Direct realization of the ultimate truth is possible without the scriptures.

Uttara mImamsa, also called Vedanta, does not consider the Upanishads and brahmanas as arthavada subservient to vidhis. Instead, they are seen to be sources of Brahman knowledge, addressed solely to those who seek moksha or freedom. The rituals enjoined in the Vedas are applicable to the realm of dharma, but the one who seeks liberation does not merely desire a place in heaven; he is in search of ultimate Reality itself. The Upanishads are viewed as those portions of the Sruti that address philosophical questions about Reality, here called Brahman. This tradition of exegesis follows the brahma sutras of badarayana. Within Vedanta, there is considerable difference of opinion on whether the Upanishads enjoin anything at all.

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 more 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.

An essential identity between Atman and Brahman is upheld in Advaita Vedanta. The personality of sage Sri,Sankara and the force of Advaita teaching is so strong that most post-Sankaran schools of Vedanta consciously define their doctrines against Advaita thought.

When Advaita declares Atman and Brahman then direct realization of  the ultimate truth is possible without the scriptures.  Know the soul to be the true self. And true self is in the form of consciousness and realize consciousness as ultimate truth or Brahman.   

Self-Knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana  is the aim of every human being. Since everyone thinks the physical body is the self their aim is misdirected and they focus their attention on materiality which makes one feel the duality [waking] as reality.

Nisagadutta said:  Millions are in search of the ultimate truth, and only one in million will be able to grasp and realize it. By focusing more attention on Atman by talking, writing, discussing only of Atman, the conviction grows and becomes firmer and the duality will fade away as reality. Atman/spirit which is one’s   true identity will prevail as birth-less and deathless, eternal substance and witness of the mirage called duality.

Therefore there is no need to study scriptures, or indulge in god and guru glorification or performing religious rituals.  Since, they are not the means to acquire non-dual wisdom. It is only waste of time and effort to indulge in those things.

The individual self is not real, is not accepted by many.  The nondual wisdom is based not on the individual self [ego].  Until people hold the ‘waking entity ’or ego as witness, they will not reach the ultimate understanding. 

When Upanishad itself declares:-   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 [ Chandogya Upanishad].  

Then it is no use going roundabout way, trace the Brahman which is the formless substance and witness of the universe, which is in the form of mind.  By tracing the source of the mind or universe one will be able to realize the Brahman.

 The true Self is not perceptible to the senses. It is perceived by Reason. It is not perceptible as a thing with form and attributes. To those whose attention is fixed on the body and the world, it is very difficult to attain Self-knowledge. It is also very difficult for them to see the consciousness as self. The attention towards the universe (mind) should be lessened by realizing the self is not the body. The attention has to be focused on the formless substance and witness of the universe [mind] should be increased. So long as the attention is directed towards the universe, the experience of birth, life and death will prevail as reality. But when the attention is directed towards the formless witness, the ignorance vanishes and sense of duality will disappear. Then there is unity in diversity.

What is the state of the ego or physical self when it has realized that the self is not the body? Such souls have attained their pristine condition. “Self” is not visible to the physical eyes. “Self” is not to be found in the world as a thing, entity or an object. Self is above these, has neither beginning nor ending.

 A visible object has a beginning and an ending. Since Atman, which is in the form of consciousness is invisible to the physical eye; Atman or consciousness is without beginning and ending. Atman is always constant. Just as space is homogeneous everywhere, so is the Atman the same everywhere.

But he who is truly wise Always sees the absolute Self. Celebrated, he is not delighted. Spurned, he is not angry. Pure of heart, He watches his own actions As if they were another's. How can praise or blame disturb him?

- Ashtavakra Gita 3:9-10

They live in freedom who have gone beyond the dualities of life. Competing with no one, they are alike in success and failure and content with whatever comes to them. They are free, without selfish attachments; their minds are fixed in knowledge. They perform all work in the spirit of service, and their karma is dissolved.

- Bhagavad Gita 4:22-23

An intense desire for truth -realization is itself the way to it. The Lord is The Self in Advaita. Therefore,   one need not accept anything other than the self, which is consciousness. Thus consciousness alone is ultimate truth or Brahman that is free from falsehood.

