Before performing the rituals on various Gods one must know what Gods supposed to be in actuality according to Vedas, Upanishads.+

Rig Veda: ~ 'Prajnanam Brahma'- Consciousness is the ultimate reality or Brahman or God in truth.

Do not accept any other God other than the Soul. The Soul is God in truth,  Nothing is real but the Soul, which present in the form of Consciousness. Nothing Matters but realize  God in truth. God in truth is everywhere and in everything. Let these words be inscribed in your subconscious.

God in truth is hidden by the illusory universe. God in truth alone is real and eternal and all else is an illusion. 

Brahman is merely a word to indicate the ultimate truth or God in truth.  The ultimate truth itself is God in truth.

Remember:~

The essence of Mundaka is: Do not be satisfied with rituals, yoga, etc. which are good in their own way, but inquire. Into what? Brahman and Atman are things you can never see. So do not inquire into them. Inquire into the world around you, which you can see. Science tells you it is passing away every second. Everything is dying repeatedly. Where is it going? Thus you follow up your inquiry into what you can lay hands on. How can you inquire into Atma which you cannot see? So first we deal with the known and seen, this inquiry leads up to the unknown in the end.

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.

Sage Sankara pointed out that rituals could in no way bring about wisdom, much less moksha. He asserted while the rewards of the rituals were not mattered of direct realization, wisdom which is the fruit of Vedanta is based on immediate and personal realization; one need not have to wait for the reward nor one be in doubt whether the reward would or would not come.

This was in sharp contrast to the position taken by Mimamsakas who asserted that rituals alone would lead one to higher levels of attainment. Further, the deities would reward only those entitled to perform the rituals alone. The entitlement involved the caste, creed, and other parameters.

Sage Sankara’s criticized severely the ritualistic attitude and those who advocated such practices. However, the texts that combined rituals with wisdom (jnana_karma_samucchaya) more in favor of the Mimamsaka position came onto vogue, projecting Sage Sankara as the rallying force of the doctrine. His followers might have found Sage Sankara’s mission a hard task and, therefore, compromised the liberating wisdom with the performance of rituals.

Remember:~

Before performing the rituals on various Gods one must know what Gods supposed to be in actuality according to Vedas, Upanishads, and Bhagavad Gita.

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 innermost self. May ye never accept another God in place of the Atman nor worship other than the Atman?" (10:48, 5)

Yajurveda – chapter- 32:~  God is Supreme Spirit has no ‘Pratima’ (idol) or material shape. He cannot be seen directly by anyone. He pervades all beings and all directions. Thus, Idolatry does not find any support from the Vedas.

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

Thus it refers to formless and attributeless God, which is the Atman (Soul), the   ‘Self’ within the false experience. Thus it indicates clearly all the Gods with form and attributes are mere imagination based on the false ‘Self’. Thus Atman or Soul, the innermost ‘Self’ is God.

Bhagavad Gita: ~ Brahmano hi pratisthaham ~ Brahman (God) is considered the all-pervading consciousness, 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 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. The God in truth is only Atman, the innermost Self. In reality, there is no duality, no differentiation. Only Atman exists.

Dogmas and beliefs, rituals and ceremonies, can never be the essence of spirituality. They are based on the blind belief based  Gods. The rituals, prayers based on the false belief of God are not only superficial and ineffective and positively harmful and misleading.

Bhagavad Gita:~ All those whose intelligence has been stolen by material desires, they worship many gods. (7- Verse -20)

Brihadaranyaka Upanishad: "He who worships the deities as entities entirely separate from him does not know the truth. For the Gods, he is like a pasu (beast)". (1. 4. 10)

Mundaka Upanishad: ~ The study of the Vedas, linguistics, Rituals, astronomy, and all the arts can be called lower knowledge. The higher is that which leads to Self-realization. The eye cannot see it; the mind cannot grasp it. The deathless Self has neither caste nor race, neither eyes nor ears nor hands nor feet. Sages say this Self is infinite in the great and in the small, everlasting and changeless, the source of life.

Often they not only feed the egos of the priests but also serve as an instrument for the exploitation of the credulous.

The rituals mentioned in the karmakanda of the Vedas are sought to be negated in the jnanakanda which is also part of the same scripture. While the karmakanda enjoins upon you the worship of various deities and lays down rules for the same, the jnanakanda constituted by the Upanishads ridicules the worshipper of deities as a dim-witted person no better than a beast.

