Max Müller says ~ "The religion of the Veda knows no idols; the worship of idols in India is a secondary formation, a degradation of the more primitive worship of idolized Gods."+

Max Müller says ~ "The religion of the Veda knows no idols; the worship of idols in India is a secondary formation, a degradation of the more primitive worship of idolized Gods."

In Vedas, God has been described as:-

Yajur Veda – Chapter- 32: - God is Supreme Spirit has no ‘Pratima’ (idol) or material shape. He cannot be seen directly by anyone. He pervades all beings and all directions.

Thus, Idolatry does not find any support from the Vedas.

Rig Veda: ~ 'Prajnanam Brahma'- Consciousness is the ultimate reality or Brahman or God in truth.

Do not accept any other God other than the Soul. The Soul is God in truth,  Nothing is real but the Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness. Nothing matters but realize  God in truth. God in truth is everywhere and in everything. Let these words be inscribed in your subconscious.

God in truth is hidden by the illusory universe. God in truth alone is real and eternal and all else is an illusion.

Brahman is merely a word to indicate the ultimate truth or God in truth.  The ultimate truth itself is God in truth. 

Rig Veda: ~ The Atman (Soul or Spirit) 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 Vedas as a body of scripture contains many contradictions and they are fragmentary in nature. For Hindus, scriptures like the Bhagavad-Gita, Ramayana, Mahabharata, and Puranas are more attractive and appealing than the Vedas. And also, the Gods and Goddesses they worship differ considerably from the Vedic ones. The collection of hymns called Vedas are written in praise of certain deities by poets over several centuries does not seem to have much significance for the Hindus

Yajur Veda says:~

Translation 1

They enter darkness, those who worship natural things (for example air, water, sun, moon, animals, fire, stone, etc).

They sink deeper in darkness those who worship sambhuti. (Sambhuti means created things, for example, table, chair, idol, etc.) (Yajurveda 40:9)

Translation 2

"Deep into the shade of blinding gloom fall asambhuti's worshippers. They sink to darkness deeper yet who on sambhuti is intent." (Yajurveda Samhita by Ralph T. H. Griffith pg. 538)

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.)

So, Yajur Veda indicates that:~

They sink deeper in darkness those who worship sambhuti. (Sambhuti means created things, for example, table, chair, idol, etc (Yajurveda 40:9)

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.)

Then why worship and glorify the non-~Vedic Gods in place of Vedic 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.:~Santthosh Kumaar 

The universe is not based on you because you are part and parcel of the universe, which is merely an illusion created out of the Soul, the Self, which is present in the form of consciousness.+

The universe is not based on you because you are part and parcel of the universe, which is merely an illusion created out of the Soul, the Self, which is present in the form of consciousness. 

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

Manduka Upanishad:~Reality and illusion together make Brahman: nothing can be left out.

Manduka Upanishad:~ Atman is the highest Reality.

Manduka Upanishad:~Only a few will be able to understand and assimilate it

Manduka Upanishad is not meant for all, as it is based entirely on reasoning.

Look into the nature of the universe. And you will be able to see that universe by its very nature is illusory. The moment you realize that the universe is an illusion created out of consciousness, ignorance disappears and Self-awareness arises.

Sage Sankara: ~ “VC~ All this universe which through ignorance appears as of diverse forms, is nothing else but Brahman (Consciousness) which is absolutely free from all the limitations of human thought.

When you finally realize the ‘‘Self’ ‘is not you but the ‘‘Self’’ is the Soul then you will realize the world in which you exist is merely an illusion created out of the Soul. The Soul is present in the form of consciousness.

Sage Sankara says: - VC-47- All the effects of ignorance, root, and branch, are burnt down by the fire of knowledge, which arises from discrimination between these two—the Self and the non-Self.

Till you think you are an individual separate from the world and the world that existed prior to you and you are born in it afterward the ignorance will prevail as a reality. Till ignorance is there the universe prevails as a reality.

Self-awareness is the state of non-dual reality. That is the state of Advaita.

People never realize non-dualistic awareness through religion and yoga.