Advaita(non-duality)  and dwaita(duality)  is  state of  the self. It is not some intellectual theory. Religious based Advaitins believe the Atman (soul) is Brahman; and the world is illusion. Religious dwaitins believes the body as self, and they believe world is reality, and they believe in creator and creation theory.   In India Advaita and Dwaita is mere a religious tradition, which they inherited from their ancestors. No one questions their validity, because it is considered blasphemy to question any guru and god-men or pundits.

 People who are attached to their religious  code of conduct and trying to preach Advaita , that is mixing the individual life, and concept of god, and all mixed up hotchpotch  religious doctrine and feed the seeking minds, are themselves not aware of the fact that,  the individuality,  and the worldly life is part of the illusion.

Buddha must have verified religion, Vedas and concept of god and found them inadequate and useless in pursuit of truth and rejected them and he got enlightened without the aid of religion, Vedas and concept of god. 

 After studying and going through all the rigorous training from the religious scholars in Theosophical Society, J.K was confused about all these, and when he started verifying with deeper introspection, he found everything was priest-crafted hotchpotch ideologies. Thus, he refused to become the world guru, rejected it, and walked out and condemned the priest craft.  

In Advaita they accept karma theory.  If they accept the karma theory, one will not be able to reach the non-dual destination. If one accepts karma theory then it is impossible to treat the world as illusion. All the pundits’ explanation of karma theory carries no weight on realm of truth because if karma is accepted they are accepting the false self (ego or body)as true self and false experience (universe or waking) as reality.

The birth, life and death are part of the waking experience, which is mere illusion on the standpoint of the true self.  It is no use of saying that, we are not born, we do not die because, because we all were born and we all are going to die. However, the birth, life and death are part of the illusion, which comes and goes as waking experience.  The formless witness of the three states is real, which is our identity has no birth and death. That is why self-knowledge is nothing to do with the religious based Advaita, which is based on Vedas. 

  A Gnani will never say we are not born; we are not going to die.   Only to the mediocre who nod their head, he will say this to inspire them to think of the formless true identity, which is birth less, deathless.   Thus, it is wrong to say we are not born and we do not die by limiting the self to the physical entity.  If one limits the self to the physical entity alone, one gets only half-truth.  The consciousness, which is the true self, pervades all the three states, as their formless substance and witness.  The formless substance and witness, which is our true self (true identity). Without knowing the true self-mere saying, we are not born, we do not die is not the knowledge, which has come from depth, it is mere bookish knowledge.

 When Sri,Sankara says: world is unreal . He never said body is unreal. He would have said only birth and death is unreal but he did not say that, he said the world is unreal.   He meant   the world including the body, because the body and world appear together and disappear together (waking or dream).  Then we have to think, what remain without the body and the world as reality. How can the birth, life, death, rebirth, and reincarnation, which take place in unreal world (waking/dream), can be true.   The one, which is aware of the birth, life death, rebirth and reincarnation (illusion/unreal), is formless reality, which is the true self/true identity.  The formless self is your true identity, which is birthless and deathless but it is the witness of the birth, life and death and rebirth (illusion/unreal).

 On the standpoint of identity the birth, life, death, rebirth and reincarnation theory is part of the illusion/unreal.  The body cannot reincarnate, the body and the world are created out of the same formless stuff. Until one views and judges on the base of flesh, bone and blood [five elements], he will not be able to grasp the non-dual truth.  Thus, one must know on what standpoint we are not born and we do not die thoroughly, just by hearsay views, it will not lead anyone to the non-dual destination.

Seeker has to learn to view and judge on the standpoint of formless witness (FW) or soul. Then he will be never having any confusion.  When one thinks deeply then only the inner revelation starts and start burning the dross (confusion/doubts). One has enough material stored in one’s subconscious by reading this massages in FP blogs; all will start yielding fruits and start revealing, when he starts thinking very deeply.  This is the inner process every serious seeker experiences.  The inner dialogue will start and one will start getting answers from inner core of his existence. 

