Ignorant sees the world through an egocentric vision, so he takes the world in which he exists as a reality.+

Ignorant sees the world through an egocentric vision, so he takes the world in which he exists as a reality.

Gnani sees the world in which he exists from soulcentric vision so, he sees the world as nothing but an illusion created out of the Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness.

God's appearance through vision is merely a hallucination from the standpoint of the Soul, the Self. All the claims about the appearance of God are not truthful on the base of the Soul as Self.

Even if God appeared to anyone cannot be taken as real, since the waking experience itself is the dualistic illusion or Maya.

Thus, whatever is based on the individual and the world is bound to be a reality within the dualistic illusion or Maya. the dualistic illusion or Maya is present in the form of the 'I'.

The dualistic illusion or Maya is impermanent, which appears and disappears. The permanent is the formless substance and the witness of the dualistic illusion or Maya or 'I'.

There is a need not to doubt that people saw Shiva, Jesus, etc. That they saw visions may be an undeniable fact. But the question is “Was what they saw the Truth?" They no doubt had such vision but they never stopped to inquire if their visions were true.

Remember:~

After years of effort glorifying Christ when Christian closes his eyes and Christ comes to him.

After years of effort glorifying Krishna when a Hindu closes his eyes and Krishna comes to him.

After years of effort glorifying  Buddha when a Buddhist closes his eyes and Buddha comes to him.

After years of effort glorifying Mahavira when a Jain closes his eyes and Mahavira comes to him.

Christ doesn’t come to a Hindu; Mahavira doesn’t come to a Christian. Buddha doesn’t come to a Jain: only the image projected in the subconscious will come. The image became almost solid. It became so real from constant repetition, from continuous remembering, that it seemed the projected deity was standing in from of him. No one was standing there.

Wherever is projected is merely an illusion created out of the consciousness. Any experience is possible only within the domain of the illusory form, time, and space. 

Whatever belongs to the form, time and space is merely an illusion. The illusion is created out of single stuff and that single stuff is the consciousness. The knowledge of the single stuff is Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana.

In Advaitic reality, consciousness alone exists without the illusory division of form, time, and space. There is no second here, no other. From the standpoint of the Soul, form, time and space are merely an illusion.

The seeker has to take all the facts, and then proceed to examine and analyze, how far is it true?”

To talk of seeking God is as meaningless as saying "seeking dog". It is only a hollow word. One must realize God in truth. :~Santthosh Kumaar

Sage Sankara:~Self- knowledge arises from discrimination between these two—the real and the unreal.+

Sage Sankara also asserts that the Self is realized when all the effects of ignorance, root, and branch, are burnt down by the fire of Self- knowledge, which arises from discrimination between these two—the real and the unreal.

From the standpoint of the Soul, the Self, all three states are unreal. Therefore, waking or dream is the dualistic illusion or Maya. illusion.

From the standpoint of the Soul, the Self, the three states are non-existent. The Soul is present in the form of consciousness.

Whatever is seen, known, believed, and experienced as a reality within the waking experience as a person is merely an illusion created out of consciousness.

Man and his experience of the world and his  God based on blind belief is merely an illusion from the standpoint of the Soul, the Self.

Thus it is necessary to learn to view and judge the three states on the base of the Soul in order to realize the fact that, all three states are merely an illusion.

Only after realizing the three states are illusory, one can say the world is an illusion, not until then.

Religion dogmatically assumes God's existence which is based on individual perception. One has to realize the fact that whatever is based on individuality is bound to be an illusion. Thus the physical body and the experience of the world and belief in god are part of the illusion.

In reality, no second thing exists other than the Atman (soul). Thus, Atman(soul) alone is a reality that is a formless substance and the witness of the illusion(three states).

The Atman is the ultimate reality or Brahman. Brahman is a real God. No second thing exists other than the Atman (consciousness) because the whole universe is created out of Atman, which is present in the form of consciousness.:~Santthosh Kumaar 

Sage Sankara.+

 

As one peeps into the annals of history, the date of Sage Sankara may be taken most correctly as that of the 8th century. Some claims are made that he lived two thousand years ago, but there is absolutely no proof for this claim. 

