Get rid of ignorance, which is present in the form of ‘I’, to realize the ultimate truth or Brahman or God in truth.+

To realize oneness, you must unfold the mystery of the ‘I’. without realizing what is this ‘I’ supposed to be in actuality oneness is an impossibility.

Sage Sankara said: ~ Talk as much philosophy as you like, worship as many Gods as you please, observe ceremonies, and sing devotional hymns, but liberation will never come, even after a hundred aeons, without realizing the Oneness.

The ‘I’ is the ignorance. Until one holds the ‘I’ as the Self, it is impossible to acquire Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Athma Gnana.

The seeker has to get rid of the ignorance, which is present in the form of ‘I’, to realize the ultimate truth or Brahman.

What is this ‘I’?

The ‘I’ is not a thought. The ‘I’ is the mind. The mind is the whole universe. The universe appears as waking or dream (duality and disappears as deep sleep (non-duality).

The one that appears as waking or dream (duality) and disappears as deep sleep (nonduality) is the Soul, the Self.

The Soul is present in the form of consciousness. Consciousness pervades everything and everywhere in all the three states.

Without knowing what is the mind, it is impossible to realize the truth, which is beyond form, time, and space.

People think the mind is within the body, but deeper self-search reveals the fact that the world in which you exist itself is the mind.

When the ‘I’ is there then only the mind is present.

If the mind is there, then only the universe is present.

If the universe is present, then only the waking is present.

Thus, it is very much necessary to realize the ‘what ‘I’ is in actuality. Without knowing ‘what is this ‘I’, it is impossible to realize the ‘I-less’ truth, which is beyond form, time, and space.

Till you hold the ‘Self ‘as the ‘I’ you will never be able to get Self-realization. ‘I’ hides the Soul, which is the Self. ‘

'I’ is ignorance.

‘I’ is the duality.

‘I’ is the form, time, and space.

‘I’ is the universe.

‘I’ is the waking.

‘I’ is the dream.

‘I’ is the illusion.

‘I’ is the experience of birth, life, death, and the world.

But remember:~

Without the ‘I’ there is no ignorance.

Without the ‘I’ there is no duality.

Without the ‘I’ there is no form, time, and space.

Without the ‘I’ there is no universe.

Without the ‘I’ there is no waking.

Without the ‘I’ there is no dream.

Without the ‘I’ there is no illusion.

Without the ‘I’ there is no experience of birth, life, death, and the world.

The ‘I’ hides the Soul, the Self, which is the cause of ‘I’.

That is why Ashtavakra Gita 16:10: ~ If you desire liberation, but you still say ‘I’, If you feel the ‘Self’ is the ‘I’, you are not a wise man or a seeker. You are simply a man who suffers.

The Bhagavad Gita: ~ The permanent is always there, only the transient ‘I’ comes and goes. (2.18)

Perfect understanding of ‘what is what’ leads to the realization of truth hidden by the ‘I’. :~Santthosh Kumaar

The seeker of truth must know the difference between the religious God and the Spiritual God.+

 The truth seeker must know the difference between the religious and Spiritual God.

Religious Gods with forms and names belong to dualistic illusion whereas the Spiritual God is the Spirit is ever nondual.

Yajurveda – chapter- 32:~ God is Supreme or Supreme Spirit.

The Bible says: ~ “God is a Spirit, and they that worship God must worship God in spirit and in truth. (John 4:24)

God in truth is not physical. God in truth is present in the form of the Spirit. The Spirit is the cause of the illusory universe in which we exist and the Spirit itself is uncaused.

In Spirituality, the ultimate truth is God. The Atman is the ultimate truth or Brahman or God in truth.

From the standpoint of the Spirit, the form, time, space, and name are merely an illusion. The Spirit alone is real and all else is an illusion.

In Atmic reality, the spirit (God in truth) and matter (the world in which we exist) are one.

Bhagavad Gita: ~ Brahmano hi pratisthaham ~ Brahman (God in truth) is considered the all-pervading consciousness (Spirit), which is the basis of all the animate and inanimate entities and material. (14.27).

When Bhagavad Gita says, God is considered the all-pervading consciousness (Spirit) which is the basis of all the animate and inanimate entities and material then nothing has to be accepted as God other than consciousness.