This seems strange, the latter part of the Vedas contradicting the former part. The first part deals throughout with karma, while the second or concluding part is all about jnana. Owing to this difference, people have gone so far as to divide our scripture into two sections: the Vedas (that is the first part) to mean the karmakanda and the Upanishads (Vedanta) to mean the jnanakanda.

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.

Those who lack the intelligence to discriminate between formless witness (subject) and three states (object) will not be able to grasp what is real and what is unreal. Both subject and object are the consciousness, not the subject alone.

Sage Sankara:~ VC Let erudite scholars quote all the scripture, let Gods be invoked through sacrifices, let elaborate rituals be performed, let personal Gods be propitiated---yet, without the realization of one‘s identity With the Self, there shall be no liberation for the individual, not even in the lifetimes of a hundred Brahmas put together (verses-6)

Religious rites and rigid ceremonies were passed down from one generation to the next as a practice or set customs and tradition 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 and the ceremonies rituals performed on the base of non-~Vedic Gods will not yield any fruits. Deeper self-search reveals the fact that worshiped, the worship, and the worshiper and the world are merely an illusion created out of the 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, rewards are therefore addressed to an ignorant person.

Sage Sankara:~ (11) As regards the rituals, Sage Sankara says, 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 Self with the body is confusing one for the other; and is, therefore, an ignorant person. The scriptures dealing with rituals, rewards, etc. are therefore addressed to an ignorant person. Adhyasa Bhashya 

 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. 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 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), being equanimous, quiescent, and by nature absolute Existence, Knowledge, and Bliss. Atman is not the body that is non-existence itself. This is called true Knowledge by the wise. : ~ Santthosh Kumaar

Sage Sankara’s Advaitic wisdom has not been taken seriously because of people’s orthodox attitude.+

Sage Sankara was an independent thinker. Sage Sankara’s Advaitic wisdom has not been taken seriously by many in India because most of the followers of Sage Sankara are religious orthodox.

Swami Vivekananda aptly described Sage Sankara’s Advaita as the fairest flower of philosophy that any country of any age has produced.

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.

Sage Sankara says: - 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.

It is that philosophy in India was for centuries more an exposition of the ancient classics than the independent thought of individual thinkers as in ancient Greece or modern Europe and America.

Sage Sankara and Sage Goudpada are independent thinkers other schools of Indian philosophy are mere theologies. Advaitic wisdom is the only tool to unfold the mystery of the ‘I’. The dualistic philosophy cannot escape the charge of dogmatism.

Intelligence and thought, is not applicable to Advaitism, intelligence and thought are based on false ‘Self’ (waking entity) within the false experience (waking). The whole Advaitic philosophy is an attempt to transcend the limitations of intelligence and thought.

The two points of view a Gnani is not cut off from the experience of practical life within the practical world because Advaitic truth is neither realism nor idealism; it is beyond both these.

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

Advaitic wisdom does not begin with the ultimate truth. The ultimate truth has to be proved, not assumed. Hence, so-called philosophers who take Brahman for granted are not philosophers at all.

Lots of Advaitin scholars will teach that all is yourself but none of them can show that this is so, none has analyzed it scientifically, and none can prove it. Rational proof is required so that one arrives at knowing the ultimate truth or Brahman i.e. Gnana.

Theirs is mere dogma, parrotism, repetition of what they read in scripture. Authoritarianism merely assumes as true what another says, but what has yet to be proved.

Sage Sankara endeavored towards establishing the Vedic religion overthrowing Buddhism. But even he was not able to avoid the influence of Buddhism. The influence of the revolutionary atmosphere of Buddhism has reappeared in the Advaita of Sage Sankara. His inability to revive the Vedic religion that flourished before the Buddhist revolution in its pure form is discernible.

Sage Sankara gave out what was of most use to the greatest number of people. Therefore, in the commentaries on the Upanishads, such as the famous Mandukya, he gave the highest non-dual message of the identity of Atman and Brahman, revitalizing the philosophy and practice of Advaita, while in the commentaries on the Brahmasūtra he gave lesser teaching, positing both higher and lower Maya and higher and lower Brahman (Ishvara) to explain creation for those of lesser intellects until they were ready for the highest truth.

Only through Self -knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana negation of duality is possible. The Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness, is the ultimate truth or Brahman or God in truth.