 If self has no relation with the three states then the self prevails in its formless non-dual true nature. When wisdom dawns then one becomes aware of the fact that, the self is not physical but the self is consciousness and he becomes fully aware of the fact that, the physical body, ego and universe [mind] and its contents are mere mirage created out of consciousness.   Thus, seeker has to first know body, ego, universe are mind. When the mind is present they are present and when the mind is absent they are absent.   

 Everyone is aware of the three states. There is a need to analyze the three states and realize the fact that, the mind is not limited to the physical body but mind appears as whole waking or dream experience and disappears as deep sleep.  Therefore there is a need to understand “what is mind? And what is the substance of the mind in order to unfold the truth hidden within the three states.  Therefore, anyone who sleeps dreams and wakes up can sit and examine this process logically, without any prior exposure to any scriptures or teachings. Such an independent analysis will lead seeker of truth towards perfect understanding, assimilation of non-dual truth.

It is absolutely not possible to examine the three states logically if one is not aware of the existence of formless witness. The formless witness is within the three states, but it is without this three states. Formless witness is nothing to do with three states, because it is not an entity or identity within the three states. It pervades everywhere and in everything as formless substance and witness of the three states. The three states are an object to the formless witness, which is in the form of consciousness.  Thus consciousness is the subject and the mind, which is in the form of universe, is an object. Therefore mind is an object to the subject, which is consciousness.

The waking, dream and the deep sleep states do not have a sequence as one really thinks and believe. Since everyone is habituated to view and judge the three states on the base of the waking entity, which is not the self.  Thus viewing and judging the three states on the base of the false witness (“ego or waking entity”) is erroneous. Therefore perfect understanding is necessary in order understand and assimilate the existence of the formless witness, which exists apart and beyond the three states.

 In all the three states, the formless witness remains unchanged. One who has not analyzed the three states deeply will never be able to grasp the existence of the formless witness, which is the soul or consciousness. He will just wake up, dreams and goes to deep sleep without this analysis. Everyone thinks the three states are their physical experience whereas the physical experience is limited to the waking or dream. In deep sleep there is no experience of any sort.  

In the deep sleep state the formless witness prevails in its formless non-dual true nature. It is without the waking or dream experience. Consciously becoming aware of the formless non-dual true nature of the witness, which is soul or consciousness in the midst of the waking experience, is realization of the self or truth.

 The soul, which is in the form of consciousness, is the source of the mind which in the form of universe.  The universe appears as waking or dream (duality) and disappears as deep sleep non-duality.  The source, which is consciousness is the true self and the on the standpoint of consciousness as self the three states are mere mirage thus there is nothing exists other than consciousness. Therefore, there is no forth state because the three states are itself is mere mirage created out of consciousness. Thus only an independent analysis without the scriptures will lead one to deeper understanding assimilation of the ultimate reality.

An ignorant person may identify the cotton with the cloth and gold with an ornament, forgetting that the cloth and the ornament are not cotton and gold, respectively; rather, they are only manifestations of cotton and gold. Similarly, one may identify the empirical ego with Self or Soul, ignorantly without knowing the real nature of Self or Soul.

A person walking in a desert may perceive water in a mirage by wrong perception. Likewise, in semi-darkness one can perceive a human figure in a post. All such perceptions are illusory. So also the perception of Self or soul as identical with the elements of this universe is illusory. Just as perceptions of a castle in the air and a second moon in the sky are illusory, so also the perception of Soul or Self as identical with the universe is unreal.

All these illustrations point to the basic and absolute nature of Self or Soul. The Self is that which is imperishable, the unseen witness, the unheard hearer, the unthoughtful thinker, the understood understander. Other than it, there is naught that hears; other than it, there is naught that thinks; other than it, there is naught that understands." Thus, Self is the absolute consciousness, the source of all experience and knowledge.

The ignorant thinks his body is the self. And all is accumulated knowledge is based on the body as self.  The more learned thinks, "Self is his personality and all his knowledge is theories based on his intellectual speculations. But the Gnani knows the true Self is consciousness." He is fully aware of the fact that his body and his experience of the world also as consciousness. He has dissolved the "mind or universe” in the Self, which is in the form of Consciousness.