Self-awareness raises only by mentally transcending the dualistic illusion into non-dualistic reality.: ~Santthosh Kumaar 

Repeated reading of my posts and blogs and constant reflecting on the subject is the way to sow the seed of Advaitic wisdom in the subconscious.+

Repeated reading of my posts and blogs and constant reflecting on the subject is the way to sow the seed of Advaitic wisdom in the subconscious.

Repeated reading my posting and blogs helps you to get a firm conviction that the Self, not you but the Soul.

The ‘Self’ is not within your body. The ‘Self’ is hidden by the world in which you exist.

The best course for the seeker is to remember the Soul, the 'Self' continually, which is hidden by the ‘I’(dualistic illusion or Maya).

The seeker must first know the Soul is the only reality and that the world in which he exists is an illusion.

The seeker must reason upon this truth from all points of view and up all further argumentation and realize the truth. This realization comes from being certain that Soul is the ultimate truth or Brahman or is real and the world in which he exists is merely an illusion created out of consciousness.

If you keep on reading my posts and blogs old as well as new, all your doubts and confusion will vanish.

By reading my blogs and posts gradually the seekers will start assimilation ‘what is truth and what is untruth.

When there are no doubts and confusion then they have realized the truth that the form, time, and space are one in essence. And that essence is consciousness.

There is no use in wasting time questioning and arguing.

The same time and effort have to be used to understand and assimilate and realize the truth, which is hidden by the illusory form, time, and space.

Remember:~

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 Self to wake up from the sleep of ignorance, and it takes time for one realizes the truth, which is beyond the form, time, and space.

The body, the ego, and the world together are the mind. If the mind is there then only the body, the ego, and the world are present.

The body, the ego, and the world appear together and disappear together. That is the mind that is present in the form of the ‘I’ appears and disappears.

The one which witnesses the coming and going, of the ‘I’ (mind), is the Soul, the innermost Self. From the standpoint of the Soul, the innermost Self the mind (the universe in which we exist) is non-existent as a reality.

The mind cannot be purified because the mind itself is an illusion. Till one thinks the mind is within the body, he will not be able to acquire Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana, because the body and the world are within the mind. And the mind is within the Soul.

Ignorance is the cause of duality. The duality is the cause of the illusion (Maya). The illusion is the cause of experiencing birth, life, death, and the world as a reality.

Self-knowledge leads to Self-awareness. The quest for truth is not the quest for acquiring the dualistic truth within the world. The seeker must have an intense urge to realize the truth which is beyond the form, time, and space.

The dualistic knowledge hides the truth beyond form, time, and space. The practical life within the practical world is nothing to do with the ultimate truth or Brahman.

The dualistic knowledge within the dualistic illusion is not Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana.

This vast cosmos with all its contents (atom, molecule, sun, moon, planet, and star) all are created out of single stuff. That single stuff is the Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness. Knowledge of the single property is Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana.

The Soul is the Self. the Soul is present in the form of consciousness. Awareness is the nature of the Soul or consciousness. Consciousness is existence itself.

Consciousness is ever-present. Without consciousness, the world, in which you exist ceases to exist. Consciousness is Self-evident. 

It is not established by extraneous proofs. It is not possible to deny consciousness because it is the very essence of the one who denies it. Consciousness is the basis of all kinds of knowledge, presuppositions, and proofs. Consciousness is everything. Thus, consciousness is the ultimate truth or Brahman. : ~Santthosh Kumaar 

The essence of Mundaka is:~Do not be satisfied with rituals, yoga, etc. but inquire. Into what? Brahman and Atman are things you can never see. So do not inquire into them. Inquire into the world around you, which you can see.+

Who am I?- inquiry is not Self-inquiry. Self-inquiry is finding out the ‘Self’ which is hidden by ‘I’.

The ‘I’ is present in the form of the world, in which we exist. By inquiring ‘Who am I?’, the ignorance will not vanish.

Without getting rid of ignorance, the Advaitic wisdom will not dawn.

Without the Advaitic wisdom, it is not possible to realize the truth, which is hidden within the world in which we exist.

