Acharya Prashant addresses a question about how saints in the past, without formal scientific education, dealt with people's superstitions. He explains that there are two types of knowledge that can be helpful. To illustrate, he uses an analogy: if someone claims a non-existent thing called 'Monu' is roaming outside, there are two ways to refute this lie. The first is the knowledge of the physical universe, or science. With this knowledge, you would know that matter does not have a 'Monu state' (like solid, liquid, gas, plasma) and therefore, 'Monu' cannot exist. This solves the problem. The second way is to know your own 'house' so well that you know only solid, liquid, or gas can enter it, because that is how you have constructed it. A person who knows neither the external world (science) nor their internal world (the self) will get trapped by the idea of 'Monu'. He elaborates that there is external knowledge and internal knowledge. The person with external knowledge, the scientist, might still fall into delusion. This is because external knowledge is secondary, mediated, and changeable. Science is constantly making new discoveries, and old laws are broken. A scientist who is told that 'Monu' exists might be caught in a dilemma, thinking that perhaps a new discovery has been made. However, the one with internal knowledge, who knows their own 'house' (the self), will never be afraid of 'Monu'. This is because internal knowledge is intimate and direct. Such a person knows that the external world is a projection of the internal. If 'Monu' cannot exist in their 'house', it cannot exist outside either. This is self-knowledge. Therefore, the saints of the past, even without scientific knowledge, possessed self-knowledge. This is the more effective way to be free from superstition. Many scientists can be superstitious, for example, by checking for an auspicious time to launch a new laboratory. This is because the fundamental superstition, the 'I'-tendency, remains. The only real way to be free from 'Monu' (superstition) is through self-knowledge. While science is a cheaper, lighter method, self-knowledge is the ultimate solution. The common person, ignorant of both, is easily fooled by those who have vested interests in keeping them afraid and under control.
