Ritualistic path is meant for illiterate and most of the highly educated are the largely illiterate in the field of spirituality today***

Kabir lived in Kashi, a place abounding in scholars. They believed it was enough to read, to accumulate knowledge from books. They were well versed in the Vedas, in the Upanishads and the other scriptures, and  they looked upon Kabir as ignorant, as an  illiterate man. In one sense, you can say Kabir was illiterate. If you consider a scholar as literate, as a well-educated man, then Kabir was definitely illiterate. But of what value is the scholar’s knowledge? A scholar will go on and on about the immortality of the soul, but when death approaches you will find him trembling  and weeping and wailing. All this talk of immortality will crumble into nothingness because he has not known it..  ~ Osho ~The Great Secret, ch. 2

 Religious People think that in the age of Kaliyuga, a person gets Moksha or salvation from bondage the cycle of rebirth by indulging in ritualistic path. 

Ritualistic path is meant for those who were illiterate and most of the highly educated are   the largely illiterate in the field of spiritualism today. 

Mundaka Upanishad says:~ 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.

When sages themselves found rituals are unsafe rafts for crossing The sea of samsara, of birth and death and ignored them and they the Mundaka Upanishad further suggest that, such rituals are unsafe rafts for crossing the realm of duality those who try to cross The realm of duality on these poor rafts are  Doomed to shipwreck are. Ignorant of their own ignorance, yet wise in their own esteem, these deluded people (pundits) proud of their vain learning go round and round like the blind led by the blind. Therefore, if one wants to acquire Atma Gnana or Brahma Gnana or Self- Knowledge or knowledge of consciousness one has to drop all ritualistic and orthodox baggage to move forward in their pursuit of truth. 

 Isa Upanishads indicates that:  The time one spends in ritualistic practices is wasted; one can spend the same time moving forward towards Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana, which is the main goal.

Vedas bars human worship:-

Translation  "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.

The Upanishads are the only scriptures in the world which declare:~ It is impossible to find and realize the truth via religion and scriptural study. Even Upanishads conform this. 

If Sage Sri Sage Sri, Sankara has declared the world is myth Brahman alone is real then it is the time for everyone to overcome the ignorance and realize the truth in order to realize what Sage Sri Sage Sri, Sankara said was the truth or  the untruth. 

With due respect to all the orthodox elders it is time for the reform to build a strong Sanatana society free from dogmas.  With nagging orthodox parents trying to impose their orthodox ideas on their children staying in the self-imposed prison of orthodoxy without realizing they themselves are on the wrong path and they think they are in the right path to Moksha.

In most of the orthodox families today there is no peace because there is no love between grandparents grandchildren, parents spouse, children because they live in the prison of dogmas.   The orthodox people expect their clan to follow a certain outdated religious code of conduct (Shastras) and live dogmatically following the traditional lifestyle. Those children and grandchildren who are married out of religion treated as not humans.   Those who followed are favored and others are condemned and excommunicated from the family thinking they are going to get Moksha by doing such an  act. Their chosen path is meant for the ignorant who have the sheepish mentality blindly accepting the inherited dogmas.It is high time to stop judging   who is right and who is wrong in this unreal world instead one has to spend the same time to acquire Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana. 

First Mundaka - Chapter 2 (9) - Children, immersed in ignorance in various ways, flatter themselves, saying: We have accomplished life's purpose. Because these performers of karma do not know the Truth owing to their attachment, they fall from heaven, misery-stricken, when the fruit of their work is exhausted.

First Mundaka - Chapter 2 (10) - Ignorant fools, regarding sacrifices and humanitarian works as the highest, do not know any higher good. Having enjoyed their reward on the heights of heaven, gained by good works, they enter again this world or a lower one.

It is high time for the orthodox highly educated noble Advaitins to realize their religious based the orthodox path chosen path was meant for the ignorant in the past therefore it is  outdated not suited for the modern mindset.

The right path is therefore is the path of the wisdom or reason of Sage Sri, Sankara. The orthodox religious Advaitic path is nothing to do with do with ultimate truth or Brahman. Thus getting stuck with religious path is getting stuck with duality. Getting stuck with duality is getting stuck with the falsehood. Getting stuck with the falsehood is accepting the experience of birth, life, death and the world as reality. Thus, the people who want freedom or Moksha right here right now must that is in this very life and in this very world must follow the path of wisdom or soulcentric reason.  

Sage Sri, Sankara says in the 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 non-duality without verifying all the facts from every angle. One has to reflect through reasoning over and over again without getting tired of the process. 

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.

The orthodox seekers are the ones who desire the transitory heaven and other pleasures obtained as a result of ritual sacrifices.

 Sage Sankara says:- (1) VivekaChudamani v 56, pg 25  Neither by the practice of yoga nor philosophy, nor by good works nor by learning, does liberation come, but only through the realization that Atman and Brahman are one in no other way.

