been expressed in quite a restricted sense. It would have been better had it been given a more general view. It seems it has been defined with respect to one object at a time and the same object at the other times. Normally, dharana should mean a valid conception applicable to similar fields. If this little better view is taken, it becomes the base for hypothesis in the current terminology. A universally applicable hypothesis become a theory or a law. The third and fourth processes involve all the mental processes given above for drawing valid decision.
The last stage in the knowing process is the preparation of records of the knowledge so obtained. These records are meant to learn what has been known and communicate for the future generation. It is called Śruta or scriptures having a meaning of heard or seen by previous scholars. There is a large amount of discussion about the nature of shruta and their authors. It is said that the authors are of two types: omniscient and non-omniscient, 10 All the present scriptures have been composed by non-omnicient authors on the basis of traditional omniscient authority. It may be surmised they do not satisfy the criteria of their direct omniscient authorship. They should thus be taken as true records by the scholarly authors of various ages. They contain differring views and additional contents in many cases. They may thus be subject to modifications for better accuracy of their contents not substantiated by current observation and analysis. The idea that old scriptures are all-proof and contain all the knowledge for all the times does not stand srutiny. In this case, there should not be any addition or modification in their contents and the knowledge would become like water in a pond. This trend has led India to a trend of non-utilitarian view of pursuance for new knowledge causing her backwardness in recent times in contrast to her earlier competitive position.
Both of the above points are untenable in modern world of scientific attitude. It presumes that the scriptures are records of existing knowledge which grows like at flowing river where modifications and new additions are always possible subject to the condition that they are obtained through the above processes. This fact is
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