If the inquiry does not include the universe then it is incomplete.+

Sage Sankara: ~ VC-63- "Without knowing and examining the universe, one can’t know the Truth, as the idea that the external world exists, won't go. It can go only by an inquiry into the nature of the external world. 

If the inquiry does not include the universe then it is incomplete. 

To say the universe is an illusion without first examining it, and inquiring into them thoroughly is to delude yourself.

This universe is common to all; therefore one must begin his inquiry with it first. It is only after he has inquired into the nature of the objective universe, that he should inquire into who is the knower. If, however, he inquires into the knower before the inquiry into the universe, then it is mere mysticism. What is the world?- must precede what is the mind? What is the substance of the mind?- in pursuit of truth?

To know the whole truth, one must know the whole universe as consciousness, otherwise, he gets a half-truth. Renouncing the worldly life to get the truth means the incapacity to think, the impotency of the thinking faculty.

Remember this:~

The world is the same in the cause of a Gnani and in the cause of the ignorant. A Gnani has realized the world in which he exists is merely an illusion created out of the Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness whereas an ignorant thinks the world, in which he exists is a reality.

The look of the world in which we exist depends upon the medium through which the Seer views it. In fact, our mental and intellectual condition will determine the world that confronts us observed and experienced.

A Gnani viewing the world in which he exists sees differently from the ignorant viewing the same world. Each one of them interprets the world that confronts them in terms of their existing knowledge. 

A Gnani sees the world, in which he exists as the illusory play of the Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness whereas the ignorant see the world in which he is born, lives,  and dies as a reality.

A Gnani is one who gained Self-knowledge and has realized the truth, which is beyond form, time, and space. Gnani is fully aware of the fact that the Soul is the   ‘Self’.

The Soul is the fullness of consciousness without the division of form, time, and space. in the realm of the Soul the form, time, and space are one, in essence. That essence is consciousness. 

The Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness, is second to none. The Soul is the ultimate truth or Brahman or God in truth.: ~ Santthosh Kumaar