But how does one have that realization? That is where Advaita and Advaita Vedanta diverge. 

 Sage Sri, Sankara goes on to say:- A sickness of not cured by saying the word “medicine.” You must take the medicine. Liberation does not come by merely saying the word “Brahman.” Brahman must be experienced. Until you allow this apparent universe to dissolve from your consciousness, until you have experienced Brahman, how can you find liberation just by saying the word Brahman? The result is merely a noise. Until a man has destroyed his enemies and taken possession of the splendour and wealth of the kingdom, he cannot become a king by simply saying “I am a king.” 

A buried treasure is not uncovered by merely uttering the words: “Come forth.” You must follow the right directions, dig, remove the stones and earth from above it, and then make it your own. In the same way, the pure truth of the Atman, which is buried under Maya and the effects of Maya, can be reached by meditation, contemplation, and other spiritual disciplines but never by subtle arguments. (2)

   YOGA VASISTA:- The greatest Gnani: “His state is indescribable yet he will move in the world like anybody else," ..."Though acting after every feeling such as love, hate, fear and the like, he who stands unaffected within is said to be real jivanmukta." Sankara's commentary.

 Yoga Vasista says of the Gnani: "He is a great worker." It also so says, that he keeps his body healthy, does not starve it.

 The essence of Mandukya 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.

According to Sage Sri,  Sankara, it is the ignorance of our real nature that causes suffering and pain. The desire for happiness is essentially a longing to awaken to who and what we truly are. 

 When Sage Sri, Sankara says the world is an 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 priestcraft, 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 priestcraft which is 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 nondual destination in lesser time and effort.   

Sage Sri Sankara: - Action cannot destroy ignorance, for it is not in conflict with or opposed to ignorance. Knowledge does verily destroy ignorance as light destroys deep darkness. -Atma Bodha

Sage Sri Sankara –VC -"As layers of clouds generated by the sun's rays cover the sun and alone appear (in the sky), so egoism generated by the Self, covers the reality of the Self and appears by itself." 

Sage Sri Sankara –VC--"All this universe which through ignorance appears as of diverse forms, is nothing else but, Brahman which is absolutely free from all the limitations of human thoughtSage Sri, Sankara said: - Talk as much philosophy as you like, worship as many gods as you please, observe ceremonies and sing devotional hymns, but liberation will never come, even after a hundred aeons, without realizing the Oneness. 

Sage 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 honour and worldly abasement.  

Sage 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.  

Sage Sri, Sankara' gave religious, ritual or dogmatic instruction to the mass, but pure philosophy only to the few who could rise to it. Hence the interpretation of his writings by commentators is often confusing because they mix up the two viewpoints. Thus, they may assert that ritual is a means of realizing Brahman, which is absurd.

 The Advaita taught by Sage Sri Sankara is a rigorous, absolute one. According to Sage Sri Sankara, whatever is, is Brahman. Brahman Itself is absolutely homogeneous. All difference and plurality are illusory. 

Sage Sri, 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 Mundakya, he gave the highest nondual message of the identity of Atman and Brahman, revitalizing the philosophy and practice of Advaita, while in the commentaries on the Brahmasūtra he gave a lesser teaching, positing both higher and lower Maya and higher and lower Brahman (Isvara) to explain creation for those of lesser intellects until they were ready for the highest truth.

 

“From the standpoint of the waking entity the universe is a reality from the standpoint of the soul, the innermost self, the universe is mere illusion created out of consciousness. When wisdom dawns then one realizes the whole universe is consciousness. The dualistic view is possible only in ignorance. At the dawn of  the Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana there is only non-dualistic view in the midst of duality because the whole universe is consciousness. Thus, all the contents of the universe are also the  consciousness. Thus, form, time and space are mere  an illusion created out of consciousness. If the form time and space are the consciousness than the experience birth, life and death also is the   consciousness. 

   

The word Brahman means ultimate truth or reality which cannot be indicated by any word. The Brahman can be expressed through silence because it is beyond the experience form, time and space. . Therefore, the word Brahma in the clearly stands for the essence of the three states, which is consciousness only. The final use of pursuit of truth is to know that self is consciousness. 

Sage Sri, Sankara believed that those of superior intelligence, have no need of this idea of divine causality, and can therefore dispense with Sruti and arrive at the truth of Non-Dualism by pure reason. 

Sage Sri, Sankara’s supreme Brahman is Nirguna (without the Gunas), Nirakara (formless), Nirvisesha (without attributes) and Akarta (non-agent). He is above all needs and desires. Sage Sri, Sankara says, "This Atman is self-evident. This Atman or Self is not established by proofs of the existence of the Self. It is not possible to deny this Atman, for it is the very essence of he who denies it. The Atman is the basis of all kinds of knowledge. The Self is within, the Self is without, the Self is before and the Self is behind. The Self is on the right hand, the Self is on the left, the Self is above and the Self is below". 