In a deeper investigation, one finds that they do not go back further than the 12th century A.D. and that all so-called evidence for Sage Sankara having lived two centuries before Christ is either conjecture or orthodox fabrication. 

Adi Shankar was born at Chidambaram in 44 BCE and died in 12 BCE is an orthodox fabrication. 

About Sage Sankara's death, you may dismiss the legend that he did not die at the age of 32 but disappeared into a cave. This is another orthodox story that is quite unfounded. Sage Sankara did really die in the Himalayas at that age.

Thirdly, you ask how he could have written so many books during such a short term of existence. The truth is that he wrote very few books. Those actually written by him were Commentaries on Brahma Sutras, the Upanishads, and on the Gita. All other books ascribed to him were not written down by his own hand. They are merely collections of notes recorded by his disciples from his sayings, talks, and discussions.

Fourthly, Sage Sankara's own Guru was named Govinda, and he lived near Indore. When Sage Sankara wrote his commentary on the Manduka Upanisha,d his guru was so pleased with it that he took his chela to the Himalayas to visit his own Guru, who was named Sage Goudapada. Only when the latter agreed that the commentary was perfect did Govinda release Chela to start his own mission of teaching.

Sage Sankara wrote his commentary on Manduka Upanishad first, then, as this revealed that he thoroughly understood the subject, his gurus requested him to write the commentary on Badarayana's Brahma Sutras, which was a popular theological work universally studied throughout India. That is why his commentary is written from a lower dualistic point, for those who cannot rise higher, save that here and there Sage Sankara occasionally has strewn a few truly Advaitic sentences.

Biographical anecdotes about his persecution of Jains and Buddhists or of his challenges to self-immolation for the loser of a debate are all foolish tales invented after his lifetime either by his own followers who took him to be a religious propagator (and not a philosopher) or by his opponents like Visishta Advaitins and Dvaitins.

The orthodox Advaitin pundits relate boastfully pseudo-historic stories of how Sage Sankara's school put down, persecuted, and exterminated the Buddhists, as though this was something to be proud of. This is because those orthodox pundits are mere followers of religion, never having understood the philosophy of Sage Sankara. However, these stories are either exaggerations or false fairy tales.

Sage Sankara pokes fun at ascetics and points out that all their austerities do not cause desires to go in his “Altar Flowers" Page 205, v.2, P.207 v.4.

Sage Sankara gave religion scholasticism and yoga no less than philosophy and his Advaitic wisdom to the world. He was great enough to be able to do so. His commentary on Manduka is pure philosophy, but many of his other books are presented from a religious standpoint to help those who cannot rise up to philosophy.

Advaitic orthodoxy is the home of mysticism and deification. The Advaitic wisdom of Sage Sankara is based on rational truth.

Sage Sankara had only four fully trained disciples, although he advised some kings. His doctrines spread after his lifetime. Sage Sankara’s books were dictated to secretaries as he traveled. So few, therefore, were capable of understanding his philosophy.

Sage Sankara always traveled. He never lived in a monastery. He simply told others, "Build one here," and then left because he was busy spreading his doctrines.

All the gurus belong to a religion, but none of them are Gnanis or have grasped the Advaitic Gnana-truth. They are religionists.

Instead of debating where Sage Sankara is born or dies. Seekers of truth are thirsting for the treasure of his Advaitic wisdom. This is all that matters.

Sage Sankara says you must first know what is before you. If you cannot know that, what else can you know or understand? If you give up the external world in your inquiry, you cannot get the whole truth.

Nearly all thinkers and gurus of the East and West hold views of Maya that are entirely incorrect and untenable. They do not know Sage Sankara’s Upanishad Bashyas, but only the Brahma Sutra Bashyas.

Sage Sankara wrote his Manduka Upanishad commentary on the island called Omkaresvar, the border of Indore State, where the Cauvery and Narmadha rivers meet. On this island, there is also a tomb of Sage Sankara’s Govinda  

The followers of Sage Sankara nowadays have constituted a religious sect. Thus, all movements ultimately degenerate.