Lord Krishna Says Ch ~V: ~ “Those who know the ‘Self’ in truth.". The last two words (tattvataha) are usually ignored by pundits, but they make all the difference between the ordinary concept of God and the truth about God.

The dualistic worship of "God” is only for the ignorant populace. God in truth is only Atman, the ‘Self’. In reality, there is no duality, no differentiation. Only Atman exists.

The Vedas confirm God is Atman (Spirit), the ‘Self’.

Rig Veda: ~ The Atman (Soul or Spirit) is the cause; Atman is the support of all that exists in this universe. May ye never turn away from the Atman the ‘Self’. May ye never accept another God in place of the Atman nor worship other than the Atman?" (10:48, 5)

Rig Veda:~ Prajnanam Brahma: - Consciousness is the ultimate reality.

The Spirit is present in the form of Ataman. Atman is present in the form of consciousness.

Brihad Upanishad: ~ “If you think there is another entity, whether man or God there is no truth."

Chandogya Upanishad says: ~ Sarvam khalvidam brahma ~ All this (universe) is verily Brahman. By following back all of the relative appearances in the world, we eventually return to that from which it is all manifest – the non-dual reality ().

Sage Sankara’s Supreme Brahman (God) is impersonal, Nirguna (without Gunas or attributes), Nirakara (formless), Nirvisesha (without special characteristics), immutable, eternal, and Akarta (non-agent). It is above all needs and desires. It is always the Witnessing Subject. It can never become an object as It is beyond the reach of the senses. Brahman is non-dual, one without a second.

Hindus assert their religion is monotheistic, even though they honor many Gods, including Brahma the Creator, Vishnu the Preserver, and Shiva the Destroyer. Hindus claim these various Gods are all manifestations of the oneness of the universe. Hindu religious practices vary from place to place, but they frequently include yoga, physical and mental discipline to harmonize body and Soul, and ritual bathing.

Rig-Veda 1-164-46 and Y.V 32-1 clearly mention that God is “One”.

Rig Veda says God is ‘ONE’ and God is Atman, then why believe and worship in place of the real God.

Belief in multiple Gods, The worship of idols; the worship of images that are not God in truth, The worship of sacred images, ancestor worship, pilgrimage, priestcraft, the belief in avatars or incarnations of God, the hereditary caste system because all these lack Vedic sanction.

Hinduism indulges non-Vedic beliefs such as idolatry, ancestor worship, pilgrimages, priestcraft, offerings made in temples, the caste system, untouchability, and child marriages. All these lack Vedic sanction, therefore, Hinduism is not an Ancient Vedic religion or Santana Dharma.

Realizing the universe is created out of single stuff and that single stuff is the Soul which is present in the form of consciousness leads to non-dualistic or Advaitic Self-awareness. Self-awareness is freedom or Moksha. Moksha is unity in diversity in the midst of duality.

It is very difficult to talk to people about the ultimate truth or Brahman because everyone thinks he knows the ultimate truth or Brahman. This I know business is dangerous. And whatever his reached conclusion is second-hand stuff. Therefore, accepting accumulated knowledge without verification will lead the seekers to hallucinated realization based on the ego.

One may have some flashes of truth when someone tries to indicate it through fewer words. But it takes nearer to truth, not realization. : ~ Santthosh Kumaar

The right path for the modern mindset is the path of the wisdom of Sage Sankara.+

People are intoxicated with the theory of karma; some are with the theory of cause and effect, some with love alone, some with humanism, some with service, and some with rituals, and worship, some with glorifying and surrendering to the guru, some with their logical and intellectual conclusions, some with their orthodoxy and some with their Yogic Samadhi. But all these are the biggest hindrances, not the qualification to acquire Advaitic wisdom.

It is a waste of time to convince these people because they have already accepted something else as truth. Thus, they will not have any urge to know the ultimate truth. Therefore, it is no use discussing with such a crowd and it is better to avoid such a mindset if one seriously seeking the truth.

First Mundaka - Chapter 2 (10):~ “Ignorant fools, regarding sacrifices and humanitarian works as the highest, do not know any higher good. Having enjoyed their reward on the heights of heaven, gained by good works, they enter again this world or a lower one.