 Satyam-Jnanam-Anantam-Anandam are not separate attributes. They form the very essence of Brahman. Brahman cannot be described, because the description implies distinction. Brahman cannot be distinguished from any other than He.

The objective world-the world of names and forms-has no independent existence. The Atman alone has real existence. The world is only phenomenal. 

Sage Sri, Sankara was the exponent of the Kevala Advaita philosophy. His teachings can be summed up in the following words:~

Brahma Satyam Jagat Mithya,

Jeevo Brahmaiva Na Aparah

Brahman alone is real, this world is unreal; the Jiva is identical with Brahman.

Sage Sri, Sankara said :~  Just as the snake is superimposed on the rope, this world and this body are superimposed on Brahman or the soul, the innermost 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 a mere mirage created out of  the  consciousness. 

The soul or the consciousness is the root element of the universe. From the consciousness the universe comes into existence. In the consciousness the universe resides. And into the consciousness the universe is dissolved.   The  consciousness is the parent of all that is there. The consciousness is the only reality, and the universe to but an illusory manifestation.  

 The Veda serves only as the starting point. What one has to learn from Veda must be understood through the exercise of reason, as far as reason might go. And what one has understood must be realized in one’s life. 

It is not that one should pore over the ancient scriptures.  There is no need to study first then realize. One has to realize first then only he will know ‘what is truth’ and ‘what is untruth’.

"Select Works of Sage Sri, Sankara" also his commentary on Brihad: "Though I wear these robes of a Sanyasin, it is only for the sake of bread."

 Sage Sri, 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 nondual message of the identity of Atman and Brahman, revitalizing the philosophy and practise of Advaita, while in the commentaries on the Brahmasūtra he gave a 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 ultimate truth or Brahman. The consciousness is the cause of the origin, maintenance, and withdrawal of the universe is Advaita (i.e. non-dual), it means that the consciousness transcends all the conceptions, positive and negative. Nothing positive can ever be imagined or said about it.  The consciousness is existence absolute, awareness absolute.  The existence absolute means that consciousness is not unreal or non-existent. And it is not unconsciousness.  Nothing positive can be stated about the  consciousness.

The nature of the formless soul, the innermost self is non-dualistic silence. Nondualistc silence is like deep sleep state.  The silence indicates that the nature of the formless soul, the innermost self is in inexplicable, indescribable and unimaginable.  The formless soul, the innermost self is the one without a second. There is not the least shadow of multiplicity in the formless soul, which is present in the form of  the  consciousness." 

A   person, seeing a rope in dim light, mistakes it for a snake. He is as much frightened as he would have been if there had been a real snake there.  The snake is said to have ‘illusory reality’.  The illusory snake is described as a superimposition on the rope. The snake is not real, because, it is found on examination with a light that it never existed there. At the same time, it was experienced as reality till ignorance prevailed. Similarly, this waking experience experienced as reality due to ignorance. When wisdom dawns then the unreal nature of the waking experienced is exposed.  

At the dawn of Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana the waking experience has no existence apart from consciousness. The Consciousness is ultimate truth or Brahman. The waking experience is therefore said to be superimposed on consciousness same way as the dream is superimposed on the consciousness.  The  waking experience   is the practical   reality,  because  it  is  real  until  the  attainment  of  Self-realization.  the soul or the consciousness alone has absolute reality; because it is absolutely changeless because it is formless.      

Maya and Brahman, Jagat (world) and lshvara (creator), Guru (teacher) and Shishya (disciple), the holy rituals, traditions, the three worlds, the three bodies and so forth are reality within the illusory duality.  This seeming duality is a hypothesis, not to establish the duality, but to disprove it. Advaitic or the non-dualistic truth has nothing to do with the illusory duality. The formless soul  is present in the form of consciousness. the soul or the consciousness is the ultimate truth or Brahman.

 The soul or the  consciousness   is neither dual nor non-dual.  Some orthodox claim Atman is dual, some say  that Atman is non-dual, they do not know the ultimate truth. The Atman or soul is above duality and non-duality". The seeker has to realize the fact that, the duality is reality only on the standpoint of the waking entity or ego. One thinks that he is an individual separate from the world,  and the world existed prior to him,  and he is born in it afterwards. Till this conviction is there he will not be able to grasp the Advaitic or the non-dualistic truth. 

 Gnana is common to all religions.  There is nothing like One Gnana for a Hindu and another for a Christian

 The entire philosophy of Sage Sri, Sankara can be summed up in the following statement:~

Brahma satyam, jaganmithya, jivobrahmaivanaparah: - Brahman alone is real; the world is non-real, and the individual Self is essentially not-different from Brahman

 This is the quintessence of  Sage Sri, Sankara’s metaphysics.