The Guru-disciple concept belongs to religion and yoga. Gurudom is nothing to do with Spirituality or Adyathma.+

The Guru-disciple concept belongs to religion and yoga. Gurudom has nothing to do with Spirituality or Adyathma.

The Guru is useless so long as the ultimate truth is unknown, and the Guru is equally useless when the ultimate truth or Brahman has already been known.

A Guru is needed in the religious and the yogic path. There is no need for a Guru to acquire Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana.

Sage Sankara: ~ "Though I wear these robes of a Sanyasin, it is only for the sake of bread."

So he wore a Guru's robe only for the sake of the ignorant. So he was identified as Guru with parampara by religious people. For the truth seekers, Sage Sankara is a Brahma Gnani.

Sage Sankara himself said: ~ A Gnani "bears no outward mark of a holy man" (Stanza 539).

Thus, it proves that the religious gurus and yogis are not Gnanis because they identified themselves as holy people.

If you are seeking truth, nothing but the truth, then you must come out of the fold of Gurudom, which is meant for the ignorant populace. You must tread the path independently and reach the destination, which is beyond form, time, and space.

If you are emotionally and sentimentally stuck up in the physical Guru and their ‘I’-centric teachings, you will never be able to cross the threshold of ignorance. : ~ Santthosh Kumaar

Sage Sankara's system of Advaita does not need the support of any Scripture or Revelation like the Vedas.+

 Advaitic view~

Sage Sankara's system of Advaita does not require the support of any Scripture or revelation, such as the Vedas. The Srutis may all disappear, yet will his school stand. Since it is based, not upon the varying theological fancies, which are as numerous as the sands of the sea, but upon reason, the common heritage of all mankind, irrespective of color or creed or clime.

The tenet of Nirguna Brahman is true for Sage Sankara, not because it is taught by the Sruti, but because it is based on anubhava (intuitive experience), though it is also supported by the Sruti... The Advaitin knows that a legitimate doubt may arise here to arise. The Rishis may have truly spoken, but they may have been deluded themselves. How are we certain that what the Rishis cognized is the Reality or Truth? This can be proved according to the Advaita, only by the realization of truth beyond form, time, and space.

And also:~

Again, in the absence of this realization, Nirguna Brahman as an object of thought is mere sound without sense. To one who has not seen a penguin, for instance, the word has no meaning ... Of what use, then, is such Sruti to him? Similarly, common sense tells the Advaitin that the meaning of the Sruti, and especially where there are conflicting interpretations, is made out through reasoning based upon the authority of realization, which is final.

Thus, the reason comes into play between Sruti and realization, corroborating the data of intuition with those of the revealed texts.

But reason also permits discrimination between the different possible experiences, for, in an a priori astonishing fashion:

Realization ... can reveal not two, but twenty thousand conflicting experiences. And the business of the wise is to sift the ultimate truth from out of all these ... The Advaitin rejects nothing. All human experiences are his data. He tests all by reason.

Only the Advaita can reply: it is the witness, the Seer. The Buddhists are in error in regards to the finite ego as illusory and as having nothing more behind it, but they would have been perfectly correct in such an outlook had they added the notion of the witness. How is it that Skandhas come together and compose the ego? Who sees them come and go? It is the witness, the Atman, and this lack Vedanta supplies in the seer and seen and reason Analysis. When they say that the mind comes and goes, they are forgetting that there must be another part of the mind as consciousness, that notices it and tells them of this disappearance and appearance. All their misunderstandings arise from the fact that Buddha refused to discuss the ultimate questions. When Buddhism degenerates into Nihilism, Advaitin refutes it (Manduka, P.281).

The truth of a single reality within or underlying the illusory ego is all-important, and without it Buddhism becomes fallacious.

Vedanta admits the transitoriness and evanescence of thoughts just like Buddhism, but not of the Mind which observes this transitoriness and knows it.

