Letter # 40: “The Forgotten Intent of Science”

According to the On-line Etymological Dictionary the word “science” has been in English usage since 1300 CE. This dictionary defines science as "knowledge (of something) acquired by study," and states that the origins of the word are from the “Old French word science, from the Latin words scientia "knowledge," from sciens (gen. scientis), scire "to know," probably originally "to separate one thing from another, to distinguish," related to scindere "to cut, divide," etc.
In my opinion, science can be boiled down to counting and measuring. Although the on-line etymological dictionary does not state it so, the word science seems to me to be related to the ancient Sanskrit word Sankhya. Sankhya is a form of yoga, which is about understanding things through analysis. And analysis is the method that science uses admirably in order to understand the true nature of things. In my lifespan thus far, a rapidly advancing scientific understanding has given birth to a wonderful technology that I now take for granted. Many years ago, I read somewhere, and unfortunately I’ve lost the reference to the source, that the original purpose of science was to arrive at an understanding of the Creator. With that in mind, here is a quotation from the Vedas, documented more than five thousand years ago. The quotation will remind us that ideas about “atoms”, “measurement”, and the enormity of the universe and of the Creator existed even then. Srila Prabhupada has translated the Sanskrit word “renun” in this verse as “particles” or “atoms”. Here it is: “If one could count the atoms of the universe, then he could count the qualities of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. But no one can count the atoms of the universe, nor can anyone count the transcendental qualities of the Lord.” SB C8:5:6

God Bless; Allah Hu Akbar; May The Forces Of The Universe Bring You Harmony; Hare Krishna; Radha-Swami; and Nanak Naam Chardi Kala Tere Bhane Sarbat Dha Bhalla.

I wish to express my gratitude for your comments, which inspire me to carry on writing. Please forgive my fallibilities in presenting this material. Also, feel free to send this message on to someone that you might think would like to receive it. If you do send it on, my only request of you is that you send it as it is, in its entirety, and to not alter or modify any of the text, references or authorship information. Thus you will help to give credit or liability to where they are properly due.
Jas Bhopal
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References: "The Holy Bible" Online version; "The Koran" (As translated by SV Mir Ahmed Ali 2005 ISBN 0-9761870-0-0); "The Bhagavad Gita As it Is" by Srila Prabhupada (ISBN 0-89213-268-X); "I Am That" Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj ISBN 0-89386-022-0; The Dhammapada ISBN-10:1-84483-344-5; The Sacred Sukhmani ISBN 81-7205-098-4; Wikipedia.