The universe is both real and unreal. It is real because it is a manifestation of consciousness, but is unreal, in the sense, that it is not absolute and eternal like consciousness itself.
People's approach is more practical, and they stuck with the reality of the world, they take it as real. That is why all the confusion.
The look of an object will depend upon the medium through which the observer views it. In fact, our mental and intellectual conditions determine the world, observed, and experienced. The commoner viewing the world will see differently from a Gnani viewing the same world. Each one interprets the world that they see in terms of their existing knowledge. The commoner sees everything based on the ego, therefore, experiences the birth, life, death, and the world as a reality, whereas a Gnani sees everything as the consciousness and he is fully aware of the fact that, there is no second thing that exists other than the Soul or the consciousness. Thus, all the egocentric (religious) adulteration has to be bifurcated to realize the ultimate truth, which is beyond form, time, and space.
Sage Sankara says you must first know what is before you. If you cannot know that, what else can you know or understand? If you give up the external world in your inquiry, you cannot get the whole truth.
The Soul, the 'Self' reveals ‘what is real’ and ‘what is unreal” when the seeker is receptive and ready.
It takes time for the seeker to gain the perfect understanding of ‘what is truth’ and ‘’what is untruth’. It takes time for the Soul, the Self to wake up from the sleep of ignorance, and it takes time for one realizes the truth, which is beyond the form, time, and space.
Remember:~
Sage Sankara:~ VC "All this universe which through ignorance appears as of diverse forms, is nothing else but Brahman which is absolutely free from all the limitations of human thought.
This universe is common to all of us, therefore one must include the universe in his investigation in order to realize the ultimate truth or Brahman or God in truth. It is only after one has inquired into the nature of the objective universe, that he should inquire into who is the knower. If, however, one inquiries into the knower before the inquiry into the universe, then it is mere mysticism. One must have a perfect understanding of what is what.
v “What is the universe?”
That is why Sage Sankara indicated in (VC):- 63- Without causing the objective universe to vanish and without knowing the truth of the ‘‘Self’’ how is one to achieve Liberation by the mere utterance of the word Brahman? — It would result merely in an effort of speech.
65. As a treasure hidden underground requires (for its extraction) competent instruction, excavation, the removal of stones and other such things lying above it and (finally) grasping, but never comes out by being (merely) called out by name, so the transparent Truth of the ‘‘Self’’, which is hidden by Maya and its effects, is to be attained through the instructions of a knower of Brahman, followed by reflection, meditation and so forth, but not through perverted arguments.
If the inquiry does not include the universe then it is incomplete. The universe itself is what God is all about. The totality of the universe is what God is all about. You just study the nature of the universe with all the seriousness and sincerity to unfold the mystery of the universe. That is all you have to do. The universe is the seeker's school.
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.
When you finally realize the ‘‘Self’ ‘is not you but the ‘‘Self’’ is the Soul then you will realize the universe is merely an illusion created out of the Soul. The Soul is present in the form of consciousness.
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 non-Self.
Remember: ~ All is consciousness. The whole universe is consciousness. From consciousness, the universe comes. When the universe disappears, the consciousness still remains without form, time, and space.
The universe exists when Advaitic wisdom dawns but only their unreal nature is exposed.
There is Self-awareness. A Gnani is fully aware that, his own body and his experience of the universe is an illusion created out of the consciousness. Thus, the form and names have no value because they are part of the illusion.
The real is consciousness from which the whole universe is made. Thus through wisdom one reaches the stillness of the Self, which is formless non-dual in its nature. Thus, one is aware of the material (consciousness), not the things (illusion) made out of the material.
As gold is the important material in making ornaments, so, consciousness is the material that is essential for the three states to arise. The gold remains gold when it is not ornamented. In Self- awareness, the consciousness remains in its formless nondual true nature in the midst of the dualistic illusion.
The form, time, and space are the product of ignorance. Until the ignorance is there the waking remains as a reality when the ignorance vanishes in the midst of the waking experience then the waking experience also becomes unreal, the same way as the dream becomes unreal when the waking takes place. : ~ Santthosh Kumaar