The seeker has to make sure what is this ‘universe supposed to be?

The seeker has to make sure the unreal nature of the universe comes and goes to realize the truth, which is hidden by the universe.

The Soul is permanent is always there, only the transient universe comes and goes.

Sage Sankara says: ~ ‘What is accepted without a proper inquiry will not lead to the final Goal. (Commentary on Vedanta Sutra)

Sage Sankara: ~ “VC~ All this universe which through ignorance appears as of diverse forms, is nothing else but Brahman which is absolutely free from all the limitations of Maya.

The universe hides the truth of the Soul, the Self, which is present in the form of consciousness.

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 Gurus 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 a mindset is 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.

That is why Sage Sankara Says: ~ VC-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.?

What is the use of saying ‘I AM THAT’- without knowing what the ‘Self’ is in actuality? Without knowing the truth of the Self, without realizing the truth of the world in which you exist it is impossible to realize the truth beyond the form, time, and space. By a mere utterance of the word ‘I AM THAT', the truth will not be revealed.

The essence of Mundaka is: Do not be satisfied with rituals, yoga, etc. which are good in their own way but inquire. Into what? Brahman and Atman are things you can never see. So do not inquire into them. Inquire into the world around you, which you can see. Science tells you it is passing away every second. Everything is dying repeatedly. Where is it going? Thus you follow up your inquiry into what you can lay hands on. How can you inquire into Atma which you cannot see? So first we deal with the known and seen, this inquiry leads up to the unknown in the end. : ~ Santthosh Kumaar

Swami Vivekananda:~ The wicked are always looking for defects. Flies come and seek for the ulcer, and bees come only for the honey in the flower.+

Swami Vivekananda:~ “The wicked are always looking for defects. Flies come and seek for the ulcer, and bees come only for the honey in the flower. Do not follow the way of the fly but that of the bee.

Swami Vivekananda: ~ “Advaita encompasses everything. Since Advaita requires heavy-duty intellectualism, it had to be progressively simplified. (From 'The Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda)

Dattatreya's Song of the Avadhut: ~ “The ‘Self is the ultimate Reality; have no doubt. The Self is not something known by the mind; The Self is the very one who knows! How, then, could you think to know the Self? (1.36-42)

Path of wisdom is not for the orthodox populace. It is difficult for the orthodox people to accept the truth because they already accepted something else as truth because of their samskara or conditioning. It is difficult for them to accept anything other than their inherited conditioning.

Even Sage Sankara appears personally and tells them what they have accepted as truth is not truth; they will never be able to accept anything other than their accepted truth.

Orthodox people must follow their chosen path which makes them happy and gives them satisfaction. Without instance urge to acquire Self-knowledge it is impossible to tread the path of wisdom.

Bhagavad Gita says: ~ Among thousands of men, scarcely one strives for perfection; and of those who strive and succeed, scarcely one knows the ‘Self’ in truth.

The path of wisdom attracts only those who are in search of truth and they appreciate it greatly. The ignorant are not spiritually matured they receive Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana. The ignorant indulge in argument and provocation and personal attack, which hinder their own realization of the ultimate truth or Brahman.

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 or Atma Gnana.

Bhagavad Gita says: ~ “Don't unsettle the minds of ignorant by revealing the esoteric truth."

***

Katha Upanishad says: ~ This Atman is attained by him alone whom It chooses. (II -23-P-20)

Thus, those who have taken the path of wisdom are chosen ones. The chosen one will get the grace of the Soul the inner Guru. The path of wisdom is the Soulcentric path, whereas all other paths are egocentric. All egocentric paths are lead to hallucination.

The  Soul, the  Self reveals ‘what is real’ and ‘what is unreal” when the seeker is receptive and ready.

Sages of truth restrained themselves parting the Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana to the mass and only a selected few. It was hidden from the mass who were not qualified and receptive to it. Self- it was given 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 mass and knowledge of the spirit is given to only a selected few. Thus we find traces of knowledge of the spirit in the religious books in the form of parables. : ~Santthosh Kumaar

In the Vedic era, a Brahmin was a person who had acquired Self- knowledge or Brahma Gnana Atma Gnana.+

The one who has realized the Brahman (God) is Brahmin, not the one who is born in the Brahmin caste.

