“Human beings must be known to be loved; but Divine beings must be loved to be known.” —Blaise PascalAtheistic people have a problem with what they call outside authority. However, to consider the Lord to be an outside authority is, strictly speaking, incorrect. According to His own testimony in Bhagavad Gita (13.23) He is within every living entity, and yet He is not identical with the living entity. This is the single greatest misconception about the Higher Self (Paramatma). Fragmental parts of the Infinite, splinters of the Deity if you will, are not the complete whole any more than a spark bursting forth from a fire is the same as the whole fire. Sparks, smoke, heat and light are all features of the fire, but the fire is the energetic source. The inner authority that infallibly guides the path of unfoldment for a human being is not just a more learned part of that being; it is the Lord, who has kindly come along to accompany the individual self on his sojourn of forgetfulness. Reconnecting with Him is the goal of yoga.
Madhvacharya (1238–1317) the chief proponent of the Dvaita (dualism) school of Vedanta. His hand gesture indicates that there are two within the heart—the individual spirit and the Great Spirit.
In Bhagavad-gita (11.54) the Supreme Lord gives the method for understanding Him.
ज्ञातुं द्रष्टुं च तत्त्वेन प्रवेष्टुं च परन्तप ॥५४॥ bhaktyā tv ananyayā śakya
aham evaṁ-vidho ‘rjuna
jñātuṁ draṣṭuṁ ca tattvena
praveṣṭuṁ ca parantapa