Sage Sankara varied his practical advice and doctrinal teaching according to the people he was amongst. He never told 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 toward the truth.

Sage Sankara was extremely precise and careful in his choice of words. He was no fool in writing.

Sage Sankara did more than write books or initiate Sanyasins: He brought India into unity as a nation. He told men: Worship what you wish, remain in your particular religion, but remember also you are part of a larger whole.

Few scholars have caught the spirit; they are merely fond of his words. For his spirit is that of an appeal to reason, with scripture dragged in as second and lesser support afterward.

So many years have passed since Sage Sankara appeared, yet it is very hard to find his true teachings understood anywhere in India today. Why? Because so few could rise to his level. Hence Ramanuja, Madva, and others came to supply the common demand.

The story in Sage Sankara's life of going to Benares and occupying the body of another man and then having sexual intercourse with his wife is a cock and bull story hiding the real fact. He had the scientific spirit, and when told by Saraswathi, the woman that he was talking emptily about sex, being a Sanyasi, he at once went to learn the truth by having actual intercourse himself and thus learning by experiment and observation.

Sage Sankara has used the phrase "the jungle of words." This is his acknowledgment of the need for Semantics.

Sundaralahari is a poem that has been attributed to Sage Sankara but judging by the style and contents, I do not believe this.

Sage Sankara stressed the great importance of freeing our use of words from all ambiguity.

Sage Sankara's work has two aspects: the dualistic, which is applied to practical life, and the non-dualistic, which is applied to Adyathmic or spiritualistic.

Sage Sankara gave religious, ritual, or dogmatic instruction to the populace 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.

Sage Sankara is the greatest Sage in  India's history because (a) he sought to unify the country by placing his institutions and teaching from North to South and East to West, impressing oneness as a nation on all the people. This oneness is not to be restricted by you to religion for it includes its practical application to life such as politics and sociology, and (b) he accepted and encouraged all the prevailing religions but merely purified them of their immoralities. It is false to say he attacked or persecuted Buddhism. This was an interpretation by pundit followers who came afterward and never understood his message. Sage Sankara has never said that a certain caste or community or that Sanyasa only could attain Brahman; he always taught universality.

Updesha Sahasri, which is attributed by some to Sage Sankara, may not have been written by him as there is no proof either way. It is of doubtful authenticity.

In Brahma Sutras, Sage Sankara says that Brahman is the cause of the world, whereas in Manduka Upanishad, Sage Sakara denies it. This is because he says that at the lower stage of understanding, the former teaching must be given, for people will get frightened as they cannot understand how the world can be without a cause, but to those in a higher stage, the truth of non-causality can be revealed.

Sage Sankara himself has warned us not to use ambiguous words and to practice semantic analysis in his book "Definition of one's own Self." Page 199, v.24 of "Sankara's Selected Works”

Bhagavan Buddha found religion in such a putrid state, with so many vile animal sacrifices, that he attacked religion.

Sage Sankara did not seek to destroy religion like Bhagavan Buddha but said, "Keep religion for ignorant people, but  reform it." Sage Sankara did this because he saw that the masses had to have some form of religion as they were not ripe intellectually for truth. :~Santthosh Kumaar 

Katha Upanishad:~ "This Atma is NOT to be attained by a study of the Vedas.+

The Sruti itself says:~ "This Atma is NOT to be attained by a study of the Vedas. (Katha Upanishad I, 2, 23.)

Therefore, all the non-Vedic add-ons and attribute-based knowledge, which is inferior, have to be bifurcated and excluded to know the ultimate truth or Brahman or God in truth.

The seeker of truth has to drop all the inferior knowledge based on the attributes and go beyond Vedas to understand assimilate and realize the ultimate truth or Brahman.

One has to go beyond Vedas means to go beyond religion. To go beyond religion means, to go beyond the religious idea of God. Thus, going beyond Vedas, religion and religious God means going beyond illusion. That is the end of Vedas [Veda –antha]

When one goes into the annals of history it looks like the true Advaita expounded by Sage  Sankara was lost or mutilated by the Orthodox cult, because orthodox preaching and practices are dualistic

Sage Sankara says in Brahma Sutras: that Brahman is the cause of the world, whereas in Mandukya he denies it. This is because he says that at the lower stage of understanding, the former teaching must be given, for people will get frightened as they cannot understand how the world can be without a cause, but to those in a higher stage, the truth of non-causality can be revealed.

Sage Sankara himself has warned us not to use ambiguous words and to practice semantic analysis in his book "Definition of one's own Self. [Page 199, v.24 of "Sankara's Selected Works]

Remember:~

The Advaitic wisdom of Sage Sankara has nothing to do with religion, caste, rituals, worship, yoga, and other practices. Therefore an obvious disparity between Sage Sankara‘s path of Gnana and the path of Karma. The path of Gnana is meant for the advanced seeker of truth and the path of Karma is meant for the ignorant populace.

Even Sage Sankara appears in the vision and tells the orthodox people the path of orthodoxy is the path of ignorance they will not be able to drop their inherited samskara or conditioning, which they think is the only way to reach heaven and reap a happy life in the next life.

As regards the rituals, Sage Sankara says, that the person who performs rituals and aspires for rewards will view himself in terms of the caste into which he is born, his age, the stage of his life, his standing in society, etc. In addition, he is required to perform rituals all through his life. However, the Self has none of those attributes or tags. Hence, the person who superimposes all those attributes on the changeless, eternal Self and identifies the ‘Self’ with the body is confusing one for the other; and is, therefore, an ignorant person. The scriptures dealing with rituals, rewards, etc. are therefore addressed to an ignorant person.- (11- Adhyasa Bhashya)

The orthodox people only teach and preach their knowledge of ignorance but none of them wants to know God in Truth, which is hidden by the dualistic illusion or Maya.

Remember:~

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 still remain in ignorance of the Atman the real God.

As a person, one performs rituals throughout his life. The person who performs rituals and aspires for rewards will view the world in which he exists as a reality. However, the Soul, the Self unborn eternal hidden by the world in which he exists. From the standpoint of the Soul, the world in which he exists is merely an illusion.

The scriptures dealing with rituals, rewards, etc. are therefore addressed to an ignorant person.

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  ~ Fools, dwelling in darkness, but wise in their own conceit and puffed up with vain scholarship, wander about, being afflicted by many ills, like blind men led by the blind.

Ish Upanishad declares:~ Those people who have neglected the attainment of Self-knowledge and have thus committed suicide 10/11/12

The religious orthodox people who have neglected the attainment of Self-knowledge and have thus committed suicide, as it were, are doomed to enter those worlds after death.:~Santthosh Kumaar

If you are seeking truth then you should not waste your precious time and fortune by attending to the Satsangha and retreats.+

Those Gurus who expound ‘I-centric’ knowledge is propagating ignorance. The seeker has to be aware of the fact that the ‘I’ itself is ignorance. The truth is hidden by the ‘I’.

Bhagavad Gita: ~ “You must first see the ‘I’ as illusory before you see others as illusory. ~ CH.2 v.16

If you stick to ‘I-centric Gurus and their teaching you are sticking up to ignorance. By following ‘I-centric’ teaching even after hundred years you will never realize the ‘Self’ hidden by the ‘I’. If you are seeking truth then you should not waste your precious time and fortune by attending the Satsangha and retreats of ‘I-centric’ Gurus.

That is why Bhagavan 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.

It takes time for the seeker to gain the perfect understanding of ‘what is the truth’ and ‘’what is untruth’. It takes time for the Soul, the innermost Self to wake up from the sleep of ignorance, and it takes time for one realizes the truth, which is beyond form, time, and space.

The seeker should be aware of everything that is untrue: stick to the truth and he shall succeed, maybe slowly, but surely. The ‘I’ is not the root of all the appearance because the ‘I’ itself is an appearance.

Only ignorant people say ‘I’ is the root of all appearance. Those Gurus who propagated the ‘Self’ within the body erred. This mistake has to be rectified in order to realize the Soul, the Self, which is present in the form of consciousness, is the fullness of consciousness. By emotionally sticking to these ’I’-centric gurus and their teachings you will remain permanently in the domain of ignorance.

