Real Knowledge and Bliss

… real knowledge is not what we know, not intuition, nor reason, nor instinct. 

When that degenerates and is confused, we call it intuition; 

when is degenerates more, we call it reason; 

and when it degenerates still more, we call it instinct. 

That knowledge itself is Vijnana, neither intuition, nor reason nor instinct. The nearest expression for it is 

all-knowingness. There is no limit to it, no combination in it. 

That bliss, when it gets clouded over, we call love, 

attraction for gross bodies or fine bodies, or for ideas. 

This is only a distorted manifestation of that blessedness.

- Swami Vivekananda, 

Talk in New York