Thus waking or dream appears as a whole and disappears as a whole.

Sage Sri Sankara, indicated  in Bhaja Govindam says: - (Jnana Viheena Sarva Mathena Bajathi na Muktim janma Shatena) - one without knowledge does not obtain liberation even in a hundred births, no matter which religious faith he follows.

Religions place God as the unknown reality”.  Every religious believer has a different idea of God. Every man has a different idea of real. Hence the need of definition before study.

The fallacy of orthodoxy’s appeal to scripture lies in the varying and conflicting interpretations of the same scripture which different men feel entitled to give or hold.

Everyone likes religion because it belongs to the world of sentiments and emotions. Religion changes as it appeals to different emotions. One will find at one pole the nude Sadhu is admired; at the other the gorgeous life styled Godman is revered. Belief in religious prohibitions arises out of fear of God's punishment.

The man himself suggests that there must be a God. It is an auto-suggestion.  To say that one knows God exists always implies he must also exist always. It would be correct to say at this point, he does not know about the existence of God because Gods existence depends on individualized belief. 

Religion is “believers Truth”; spirituality is “Truth for the seeker of truth.” This means a believer takes his feeling of truth whereas the seeker of truth takes his reasoned judgment, which will be the same under test everywhere in the universe.

The position of the seeker of truth is this: he has not seen God. He does not know his capacities, what God can do, and what God cannot do. Therefore any statement he might make about God would only be a lie. The seeker of truth does not wish to tell a lie. Therefore he does not accept not God nor deny Him; he simply refuses to make any statement about the God.

Each sect concocts a God to suit its own purposes. Belief in   such concocted Gods is a great hindrance in pursuit of truth.  The man himself suggests that there must be a God. It is an auto-suggestion. Prayers and sacrifices belong to a premature stage of development. When no answers come to prayers to their belief of God, then the   doubt arises about the existence of such God. Belief in religion weakens as the man pays more attention to the facts of his practical life within the practical world. 

People who argue that truth is only in their religion are vain logicians based on mere ideas, imaginations.  Religions which say "If one follows the religion they will go to heaven, while others “go to hell," are stories invented on the base of false self within the false experience.

Religious   truth is not the truth because it always shows contradiction. A contradiction arises because different person's interpretation may disagree with others. 

Without breaking away from religion and ancient traditions it is impossible to acquire Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana.  Religion and tradition will keep one locked in the ignorance. Belief in Yoga is a self-mesmeric condition out of which it is extremely difficult to escape.

Those who are of a dulled mind say that to be non-observant and to withdraw: keen powers of observation are desirable and will help, not hinder the pursuit of truth. The seeker has to take experiences as they come to him and he should not run away from the world in ascetic fear.

There is the proof that praise or prayers to the dead has reached them.  It is all Aesop's fables! 

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.

Thus, self-knowledge is meant only for those who have intense urge, and courage to accept the truth with humility and reject the untruth. Since people start comparing with their scriptural knowledge, it becomes impossible to assimilate and realize the non-dual truth.   Therefore, there is no need to convince anyone other than our own-selves to get the firm conviction. 

It is difficult for people to direct their uncontrolled ego (waking entity) towards the ultimate truth because of their inherited and inborn   samskaras or conditioning.

This is the great difference between Advaitic path and other no matter how similar their tenets may seem because Non-dualistic path is a path of verification. There is no scope for accepting anything blindly. Most people’s tendency is to be lazy; whereas the seeker of truth wants proof because he realizes his own ideas may be false. Most of the people want their previous notions to be confirmed and unaffected. 

To navigate along the way, language can be very useful, if it is used to point beyond its symbols and descriptions. Its function is to sacrifice itself, to burn up so completely that no trace of smoke or ash remains, so as to interfere with what its meaning shows. It is the ‘higher reason’ that uses language in this way. The function of the higher reason is precisely to burn up all obscuring residues that language leaves behind.  

The reasoning base has to be rectified from form to formless in order to discover, understand, assimilate and realize the non-dualistic or Advaitic  truth. The rectified reason functions, through discerning inquiry, to dissolve the mind into pure consciousness. The soul is present  in the form of pure consciousness. The soul  is the source  from where the mind (universe) rises and subsides. And as the rectified reason functions, it makes use of the  ego (waking entity)   reflectively, in order to bring the ego  back to the soul (consciousness).   

