I am citing Sanskrit verses from Vedic literature because according to our concept of civilization, we take Vedic hymns or Vedic version as Absolute Truth, without any mistake, without any cheating. The conditioned soul . . . conditioned soul, one who is not liberated—one who is under the stringent laws of material nature—he is called conditioned soul. He cannot give us perfect knowledge. Conditioned soul. Conditioned souls means one who is identifying with this body, he is called conditioned soul. He is under the condition of this material nature, prakṛti. So such person cannot be perfect. For example, the four kinds of defects, that every one of us, we commit mistakes. To err is human. That is a fact; everyone will agree. Yes. Nobody can say, "I never committed any mistake." Nobody can say that. That is not possible. So long we have got this bodily concept of life, this is mistake. This bodily concept of life itself is mistake. I am not this body, but I am thinking I am this body. Actually I am not this body, and still I am thinking that I am Indian, you are thinking you are American. This is mistake. This beginning is mistake.
So if you can commit mistake, how you can give perfect knowledge? Knowledge means must be perfect, without any mistake, without any illusion. Illusion . . . illusion means to accept something false. The same mistake. And then our imperfectness of the senses: we acquire knowledge; we gather knowledge by perception of our these material senses, but our material senses are imperfect. Just like we are very much proud of our eyes. So I can see under certain condition. Just like if it is not fully lighted, I cannot see what is standing behind; but if there is sufficient light, I can see. Therefore my seeing power is dependent on the varieties of light. So how you can say that whatever you see, it is perfect? I am seeing now things under certain conditions; next moment I will see things under certain other conditions. So as the condition changes, therefore my sight also changes in different ways. Similarly, we have got different senses: our touch, our smell—so many things. All our senses are working under incompetence. Incompetence. So person who has got incompetent senses, who is learned from his mistakes, who is illusioned, whatever knowledge he is giving, that is cheating, because he has no perfect knowledge. So how we can accept knowledge from a person who is liable to so many defects of life? Try to understand. Therefore our process of knowledge is not speculation. What we shall do by speculation? Because my senses, everything, is imperfect; so how can I have perfect knowledge?
So this is not a process of acquiring right knowledge. Our process of acquiring knowledge - to hear from the right person. That is our process. Therefore we are giving so much stress on the Bhagavad-gītā, because Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead.