According to Vedas and Upanishads God has no human form but God is Spirit, which is Athma. Athma is the formless, timeless and spaceless existence.+

The man alone does not become Brahman (God in truth) because the world in which man exists is merely an illusion.  The illusion is created out of the Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness.  The consciousness is the ultimate truth or Brahman or God in truth.

According to Vedas and Upanishads God has no human form but God is Spirit, which is Athma. Athma is the formless, timeless and spaceless existence. 

Yajurveda – chapter- 32:~   God is Supreme Spirit has no ‘Pratima’ (idol) or material shape. God cannot be seen directly by anyone. God pervades all beings and all directions. Thus,   Idolatry does not find any support from the Vedas.

Brihadaranyaka Upanishad: ~ Brahman (God in truth) is in the form of the Athma, and it is indeed Athma itself.

Rig-Veda 1-164-46 and Y.V 32-1 clearly mention that God is “One and God is Atman”.

Rig  Veda: ~ The Atman is the cause; Atman is the support of all that exists in this universe. May ye never turn away from the Atman the innermost self. May ye never accept another God in place of the Atman nor worship other than the Atman?" (10:48, 5)

The Bhagavad Gita: ~ Brahmano hi pratisthaham ~ Brahman (God in truth) is considered the all-pervading consciousness, which is the basis of all the animate and inanimate entities and material. (14.27)

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 Gods in human form   in place of the real  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.

Remember:~

People who are saying ‘I Am GOD’ are hallucinating that they become God. First,  you must know what is God. 

The Self is not you because you are bound by the experience of birth, life, death, and the world.

The experience of birth, life, death, and the world is nothing to do with the Soul, the Self. When you are not the Self, then how can you relate the Self with your experience of birth, life, death, and the world. 

When the Soul wakes up with its own awareness, then you and your experience of the world becomes unreal same way as the dream becomes unreal when the waking takes place.

It is foolish to say ‘I AM GOD’ when the Self is not you,  but the Self is the Soul. Therefore, the Soul, the Self,  is God.

People say Aham Brahmasmi ~ I am God, I am Brahman. But when Brahman is, how can "I" remain? Only Brahman remains, not the ‘I’

That is why Ashtavakra Gita 16:10:~ If you desire liberation, but you still say 'I' if you feel the ‘Self’ is the ‘I’, you are not a wise man or a seeker. You are simply a man who suffers.

Only religious Godmen declare: I AM GOD. Gnanis say the Soul, the Self is God.:~Santthosh Kumaar  

Why did Jesus say different things? Owing to the time and the persons, according to their readiness to listen and understand.+

What is the use of arguing with religious believers?  They think what they know as the ultimate truth.

Those who indulge in a perverted argument from their own standpoint and opinion are not seeking the truth, which is beyond form, time and space.  They just want to exhibit their accumulated knowledge accumulated from here and there.  They think what they know is the ultimate truth. 

They think whatever they propagate is the ultimate truth. The question never occurs to them, “Is what I know is really the truth? 

That is why Jesus said: ~ Do not throw your pearls before pigs, lest they trample them underfoot and turn to attack you. (Matthew -7:6) 

Spirituality is nothing to do with religion. Spirituality is based on the Spirit, the real God whereas the religion is based on the false self within the false experience. The Bible says: ~ “God is a Spirit, and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth (John 4:24)”, 

The Spirit is the root element of the universe. The Spirit is present in the form of the Soul, the   Self. The Soul is present in the form of consciousness. From the Spirit, the universe comes into existence. In the Spirit, the universe resides. And into the Spirit, the universe is dissolved. The Spirit is the parent of all that is there is. 

In Yajurveda – chapter- 32:~   God is Supreme or Supreme Spirit.

Vedas and Upanishad confirm the Soul, the Self, is present in the form of the Spirit or consciousness.

If God is  Spirit, then how does the man know God created the world? There is no proof. If the man had seen God creating the world, he could admit it, but how could he have seen God before he came into existence? (i.e. were created).

That is why Jesus said: - Do not throw your pearls before pigs, lest they trample them underfoot and turn to attack you. (Matthew -7:6) 

~Jesus meant Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana (pearls) should not be given to the ignorant populace (pigs). 

Jesus really say? To the multitude, he said, “God is in heaven; try to go there,” and to reach that end he said to overcome certain temptations and sufferings.

To his followers, he said, “God is everywhere; try to see Him.” and gave explanations to that effect.

To the close circle of apostles, he said, “God is in me and in you too,” and actually revealed this to them.

Why did Jesus say different things? Owing to the time and the persons, according to their readiness to listen and understand. What Jesus meant was to leave all and follow him; that means to know him, see him, and experience him.

The teachings that are being followed by Christians are not the real teachings that Christ gave. The priests have altered his words, added to his teachings and spoiled them.

Jesus said: ~ Seek and ye shall find. Knock the doors shall open to you. 

 The spirit is present in the form of consciousness. Everything is consciousness. All the moments are within the dualistic illusion. Whatever happens within the dualistic illusion is bound to be an illusion created out of consciousness. Thus,  consciousness alone is real and all else is merely an illusion.

“Spirit is my father and I and my father are one.”

If the Spirit is the father the son is bound to be the Spirit. The Spirit, the beloved alone is real and all else is merely an illusion. 

There is no God in the dualistic illusion because the dualistic illusion is created out of God, which is present in the form of the Spirit or consciousness.  Thus, God alone is real. 

Spirit is prior to Love. Love implies duality. The love hides God. When love disappears  God appears.  Find the Self and Love the Self and rest in God, which is the Spirit. :~Santthosh Kumaar 

Mundaka Upanishad: - The study of the Vedas, linguistics, Rituals, astronomy and all the arts Can be called lower knowledge.+

The Soul, the 'Self'   does not lie in our body or in our brain, or our ego, but it is the essence of the dual and non-dual experiences, which come and goes as waking dream and deep sleep.

Goudpada Karika-s of the second, third, and fourth chapters are the authority that a mumukshu ought to resort to. Since the reality of duality is born of ignorance even to a just-born animal, and therefore the cause and characteristic of samsara, bondage, and misery, the Upanishads and the Sages who have followed the Vedic tradition teach the unreality of the duality and redeem the suffering humanity from the misery caused by the duality.

For the sincere spiritual seeker duality (dvaita) and suffering are synonyms. So also Nonduality (Advaita) and bliss (sukha) are synonyms. The Veda, especially the Upanishad portions, are full of teachings directed at establishing the unreality and miserable nature of duality and upholding the non-dual nature of the Atman, the sole reality.

Brihadaranyaka Upanishad 4.3.22 alludes to this experience:~  (In this state a father is no father, a mother no mother, no Gods, no Vedas. In this state, a thief is no thief, the killer of a noble Brahmana no killer,  a monk no monk, a hermit no hermit. This form of his is untouched by good work and untouched by evil work, for he is then beyond all the woes of his intellect.)

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

The dualist thinkers ’ arguments are based on false self (ego or waking entity) and false experience (mind or waking or dream or universe)    to show the weakness of the position of the dualistic standpoint.  They are at their wits end to explain.

Existence cannot be a cause and effect at the same time, from the point of view of the dualists, but deeper Self-search shows that existence is no two and causality can’t rise at all. The dualistic theory says that whatever was in the cause was also in the effect. They say that the gold brick, the gold medal, the gold ornaments --are in the seed--the gold. Deeper Self-search reveals the fact that, if cause and effect are one what is the difference between the two? 

In the realm of truth, there is neither unwisdom nor ignorance; neither bondage nor liberation. There is but one pure consciousness. The logic holds good for the practical purpose in practical life (waking). Soul-centric reasoning leads to non- dualistic Self-awareness.  

The consciousness is existence absolute, awareness absolute.  The existence of absolute means that consciousness is not unreal or non-existent. And it is not unconsciousness.  Nothing positive can be stated about consciousness. 

The Soul, the Self is the One without a second. There is not the least shadow of multiplicity in the Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness.

What is it that becomes the waking experience (duality)? ‘What is it that becomes the dream (duality)?’  and ‘what is it that becomes the deep sleep (nonduality)?’ 

The seeker of truth has to direct realization of the Soul, the  Self, through wisdom and avoid losing precious time and effort losing him in philosophical studies. 

Both modern science and religion offer hypotheses and theories, but there is one vital difference--science begins with facts which it collects; religion begins with fancies. Science evolves its hypotheses from such facts, religion from fancies.

Science declares that oxygen combines with hydrogen to give water. And it also declares oxygen is protons or electrons. But in pursuit of truth, the whole physical existence (universe or mind) is considered an illusion, and science and its inventions, which are based on physical existence are limited to physical existence. The truth is within, but it is beyond physical existence.  

The science demands physical proof.  But the physical proof is part of the illusion. Hence, science cannot go beyond physicality because the truth cannot be traced with laboratory conditions.  Deeper Inquiry, analysis, and reasoning are required if one wants to push the quest deeply enough.

Common people and primitive minds fall into faulty thinking through their inherited conditioning,  such faulty thinking and reasoning make them accept the experience of birth, life, and death as a reality; taking what one sees through the senses as real, taking what is apparently obvious and superficial as true because it is less troublesome.

Remember:~

Many people adopt the attitude that what they know is the truth. And what others say is false. This attitude makes them not verify anything other than what they know.   One needs to be rational, not merely logical. Logic has its value only in the physical plane.

As one advances towards the spiritual plane, he sees the logic underlying experience and becomes more rational. His reasoning is two-fold--implicit and explicit.

There is a need for facts of physical proof in scientific invention, whereas, in pursuit of truth, the proof has to be grasped mentally and realized.  Therefore, the truth is realized only by a few who take this mental pursuit.  “Whatever facts revealed, which is un-contradictable has to be accepted as truth.

The truth based on the formless Soul, the Self is worthwhile; without it, one has something else, not the truth.  Most people refuse to venture into the pursuit of truth; because they do not want to go into the root of things.

The seeker of truth has to study, inquire, and reason at the beginning of the pursuit of truth because it is absolutely necessary for the pursuit of truth.

One has to know the Self is not physical, but the Self is the formless spirit.  The Spirit or Soul or the Self is present in the form of consciousness.  Consciousness gives one the awareness of the three states. 

Ignorance of the true Self is the cause of experiencing the dualistic illusion as a reality.    Ignorance vanishes through the realization of the true Self, which is the Soul or spirit or consciousness. :~Santthosh Kumaar 

Sticking to ‘I’ is sticking to the ignorance.+

Bhagvan Buddha: - There are only two mistakes one can make along the road to truth: not going all the way... and not starting.

If one has a perfect understanding, assimilation and the realization he becomes a Gnani that brings benefit to others by sharing the Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana who are seeking the truth.

Through perfect understanding and assimilation,  Advaitic wisdom will naturally dawn and thus, the seeker will have a yardstick unmistakably know what to accept as truth and what to discard as untruth.

By cultivating the soulcentric view of the worldview, the egocentric view of the worldview diminishes and there is self-awareness in the midst of the dualistic illusion (universe). 

In self-awareness, the universe becomes one with its essence. That essence is the Soul, is present in the form of consciousness.

When one realizes the nature of the universe then he is no longer affected in any way by the dualistic illusion.

Self- Awareness is the nature of the Soul, the Self. The Soul is unaffected by the dualistic illusion because the dualistic illusion is created out of the Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness.  

Realizing the Soul does not die nor is it born. The universe and Mukti or nirvana is of the dualistic illusion.   The dualistic illusion arises momentarily, it is impermanent, because the dualistic illusion appears and disappears.

The reality is beyond the form, time, and space. The form, time, and space are essential material for the dualistic illusion. Without the form, time and space the dualistic illusion ceases to exist. The dualistic illusion is present in the form of the ‘I’.

 The reality is beyond the ‘I’.   The seeker of truth should not cling to the ‘I’   if he wants to realize the truth, which is beyond the ‘I’.  

By sticking to ‘I’ is sticking to ignorance.

By sticking to ‘I’ is sticking to the dualistic illusion.

By sticking to ‘I’ is sticking to the body or the ego and the mind.

By sticking to ‘I’ is sticking to the universe.

By sticking to ‘I’ is sticking to the form, time, and space.

By sticking to ‘I’ is sticking to the three states.

 Remember:~

 Without the ‘I’, there is no ignorance.

 Without the ‘I’, there is no dualistic illusion.

 Without the ‘I’, there is no-body or ego and the mind.

 Without the ‘I’, there is no universe.

 Without the ‘I’, there is no form, time, and space.

 Without the ‘I’ there are no three states.

That is why Bhagavad Gita: ~ The permanent is always there, only the transient ‘I’ comes and goes. (2.18)

The ‘I’ hides the Soul, the 'Self'. 

People think the ‘I’ without the body is the Self. The seeker has to understand the fact that ‘I’ is not the Self, but the witness of the ‘I’ is the true Self, which is eternal. 

That is why Ashtavakra Gita 16:10:~ If you desire liberation, but you still say "I," If you feel the ‘Self’ is the ‘I’, You are not a wise man or a seeker. You are simply a man who suffers. 

People are stuck with the reality of the ‘I’, which they take it as real because some Gurus have propagated the Self is the ‘I’. is no need to convince such mindsets. The seeker of truth accepts only the truth nothing but the truth. 

That is why Sage Sankara says: - 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.

People refuse to accept anything other than their Guru's words. For them, their Gurus words are the ultimate truth. They do not accept anything else other than their accepted truth. There is no need to convince such a mindset.

Such mindsets are not fit to acquire Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana. The seekers of truth accept only the truth nothing but the uncontradictable truth.:~Santthosh Kumaar 

Upanishads: ~ If you believe that the ‘the Soul, the Self’ is one and God (Brahman) is another you cannot understand Truth.+

Upanishads: ~ If you believe that the ‘the Soul, the  Self is one and God (Brahman) is another you cannot understand Truth.

The religion preaches that God is one and the ways to God are many. It simply tries to lead them to darkness with its dogma and idea of many Gods, which is apart from the Self. 

People all over the world in the past and present accepted the idea of the existence of God.  The fear of God injected by the religion was the root cause of worship, superstitions, and dogmas.  The religious belief is passed on to the populace from one generation to the next generation.

Realizing the single stuff of which this universe in which you exist is made is Truth realization or Self-realization or God-realization.

No one has ever seen God by practicing religion or yoga or indulging in glorifying the religious God and Goddesses because God exists prior to the form, time, and space.  The form, time, and space cease to exist as a reality when wisdom dawns. Thus, the Gods and Guru s have no place in the domain of the Advaitic reality. Advaita is the nature of the Soul, which is God in truth.  Thus, Self-realization is the only way to God-realization.

By worshipping the religious Gods and Gurus one will not get Self-realization or God-realization.

Remember:~

Religious Gods are not God in truth. Mythological stories are a myth. Whatever is based on myth is merely a superstition. Mythology was introduced in the past for the ignorant masses. It has to be discarded as one progresses in his spiritual advancement.

Mythology breeds superstition, blind belief, and senseless rituals, and most irrational and gives them a divine outlook. Religious Gods are not God in truth. One must know God in truth.

Isa Upanishad:~ By worshipping Gods and Goddesses and going to the world of Gods after death is of no use.  The time one spends in ritualistic practices is wasted; one can spend the same time moving forward towards Self-knowledge, which is the main goal. One cannot reach the non-dual destination by glorifying God and Goddesses and by doing that, one goes deeper and deeper into darkness. It surely indicates the fact that the seeker of truth has to drop the worshiping God and Goddess to get Self-knowledge.

Religious  Gods are based on blind belief. Belief is not God.  Religious God cannot be considered as the center because the Soul,  the ‘Self’ is the center of all that exists. Without the Soul the world in which you exist ceases to exist, which means the religious God is dependent on the Soul for his existence. God in truth is only the Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness.

Even Bhagavad Gita says: ~ Brahmano hi pratisthaham ~ Brahman (God) is considered the all-pervading consciousness, which is the basis of all the animate and inanimate entities and material. (14.27).

When Bhagavad Gita says, God is considered the all-pervading consciousness which is the basis of all the animate and inanimate entities and material then nothing has to be accepted as God other than consciousness. 

Even Brihadaranyaka Upanishad: ~ Brahman (God) is in the form of the Athma, and it is indeed Athma itself.

Even Rig Veda: ~ The Atman is the cause; Atman is the support of all that exists in this universe. May ye never turn away from the Atman, the Self. May ye never accept another God in place of the Atman nor worship other than the Atman?" (10:48, 5)

Brihadaranyaka Upanishad declares: "He who worships the deities as entities entirely separate from him does not know the truth. For the Gods, he is like a pasu (beast)". (1. 4. 10)

No mantras help to get rid of ignorance. All the mantras and rituals are meant for the ignorant populace, which strongly believes, the world in which he exists as a reality.  For one who wants to acquire Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana,  the mantas will not help to realize the truth, which is beyond form, time, and space.

That is why Sage 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?

VC-  v6~ Let erudite scholars quote all the scripture, let Gods be invoked through sacrifices, let elaborate rituals be performed, let personal Gods be propitiated---yet, without the realization of one‘s identity with the Self, there shall be no liberation for the individual, not  even in the lifetimes of a hundred Brahmas put together

Sage 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 realized Brahman, how can you find liberation just by saying the word Brahman? The result is merely noise. Until a man has destroyed his enemies and taken possession of the splendor 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.

Normally people will not understand what I am driving at because they are seeking something which they can enjoy.

People's ambition is to acquire wealth and enjoy practical life within the practical world. They are looking for an advantage in the world, to take care of their daily life.   Thus, to get what they want in practical life they indulge in the numerous path of dogmas and rituals prescribed by the Gurudom expecting their daily life goes on comfortably. 

 The so-called Gurus and yogis focus their ambition on acquiring wealth by making the mass more and more dogmatic oriented.  No one inquires why they are in this hell. 

This begging to God and Guru goes on and on. If their wish is fulfilled, they indulge more and more if the wish is not fulfilled they indulge again and again because of fear of getting curses of God.   Thus, to get rid of this path of begging one has to know the truth of his true existence.      

That is why Swami Vivekananda: ~  The masses in India cry to sixty million Gods and still die like dogs. Where are these Gods?

Knowing this, stand up and fight! Not one step back that is the idea. ... Fight it out, whatever comes. Let the stars move from the sphere! Let the whole world stand against us! Death means only a change of garment. What of it? Thus fight! You gain nothing by becoming cowards. ... Taking a step backward, you do not avoid any misfortune. You have cried to all the Gods in the world. Has misery ceased? The masses in India cry to sixty million Gods and still die like dogs. Where are these Gods? ... The Gods come to help you when you have succeeded. So what is the use? Die game. ... This bending the knee to superstitions, this selling yourself to your own mind does not befit you, my Soul. You are infinite, deathless, and birthless. Because you are the infinite Spirit, it does not befit you to be a slave. ... Arise! Awake! Stand up and fight! Die if you must. There is none to help you. You are the entire world. Who can help you? - Swami Vivekananda  (Delivered in San Francisco, on May 28, 1900) -The Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda/Volume 1/Lectures And Discourses/The Gita II

Sage Sankara said:~  Talk as much philosophy as you like, worship as many Gods as you please, observe ceremonies, and sing devotional hymns, but the liberation will never come, even after a hundred aeons, without realizing the Oneness.

Yoga Vasistha says:~ ‘Self’-knowledge or knowledge of truth is not had by resorting to a Guru (preceptor) nor by the study of scripture, nor by good works: it is attained only through inquiry inspired by the company of wise (Gnani). One’s inner light alone is the means, naught else. When this inner light is kept alive, it is not affected by the darkness of inertia. 

There is no need to condemn Gurus, but there is a need to highlight how they become an obstacle in realizing the ultimate truth or Brahman.

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.”

The Guru is useless so long as the ultimate truth is unknown, and Guru is equally useless when the ultimate truth or Brahman has already been known.

A Guru is needed in the religious and the yogic path.  There is no need for a Guru to acquire ‘Self’-knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana. :~SantthoshKumaar