It is high time to stop judging who is right and who is wrong in this unreal world and instead spend the same time acquiring Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana to realize the world (Samsara) is unreal the Brahman alone is real.

According to Advaita Vedanta, the Veda addresses itself to two kinds of audiences - the ordinary ones who desire the transitory heaven and other pleasures obtained as a result of ritual sacrifices, and the most advanced seeker, who seeks to know Brahman.

Thus, the purva mimam. sa, with its emphasis on the karma kanda of the Vedas, is meant for the first audience, to help lead its followers along the way. However, the Vedanta, with its emphasis on the jnana kanda, is meant for those who wish to go beyond such transient pleasures.

The orthodox people are ordinary people. Thus the ordinary ones who desire the transitory heaven and other pleasures obtained as a result of ritual sacrifices.

The karma kanda of the Vedas is meant for the ordinary audience, to help lead its followers along the way.

A modern mindset is more advanced and capable of reasoning and discriminating. Thus, the modern mindset is the most advanced which seeks to know the ultimate truth or Brahman.

It is high time for the orthodox highly educated noble Advaitins to realize their religious the orthodox path chosen path was meant for the ignorant in the past; therefore, it is outdated and not suited for the modern mindset.

The right path for the modern mindset is the path of the wisdom of Sage Sankara.

The orthodox religious Advaitic path has nothing to do with ultimate truth or Brahman. Thus getting stuck with the religious path is getting stuck with duality. Getting stuck with duality is getting stuck with falsehood. Getting stuck with the falsehood is accepting the experience of birth, life, death, and the world as a reality.

Thus, the people who want freedom or Moksha right here right now in this very life and in this very world must follow the path of wisdom or Soulcentric reason.

Orthodoxy is the path of ignorance because it recognizes the experience of birth, life, death, and the world as reality whereas Sage Sankara says the world is an illusion.

It is high time to stop judging who is right and who is wrong in this unreal world instead one has to spend the same time acquiring Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana by realizing ‘what is real’ and ‘what is unreal’.: ~Santthosh Kumaar

Sage Sankara pointed out; that even those who were outside the Upanishad fold were as eligible for Moksha.+

Bhagavad Gita 2:46:~ "A man of true knowledge who has attained enlightenment, has the same use for all the scriptures as one has for a small reservoir of water in a place flooded on all sides."

Sage Sankara strongly advocated the study of Upanishads, and at the same time cautioned that the study of Upanishad alone would not lead to moksha. In matters such as spiritual attainment, one’s own realization was the sole authority and it cannot be disputed

Sage Sankara also said the study of the Upanishads was neither indispensable nor a necessary prerequisite for attaining the human goal, the moksha.

Sage Sankara pointed out that even those outside the Upanishad fold were as eligible for moksha as those within the fold. He declared that all beings are Brahman, and therefore, the question of discrimination did not arise. All that one was required to do was get rid of ignorance (Avidya or duality).

The seeker's aim is the search for the Ultimate Truth or Brahman. The search to find the non-dualistic or Advaitic truth that in actuality never was lost, only hidden.

Upanishad aspiration is best expressed in the following sutra:-

OM Asato ma sad gaMaya , tamaso ma jyotir gaMaya , mrityor ma aamritaam gaMaya . Shanti, Shanti, Shanti

"OM Lead me from ignorance to truth, from darkness to light, from death to immortality. Peace, Peace, Peace" (Brihadaranyaka Upanishad (1/3/28)).

Upanishads are based on the insights of the sages and seers and serve primarily as a guidebook. One has to accept the Ultimate reality as Brahman or God in truth.

The Sruti itself’ says:~ "This Atma is NOT to be attained by a study of the Vedas. (Katha Upanishad I, 2, 23.)