Manduka Upanishad:~ Buddhists borrowed from the Upanishads because they were Indians. The Vedantins did not need to borrow from Buddhism, therefore (see P.396 v.99)

Bhagavan Buddha taught the illusoriness of the ego but did not go further, probably because he thought the world could not understand the higher truth. Hence, followers go with him to that point of his and then deny the Vedantic doctrine of one supreme reality when the Bhagavan Buddha himself neither denied nor advocated it. Anyway, the refutation of his followers is to ask them, “What is it that is aware of the ego's illusoriness?" There must be something that tells you that. That something is the Drik, and if you say this Drik itself may be illusory, coming and going, still there must be something non-transient, i.e.permanent, to tell you this.

Bhagavan Buddha's teachings that all life is misery belong to the relative standpoint only. For you cannot form any idea of misery without contrasting it with its opposite, happiness. The two will always go together.

Bhagavan Buddha taught the goal of cessation of misery, i.e., peace, but took care not to discuss the ultimate standpoint for then he would have had to go above the heads of the people and tell them that misery itself was only an idea, that peace even was an idea (for it contrasted with peacelessness). That the doctrine he gave out was a limited one, is evident because he inculcated compassion. Why should a Buddhist sage practice pity? There is no reason for it.

Advaita is the next step higher than Buddhism because it gives the missing reason, viz., unity, non-difference from others, and because it explains that it used the concept of removing the sufferings of others, of lifting them up to happiness, only as we use one thorn to pick out another, afterward throw both away. Similarly, Advaita discards both concepts of misery and happiness in the ultimate standpoint of non-duality, which is indescribable.

Buddhists say that a thing exists only for a moment, and if that thing has still got some of the substance from which it was produced, how then can they deny that its cause is continuing in the effect; hence, its existence is more than a moment. Vedanta is concerned with whether it is one and the same thing that has come into being, or has it come out of nothing.

Even the Sunyavada ultimate of the "void" is really a breath, and therefore an imagination and not truth.

Bhagavan Buddha, as a constructive worker, committed an error in failing to give the masses a religion, something tangible they could grasp, something materialistic, if symbolic, that their limited intellect could take hold of, in addition to his ethics and philosophy. Here, Sage Sankara was wiser and gave the religion, such as rituals and karma, to the ignorant masses, as well as Advaitic wisdom to those who are capable of grasping the truth hidden by the 'I'.

Bhagavan Buddha emphasized the central feature of his doctrine as the great law of karma, reiterating its ethical significance. He did more good in this to uplift the people than the ritualists.

Tibetan and Chinese Buddhists who say that many Buddhas are living in spirit bodies and helping our earth from the spiritual world are still in the sphere of religious illusion, not the ultimate truth. Their statements are wrong.

Every sage realizes that the only way to help mankind is to come down amongst them, for which he must necessarily take on a flesh-body. When people are suffering, how can he relieve their suffering unless he appears amongst them? When people are suffering, how can he feed them from an unseen world, whether their struggle is for material bread or for spiritual truth? No! He must be here, actually, in the flesh. It is impossible to help them in any other way, and all talk of Shiva living on Mount Kailas in the spiritual body or Buddha in Nirmanakaya, invisible body, belongs to the realm of delusion or Self-deception:~Santthosh Kumaar 

There is no proper word for Athma in English. Translators used the Self for Athma, which is an error. Athma means existence.+

There is no proper word for Athma in English. Translators used the Self for Athma, which is an error. Athma means existence. Athma is the cause of the whole universe, whereas the Self is limited to a physical entity.

The English use of the word the Self as applied to the individual Soul. Sage Sankara rejects the many souls theory. Sage Sankara's wisdom is ekathma vada (one Soul).

Existence without the illusory form, time, and space is applied to unseen Athma, which is the cause and support of the illusory universe in which we exist.

The seeker must remember that the Self is Athma, which is not limited to an individual, but Athma pervades everything and everywhere in the universe.

Athma or Soul. Athma or Atman is the Sanskrit word for the Soul, the Self. Athma is the cause and support of all that exists as the universe.

Athma is immanent, unaging, immortal, eternal, and holy, and the cause of all. Athma alone is worthy of being worshiped.