In the Vedic era, a Brahmin was a person who had acquired Self- knowledge or Brahma Gnana Atma Gnana.

This was an extremely difficult path of the discipline of body, mind, and intellect, and people irrespective of their birth or class, who were dedicated to such an austere life, were recognized as Brahmins.

A great example of this tradition (that a person becoming a Brahmin, rather than born as one) is the case of Vishwamitra, a warrior (Kshatriya), who became a Brahmin after attaining Atma Jnana or Brahma Gnana or Self-Knowledge.

A smritis or code of conduct composed by Sage Atri defines Brahminhood very clearly.

"By birth, every man is a Shudra (an ignorant person). Through various types of disciplines (samskaras), he becomes a dwija (twice-born). Through the studies of scriptures, he becomes a vipra (or a scholar). Through the realization of supreme spirit (Brahma jnana), he becomes a Brahmin.”

The belief that people born in the Brahmin caste, automatically become Brahmins, is a much later concept in very ancient India. Thus, Brahmin means not a caste but one who has attained Atma Jnana or Brahma Gnana.

The one who has realized the Brahman (God) is Brahmin, not the one who is born in the Brahmin caste. Anyone can become Brahmin by acquiring Brahma Gnana.

The very concepts of castes by birth, upper/lower castes, superior/inferior castes, outcastes, untouchables, Dalits, etc. are clearly prohibited by Rig-Veda”.

A Brahmin is not a Brahmin merely because he is born out of a Brahmin mother’s womb. Nor he is a Brahmin merely because he is born in the Brahmin caste. Brahmin is not Caste it is the state of God. Anyone can become a Brahmin by acquiring Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana.

A Brahmin has acquired Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana or one who is free from ignorance.

He has got rid of ignorance; He has traveled beyond all bounds of form, time, and space. He is no longer tied to the illusory form, time, and space.

A person who has acquired Advaitic Gnana is a Brahmin, not a person who indulges in priestcraft.

A Brahmin is one who has got rid of the strap of ignorance by acquiring Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana.

A Brahmin is the one who freed himself from the dualistic illusion.

A Brahmin is one who has broken all links with the illusory form, time, and space by acquiring Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana.

Brahmin has taken off the cross-bar of ignorance. He has become aware of the truth is hidden by the ‘I’.

A Brahmin is abused and insulted by the ignorant. He is tortured, imprisoned, and bound up by the ignorant. But he endures all these without being provoked or without losing his temper.

A Brahmin has patience as his power and his firm conviction about the truth, which is hidden by the ‘I’.

A Brahmin is free from the ignorance of his true existence. He is not the performer of religious worship and rituals. He is not a scriptural scholar. He is restrained. He is fully aware of the fact that his individual experience of birth, life, death, and the world is an illusion created out of the Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness.

The Brahmin is one who does not belong to any religion, caste, race, or nationality because he does not belong to the domain of form, time, and space. He, even being within the domain of the form, time, and space he is not of the form, time, and space.

The water does not get attached to the surface of the lotus leaf. The mustard seed does not get attached to the point of a needle. In the same way, the Brahmin does not get attached to religion or caste, race or nationality. He is non-attached from the world in which he exists even though he is in the world; he is not of this world.

A Brahmin has become aware of the fact that the world in which he exists itself is an illusion created out of consciousness. Brahmin is the one who is aware of the fact that Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana frees the Soul from the cage of the dualistic illusion.

A Brahmin possesses profound wisdom. He is full of insight. He is capable of discriminating the right path from the wrong path. He has reached the highest state.

A Brahmin is the one who has established in the reality of his true existence. He is not attached to the world in which he exists.

A Brahmin is the knower of Brahman. His speech is true. His words are well-meaning, constructive, and not harsh. By his words, he will not give offense to anyone. Nor will his words provoke people. He silently shares the Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana.

