Rig Veda:~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.+

Brihadaranyaka Upanishad: ~ Brahman (God in truth) is present 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)

The 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)

That is why Sage Sankara 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

Sag Sankara goes on to say: ~A sickness 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 realized. 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.”

Sage Sankara says:~ 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.

The Atmic path is not meant for religious and yogic-minded people. Religious and yogic people must move on their chosen path. The Atmic path is for only seekers of truth who are seriously searching for the truth of their own existence.

Sages of truth restrained themselves, parting the Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana to the masses and only a select few. It was hidden from the people who were not qualified and receptive to it. Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana, or Atma Gnana, was not written down but was imparted orally to the chosen few.

Thus, religion was given to the masses, and knowledge of the Spirit is given to only a select few. Thus, we find traces of the knowledge of the Spirit in religious books in the form of parables.

Katha Upanishad says: ~ This Atman is attained by him alone whom It chooses. To such a one, Atman reveals its own form. (II -23-P-20)

Upanishads:~ Fools dwelling in darkness, but thinking they are wise and erudite, go round and round, by various tortuous paths, like the blind led by the blind. (Upanishads Nikilanada - Ch II-5 P-14)

The 'Soul, the 'Self' reveals ‘what is real’ and ‘what is unreal' when the seeker is receptive and ready. : ~ Santthosh Kumaar