The Methods of Attaining Knowledge:
The starting point in philosophical discussion is epistemology-establishing the basis of knowledge. Srila Jiva Goswami lists in his Sad-sandharbha ten methods of attaining knowledge, including tradition, history, guessing, comparison, probability, and logic, and shows how all of them fit into three main categories:
-Pratyaksa (Direct sense perception): The knowledge we get through the five senses;
-Anumana (Mental reasoning): Literally "to follow (anu) the mind (mana)";
-Sabda (Authoritative testimony): Literally "sound"
About Vedic Authority:
1. The Vedas are like an instruction manual to the material world.
2. The artist knows best of his own painting.
3. Inductive (by own strength, Āroha-panthā, ascending process, this is the Māyāvādī philosopher's policy) and deductive (that comes down, Avaroha panthā, descending process, this is the Vaishnava philosopher's policy) knowledge: if the authority is perfect, then hearing from him is the perfect method.
4. We can experiment and come to the same conclusion, but accepting authority will save us time.
5. The Vedic knowledge is described as apauruseya (not of man).
6. The Vedas are accepted as axiomatic (obvious, logical).
The Four Defects of the Conditioned Soul:
Imperfect Senses (Karaṇāpāṭava): The senses are limited and can easily be misled.
Illusion (Pramāda): Accepting as real something that is not real.
Mistakes (Bhrama): "To err is human."
Cheating (Vipralipsā): To propagate falsehood, to present yourself as something you are not.
Looking for the key under the street light: Using our material mind and senses to find the truth is like the man who dropped his car keys in the driveway but searches for it under the streetlight, where the light is better. Taking help from the scriptures is like using a torchlight in the driveway. God is all-powerful, all-good, and all-knowing.
So this is why one should take knowledge which is apauruseya. This is stated in Sri Isopanisad Introduction lectures by Srila Prabhupada. We take the knowledge coming down from disciplic succesion. The explanation for us comes through the itihasa (history).
We are now in the Kali Yuga (Kali age). Before Kali, there was Dvapara Yuga, before that you had Treta Yuga and before that you had Satya Yuga. In each Yuga, God comes down for the pleasure of His devotees and to destroy the demons (Bhagavad Gita As It Is Chapter 4, Texts 7 and 8). In Treta Yuga you had the Ramayana. At the end of Dvapara Yuga, you had the Mahabharata. In the Mahabharata, God, Sri Krishna Himself sings the Bhagavad Gita As It Is to Arjuna for the benefit of humankind. Herafter the grand-son of Arjuna, the sole survivor of the Kuru-dynasty is the last guardian of Vedic Varnasrama Dharma, protector of all conditioned souls in the universe as well as protector of the cows. With him leaving his body, the Age of Kali starts with cow-slaughtering and breaking of the 4 regulative principles by humankind as well as no devotional service performed to the Supreme Personality of Godhead by humans.
After the Bhagavad Gita As It Is, the War starts. After 18 days, the devotees of Sri Krishna win the war. Herafter the following occurred, as most of people today (like those who call themselves Hindus) know or should know and propagate:
Doesn't above statements explain the current situation of the land where Ganga Mother and Yamuna Mother flows? That in Kali Yuga, the great dynasties of the Sun and Moon demigods were ended by mleccha's? How could this be possible? Those familiar with the Purana's, know the history and power of the Kings born in these dynasty's. How in Kali Yuga, these descendents of these dynasties got killed? These mleccha's stopped all Vedic rituals and kept all away from performing and upholding the Vedic rules and regulations. Brahmana's were being killed, cows were being slaughtered. In the name of the Veda's alot of unjust activities were being performed (by the caste brahmanas). The great devotee Sri Advaita Acarya was very distressed and prayed for the incarnation of the Lord. When this happens, what does Sri Krishna say? Answer: Bhagavad Gita Chapter 4, texts 7 and 8.
In Srimad Bhagavatam, Canto 1, Chapter 4, text 25 it is stated that for Women, Friends of the Twice-born and sudra's (please find the explanation of this statement here) only the itihasa is the way to understand things as they are and to gain knowledge. All other subjects in the mundane universe and in the Veda's (rituals, upaveda's etc) all are not the goal in Kali Yuga. In Kali Yuga, only one process is intact for the conditioned souls: Hari Nama Sankirtana (Bhakti Yoga). All other Yoga processes do not work in Kali Yuga!
So we are now here, today, go back in itihasa (history) and judge yourself: Srila Prabhupada in the 60s and 70s, go back via the Guru Parampara (disciplic succession) all the way back to Srila Thakur Bhaktivinode, then back to the Six Gosvamis and then eventually back to the Panca Tattva. Sri Krishna Caitanya Mahaprabhu incarnates at a time when muslims took firm control of northern India.
Think about how Kali Yuga (Sri Caitanya incarnation) started, go back to Dvapara Yuga (Mahabharata, Bhagavad Gita, Sri Krishna came personally), then go back to Treta Yuga (Ramayana, Krishna incarnates as Lord Rama), then go back to Satya Yuga (Krishna incarnates again, see Srimad Bhagavatam for more details. There are alot of incarnations of Sri Krishna, this is how nice He is). Have a look at the Vedic Universal Time period calculation to understand the greatness of God and His creation. It is explained how long one catur yuga is and how long one day of Brahma lasts. Sri Krishna comes down in a universe, in one day of Brahma. So to understand all this in detail, one has to have huge Brahminical power and be a strict Brahmana, following all the Vedic rules and regulations as described in the sastra's, like the 4 regulative principles and chanting of the Holy Name of the Lord. To understand everything in detail, now in Kali Yuga, is to much for our tiny brains.
There are planet movements and positions mentioned which could not have occurred for thousands of years, how can this be explained by atheist scientists? It is better to be submissive and to surrender to the pure devotee of the Lord, His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Svami Srila Prabhupada. Get information about the 4 yuga's. About Srimad Bhagavatam, Canto's 1 till 9 and then start with Canto 10.
Canto 10 starts at the end of Dvapara Yuga, it contains the pastimes of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Krishna.