The thoughts and feelings did not exist prior to the appearance of waking or dream(duality).  Only after the appearance of the waking or dream the man became aware of his individuality and  the world. 

 Only in waking experience one is aware of the experience of the  birth, life, death and the world. Thus waking or dream appears as a whole and disappears as a whole.  Deeper inquiry reveals the fact that, the self is not physical, therefore the waking, dream and deep sleep are not the experience of the physical body but the formless soul, which is in the form of consciousness. 

Sage Sri, Sankara says:-  the world is illusion, it includes birth, life and death, which happens within the world.  Thus the seekers main aim is to mentally trace the formless substance of the illusion, which is also the witness of the illusion. The formless substance and witness of the illusion (world) is the Atman, and this Atman itself is Brahman.

This Brahman cannot be attained by indulging in egocentric religious orthodoxy. The knower of Brahman is Brahmin not the Brahmin who indulges in priest craft, which leads one to utter darkness as per Yajur Veda. 

 

Brahmin is the one who has realized the Brahman (ultimate truth) and helps fellow seekers towards inner path. The one who knows Brahman knows his body and his experience of the world are mere illusion and also he knows his body and his experience of the world are also as Atman (consciousness), which is Brahman.  Thus, the priest craft which are crafted on the body based theories will lead one to hallucinated moksha. But real moksha or freedom is possible only through non-dual wisdom.  

Thus it is necessary to follow the path of Brahman not the path of the orthodox priest- craft. Only by   dropping all the accumulated priest crafted baggage, one has to move forward to reach the non-dual destination in lesser time and effort.  

The process of ‘rectified reason’ is purely empirical. Each question is tried out to see what result it leads to. And then, further questions rise empirically. They arise from actual experience of the result, not just from imagining or theorizing in advance what it might be. Thus, the process must go on relentlessly, until the actual experience of a truth where questions do not further rise – where all possibilities of questioning are utterly dissolved. All this requires that each questioning attack is turned back upon one’s own mistakes of assumption and belief. Otherwise, the reasoning is merely theoretical based on the waking or dream.

The inquiry is to get un-contradictable truth.  That is possible only through soul-centric  reasoning . 

Since change and time do not apply to consciousness, that consciousness is a changeless and a timeless principle of all experience. Consciousness illuminates the whole waking experience. Consciousness illuminates the whole Dream. In deep sleep, consciousness shines alone. In all these states, it remains the same. It is always utterly unchanged in its own existence, which illuminates itself. 

Ultimate truth is accessible to anyone who has an intense urge to know the ultimate truth and who is ready to drop all his accumulated dross in order to acquire self-knowledge or Bramha Gnana or Atma Gnana. The seeker has to hold the deep sleep experience as a ‘key to the ultimate reality. If a seeker is ready to consider deep sleep as true self, then this alone is enough, without the need for a yogic cultivation of Nirvikalpa Samadhi.  On the standpoint of the deep sleep, the waking and dream are mere appearances. 

In the realm of duality one seeks truth. In the realm of Non-duality all contradictions are dissolved. The soul or consciousness never parts within any of the three states. In deep sleep, the consciousness  is in its true nature. In waking or dream, it witnesses the experience as the whole. It is nothing to with the individual experience happening within the waking or dream because the three states are mere an object to the consciousness, which is the subject. 

Binding to the scriptures and Guru and worshiping the Guru as God is the gretest obstical in pursuit of truth

Sage Sri, Sankara :- VC- 61. For one who has been bitten by the serpent of Ignorance, the only remedy is the knowledge of Brahman. Of what avail are the Vedas and (other) Scriptures, Mantras (sacred formulae) and medicines to such a one?

62. A disease does not leave off if one simply utter the name of the medicine, without taking it; (similarly) without direct realisation one cannot be liberated by the mere utterance of the word Brahman.

The soul, the innermost self. The soul is present  in the form of consciousness. Glorifying gurus’ form is erroneous, because  from ultimate standpoint the body and the universe are myth . Thus indulging glorifying and worshiping of myth becomes the greatest obstacle in the pursuit of truth.  Thus the seeker has to identify the soul, the innermost  self as guru and proceed in his spiritual endeavour.   The inner grace of the inner guru (self) will guide until the ignorance disappears and one realizes the body and the universe are a mere mirage created out of the consciousness.   


Sage Sri, Sankara :VC- 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.