Consciousness is the cause of the origin, maintenance, and withdrawal of the universe is Advaita (i.e. non-dual), which means that Consciousness transcends all conceptions, positive and negative. Nothing positive can ever be imagined or said about it.

Consciousness is existence absolute, awareness absolute. The existence of absolute means that consciousness is not unreal or non-existent. And it is not unconsciousness. Nothing positive can be stated about consciousness.

The nature of the Soul, the ‘Self’ is the non-dualistic silence. Non-dualistic silence is like a deep sleep state. The silence indicates that the nature of the formless Soul, the ‘Self’ is inexplicable, indescribable, and unimaginable. : ~ Santthosh Kumaar

Advaitic wisdom of Sage Sankara is a replacement for the outdated religion, the religious propagated myth.+

Advaitic wisdom of Sage Sankara is a replacement for the outdated religion and religious propagated myth.

Advaitic wisdom of Sage Sankara is pure spirituality. Advaita is the replacement for the outdated religion, religious beliefs, and religious God dogmas and theology code of conducts.

Religions have become the cause of wars, violence, terrorism in the name of protecting religion and religious Gods. Advaita brings unity in diversity. Advaita can bring universal brotherhood. All the religious separation, which divided humanity, will end with Advaita the knowledge of the universal God, the one without the second.

Religious people attach the word Dharma to religion. But in the spiritual context, the Dharma is the Atman, the Self.

In Taittiriya Upanishad: ~ "satyaM vada. dharmaM cara ." Speak the truth, practice dharma. Now if you want to practice dharma, you should first know what it means. (1.11.1)

The word, “dharma “found in the karikas, which means Atma in Advaita Vedanta.

Advaita is the nature of the Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness.

First, know what is mind. The mind is not within the body. The form, time, and space together are mind. Without form, time, and space the mind ceases to exist. Without the form, time, and space the world in which you exist ceases to exist. Without the world in which you exist the waking ceases to exist. Without the waking, the ‘I’ ceases to exist.

Thus, a perfect understanding of ‘what is what’ is very much necessary to unfold the mystery of the ‘I’.

Rest in the consciousness by realizing the world in which you exist is nothing but the consciousness. The Soul is the fullness of consciousness without division of the form, time, and space. Thus, consciousness alone is real and eternal all else is merely an illusion created out of consciousness.

The person who bases on birth, life, death and the world is trying to find the meaning of life. There is no meaning or purpose of life because life is merely happening within the dualistic illusion (world). Thus, the karma based on the physical entity is based on the birth, life, and death, which is part and parcel of the dualistic illusion. : ~ Santthosh Kumaar

The religionists and atheists both are believers. Religionists believe in the belief as God and atheists believe in no God.+

People believe in old myths propagated by their religion. Every religion has propagated its own myth. Every religious belief contradicts other beliefs. It is merely blind belief accepted as truth without verification and evidence. This causes division.

Modern science has exposed many Religious dogmas as a myth. All these dogmas were introduced in the primitive era before people had the benefit of modern science. Science attempts to objectively discover how life works, and religion makes one blindly believe and cast his burden on the blind belief without verification, to live in peace and harmony in worldly life.

The seeker's main aim is to investigate both dual and nondual experiences to find and define the underlying truth in everything, thereby realizing what the ultimate truth is. Religion has propagated diverse ideas of God. There is no universality in a religious God.

Seekers of truth are neither believers of the religious propagated belief of God nor atheists to declare that there is no God. The seekers of truth will not accept the belief blindly without verification.

The religious believers and atheists both are believers because religionists believe in the belief as God and atheists believe in the belief of no God. Without knowing what God suppose to be in truth it is merely a shadow fight between religious believers and atheists. 

Remember:~

Rig Veda: ~ 'Prajnanam Brahma'- Consciousness is the ultimate reality or Brahman or God in truth. 

Do not accept any other God other than the Soul. The Soul is God in truth,  Nothing is real but the Soul, which present in the form of Consciousness. Nothing Matters but realize  God in truth. God in truth is everywhere and in everything. Let these words be inscribed in your subconscious. 

God in truth is hidden by the illusory universe. God in truth alone is real and eternal and all else is an illusion. 

Brahman is merely a word to indicate the ultimate truth or God in truth.  The ultimate truth itself is God in truth. 

Consciousness is ever-present. Without consciousness, the universe, in which you exist ceases to exist.    Consciousness is Self-evident. It is not established by extraneous proofs. It is not possible to deny Consciousness, because it is the very essence of the one who denies it. Consciousness is the basis of all kinds of knowledge, presuppositions, and proofs. Consciousness is everything. Thus, consciousness is the ultimate truth or Brahman or God in truth.