When non-dual truth is deeply assimilated, a permanent weakening of illusory experience follows, and one finds freedom from experiencing duality as reality. The ego ceases to be prey to compulsions. And one becomes capable - How to be in the illusion, which is in the form of universe but not of it?  One has to adopt the formless Witness point of view i.e. to dis-identify with the three states mentally in the midst of waking experience and remain consciously  as the formless  witness of the illusory three states which comes and goes. 

In pursuit of truth the ultimate truth has to be proved, not assumed.

Those who realize the fact that, the Self is not physical (form) but the self is consciousness (formless) enter into the realm of nondual tranquillity. They are fully aware of the fact that, the consciousness is the true self and it pervades everywhere and in everything in the universe, which is in the form of the mind. Thus the mind which is in the form of  universe is mere mirage created out of consciousness.   The mind or universe is myth on the standpoint of consciousness, which is the true self.  Whatever the mind or universe contains is myth.  Thus, the birth, life and death or pleasure and pain which are happenings within the mind or universe are myth.   Thus judging the truth on the base of the physical self /ego is erroneous. 

The gross universe is merged into the mental universe in the sense that when it is analyzed, it is found to exist inseparably in and as the mind alone. All "spiritual" planes are really mental: those who regard them as different or higher will remain ignorant.

A Gnani is free from experiencing the illusion (body + universe) as reality, he is fully aware of the fact that, his body and his experience of the world as consciousness, which is ultimate truth.  

People who are incapable to inquire and reason are tending to follow some philosophy without verification. Therefore the more ignorant they are the easier to get them into a religious fold. Religion is so strong and popular because it makes no demand on the intelligent: It simply requires belief in guru and his teachings.

It never strikes believer to doubt whether his inherited belief system is true. They never use their reason because they start and conclude that their belief system   alone is true, because they never question.

Theological philosophers say God is a perfect being, but they have never known God, never proved his existence; hence their ascription of perfection to Him is purely self-imagined or assumed.

The scholastic or mystic argument is endless. If one says "God is formless” another will reply, "No, God has attributes! If one says "his religion is higher" another will reply, "No, it is lower." It is impossible to get anywhere with such talk because both sides are merely imagining because they think on the base of the false self and false experience. When the self is not physical then whatever seen, known, believed and experienced as person is bound to be falsehood.   Therefore, there is need to know the fact that, the self is formless. 

The paradise or heavens and hell are mere religious injected imagination.  When the self is formless then the experience of birth, life death and the universe are mere mirage.  But where people have got a little thinking capacity, they begin to disbelieve through the contradictions of various contending orthodox claims and descriptions.

               

For religion one can interpret texts as he likes, in whatever way that pleases him, he simply imagine away.

 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; mind cannot grasp it. The deathless Self has neither caste nor race, Neither eyes not 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.

In pursuit of truth the ultimate truth has to be proved, not assumed. Pundits who take scriptures for granted are not Gnanis.

Pundits teach that all is your-self, but none of them can show that this is so, none has analyzed it scientifically, and none can prove it. Rational proof is needed, so that one arrive at knowing truth i.e. wisdom; punditry is mere dogma, parrotism, repetition of what they read in scripture. Scriptures are not yardstick and scriptural truth is not proof.   Pundits take scriptures as authority.   Authoritarianism merely assumes as true what another says, but what has yet to be proved.

Pundits have to test truth in this world not in the next world.  There is no proof other then blind belief based on the scriptures, belief is not truth.  So, doctrines are not the means to realize the truth. There is no need to follow them.

Doubts and Confusions arise when seeker finds the scriptures and yoga are inadequate or useless to quench his spiritual thirst.   Disappointments in religion or yoga or even science imply error or ignorance. Seeker reaches a stage whether he is right?" Where is the certainty that he is proceeding on right lines?" Thus doubts arise and the inquiring spirit comes and impels to search elsewhere for truth where it will not be possible even to have doubt. The test is therefore in experience. And only in non-duality, where there are no two to argue about views or to have difference of opinion can such doubtlessness be possible.  Belief depends upon unstable bases whereas certainty depends on proof.

Seeker of truth has to get rid of his doubts through deeper inquiry, analysis and reasoning on his own, to realize the fact that, the self is not the form but self is formless. Thus his analysis and reasoning has to be based on the formless not on the form.  By simply go on believing and accepting whatever said by the punditry will not lead one towards path of wisdom. All the doubt has to be got rid of "by the sword of Self - Knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana."  The scriptures, yoga are not necessary if one follows the inner (formless) path.  Religion and yoga are not the means to path of wisdom. 

