Sage Sankara cautioned that the study of the Upanishad alone would not lead to Moksha.+

Sage Sankara: ~ 'Like a servant who carries a lamp in front of you to find your way, and you have found it, so becomes the Veda to that person. What is the Veda? ~ utterances of those who have known the Truth. Here is one who has known the Truth; why should he or she depend upon the Veda further? Actual realization takes you beyond books. At a certain stage, books become a botheration. The Upanishad itself says that the 'words are only so much of a distraction for such minds'

The Upanishad itself says that:~ vacho viglapanam hi tat~ words are only so much of a distraction for such minds.

Sage Sankara cautioned that the study of the Upanishad alone would not lead to Moksha.

Ashtavakra:~ There is no wisdom whatsoever in the scriptures- just a collection of words.

Manduka Upanishad has no assumptions whatsoever. It is an honest and bold inquiry into truth. It rises above scripture.

By mastering scriptures, it is impossible to establish the Self unless you forget all.

All the interpretation of different scriptural scholars is an arena of conflicting interpretations.

All the scriptural interpretations by the Gurus are based on the dualistic perspective and orthodox point of view.

All the gurus of the East and West interpret Advaita from a dualistic standpoint or orthodox point of view, and they are still dealing with words, not truth. It proves that they have not understood the Advaitic wisdom of Sage Sankara.

Scriptures are meant for ignorant people who are in the preliminary stages. Scriptures are of no use to establish the ultimate truth of Brahman.

The seeker has to strive for getting certainty, irrefutable proof of ‘Self’ in truth, not dogmatic assertion to get rid of ignorance.

Self-knowledge or knowledge of truth is not had by resorting to a Guru nor by the study of scripture, it is attained only by a perfect understanding of ‘what is what.

The scriptures are self-contradictory only you have to pick only those insights which are signposts, which are indicated towards the reality, which is beyond the form, time, and space. The subconscious goal of your search is Self- awareness.

Mundaka Upanishad: ~ So-called spiritual pundits and learned are called children because a child takes whatever it thinks as truth. The question never occurs to children, “Is what I have seen or thought really the truth?" P.334 line 9)

Scriptures are not needed in the pursuit of truth. Even the Upanishads and the sages of truth declare the same.

Mundaka Upanishad: ~ The study of the Vedas, linguistics, Rituals, astronomy, and all the arts can be called lower knowledge. The highest 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 ultimate truth has to be ascertained without the scriptures by realizing the Self is neither the waking entity not the dream entity but the Self is a formless Soul which is present in the form of consciousness.

In the realm of truth, form, time, and space are created out of single stuff. That single stuff is consciousness. Realizing the single stuff as the ultimate truth is Self-realization or truth realization. To realize this truth there is no need of the scriptures.

Sage Sankara says: ~ VC-162- There is no liberation for a person of mere book knowledge, howsoever well-read in the philosophy of Vedanta, so long as one does not give up the false identification with the body, sense organs, etc., which are unreal.

The ultimate truth has to be realized first then only it is possible to know what the scriptures are saying.

Sage Sankara strongly advocated the study of Upanishads, and at the same time, cautioned that the study of Upanishads alone would not lead to moksha. In matters such as spiritual attainment, one’s own realization was the sole authority, and it cannot be disputed.

Remember:~

Sage Sankara also said a study of Upanishad was neither indispensable nor a necessary prerequisite for attaining the human goal, the moksha.

Sage Sankara pointed out; that even those who were outside the Upanishad fold were as eligible to moksha as those within the fold were. He declared that all beings are Brahman, and therefore the question of discrimination did not arise. All that one was required to do was to get rid of ignorance (Avidya or duality).

That is why Sage Sankara: ~ VC 56. Neither by Yoga, nor by Sankhya, nor by good work, nor by learning, but by the realization of one's identity with Brahman is Liberation possible, and by no other means.

58. Loud speech consisting of a shower of words, the skill in expounding the Scriptures, and likewise erudition - these merely bring on a little personal enjoyment to the scholar but are no good for Liberation.

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 that merely causes the mind to ramble. Hence, men of wisdom should earnestly set about knowing the true nature of the Self.

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 utters the name of the medicine, without taking it; (similarly), without direct realization, one cannot be liberated by the mere utterance of the word Brahman.

63. Without causing the objective universe to vanish and without knowing the truth of the Self, how is one to achieve Liberation by the mere utterance of the word Brahman? — It would result merely in an effort of speech.

64. Without killing one’s enemies, and possessing oneself of the splendor of the entire surrounding region, one cannot claim to be an emperor by merely saying, ‘I am an emperor’.

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.

Then there is no need for the scriptures, religion, and the idea of God. One has to be more rational to realize the Advaitic truth, which is the ultimate truth or scientific truth.:~.:~Santthosh Kumaar