66. Therefore the wise should, as in the case of disease and the like, personally strive by all the means in their power to be free from the bondage of repeated births and deaths.

Vedas bars human worship:-

Translation 3.

"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.]

Than 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.

Religious or yogic gurus propagate that, once a seeker identifies a Guru, he must totally surrender to the Guru and then from there onwards, the spiritual journey is fully the Guru's responsibility, not his... Hence the importance to choosing the right Guru is necessary, but in pursuit of truth the guru is not necessary, because the truth is not theoretical.  Truth has to be ascertained by the seeker on his own through a well-directed inquiry, analysis and reasoning based on the true self, which will lead the seeker to his destination.  

People who worship the guru as God in human form and there is a danger that they might establish a regular religious sect in his name.  This is an unhappy development of the religious movement.


Yoga Vasishtha :- "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 heart, engendered from contact with the good."

It is better to take guidance from a Gnani and try to attain the same realization which he had, rather than spend their energy in defying him. Let us remember that to deify a Gnani is to defy wisdom”


Swami Vivekananda said: - “You have to grow from the inside out. None can teach you, none can make you spiritual. There is no other teacher but your own soul.”


Renouncing the worldly life and accepting sanyasa or monk-hood means incapacity to think deeper, an impotency to inquire and reason. 

Sri, Sankara's commentary:-

Page 489: "The knower of Brahman (self-realized or Gnani) wears no signs.  Page 500 asks in effect "Tell us what you know, show it, and let us examine it under the mental microscope." It means we must bring notions and beliefs out of vagueness into clearness. It also criticizes the mystics who claim superior knowledge but who cannot communicate it for purposes of verification.

On page 482: On Gnani: "The knower of Brahman wears no signs. Gives up the insignia of a monk's life,…his signs are not manifest, nor his behavior."

Hindu religious literature is full of such aphorisms as ' there is no higher deity than the Guru; the Guru is the ultimate Truth and Deity. God and  Avatars (incarnations) are secondary to the Guru in importance ;there is no higher refuge, no higher target, no higher destination than the Guru ; the Guru is God Himself ; God and the Guru are one ; he who makes a  distinction between the Guru and God is ignorant and stupid ; and scores of  similar others. They abound both in Sanskrit and in modern Indian languages.

No scriptures  or guru  can  help one to  find the ultimate truth or Brahman, and even without them he can get the ultimate  truth or Brahman within. Binding to  the scriptures  and Guru  and worshiping  the Guru as God is the gretest obstical in pursuit of truth. One should not blindly accept the gurus teaching without proper inquiry. No blind belief can save one,  he has to work out his own salvation. 


Sage Sri Sankara  says:- VC 59. The study of the Scriptures is useless so long as the highest Truth is unknown, and it is equally useless when the highest Truth has already been known.

60. The Scriptures consisting of many words are a dense forest which merely causes the mind to ramble. Hence men of wisdom should earnestly set about knowing the true nature of the Self.

That is whay Buddha said:- 

Believe nothing because a wise man said it,
Believe nothing because it is generally held.
Believe nothing because it is written.
Believe nothing because it is said to be divine.
Believe nothing because someone else said it.
But believe only what you yourself judge to be true.

People born in the different sect and they remain as its follower. Most of the sect is founded by some gurus, thus the Indian belief system is a Guru Cult, i.e. believes in the worship of the Guru as the Supreme Deity.

The seeker of truth read not to contradict and confute, nor to believe and take for granted, nor to find talk and discourse, but to weigh and consider and discover the truth by using his own reason.  The greatest and noblest pleasure which seeker can have is to discover new truths; and drop old prejudices and accumulated knowledge.

To understand and assimilate one needs spiritual language of silence; one must speak from the standpoint of the consciousness which the language of the soul – which is humility, intense urge of inner growth, listening and without arguing on some theoretical or some authority or some famous men‘s point of view.  

When a seeker could not get full enlightenment from his inherited belief system, then only he searches elsewhere. And tries to get enlightened himself further to clear the cobwebs of his understanding and seeks guidance to his progress.

The path of religion, the path of yoga and the path of wisdom were intended for different classes of people. The wisdom is for the advanced seekers of truth. It deals with the nature of the ultimate Truth and Reality. It is meant for superior aspirants who have an inner urge to know the truth and it is not for those who are immersed in earthly desires.