There is a controversy as to the meaning of Maya. One Advaitic School says it is a shakti of Brahman whereby both illusion and creation are brought about.

How do you know that it is the truth? If one bases it on the sayings of Rishis and saints, granting that they honestly believed in their experiences, there is still the query how do they know that these experiences were the truth?

Even in dream whatever experienced becomes unreal when waking takes place.  Similarly when wisdom dawns one becomes aware of the fact that, the self is neither the waking entity nor the dream entity.  Thus whatever experienced as waking experience is as real as dream.  Thus for a Gnani all the three states are mere mirage created out of consciousness, because he is fully aware of the fact that, the witness of the three states is not the body but consciousness.  A Gnani is fully aware of the fact that, his body, ego and universe are nothing but consciousness. Thus he finds the experience of any sort is play of consciousness and experience is mere mirage.  The one witnesses the experience, which is in the form of universe or mind is mere mirage.     

 For even mentally challenged people believe in what they see and feel and yet their experiences are often quite untrue. What then is it in us, which ascertains the truth of these experiences? If one says it is mystic experience, then everyone’s experience differs from another. Such disagreement does not settle the matter. Thus these are the two common sources—scriptural authority and Yogic Samadhi--but both are shown untenable because both are based on the false self([ego).

Mystic experience or Yogic Samadhi is not wisdom. Yogis consider the body as self and body as the author of the Samadhi or experience, whereas the self is not physical but formless. Thus the body and the world are mere experience.  The witness of the experience is always formless and apart. Thus the body and the world are an object to the formless witness. Thus any kind of experience is mere mirage, which comes and goes as mind or universe.  Thus, whatever an individual experience, experienced as a person, within the universe, bound to be mirage.  Thus yogi Samadhi or mystic experience is individual experience based on the false self within the false experience.  Thus there is a need to trace the formless witness of the three states mentally and drop the three states (mirage) mentally in order bring unity is diversity in midst of the mirage.          

 In the presence of great yogis one may really feel much peace, satisfaction and contentment. But what has that to do with the question of truth?" The man, who indulges in sensual pleasure, may also feel much satisfaction and contentment; his feeling is similar to the mystic's. but both the feelings are temporary .

Theology, fiction-writing, religion, poetry all belong to the same class--appeal to belief, fancy, imagination, not truth. When one cannot know his own self is not the body, how can he hope ever to know ultimate truth?

God cannot exist without man’s existence. If man is not there God is not there. When man is not self then why bring Him in? If God really were in every particle of everyone, as mystics claim, then everyone will be able to create universe, because everyone will be God.

It is impossible to prove the existence of God by any reasoning: one can only assume gods existence.   Yoga and mysticism are primitive things which appealed in the past to early races; now they indicate undeveloped mind when they are taken for truth, because they are based on the false self within the false experience. When self is formless, all the form [ego] based theories and practices hold no water.   

People think Advaita is the best, because the Vedas say so.  One can arrive at the same
conclusion without any scriptures by way of reasoning based on the soul as self which is in the form of consciousness. The habitual reasoning based on the “I” as self has to be discarded in order to grasp, assimilate and realize the non-dual truth.

The whole Advaitic teaching can be summed up into one sentence, ‘There is nothing else but Brahman. It says that the Absolute Existence, Absolute Knowledge and Absolute Bliss is Real. The universe is not real. It says that Brahman and Atman are one. The ultimate and the Absolute Truth is the Self, which is one though appearing as many in different individuals. The individual has no reality. Only the Self is real; the rest, mental and physical are but passing appearances.

 In fact Sage  Sri, Sankara states a paradox- the world is and is not. It is neither real nor unreal. It leads us to recognize the existence of Maya. He thinks that the world is illusory from one perspective and from the second it is nothing but Brahman, Itself in manifestation. This apparent world is Maya and has its basis in Brahman, the Eternal. It looks as real. It has names and forms and actually, it is not real In the light of true knowledge, it disappears and Self-alone shines as real. However Sage  Sri, Sankara’s Mayavad has not been accepted by many preachers and philosophers.

