Without getting rid of the ignorance it is impossible to realize the ultimate truth or Brahman

One has to get rid of ignorance. Without getting rid of the ignorance it is impossible to realize the ultimate truth or Brahman. Self –Knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana can be acquired by mentally eradication the ignorance through deeper self-search.  The seeker having understood the self is neither the waking entity nor the self is dream entity but self is the formless soul or consciousness, which witnesses the coming and going of the three states. Only people who are confused think that, the consciousness is limited to the birth entity (physical body) whereas the consciousness pervades in all the three states as their formless substance. And it is apart from the three states as their formless witness. It is apart from the three states because it is not an entity or identity or thing within the three states but it is the cause of the three states and it itself is uncaused.    

The soul or consciousness, the innermost self is birthless and deathless because it is formless. The one which wakes up dreams and sleeps is not the self but the self is that which witnesses the coming and going of the three states without the physical apparatus.

The waking is parallel dream and dream is parallel waking.  The nature of the soul, the innermost self is without the waking or dream as in deep sleep.  The waking entity and waking world are within the waking and dream entity and dream world are within the dream but the self is neither the waking entity not the self is dream entity but the self is formless witness of the three states. Thus it is erroneous to view, judge and conclude the truth on the waking entity, which is not the self.  

Man and his experience of the world are reality within the waking or dream. The dream becomes unreal when waking takes place. Similarly the waking becomes unreal when waking entity realizes the fact that, it itself is not the self. The three states are mere illusion from the standpoint of the soul or consciousness, the innermost self. Because of inborn conditioning ,which is present as ‘I’ the waking entity thinks it is an individual separate from the world and world existed  prior to it and it is born in it afterwards. Till this deep rooted conviction is there it is difficult to eradicate the deep rooted ignorance from the subconscious.  Thus perfect understanding of what is what’ is very much necessary to understand, assimilate and realize the non-dualistic or Advaitic truth.  

People try to overcome their inherited religious conditioning but it by getting rid of the religious conditioning one will not be able to overcome the physical shackle.  One has to get rid of the inborn samskara or conditioning itself by realizing the fact that ‘I’ or ‘I AM’   is not the self.

Only by getting rid of the ignorance one can get rid of the inborn samskara or   conditioning.

v  What is the use of arguing on base of the birth entity, which is not the self?

v  What is the use of knowing what happens after death when the self is birthless? 

v  What is the use of thinking of the heaven and hell when the self is not an individual and it is never born and never dies?

But he is unaware of the fact that, he and his experience of the world are within the waking experience.  The waking experience appears and disappears, same way as the dream. When there is dream than there is no waking. When there is waking than there is no dream.  When there is neither the dream nor the waking it is identified as deep sleep in waking experience.   One is aware of the dream or deep sleep only in waking.  The one which is aware of the coming and going of the three states is neither the waking entity nor the dream entity but the formless witness of the three states.  

All the scriptures indicate that Atman is Brahman, and Brahman is ultimate truth. Therefore the soul, which is in the form of consciousness, is ultimate truth.  Thus to realize the ultimate truth is the prime goal.   A well-directed inquiry, analysis and reasoning will lead one to his non-dual destination.

The whole universe is consciousness.

The world confronts you is consciousness. The whole universe is consciousness.  Unless the world is there in one’s realization, there is no Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana or Self-Knowledge. It is not enough to see a mere blankness in Samadhi. One has to realize the body, ego and the world as consciousness. The soul, the innermost self is free from ignorance not when one sees nothing at all, as waking entity in Yogic Samadhi but only when one see all this universe including his body and ego as  consciousness. Hence you must ask the question “What is this universe?” The attention must be drawn to the outer world to realize the form, time and space which are present in the form of universe are also made of single stuff, which is consciousness.  

This universe is common to all of us, therefore one must include the universe his investigation in order to realize the ultimate truth or Brahman.   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 the perfect understanding of what is what. 

• v  What is the universe?
• v  What is this ‘I’?

That is why Sri, 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.

Self –Knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana can be attained only if one totally accepts the Self is not ‘I’ but the self the formless soul (‘I’-less) or consciousness      with full conviction than one becomes aware of the fact that, the three states are mere illusion created out of consciousness. The soul or consciousness is the innermost self, which witnesses the coming and going of the three states. Through Self-Knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana, one realizes the three states are non-existent as reality.   

Self is that that which knows the coming and going of the three states. Thus holding ‘I’ or ‘I AM’ as self which is part of the witnessed (mind or universe) is erroneous. Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana– the nectar and by drinking nectar one becomes aware of the immortal nature of the formless soul, the innermost self. Thus a true seeker, by acquiring ‘Self –Knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana’ transcends the illusory experience of the individual birth, life death and the world(waking)  and attains immortality