Katha Upanishad:- This Atman cannot be attained by the study of the Vedas, or by intelligence, or by much hearing of sacred books. It is attained by him alone whom It chooses. To such a one Atman reveals Its own form. (Katha Upanishad Ch-II -23-P-20)

Mundaka Upanishad  :- This Atman cannot be attained through the study of the Vedas, nor through intelligence, nor through much learning. He who chooses Atman—by him alone is Atman attained. It is the Atman that reveals to the seeker Its true nature. (3 page70  Mundaka Upanishad  Upanishads by Nikilanada)

When the Upanishad says:-  the human goal is to acquire Self-Knowledge or Bramha Gnana or Atma Gnana and they indicate the personal gods, scriptures, worship and rituals are not the means to Self –Knowledge or Bramha Gnana or Atma Gnana, then why anyone should indulge in it. The religion, concept of individualized god and scriptures are the greatest obstacle to realize non-dualistc or Advaitic truth, because they are based on false self.  Therefore, one has to search the ultimate truth without losing himself in the labyrinths of philosophy.  one should indulge in deeper,self-search and assimilate and realize it.  

The seeker's goal is  to acquire  Self-knowledge or Bramha Gnana or Atma Gnana and noting other than it.  The Guru is needed in religious and yogic paths which are meant for the people who are not searching for truth but they are searching for worldly comforts and temporary peace in this physical existence.  They fear of losing their physical identity and all that is connected to the physical identity. When one realizes the physical identity (ego) is false self and the true identity is the  formless soul, which is present  in the form consciousness, then he realizes that,  the fear factor is limited to the false self within the false experience. When the self is not physical  than all the burden and bondage of the duality. The duality  is a mere mirage created out of consciousness.

It is necessary to repeating the same truth again and again till it becomes reality. One needs to constant reflect on the subject until he gets a firm conviction of what is what. Words are needed until one gets firm conviction of ‘what is what’. People need reading and hearing the words to think deeply and reach the ultimate end.  

Sri, Sankara's commentary to Brahma Sutras (Chap.3.4.50) shows that the Gnani "should pass through life", not run away from life and should take a middle course between seeking worldly honor and worldly abasement. 

Sri, Sankara varied his practical advice and doctrinal teaching according to the people he was amongst. He never advised them to give up their particular religion or beliefs or metaphysics completely; he only told them to give up the worst features of abuse: at the same time he showed just one step forward towards the truth.  Sri, Sankara was extremely precise and careful in his choice of words. 

Why Sage  Sri, Sankara says in commentary in Vedanta sutra that what is accepted without proper enquiry 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.   Seeker of truth should not believe blindly in traditional orthodox nonduality without verifying all the facts from every angle. One has to reflect through reasoning over and over again without getting tired of the process.

Therefore, Self-Knowledge or Bramha Gnana or Atma Gnana is necessary to know the fact that, the mind (I)  which is present in the form of universe and universe appears as waking or dream and  and disappears as dee[ sleep (nothingness).   The universe  is   a mere mirage created out of is consciousness. The nature of the soul or conciousness is nothingness.   Thus the soul ( consciousness) is the source and substence and  witness of the universe (mind), which appears  as waking or dream  and disappears  as deep sleep.  Thus it is necessary to know the formless witness of the three states in order to know the fact that, the soul, the innermost  self is apart and  free from the  illusory three states.  the illusory experince of the form of birth, life, death and the world are reality with in the waking experience. Therefore, it is necessary for the seeker to make sure  on what standpoint  the three states are  a mere illusion.

One has to realize the fact that, it is not the waking entity (you) which witnesses the three states.  The formless soul is the witness of the coming and going of the three states. The soul is immutable. The soul is unaffected by the happening within the three states because the three states are mere mirage created out of the formless soul, which is present in the form of consciousness. The soul or consciousness is the innermost self.

The self is neither the waking entity nor the self is dream entity but the self is the formless soul. The on the standpoint of the soul, the innermost self the three states are non-existent as reality.     

The waking body and the waking  world are reality within the waking experience ,  same way as the dream body and the dream world were reality within the dream. The dream becomes unreal when the waking takes place; similarly the waking experience becomes unreal when the non-dual wisdom dawns. 

The one who thinks himself as a guru and the one who thinks himself as  a Chela (disciple) will not qualified for  Self- knowledge or Bramha Gnana or Atma gnana.