In plain words
The heart of man holds one intense longing. It is the longing for an Ānanda that is unshakable and steady. To gain such Ānanda, every man toils night and day without a pause. But he cannot reach it. What is the reason? Taking the body and the senses alone to be himself. He cannot recognise the Satya that he himself is Ānanda. The Upaniṣads have long been clearing away this very doubt with a fine simile. Only when jaggery is mixed into flour does it turn the flour sweet and tasty; the world is like the flour. Wherever this flour shows its sweetness, wherever divinity is experienced, that is the wealth of God alone, not the wealth of Prakṛti.
God has the name Aprameya. Aprameya means the One who cannot be proved by any means of proof whatever. Only through the Vedas can this be understood, and that is why He has another name, ‘Vedaviduḍu’. The pramāṇas: there are three kinds of pramāṇa. Pratyakṣa pramāṇa, anumāna pramāṇa and śabda pramāṇa. Pratyakṣa pramāṇa: when milk is set with a starter, it turns into curd; this is pratyakṣa pramāṇa. Seeing smoke above a mountain far away and suspecting that there is a fire: this is anumāna pramāṇa. Then śabda pramāṇa: this śabda pramāṇa means that when someone who has seen Prasanthi Nilayam goes to someone who has not and describes it to him, that person too comes to know what Prasanthi Nilayam is like. This śabda pramāṇa is the form of words that hand on what has been experienced and enjoyed.
Among these many thousands is one person who has come from America; he is a member of the Sathya Sai World Council, a man called Dick Bock. Even with all his features told in detail, it is hard to recognise him. But the moment I call out “Dick Bock”, a name that is sound itself, that Dick Bock rises to his feet wherever he may be; in just the same way, śabda pramāṇa is the proof for God. He is not One to be caught so easily by descriptions. What is called śabda pramāṇa has two lakṣaṇas: 1. taṭastha lakṣaṇa, 2. svarūpa lakṣaṇa. Taṭastha lakṣaṇa means pointing out a passing mark and so telling of a lasting form; a fine example of it: we say, “The house that crow is sitting on is so-and-so's house.” That only shows a mark for the time being, but that crow does not live on that house for ever. So, through these taṭastha lakṣaṇas, through the forms called Rāma, Kṛṣṇa, Īśvara, Viṣṇu and Allah, we think of God for the time being, worship Him and delight in Him; these are only taṭastha lakṣaṇas, that is, they are not the lasting forms.