Jñānam means knowledge. And vijñānam means particular knowledge. Just like in scientific word there are knowledge and scientific knowledge, or theoretical knowledge and experimental knowledge—two kinds of knowledge. Science . . . In the field of scientific knowledge there are things, just like observation and experiment. Things are going on. The scientists are observing that "These things is being done." Now there are so many observation, atomic observation; proton, neutron, they are observing. And now, when that observation is complete, when they are put into experimental knowledge, that is called vijñānam. So Kṛṣṇa says that "I shall explain to you jñānam, theoretical knowledge, with practical experiment." Not that you have to accept this knowledge blindly. Practical experiment. Jñānaṁ te 'haṁ pravakṣyāmy anasū . . . Jñānaṁ vijñāna-sahitam.
Just like the controversy is . . . The modern scientists, they say that "Life is generated from matter." We are protesting. We are protesting because . . . We are not scientists, of course, but we are scientists so far our knowledge is concerned. Because here it is said . . . Kṛṣṇa says, jñānaṁ te 'haṁ sa-vijñānam (BG 7.2), so Kṛṣṇa is the authority. He is the opulent, most opulent, the wisest. So if we receive from Him knowledge, then that is perfect. I may not be perfect, but the knowledge I receive from Kṛṣṇa, that is perfect. That is perfect. Therefore we should receive from Kṛṣṇa knowledge. That is perfect knowledge. A small child, he does not know what is this watch, and the father explains to him, "My dear child, this is called watch. It is moving by this machine," and as far as the child can understand, it is explained. So when the child says, "This is watch, and it is working like this. I have heard it from my father," that is perfect knowledge. That is perfect. He may be imperfect, but his knowledge is perfect because he has received the knowledge from the perfect person. This is a crude example. Similarly, any knowledge you receive from the Supreme Personality of Godhead, it is perfect.
Therefore Kṛṣṇa said that,
- idaṁ tu te guhyatamaṁ
- pravakṣyāmy anasūyave
- jñānaṁ vijñāna-sahitaṁ
- yaj jñātvā . . .
- (BG 9.1)
And if you learn this knowledge, if you actually assimilate this knowledge—yaj jñātvā mokṣyase aśubhāt—then you become liberated from this inauspicious life, aśubham. Śubha mean auspicious, and aśubha means inauspicious. So our this material existence is inauspicious because we are full of ignorance, full of miserable condition, and this body is not permanent. Our existence, body, should have been like Kṛṣṇa. Because Kṛṣṇa is the original father, the son's body is as good as the father's body. But when we learn from the śāstra that īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ sac-cid-ānanda-vigrahaḥ (BS 5.1), His form is eternal, full of bliss and knowledge, and when we compare our this body, material body, it is neither eternal, neither full of knowledge, neither full of bliss. This is aśubha. The aśubha means it is not śubha. If his body would have been auspicious, then this body would continue to exist, because we are eternal.
These things have been described very vividly in the Second Chapter: na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre (BG 2.20). Because we are dull brain . . . There is no education actually. The modern education means simply a craftsmanship. If you can prepare a nice motorcar, oh, that is advancement of the . . . And what is this? This is craftsmanship. It is the blacksmith's work. It is not knowledge. Knowledge is different. Therefore it is called jñānaṁ vijñāna-sahitam. This is knowledge: "What I am? I am this body or something else? Why I am suffering? If there is any remedy? I do not wish to die, neither I am subjected to death." Nityaḥ śāśvato 'yaṁ na hanyate han . . . This is knowledge, that "If I am eternal, if I do not die after annihilation of this body, then why I am subjected to this body?" This is knowledge. And to manufacture a motorcar, that is not knowledge. That is craftsmanship. Knowledge is here, that "I am eternal. Why I am put into this condition of temporary body? Not only one kind of body, but there are 8,400,000 different forms of body, and I have to accept one of them, tathā dehāntara-prāptiḥ (BG 2.13), according to my karma. This is my position. How to get out of it, to inquire about it? If there is any science to accept it?" That is knowledge.
Therefore Kṛṣṇa says, jñānaṁ sa-vijñānam, vijñāna-sahitaṁ yaj jñātvā: "If you are fortunate enough to understand this knowledge, then mokṣyase. You become liberated from this inauspicious condition of repeated birth, death, ignorance and suffering, so many things." So we shall try to explain one after another. This is the beginning.