Noumenal vs.

Numinous
BY: SAM TRELOAR
Apr 18, 2015 — MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA (SUN) —
In the light of Bhakta Torben's most pertinent contributions I would like to add yet another -
one that I personally find not just unnecessary, but quite frankly, annoying.
Bhagavad-Gita As It Is, 7.2
Original, authorised 1972 edition:
"I shall now declare unto you in full this knowledge both phenomenal and ​noumenal,​ by
knowing which there shall remain nothing further to be known."
Jas It Is:
"I shall now declare unto you in full this knowledge, both phenomenal and ​numinous​. This
being known, nothing further shall remain for you to know."
(the emphasis in ​italics​ is mine)
Noumenal is a 'Kantian word' (often loaded with differing interpretations in various
philosophical circles) covered at Scottish Church College as part of the Philosophy
curriculum. Srila Prabhupada is one of many famous intellectual elite who attended this
highly respected College, such as Indian politician Subhas Chandra Bose, many Supreme
Court and High Court Judges, and renowned yogis such as Paramahansa Yoganananda,
Swami Vivekananda, etc. It was coined by the modern Philosopher Immanuel Kant to
describe the "thing-in-itself" when there is an absence of any external evidence (as opposed
to phenomena which is a material manifestation). Such as the case when subtle energies
cannot be detected by the gross senses or measured by physical apparatus ("beyond the
power of the senses to see or to know"). Of course, all of modern science deals 100% with
measuring phenonema, therefore the word ​noumenal is particularly useful to refer to the
hidden spiritual energies as dealt with in the Abstract Sciences such as Philosophy where
'concrete' terminology may fall short.
Decades ago, when I first came across the word ​noumenal​, I had to look it up in a
dictionary, as I had absolutely no idea what it meant. And perplexingly, it wasn't in the first
few that I searched, but eventually I found it in The Concise Oxford. It since has become a
part of my vocabulary because it is so unique in its application, and nothing like the
completely dissimilar meaning of ​numinous​. The two words phenomenal and noumenal are
antonyms which describe the concrete and the abstract ways that different energies can
manifest, whereas ​numinous describes an experience, a state of consciousness or emotion
- specifically a combined sense of awe and attraction - characteristic of Man's sense of
communion with God.
Now, I am no scholar, nor am I certainly not a member of any intellectual elite. I'm not an
inititiated devotee, I don't even consider myself to be rightly called a 'bhakta' in the strict
sense of the word – my sole claim to any qualification in this matter is that I am familiar
with Srila Prabhupada's original books (I still have my 40 year old BGAII, the first and only
one I've ever owned). Perhaps I became acquainted with the word ​noumenal from its
conspicuous position, with the verse appearing immediately ahead of the the second set of
colour plates in the 1972 Macmillan edition, page 364. My point is that these changes to
Srila Prabhupada's books appear to be a great mistake, even to the average man on the
street. One doesn't need a Ph.D. to see this.
It seems to me that it is entirely out of context with the topic of this verse of the Gita to
introduce the unrelated concept of spiritual awe at the expense of the relevant antonym.
Sure, it may give the reader a touchy-feely kind of connectedness with the subject, but that
is merely a distraction, and more importantly, it changes the meaning. The juxtaposition of
the terms ​phenomenal and ​noumenal is there for a reason, to illustrate the breadth of the
topic, knowledge. This is lost by substituting ​numinous. Noumenal means so much more,
the unknown and the incomprehensible.
All glories to Srila Prabhupada and His Books!
"Bhakta" Sam