Sage Sankara:~ The illusion of Samsara (universe) is not an absolute reality.+

The truth-seekers are moving from ignorance to wisdom, from the dualistic illusion to the nondualistic Reality, from darkness to Light, from death to Immortality.

People may quote the scriptures, make sacrifices to the gods, perform actions and pay homage to the deities, but there is no liberation from experiencing dualistic illusion as a reality without recognizing the oneness with the Soul which is the true Self.

The scripture says that there is no hope of immortality through wealth, so it is evident that liberation cannot be brought about by physical actions or karma. Therefore, the action is not the means to Self -realization.

The deeper analysis leads to the realization of the reality of the three states, and this is the end of the pain of the fear of ignorance caused by delusion.

The realization of the ultimate truth is possible only through soulcentric reasoning, not by bathing in the Holy River or by giving donations to holy men or by glorifying God or Gurus or by yogic breathing exercises. Achievement of the goal depends primarily on the seriousness of the seeker.

Sage Sankara on ignorance:~

Just as a piece of rope is imagined to be a snake in the semi-darkness and an oyster to be a piece of silver, so is the Atman (Soul) determined to be the body by an ignorant person. The illusion of Samsara is not an absolute reality.

Atman is One without parts, whereas the body has many parts, yet people see these two as One! What else can be called ignorance but this? Knowledge destroys ignorance, as light destroys darkness.

When ignorance is destroyed, the Self truly reveals, like the Sun when the clouds are removed. The destruction of ignorance is liberation. Darkness cannot remove darkness.

Wisdom being incompatible with ignorance puts it to flight. The ignorant long for results and engage in action with the idea of doer ship and enjoyment.

The ignorant are deluded and think, 'I act', 'I cause others to act', 'I enjoy, and so on. Maya is the power of the Lord. She is made up of 3 Gunas, Tamas (inertia), Rajas (action), and Sattva (purity).

Maya or illusion can be destroyed by the realization of the pure Brahman, the One without the second. The mind is the cause of bondage. All beings are by nature Pure Consciousness Itself. It is due to ignorance that they appear to be different from It.:~Santthosh Kumaar