Sage Sankara:~ VC- 162- There is no liberation for a person of mere book-knowledge, howsoever well-read in the philosophy of Vedanta, so long as one does not give up the false identification with the body, sense organs, etc., which are unreal.: ~ Santthosh Kumaar

Sage Sankara says: ~ The scriptures dealing with rituals, rewards are therefore addressed to an ignorant person.+

Mundaka Upanishad:~ The rituals and the sacrifices described in the Vedas deal with lower knowledge. The sages ignored these rituals and went in search of higher knowledge. ... Such rituals are unsafe rafts for crossing the sea of samsara, of birth and death. Doomed to shipwreck are those who try to cross the sea of samsara on these poor rafts. Ignorant of their own ignorance, yet wise In their own esteem, these deluded men Proud of their vain learning go round and round Like the blind led by the blind.

How can you worship the Absolute? That implies two ~ the worshipper and the worshipped, whereas the Absolute is nondual. One can worship his idea of the Absolute only or realize his unity with it when he can’t worship it as a part.

Religious rites and rigid ceremonies were passed down from one generation to the next as a practice or set customs and traditions and performed automatically with blind faith. Such worship based on the belief of God does not reach God.

Religious rites and ceremonies, yagnas and homa-havans, or any other forms of ritual are meant for the ignorant populace.

Belief in God without knowing God in actuality holds the worshiper more firmly in the grip of ignorance.

All worship ceremonies and rituals performed on the base of non-~Vedic Gods will not yield any fruits.

Deeper self-search reveals that worshiped, the worship, and the worshiper and the world are merely an illusion created out of consciousness.

Religious rites and ceremonies, yagnas and homa-havans, or any other forms of rituals formal observance has long since set in.

Religious rites and ceremonies, yagnas and homa-havans, or any other forms of ritual are meant for the ignorant populace. In the Atmic path, the seeker has to discard

Sage Sankara says: ~ The scriptures dealing with rituals, and rewards are therefore addressed to an ignorant person.

Sage Sankara:~ (11) As regards the rituals, Sage Sankara says, that the person who performs rituals and aspires for rewards will view himself in terms of the caste into which he is born, his age, the stage of his life, his standing in society etc. In addition, he is required to perform rituals all through his life. However, the Self has none of those attributes or tags. Hence, the person who superimposes all those attributes on the changeless, eternal Self and identifies the Self with the body is confusing one for the other; and is, therefore, an ignorant person. -Adhyasa Bhashya

The scriptures dealing with rituals, rewards, etc. are therefore addressed to an ignorant person.

Sage Sankara:~ (11.1) This ignorance (mistaking the body for Self) brings in its wake a desire for the well-being of the body, aversion for its disease or discomfort, fear of its destruction, and thus a host of miseries(anartha). This anartha is caused by projecting karthvya(“doer” sense) and bhokthavya (object) on the Atman. Sage Sankara calls this adhyasa. The scriptures dealing with rituals, rewards, etc. are, therefore, he says, addressed to an ignorant person. -Adhyasa Bhashya

Sage Sri, Sankara:~ (11.2) In short, the person who engages in rituals with the notion “I am an agent, doer, thinker”, according to Sage Sankara, is ignorant, as his behavior implies a distinct, separate doer/agent/knower; and an object that is to be done/achieved/known. That duality is avidya, an error that can be removed by vidya. -Adhyasa Bhashya

Sage Sri, Sankara: ~ (12) Sage Sankara affirming his belief in one eternal unchanging reality (Brahman) and the illusion of plurality, drives home the point that Upanishads deal not with rituals but with the knowledge of the Absolute (Brahma vidya) and the Upanishads give us an insight into the essential nature of the Self which is identical with the Absolute, the Brahman. -Adhyasa Bhashya

Sage Sankara: ~ Atman, the Self is verily Brahman (God in truth), being equanimous, quiescent, and by nature absolute Existence, Knowledge, and Bliss. Atman is not the body which is non-existence itself. This is called true Knowledge by the wise. :~ Santthosh Kumaar

No need to go round and round by various tortuous paths. Atmic path is the Advaitic path is the only means to reach nonduality.+

There is no need to go round and round by various tortuous paths. There is a clear-cut truth declared by Sage Sankara.

Sage Sankara says: ~ Atman is Brahman (God in truth). Thus, the Soul the innermost ‘Self’ is God. Therefore, all the Gods with form and attributes are mere imaginations based on the false Self. Thus, there is adulteration and add-ons in the past, which have to be bifurcated if one wants pure Vedic essence.