A Brahmin is the knower of Brahman. He has no attachments to the ‘I’ - He has no spiritual doubts due to his right awareness, He has entered the deathless existence.

A Brahmin is one who has traveled beyond form, time, and space and realized the true existence is formless, timeless, and spaceless.

The Soul is like the moon at the full - spotless and free of blemishes. The Soul, the Self is pure, calm, serene, and exceptionally tranquil.

A Brahmin has crossed over the quagmire of passion. He has gone beyond the difficult terrain of the dualistic illusion that is hard to traverse and has crossed the boundaries of ignorance. He is fully and totally reached the other shore.

He is in Self-awareness. His spiritual doubts are resolved. His quest is over He is no longer given to grasping. He is cooled.

A Brahmin is the one who has realized Brahman. He has given up the bonds that bind him to humanity. He has gone beyond the bounds of form, time, and space. He is disengaged from all bonds of the dualistic illusion.

A Brahmin is the one who has given up the religion and religious idea of God and religious rituals. . He has also given up yogic Samadhi and the practice of meditation. He has achieved total tranquillity of the formless, timeless, and spaceless existence. He has conquered the effortless reality with his mental effort.

A Brahmin knows the experience of birth, life, death, and the world is an illusion created out of the Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness. . He is not attached to the illusory experience of birth, life, death, and the world.

He has reached the destination which is beyond the illusory experience of birth, life, death, and the world. He possesses the knowledge of the essence which is the cause of the world in which he exists.

The path of truth is neither of Gods, nor of the religion, nor of the humans. All taints of ignorance are totally eradicated in the Atmic path. Those who tread the Atmic path have attained the highest spiritual knowledge.

He is a great Sage as he has realized the essentials. He has conquered the truth which is beyond birth, life, death, and the world. He is devoid of blemishes. He has washed away all the ignorance. He has awakened to the essentials.

He has his higher awareness. He has reached the state of a Sage. He has achieved the final perfection.

Brahmin is the one who has realized the Brahman (ultimate truth) and helps fellow seekers towards the inner path.

Mundaka Upanishad:~ As rivers flow into the sea and in so doing lose name and form, so even the wise man, freed from name and form, attains the Supreme Being, the Self-luminous, the Infinite. He who knows Brahman becomes Brahman. ~ 3.2.8-

The one who knows Brahman knows his body and his experience of the world are merely an illusion and also he knows his body and his experience of the world are also as Ataman (consciousness), which is Brahman.

Thus, the priestcraft which is crafted on the body-based theories will lead one to hallucinate Moksha. But real moksha or freedom is possible only through the Advaitic wisdom of Sage Sankara.:~Santthosh Kumaar

Self-awareness is an impossibility without the Advaitic wisdom of Sage Sankara.+

The difference between an ignorant man and a Gnani is the existence of doubt in the former and its destruction in the latter.”

The man does not become Brahman 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. In Self-awareness, the Soul remains in its own awareness.

Self-realization is impossible, without understanding ‘What is the mind?’ ‘What is the substance of the mind?’ and “What is the source of the mind?”.

The mind and its substance and its source are one in essence. That essence is the Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness. By realizing consciousness alone, is real and all else is merely an illusion created out of consciousness.

The world in which we exist is created out of single stuff. That single stuff is the consciousness. This knowledge of the single stuff is Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana. Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana leads one to Self-awareness. Self-awareness is an impossibility without the Advaitic wisdom of Sage Sankara.

Remember:~

The mind is virtual, the world in which you exist. The seeker should know the nature of the mind.

It is an ancient truth preserved by the Sages of truth as a secret that the Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness assumes the form of the world in which we exist."

What is lost is lost forever, it does not come back. Every minute the world is changing. In what way is this world different, then, from the momentary creations of the Soul?

The world is continually vanishing and vanishes forever. Those objects or ideas which seem to come back are really an illusion. Know that the Soul, the Self is only the witness of the illusion, and it is always apart from the illusion.

The Soul, the Self is within the illusion as the formless substance of the illusion and it is apart from the illusion because it is not an entity or identity or thing within the illusion. :~Santthosh Kumaar