Thus, many of the schools of Western philosophy would be excluded from Swami Sivananda s definition of philosophy. The architect of the monumental mansions of philosophy is not merely the abstract and unaided intellect, but the intellect free from all desires, purged of all prejudices, and based on immediate intuition. Swami Sivananda would agree with Hegel in holding that the supreme purpose of philosophy is not circumscribed by the contents of empirical experience but extends to the final and uncontradicted attainment of the Absolute. Philosophy is the expression of the inner urge to know the Atman. It is the science of principles.
Philosophy never rests contented until the permanent acquisition of non-stultified knowledge.
The test of reality is non-contradiction, and philosophy is the pursuit of reality. It is spiritual realisation expressed in logical language, while passing through the mill of reason. Reason in the philosophy of Swami Sivananda is only a handmaid to the higher intuition, made use of to proclaim the truth and value of intuition in the world of sense-perception. It means that a purely intellectual philosophy can never discover reality, for, this discovery is possible only through super-sensory intuition or Sakshatkara . It is never possible to produce a perfect philosophy through the instrumentality of reason alone, for, unbridled reason can easily carry consciousness away from Truth.