When the Vedas and Upanishads declare that the Soul which is present in the form of the consciousness is actually nothing but Brahman, then why go round and round, by various tortuous paths, like the blind led by the blind.

One has to realize that the mind is in the form of the universe. Trace the source of mind and realize that the source is consciousness. The mind arises from consciousness as the waking or the dream and subsides as the deep sleep.

Even Rig Veda: ~ The Atman is the cause; Atman is the support of all that exists in this universe. May ye never turn away from the Atman, the Self. May ye never accept another God in place of the Atman nor worship other than the Atman?" (10:48, 5)

Even Brihadaranyaka Upanishad: ~ Brahman (God) is present in the form of the Athma, and it is indeed Athma itself.

Yajurveda – chapter- 32:~ God is Supreme Spirit.

Vedas and Upanishads confirm the Soul, the Self, is present in the form of the Spirit or consciousness.

The Soul is the root element of the universe. The Soul is present in the form of the Soul, the Self. The Soul is present in the form of consciousness.

From the Soul, the universe comes into existence. In the Soul, the universe resides. And into the Soul, the universe is dissolved. The Soul is the parent of all that is there.

When the Upanishad says: that the human goal is to acquire Self’-Knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana and they indicate the personal Gods, scriptures, worship, and rituals are not the means to Self–knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana, then why anyone should indulge in it.

Realize right now right here the Soul, the Spirit is God. There is nothing to realize other than realizing the Self is not you but the ‘Self is the God the Spirit, which is present in the form of the consciousness. Knowledge of God is Advaita because God is Advaita, the one without the second

In Manduka Upanishad Brahman and Atman are defined as the same:~

सर्वं ह्येतद् ब्रह्मायमात्मा ब्रह्म सोयमात्मा चतुष्पात् / sarvam hyetad brahmaayamaatmaa brahm soyamaatmaa chatushpaat ~

Manduka Upanishad, verse-2

Translation:~

sarvam(सर्वम्)- Whole/All/Everything; hi(हि)- Really/Just/Surely/Indeed; etad(एतद्)- This here/This; brahm(ब्रह्म)- Brahm/Brahman; ayam(अयम्)- This/Here; aatmaa(आत्मा)- Atma/Atman; sah(सः)- He; ayam(अयम्)- This/Here; chatus(चतुस्)- Four/Quadruple; paat(पात्)- Step/Foot/Quarter

Fragmented Verse:~

सर्वम् हि एतद् ब्रह्म अयम् आत्मा ब्रह्म सः अयम् आत्मा चतुस पात् / sarvam hi etad brahm ayama aatmaa brahm sah ayam aatmaa chatus paat

Simple Meaning: ~

All indeed is this Brahman; This Atman is Brahman; God, this Atman has four steps/quarters.

While Brahman lies behind the sum total of the objective universe, some human minds boggle at any attempt to explain it with only the tools provided by reason. Brahman is beyond the senses, beyond the mind, beyond intelligence, beyond imagination. Indeed, the highest idea is that Brahman is beyond both existence and non-existence, transcending and including time, causation, and space, and thus can never be known in the same material sense as one traditionally 'understands' a given concept or object.

Imagine a person who is blind from birth and has not seen anything. Is it possible for us to explain to him the meaning of the color red? Is any amount of thinking or reasoning on his part ever going to make him understand the sensation of the color red? Similarly, the idea of Brahman cannot be explained or understood through material reasoning or any form of human communication. Brahman is like the color red; those who can sense it cannot explain or argue with those who have never sensed it.

Bhad Upanishad: ~ “This Self is dearer than a son, dearer than wealth, dearer than everything else because It is innermost. If one holds the Self dear were to say to a person who speaks of anything other than the Self as dear, that he, the latter, will lose what he holds dear—and the former is certainly competent to do so—it will indeed come true. One should meditate upon the Self alone as dear. He who meditates upon the Self alone as dear—what he holds dear will not perish”. (Bhad Upanishad -8-p- -211)

Taittiriya Upanishad (II.1):~ where Brahman is described in the following manner: Satyam Jnanam Anantam Brahman - "Brahman is of the nature of truth, knowledge, and infinity". Thus, Brahman is the origin and end of all things, material or otherwise. Brahman is the root source and Divine Ground of everything that exists and does not exist. It is defined as unknowable and Sat chit ananda (Truth-Consciousness-Bliss).