When Sri, Sankara says clearly, the universe is not real. He says that Brahman and Atman are one. The ultimate and the Absolute Truth is the Self, which is one though appearing as many in different individuals. The individual has no reality. Only the Self is Real; the rest, mental and physical are but passing appearances, then it indicates the form (waking or duality or mind or universe) is unreal and the formless soul (formless witness) is real.  Therefore, only Atman is real because there is no second thing exist other than Atman, which is in the form of consciousness.

The ultimate truth has nothing to do with Scriptures and it is independent of scriptures.  The point is:  though it is taught by the Vedas, it does not require any belief in the infallibility of Vedas; in other words even if an individual or some other religion were to propose the same thing, a person with an open mind would come to the same conclusion that there is a fourth state, that it is Brahman - and that it is the same as the self.

People think that the enlightenment is about the experience of the timeless, formless, space less unmanifested dimension and it is possible by transcending ego.  They also think that the universe is born millions of years ago and the universe erupted from the big void, from noting ness.   But these ideas are mere speculation based on the false self within the false experience.

Where there is experience then there is duality.  Where there is duality then there is always illusion. Where there is illusion then there is always ignorance. Where there is ignorance there is always ego. Where there is ego the false hood experienced as reality. Therefore, getting rid of the falsehood in its totality is necessary to realize the reality. Thus, transcending ego alone one cannot gets nondual reality, the whole false hood, which is in the form of mind or universe has to transcended mentally  in order realize the ultimate reality.    

It is erroneous to say that only by transcending the ego; one is able to experience formless, timeless and space-less unmanifested dimension. It is wrong to say that the universe erupted from the big void, from nothingness. All this are mere imaginations based on the false self.   

It is traditional belief that, if one meditates; he assumes no position in relationship with thoughts. One transcends his thought process. So when one transcends thoughts, he transcends mind, one transcend time. But all these belief based theoretical practices are not wisdom. Only through wisdom one is able to realize the ultimate truth which is beyond illusory form, time space which is in the form of universe.   

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 consciousness, not subject alone.

The truth can never change. The nature of truth is, it can never be changed under any circumstances. It may be misrepresented. It must apply to the whole of existence, to the whole of the universe. It is in the object (three states) alone that one has all changes, as deeper analysis points out.

 The subject (formless witness) remains unchanged. The subject (formless witness), as such remains immortal. It can never die for it never changes. The body and world are an object, and goes, but the subject or knower of the body and the universe, can never go. Seeker has to take this principle as his guiding thread and non-dual truth becomes easy to grasp. The formless witness can never be subject to the changes of the object; it is unchanged. The mistake usually made is that subject becomes object, or that object is subject. 

Seekers intense urge and sincerity to know the truth will lead him towards the ultimate end

Seekers intense urge and sincerity to know the truth will lead him towards the ultimate end. The true self is the teacher and when one focuses his attention on the self, which is not physical but it is formless consciousness (soul) than the all barricade will start vanishing and the formless runway becomes very clear.

Seekers first step makes him realize there are no step and no climber. There is no need to ignore anything.

We all including the whole universe exist because of ignorance. We are living within the ignorance. If there is no ignorance then there is no separation, no duality, no mind, no world, it is only oneness. Only when one gets rid of the ignorance through Self-Knowledge one becomes aware of the truth. The ignorance holds the duality or  illusion as reality. Ignorance is the cause of experiencing the birth, life, death and world as reality.

Therefore, one has to find the root of this ignorance, which holds the whole physical existence as reality. We are discussing the truth within the state of ignorance. Therefore, how can we get rid of the ignorance, when we are unaware of it? And because of ignorance we experience the duality or illusion as reality. Therefore, there is a need to verify the truth of our own existence to get rid of the ignorance.

Pursuit of truth is a mental journey. There is no need for any teaching or teacher in this journey of self-verification. If one has intense urge to know the truth, then that urge will take him to his spiritual destination.

