________________
this state of right vision, one knows the nature of reality and knows the place of oneself in this reality. From this point of view, we can see that one's purpose is to know reality.
From here you go to knowledge itself. Right knowledge opens your door. You no longer feel bombarded by people. You say, "All right. It is their nature, their habit, their tendency. They are as they are. I need not be like them." You do not imitate them. You keep yourself in your place. That is the purpose of learning. If a person acts in a silly way and then we respond to that in a like way, what is the purpose of our classes, our learning, our meditation? We are different. We have to be different.
We have the power to change our response. When we see some benefit, we can do it. If you have a business client and he insults you, you do not argue; you accept it because you want the profit. You do not pay attention to the insult, you pay attention to the profit. This shows you have the power, but you don't use it with your relatives or friends or those close to you.
Knowledge is useful when these moments come in life. It is not memorizing and remembering anything. Knowledge comes from experience and reminds us, "These are superficial things and I must change the person by being calm rather than angry." Samyag gnana is the knowledge to know oneself and not to identify with someone's adjective. You say, "This person does not know me. That is why she uses this
36