The ultimate truth or Brahman is God. God in truth is not the religious God that people believe in and worship. : ~ Santthosh Kumaar

Sage Sankara says:~ All the effects of ignorance, root, and branch, are burnt down by the fire of Self- knowledge.+

The garbage of religious beliefs dogmas superstition is confounded with the human imagination. The great reality of the glory of the religious Gods is hyped and obscured by so much tinsel and commercialism.

Spirituality is not theology. Advaita is not a philosophy but Advaita is the ultimate truth or Brahman or God. Advaita is Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana or knowledge of the Spirit or God in truth.

The word “Advaita” means one without the second. Advaita essentially refers to the Atman and the whole existence. Advaita is the fullness of consciousness without the division of form, time, and space.

Theology has nothing to do with spirituality. Advaita is pure spirituality. The theological Advaita has nothing to do with the Advaitic wisdom, which is based on the Spirit or Atman.

Theological Advaita is conceptual having its own doctrine has nothing to do with the Gnanic Advaita because Gnanic Advaita is Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana.

Both approaches are not working together because the theological Advaita is based on the birth entity (ego) Gnanic Advaita is based on the Atman (Soul).

Thus, the theological Advaita has to be discarded without mercy to get Advaitic Gnana.

“Advaita” is a term used variously to express the unity of reality. Advaita is unity in diversity.

The seeker has to begin by defining "What is real?" "What is unreal? to establish in Advaitic reality by sheer reasoning alone.

Reasoning is the right way to realize the truth, which is beyond form, time, and space. People must first know what is the truth? and what is untruth’.

Sage Sankara’s wisdom is not teaching or philosophy but Advaita is the universal wisdom. Advaitic wisdom is neither a teaching nor a theory but it is mere guidance to those who are seriously seeking the ultimate truth or Brahman. Grasp the ultimate truth anytime, any age, if the seeker has the spiritual maturity and capacity to grasp it.

Sage Sankara says: ~ VC-47- All the effects of ignorance, root, and branch, are burnt down by the fire of knowledge, which arises from discrimination between these two—the Self and the not-Self.

It really depends on his inborn natural capacity to understand and assimilate it. Sage Sankara’s wisdom is a Self-examiner, to test oneself to discover how near to Gnana he has approached what progress has already been made on the path, and what still remains to be done. It sets up a criterion for Self-judgement. There are millions in search of truth but one in a million will be able to grasp it.

Without Sage Sankara, there is no Advaita (nonduality). Since it was mixed up with orthodoxy there is a lot of confusion. I am highlighting all the obstacles, which is blocking one from realizing the ultimate truth or Brahman. There are so many non-dualistic masters of the East and also from the West who expound Advaitic or non-dualistic knowledge but none of them are helpful to reach the ultimate end.

One has to know and realize his Self is the Soul and identify it as his true identity to find liberation from the bondage of the illusion of birth, life, death, and the world(duality). The goal of our life is to find and realize our identity with our Soul, which is the Self.

Sage Sankara said:~ Neither by the practice of yoga nor philosophy, nor by good works nor by learning, does liberation come, but only through the realization that Atman and Brahman are one in no other way. (1) Vivekachoodamani v 56, pg. 25

To come to a more precise understanding of what non-duality is or might mean, we must return to the original linguistic and philosophic backgrounds from which the word has been translated into English.

If we limit a probe of the meaning of non-duality to Hindu Sanskrit literature, we find that the most frequently used term is “Advaita.

Advaita” is not a religious concept. Advaita is the nature of the existence hidden by the form, time, and space. The seeker has to attempt to rule out from the start a false understanding of reality by a perfect understanding of ‘what is what’.

The Advaita is hidden by the Dvaita. Advaita is the Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness. Dvaita is the universe.

Advaita is basically a denial; it is literally the negation of the Dvaita. That means whatever remains by negating the universe by realizing the universe is created out of single clay and that clay is the Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness, the hidden truth by Dvaita uncovered. Consciousness is the cause of the universe and it, itself is uncaused. : ~ Santthosh Kumaar