It is not possible to deny Consciousness, which is God in truth, because it is the very essence of the atheist who denies it.

It is not possible to deny Consciousness, which is God in truth by religionists because it is the very essence of the religionist who denies it.

Remember:~

The pursuit of truth is all about accepting uncertainty and open questions and seeking the things that are the certainty. Believers and nonbelievers will not accept anything other than their inherited belief system or the accepted truth.

Atheists feel there is no proof for God’s existence. So atheist chooses to just believe there is no such thing called God. And religionists just believe in the existence of their conceptual God.

A Gnani is one who is fully aware of the fact that the existence or non-existence of God cannot be proven on the base of physical Self. Therefore, deeper understanding and realization are necessary to understand and assimilate the truth about God's existence to know what is supposed to be God. : ~ Santthosh Kumaar

Self-realization is the only way to God-realization.+

Religion is the home of mysticism and deification that is why they are not keen on the rational truth. Religion and scholasticism and yoga are helpful for those who are incapable of grasping the truth, which is beyond the form, time, and space.

Religion is based on dogmatism, not philosophy. One finds philosophical insights here and there in religious doctrine. All the religious doctrines are dogmatic because they also begin by assuming their blind belief based God. The blind belief based God becomes a center of the religion; thus every religion has its own idea of God thus there is no universality in religious beliefs.

Religion takes the position that God is a separate entity outside us, i.e. the God really exists separately from us. Orthodox people are afraid to go deeper and refuse to accept anything other than their religious authority because of punishment by God.

A Gnani says the scriptures for children, but wise seekers will think rationally.

Self-realization is the only way to God-realization.

Vedas bars human worship: ~

"They are enveloped in darkness, in other words, are steeped in ignorance and sunk in the greatest depths of misery who worship the uncreated, eternal prakrti -- the material cause of the world -- in place of the All-pervading God, But those who worship visible things born of the prakrti, such as the earth, trees, bodies (human and the like) in place of God are enveloped in still greater darkness, in other words, they are extremely foolish, fall into an awful hell of pain and sorrow, and suffer terribly for a long time.":~ (Yajur Veda 40:9.)

Then why worship and glorify the Gurus and Yogis (human form) in place of God when Veda bars such activities and it also warns people who indulge in such activities are enveloped in still greater darkness, in other words, they are extremely foolish, fall into an awful hell of pain and sorrow, and suffer terribly for a long time.

No one has ever seen God by practicing religion or yoga or indulging in glorifying the religious God and Goddesses because God exists prior to the form, time, and space. The form, time, and space cease to exist as a reality when wisdom dawns. Thus, the Gods and Gurus have no place in the domain of the Advaitic reality. Advaita is the nature of the Soul, which is real God. Thus, Self-realization is the only way to God-realization.

By worshipping the religious Gods and Gurus one will not get Self-realization or God-realization.

There is no scope for belief-based God because the belief is not God. Religion and its ideas of God are mere imagination based on the false self (ego), within the false experience (waking).

Thus, whatever beliefs based on the false Self is bound to be a falsehood. Thus, it is erroneous to worship the matter, instead of the All-Pervading Spirit (God) and those who worship things born of matter. The religious-based Gods and Goddesses are with form and attributes (matter) are not real Gods. That is why Vedas declare, those who sink into the greatest depth of misery and suffer who worships the matter.

Ishopanishad says: ~ “They are steeped in ignorance and sunk into the greatest depth of misery who worships the matter, instead of the All-Pervading God and those who worship things born of matter like trees, animals, man, etc. are sunk deeper in misery."

Rig Veda: ~ May ye never accept another God in place of the Atman nor worship other than the Atman

Vedas declare: ~ One should never accept another God in place of the Atman or worship other than the Atman. If one, worships any other God in place of Atman, are enveloped in still greater darkness, in other words, they are extremely foolish, fall into an awful hell of pain and sorrow, and suffer terribly for a long time."

So, it clearly indicates the so-called Gods worshiped in the temples today are not Vedic Gods. Vedas bars worshiping of such Gods. Why worship and glorify the Gurus and Yogis when Vedas bars human worship. 

Remember:~

Sage Sankara is the final authority on Advaitic wisdom. Self-realization is very simple. We make it complicated by mixing diverse theories, different teaching of different gurus different ideologies, religion, and yoga.

