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Appendix XIII
Saint who stressed Study of Scriptures*
Of what purpose are the scriptures and other sacred texts? This question has often been posed by some who are not aware of the rich dividends, which their study will fetch. Man does not live by bread alone and this human birth provides him with an opportunity to fix a goal before him. But listening to scriptures, a person will be able to distinguish between good and evil deeds and having known both, he will start practicing the rules which are conducive to reach the highest end viz., salvation.
Getting equipped with scriptural knowledge, a person becomes firm in his faith, in the observance of his vows, in his meditation and in his self-restraint which will ensure him a life of purity throughout, without any wavering. But as the light from millions of burning lamps will be of no avail to a blind man, so too the mastery of numerous scriptural texts will be of no use to one without character. Right conduct is really what constitutes religion, which in turn is synonymous with equanimity, a state in which the soul is free from delusion and agitation. A wise man should not conceal the correct meanings of the holy texts nor distort them. Faith, knowledge and conduct together constitute the path of liberation. If this golden rule is not followed in the right perspective, the result will be bondage.
Sensitive and aspiring man seeks to know the act, which will make him escape from suffering in this unstable and changing world, so full of misery. An illustrious saint said, owing to wrong faith, the attitude of a person becomes perverted. He develops a
* The Hindu, 20 October 1998
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