One has to learn to think and reason on his own without the aid of his accumulated knowledge, to get rid of the ignorance. One should not be judge anything on the base of logic, intellectuality, comparing everything with the accumulated knowledge and perverse thinking, which is greatest obstacle in pursuit of truth. If one is ready to do this then he is ready to move forward towards his non dual destination.

A well-directed inquiry, analysis and deeper reasoning with all humility, seriousness and sincerity will definitely lead one towards realizing the ultimate truth.

One has to try to find answers for himself without imagining it but pondering through deep thinking: -

If the self is not physical then:-

v With what one is able to know himself as a person and perceive the world?
v Whether the mind is within the physical body or physical body and the world are within the mind.

 Whatever answers comes from within one has to verify through deeper reasoning constantly, until the inner dialogue starts, and when one starts getting answers from within, and all the doubts and confusion starts getting cleared. Then there is no need for mental spoon feeding. It takes a long time because the subconscious not receptive to accept the new truth. But one’s it becomes aware of the fact that, the self is formless(soul or consciousness) then it will drop all the accumulated knowledge based on the ego or waking entity or physical self.

If the subconscious receptive this will happen instantly, otherwise it happens gradually. Once the reasoning base is rectified from form base to formless base then one becomes aware what is truth and what is untruth and he will be able to reject the untruth mentally. When untruth is rejected whatever prevails is the ultimate truth. One should not expect this to happen instantly. It takes time it is a mental journey it is inner work through deeper thinking and reasoning. One has to have lots of patience and humility in pursuit of truth.

Since this is the vast subject it cannot be discussed in length in one or two posting. I am not a teacher and this is not teaching. I am just  sharing my conviction derived from my inner journey with fellow seekers.

From the nondual perspective karma theory is a religious fable.

Karma is based on the false self within the false experience.  Religionists believe   KARMA is individual action, its consequences, the sum of all consequences in this or another life, the chain of cause and effect resulting from "good" and "bad" deeds, such that everyone is conditioned and determined by his conduct over a span of lifetimes. Scriptures say that: - “According as one acts, according as one conducts himself, so does he become. The doer of good becomes good. The doer of evil becomes evil. One becomes virtuous by virtuous action, bad by bad action."

From the non-dual perspective karma theory  is a religious fable. When the self is not physical then whatever actions and conduct based on the physical self is bound to be false hood. Therefore, whatever good or actions performed within the false experience is bound to be falsehood.  There is no Cause and effect when one becomes aware of the fact that the true self is not form but true self is formless.

Karma is bondage. Karma theory makes one accept the false self (waking entity or ego) as true self and false experience (universe or waking ) as reality.  

Karma doctrine propagated by the religion and Gurus of the past is so ingrained in peoples life in India. Most people inherited karma doctrine based conditioning which is helpful and convenient use as tool judge modify their actions in present life, in the fear of avoidance of suffering in the next life.  Thus they accepted them as truth. This accepted truth becomes an obstacle for those who are seeking truth.  

The Karma-Kanda also declares that the Brahman is different from the body and permanent, as it endures even after the fall of the body and reaps the fruits of actions (done in this life).[38 Aparoksh Anuboothi ].

The great declaration by Sri, Sankara: - the world is myth, Brahman alone is real and everything is Brahman, it means whatever the world contains and all happenings such as the birth life and death are also myth.   The substratum of the mind, which is in the form of universe [all varieties of names, forms and actions], is consciousness and consciousness alone is Brahman which is   real and ultimate truth.

The Shruti has clearly declared that Brahman alone is the substratum of all varieties of names, forms and actions. [50 Aparoksh Anuboothi ]

Just as a thing made of gold ever has the nature of gold, so also a being born of Brahman has always the nature of Brahman. [51. Aparoksh Anuboothi ]

Fear is attributed to the ignorant one who rests after making even the slightest distinction between the Jivaatman and the ParamAtaman.[52 Aparoksh Anuboothi ]

When duality appears through ignorance, one sees another; but when everything becomes identified with the Brahman, one does not perceive another even in the least.[53 Aparoksh Anuboothi ]

Many people make interpretations based on assumptions. Reason based on the true self, takes one to the ultimate end. Yoga is not the means for self-realization because yoga is based on the false self and Yoga cannot replace reason, which does not require physical action.  Wisdom requires only discrimination of real from the false.