All our accumulated knowledge is the greatest hindrance in pursuit of truth. To realize the truth beyond the form, time, and space, one must have the courage of Buddha. Buddha got enlightenment only after dropping the religion, Vedas, and the concept of God.

To realize the simple truth there is no need to go from one mountain to another, one Ashram to another or worship the Godmen or Guru as a God, or converting from one faith to another. The truth is universal. Anyone can realize it if has an intense urge.

There is no second thing that exists other than consciousness. In the world in which we exist, all our thoughts, words, beliefs, experiences are nothing but consciousness. Realizing the consciousness is everything, is truth realization or Self-realization or God-realization.

Remember:~

Yoga Vasistha:~ "Teachers, interpretations of sacred texts, the force of religious merit--none of these lead to the realization of that Ultimate Truth which is revealed in the clear reflection of the Self, engendered from contact with Gnanis."

Sage Sankara: ~ ‘Reality can be realized only with the eye of understanding, not just by a scholar. What the moon is like must be seen with one's own eyes. How can others do it for you?"~Vivekachoodamani

Remember:~

It is impossible to find and realize the ‘Self’ through ‘I-centric gurus and their teaching. The seeker has to use his reason (Buddhi) in order to realize the truth hidden by ignorance. the ignorance is present in the form of the ‘I’.

Bhagavad Gita: ~ “You must first see the ‘I’ as illusory before you see others as illusory. ~ CH.2 v.16

Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana is nothing to do with the ‘I-centric' or You-centric’ Gurus and their teachings.

Remember, the ‘I’ is not an individual because the ‘I’ is the whole universe. Limiting the ‘I’ to individuality is the cause of experiencing the dualistic illusion or reality?

The nature of the ‘I’ is the nature of the mind.

The nature of the mind is the nature of the universe.

The nature of the universe is the nature of the waking.

The nature of waking is the nature of the illusion.

Thus, it is necessary to study the nature of the ‘I’ to unfold the mystery of the universe.

All the teachings which limit the ‘I’ to an individual and glorify the ‘I’ without knowing what this ‘I’ supped to be in actuality. All ‘I’ based teachings are inadequate and useless for the serious seeker of truth.

If you are seeking truth nothing but the truth must discard without mercy such teaching in order to progress in your spiritual quest.

The seeker must know the ‘I’ is not limited to individuality. The seeker has to see the ‘I’ as the universe, in order to overcome ignorance. When the Advaitic wisdom dawns, then the ignorance vanishes.

When ignorance vanishes and the dualistic illusion (world) you used to think as reality becomes unreal. : ~ Santthosh Kumaar

Sage Sankara was the first Indian Sage who unfolded the mystery of the universe 1200 years back.+

Max Planck: ~ “Science cannot solve the ultimate mystery of nature. And that is because, in the last analysis, we ourselves are part of nature and therefore part of the mystery that we are trying to solve”

All the scientific inventions based on the dualistic perspective whereas the ultimate truth of existence is based on the nondualistic perspective.

Scientific inventions are limited to the domain of form, time, and space whereas the truth is formless, timeless, and spaceless existence.

The scientists and the world in which they exist and their inventions are created out of single stuff. And that single stuff is consciousness. Knowledge of the single stuff is Advaita.

There is nothing the Scientists to prove other than finding out whether the universe can exist without Consciousness.

Sage Sankara was the first Indian Sage who unfolded the mystery of the universe 1200 years back. Sage Sankara's Advaitic wisdom more rational and scientific and nothing to do with religion and its dogmas.

Sage Sankara says this entire 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.

In the scientific field, the knowledge one can bank on discoveries of different scientists. Newton discovered the law of gravity and Einstein formulated the principle of relativity. In addition, scientists take it for granted that these principles are valid. It is not so in pursuit of truth. If one sage discovers the ultimate truth then the seeker without verification cannot accept it as truth blindly.

Newton discovered the law of gravity, which is applicable only to the waking experience, which is only a half-truth. Nobody has discovered there is no gravity in deep sleep. All three states have taken into account to get the whole truth.

Only Sage Sankara has discovered the whole truth 1200 years back. Scientific inventions are limited to form, time, and space. The mystery of the universe is hidden by the illusory form, time, and space.

Sage Sankara: ~VC~ if the universe is true, let it then be perceived in the state of deep sleep also. As it is not at all perceived, it must be unreal and false like dreams.

