Ultimate truth cannot be known in the sense in which one knows objects of thought. It can be known only to the extent to which he knows them, for he can only think of the knower when he is in the presence of the known, i.e. objects, for the latter make him aware that a knower must exist.
Thus duality makes one think of the knower, but it cannot make him know the knower. The knower is known in the world of duality only by implication, as he cannot think without knower. The knower is a concept, and cannot be known in itself.
Ultimate truth is known only in the negative way. One cannot make it an object of knowledge. One can know that he cannot have an idea of an object unless he posits a knower, unless the knower is implied already.
The formless witness or knower itself is wisdom, that is, it knows everything else. The self is known only when one sees something else, for that other thing reminds him of it. The self is unknowable as an object, because the mind is an object to the true self (consciousness).
Knowing the ultimate truth means knowing that consciousness exists. The word “know” implies duality, something known; on the other hand non-dual wisdom does imply an object. The witness (true self or Consciousness) knows the three states (body + ego+ universe) as an object. The knowing powers, the witness, the knower can have no statement made about it, other than that its existence cannot be negated. The ultimate truth which one can know is that consciousness is not something to be known.
We are thinking of the mind within the mind, which appears as waking or dream experience.
The thoughts cannot arise without the waking or dream experience. Absent of waking or dream is absent of thoughts and experiences. The thoughts and functioning of the dream body and dream world are reality within the dream. Same way, the thoughts and all the individual experiences and the waking world are reality within the waking experience. The point here is the waking experience (universe or mind) itself is falsehood on the standpoint of the formless witness.
Until we wake up in our formless true identity without the body and without world, we keep experiencing the duality (mind) as reality. Thus, it is necessary to mentally grasp the existence of the formless witness to realize the fact that, the body and universe with all its contents are also mirage created out of consciousness. Thus consciousness alone is and all else is illusion. The illusion also is consciousness because it created and sustained and finally it dissolves as consciousness. Therefore, there is neither creation nor creator in nondual reality because the whole diversity (mind) is created out of single stuff.
It takes a time to understand and assimilate the ultimate truth, because we have to burn all the accumulated dross which has become the great obstacle in realizing the truth.
There is no need to know the functioning of the mind is not limited to the body because the mind is the whole physical existence [body+ universe]. Therefore, there is need for correction in our understanding, which is based on the birth entity, which is not the self.
All the accumulate knowledge based on the birth [waking] entity is of no use in understanding and assimilating the Self-Knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana. There is a need to learn to view and judge the truth on the base of true self (consciousness) to understand and assimilate the Self-Knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana.
