"Veda is the ocean of knowledge. Through Transcendental Meditation, human awareness opens itself to Veda, and total Knowledge gets enlivened in one's awareness—thought, speech, and action are always in the evolutionary direction."—Maharishi

What is Vedic Knowledge?
by TM Magazine, Issue 8
20 August 2012

EXCERPTED FROM MAHARISHI’S PRESS CONFERENCE, AUGUST 11, 2004

Note from the Editor: In this interview Maharishi offers a deeper insight into the understanding and experience of transcending. He explains that as the mind settles down to quieter and quieter levels of activity through Transcendental Meditation (TM) practice, the individual begins to become more familiar with the deepest, most silent level of his/her own awareness. When the mind settles down completely, we transcend thought altogether—that is, we “go beyond” the activity of our thoughts and perceptions and experience our own core reality as consciousness, silent yet fully awake within itself.

Maharishi further explains that this level of the mind is an infinite reservoir of creativity and intelligence that gives rise to all the thoughts, speech, and actions we display throughout our life. He refers to this silent level of the mind as a state of “pure knowledge” or “total knowledge” since it is the source of all the diverse streams of intelligence and creativity giving rise to our life and our world. And in Sanskrit, the word that indicates this value of total knowledge is Veda.

In the press conference excerpt below, a reporter asks Maharishi to explain the term Vedic. Maharishi indicates that Vedic—Vedic education, Vedic health care, etc.—means that these branches of life and learning are connected to their source in total knowledge, or Veda. Similarly, we begin to live a more naturally "Vedic" life when, through our TM practice, we remain more connected to our own full potential of intelligence or transcendental consciousness in the midst of daily activity.

The increased inner clarity of our awareness allows us to see better solutions and to act more successfully in the world for greater achievement and fulfillment. This is the growth of inner knowledge. And as Maharishi indicates, as we grow towards higher states of consciousness and correspondingly higher degrees of knowledge of reality, we begin to experience that infinite potential within. It is then that we realize, on the level of our own experience, the Vedic teaching: Vedaham “I am the Veda”—total knowledge is our own true nature and our birthright as human beings.

Dr. Morris: There are many beautiful questions from the press. And the first question comes from the journalist who wrote this article in the Washington Post. She noticed when she was visiting all of the different aspects of Maharishi Vedic City and the community there that lots of different things were called Vedic. There was a Vedic City, for example; there was also Vedic architecture and Vedic agriculture, Vedic education, and Vedic health. She wanted to know, “What does this word Vedic mean that it could apply to so many different things?”

Maharishi: Veda means “knowledge”—Veda means knowledge. Vedic means “pertaining to knowledge.” Now when we say Veda is knowledge, we say Veda is total knowledge. Then what we present is the unified state of knowledge with the knowledge of all the diversified components of the unified structure of knowledge.

So: unified field of knowledge and diversified components of the unified field of knowledge. That is why, in every area, when we find Vedic this and Vedic this and Vedic this and Vedic this, what does it mean? It means this aspect of knowledge is connected to total knowledge—Vedic knowledge: Vedic education, Vedic health care, Vedic defense, Vedic architecture. Vedic administration: that means administration, the knowledge of administration, with reference to total knowledge of administration. When we say Vedic health then that’ll mean all aspects of health with reference to the total knowledge of health. So all aspects of health are the different constituents of the one unified, holistic character of health.

Everything is Vedic

Everything is Vedic So when in the Vedic City, we find Vedic education, Vedic health care, Vedic agriculture, Vedic administration, Vedic architecture, Vedic economy, that means all these different aspects of knowledge with reference to the total field of knowledge. The people of Vedic City, very fortunately and wisely, named their city to be Vedic—that means “pertaining to total knowledge.” Pertaining to total knowledge means pertaining to all success, all evolution—no problems, no shortcomings, no weaknesses, no sicknesses, no crime. They have very well and very fortunately named their city to be the city with reference to, or the city established in, total knowledge.

It’s a very good question that you raise, but the answer is simple with reference to Veda. Veda is knowledge—total knowledge.

Veda is the Unified Field—and “That Thou Art”

Veda is the Unified Field—and “That Thou Art” About the Veda, there is one very beautiful short expression that defines what is Veda, where is Veda: in the Vedic expression Vedaham—Vedaham. Aham means “I”: “Veda I am; total knowledge I am; unified field I am.” And “total knowledge thou art”: Tat tvam asi. That total knowledge you are, that total knowledge I am: Vedaham, Vedaham, Vedaham.

All this is Veda: Sarvam khalv idam Brahm—“all this is total knowledge.” Brahm means total knowledge—total knowledge. Total knowledge means knowledge of all diverse values. Total knowledge of north and south, total knowledge of east and west, total knowledge of inside, of outside: all this is self-referral. And self-referral is referring to I, to me, to you, to them. This is the essence of Vedic vision—Vedic definition of ultimate reality. That is this total knowledge, total knowledge: Vedaham, “I am the Veda.” “I am”—this is the essence of the Vedic knowledge: “I am the Veda.”

Beautiful question—very beautiful question.

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