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.

Chandogya Upanishad:~ One who meditates upon and realizes the Self discovers that everything in the cosmos-- energy and space, fire and water, name and form, birth and death, mind and will, word and deed, mantrams and meditation--all come from the Self.

Sage Sankara says: ~ ‘Whatever thing remains eternal is true, and whatever is non-eternal is untrue. Since the world is created and destroyed, it is not true.

Truth is the thing that is unchanging. Since the world is changing, it is not true.

Whatever is independent of space and time is true, and whatever has space and time in itself is untrue.

Just as one sees dreams in sleep, he sees a kind of super-dream when he is waking. The world is compared to this conscious dream.

The world is believed to be a superimposition of the Brahman. Superimposition cannot be true.

On the other hand, Sage Sankara claims that the world is not absolutely false. It appears false only when compared to Brahman. In the pragmatic state, the world is completely true—which occurs as long as we are under the influence of ignorance.

The world 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.

Remember:~

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 the transparent Truth of the Self, which is hidden by the illusion, is to be attained through the instructions of a knower of Brahman, (Gnani).

Remember:~

First, know ‘what is the truth’ and ‘what is untruth’ for sure. Without realizing what untruth truth is, it is difficult to know what truth is.

Sage Sankara was criticized for his views on Maya (illusion) without understanding him.

Sage Sankara said: ~

(1) Brahman (Atman) is real

(2) The universe is unreal.

(3) Brahman is the universe.

He did not stop at second because the third explains the other two. It signifies that the universe is real if perceived as the ‘Self’ and unreal if perceived as apart from the Self. Hence Maya or illusion and reality are one and the same.

The realists criticize the concept of illusion without understanding it.

Sage Sankara said:~

(1) Consciousness (Atman) is real

(2) The universe or mind is unreal

(3) Consciousness is the universe because the universe is merely an illusion created out of consciousness.

One need not stop at second because the third explains the other two. It signifies that the universe is real if perceived as the Self (Atman or consciousness) and unreal if perceived as apart from the Self (consciousness). Hence illusion and reality are one and the same because both are one in essence. Realizing the essence, which is consciousness as the innermost Self, is Self-Realization or Truth-Realization of God-Realization.

Thus, Sage Sankara‘s declaration is rational truth, scientific truth, and also the ultimate truth.

Sage Sankara: ~ “The world, filled with attachments and aversions, and the rest, is like a dream: it appears to be real as long as one is ignorant, but becomes unreal when one is awake.

Sage Sankara:~ “As fire is the direct cause of cooking, so knowledge, and not any other form of discipline, is the direct cause of Liberation; for Liberation cannot be attained without Knowledge." (Self-Knowledge)

Sage Sankara:~ As the moon appears to be moving when the clouds move in the sky, so also to the non-discriminating. Atman appears to be active when in reality the senses are active.

Sage Sankara said: ~ Just as the snake is superimposed on the rope, this world and this body are superimposed on Brahman or the Soul, the Self. If one gets knowledge of the rope, the illusion of the snake will vanish. Even so, if he gets knowledge of Brahman, the illusion of the body and the world will vanish.

The snake is only an idea: it disappears on inquiry but deeper Self-search reveals the fact that the rope is also an idea and its reality will be exposed when wisdom dawns. There is neither snake nor the rope in reality because from the ultimate standpoint the duality is merely an illusion created out of Consciousness.

The Soul which is present in the form of Consciousness is the root element of the universe. From Consciousness, the universe comes into existence. In Consciousness, the universe resides. And into  Consciousness, the universe is dissolved.

Consciousness is the parent of all that is there is. Consciousness is the ultimate truth or Brahman. Brahman is God in truth.

Consciousness is the only reality, and the universe to but an illusory manifestation.

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.

Sage Sankara says in a commentary in Vedanta-sutra that what is accepted without a proper inquiry will not lead a person to the final goal. On the contrary, such acceptance will result only in evil, in something which is detrimental to our spiritual progress.

Sage Sankara not only proved the existence of God on the Vedic perspective but also proved the existence of God rationally by pure reason.

The seeker has to discover a fresh by dropping all the egocentric dualistic knowledge to realize’ what is truth’ and ‘what is not truth’ and accept only the truth and mentally drop the untruth. Thus, constant reflection on the subject is very much necessary in pursuit of truth. ~ Santthosh Kumaar