Srila Gurudeva: Srila Prabhupada Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Gosvami Thakura taught that there are five kinds of knowledge. The first is pratyaksa, direct perception. This means that which is realized directly by our senses. The things we can see, touch, smell, hear, all these things. But then some things are paroksa. There are things that we cannot see or touch, but yet there is something and that is called paroksa. Paroksa means indirect perception, that which is beyond material perception. This is like Svarga, the happiness which is tasted there, not here. Then, there is aparoksa. Pratyaksa, paroksa, then aparoksa. What is aparoksa? It is those things which are not realized by our senses but yet it is beyond the limit of this entire world. This is like brahma-tattva, mukti. Aparoksa is mukti.
Then, adhoksaja. What is adhoksaja? It is beyond the limit of mind, but it is not aparoksa, or mukti. It is like Narayana-tattva and the service of Narayana. It is the service of Adhoksaja. The things and the moods which cannot be realized by the mind, these are aparoksa. But there is a mind of the atma, an intelligence of the atma. Everything is there of the atma. That which is realized by the senses of atma, that is called adhoksaja. So Narayana is adhoksaja. Then after this, there is aprakrta.
When we will serve Krsna in Vrndavana, then with rasa we will realize Vrajendra-nandana Syamasundara in four ways: dasya, sakhya, vatsalya, and madhurya. We will see that Krsna is so beautiful and marvelous, having so much opulence, even more than Vaikuntha. It is more than Vaikuntha, but yet it is covered with madhurya, sweetness. This is called aprakrta. Srila Prabhupada divided this jnana or knowledge into these five categories. He saw that all the karmis like those who were performing austerities and fire sacrifices, and endeavoring for so much wealth, reputation, and everything, this is pratyaksa.
Like Ravana, Jarasandha, Kumbha Karna, Duryodhana, and Kamsa, they were endeavoring for material happiness. They had pratyaksa darsana. They used to sacrifice so much and attack one another to take their kingdom and wealth and wives and so on. This is called pratyaksa.
[Spoken by Srila Gurudeva on December 7th, 1998, Malaysia, published as part of the Bhakta Bandhav Anthology, Volume 25]