Because of ignorance, you think you are an individual separate from the world and world that existed prior to you, you are born in it later on. The ‘I’ is inborn ignorance cause of experiencing the world in which you exist as a reality whereas the world in which you exist is a dualistic illusion. Whatever belongs to a dualistic illusion is bound to be an illusion. So, your experience of birth, life, death, and the world is bound to be an illusion.

Everyone is holding some teaching or teacher or their accepted truth as a yardstick. All the accumulated egocentric knowledge is inadequate or useless in unfolding the mystery of the mind or universe.

The ‘I’ is inborn samskara or conditioning, because of this inborn samskara or conditioning one has accepted the ‘I’ as the ‘‘Self’’, he is ignorant of the fact that the ‘I’ itself’ is the cause of ignorance. Because of this ‘I’ he has accepted illusion as a reality. Therefore, there is a need to realize ‘what is this ‘I’?’ - in actuality.

Without knowing ‘what is this ‘I’?’ in actuality it is impossible to unfold the hidden truth which is beyond form, time, and space.

Until you hold the ‘Self ‘as the ‘I’ you will never be able to get Self-realization. ‘I’ hides the Soul, which is the innermost Self.

‘I’ is ignorance.

‘I’ is the duality.

‘I’ is the form, time, and space.

‘I’ is the universe.

‘I’ is the waking.

‘I’ is the dream.

‘I’ is the illusion.

‘I’ is the experience of birth, life, death, and the world.

REMEMBER:~

Without the ‘I’ there is no ignorance.

Without the ‘I’ there is no duality.

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

Without the ‘I’ there is no universe.

Without the ‘I’ there is no waking.

Without the ‘I’ there is no dream.

Without the ‘I’ there is no illusion.

Without the ‘I’ there is no experience of birth, life, death, and the world.

The ‘I’ hides the Soul, the ‘Self, which is the cause of 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.

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

It is time to discard the ‘I’. Never use the word ‘I’ or I AM for the Self. : ~ Santthosh Kumaar

Rest in Spirit by realizing the world in which you exist is nothing but the Spirit.+

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.

Know the relation between the Spirit and the Matter.

The matter is present in the form of the mind. The mind is present in the form of the universe. The universe appears as a waking or dream (matter) and disappears as deep sleep (Spirit).

The Matter is merely an illusion created out of the Spirit. Thus, the matter is nothing but the Spirit in its essence.

Thus, the world in which we exist is nothing but matter. And the world in which we exist is nothing but an illusion created out of the Spirit.

Till one thinks the Self is an individual separate from the world, he will remain in the domain of ignorance. The Self is not an individual because the Self is not ‘you’.

You are bound by birth, life, death, and the world, whereas the Soul, the Self, is birthless and deathless because it is ever formless, timeless, and spaceless existence

Intellectuality is based on individuality. Individuality is a falsehood because the Soul, the Self, is not an individual.

The Soul, the Self, is a formless, timeless, and spaceless existence.

The Soul is present in the form of consciousness. Consciousness pervades everything and everywhere in all three states as their formless substance and witness.

In the realm of the truth, the formless substance and the witness are one in essence. The essence is consciousness.

Thus, consciousness alone is real and all else is merely an illusion because there is no second thing that exists other than consciousness.

Remember:~

Sage Sankara says ~ “When the whole universe, movable and immovable, is known to be Atman (Spirit), and thus the existence of everything else is negated, where is then any room to say that the body is Atman”.

Realize ~ You, your body, and the world, in which you exist are made of the same stuff.

Realize ~ that the three states are made of the same stuff.

Realize ~ duality is created out of nondual stuff.

Realize ~ there is no inside and outside.

Realize ~ matter is nothing but Spirit.

Realize ~ there is no above or below.

Realize ~ the form; time and space are one in essence.

Realize ~ the ‘Soul' is neither the male nor the female.

Realize ~ the world in which you exist is not the world, but it is the Spirit.

Realize ~ the Soul, the ‘Self’ is not human but the Spirit.

Rest in Spirit by realizing the world in which you exist is nothing but the Spirit. : ~ Santthosh Kumaar