Do not accept any other God other than the Athma. The Athma is God in truth,

Nothing is real but Athma, which is present in the form of consciousness. Nothing matters but realizing 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. :~Santthosh Kumaar

Sage Sankara was unique in making bold assertions declaring Athma is God in truth. Athma is the cause of the universe.+

Sage Sankara was unique in making bold assertions, declaring that Athma is God in truth. Athma is the cause of the universe. The universe is illusory. Athma, the cause of the illusory universe, is real and eternal.

There is no proper word for Athma in English. Translators used the Self for Athma, which is an error. Athma means existence. Athma is the cause of the whole universe, whereas the Self is limited to a physical entity.

The English use of the word the Self is applied to the individual Soul.

Sage Sankara rejects the many souls theory. Sage Sankara's wisdom is ekathma vada (one Soul).

Existence without the illusory form, time, and space is applied to unseen Athma, which is the cause and support of the illusory universe in which we exist.

The seeker must remember that the Self means Athma, which is not limited to an individual, but Athma pervades everything and everywhere in the universe.

Brihadaranyaka Upanishad: ~ Brahman (God in truth) is the form of the Athma, and it is indeed Athma itself.

Athma or Soul. Athma or Atman is the Sanskrit word for the Soul, the Self. Athma is the cause and support of all that exists in this universe.

Athma is immanent, unaging, immortal, eternal, and holy, and the cause of all. Athma alone is worthy of being worshiped.

Do not accept any other God other than the Athma. The Athma is God in truth.

When the Upanishads and Vedas declare that “God is in the form of the Athma, and God is indeed Athma itself,” then why accept another God in place of the Athma or worship other than the Athma?

Nothing is real but Athma, which is present in the form of consciousness. Nothing matters but realizing 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.: :~Santthosh Kumaar

Swami Vivekananda: ~This realization comes from being certain that Brahman is real and everything else is unreal.+

Swami Vivekananda: ~Jñāna Yoga is divided into three parts. First: hearing the truth--that the Atman is the only reality and that everything else is Maya. Second: reasoning upon this philosophy from all points of view. Third: giving up all further argumentation and realizing the truth. This realization comes from being certain that Brahman is real and everything else is unreal.

People dwelling in ignorance, but thinking themselves wise and erudite, go round and round by various blind beliefs and tortuous paths and practices, like the blind led by the blind.

Swami Vivekananda said:~ "The Vedas teach that the Soul is divine, only held in the bondage of matter; perfection will be reached when this bond will burst, and the word they use for it is, therefore, Mukthi - freedom, freedom from the bonds of imperfection, freedom from death and misery."

The truth is very simple, but it is very difficult to grasp because of ignorance. You have to realize the world in which you exist is created out of a single clay. And that single clay is the Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness.

Thus, you and your body and the world in which you exist are nothing but consciousness because they are merely an illusion created out of consciousness. A perfect understanding of ‘what is what’ is needed.

Those who promise Gnana by giving initiation or transmission are ignorant; they are unaware of the truth, which is hidden by form, time, and space.

The path of wisdom is the Soulcentric path. Thus, egocentric intellectualism is nothing to do with the truth, which is beyond form, time, and space. All accumulated dross leads to hallucination.

Katha Upanishad says:~ Fools dwelling in darkness, but thinking themselves wise and erudite, go round and round, by various tortuous paths, like the blind led by the blind. (Ch II-5 P-14) 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 Knowledge of the Spirit should not be shared with unqualified people. The ultimate truth has to be realized first, and then only it is possible to know what the scriptures are saying. A Gnani does not require any scriptures. : : ~ Santthosh Kumaar

Sage Sankara's Advaitic wisdom is pure spirituality or Adyathma.+

Advaitic orthodoxy has nothing to do with Sage Sankara’s Advaitic wisdom. Advaitic orthodoxy is meant for the ignorant populace. Adyatma has nothing to do with religious sects or creeds and religious beliefs.

Adyatma is pure Vedic Spirituality. Knowledge of Atma is Adyatma. Advaita is Adyatma.

Adyatma is the knowledge of the truth hidden by the illusory form, time, and space. Bifurcate religion, yoga, and theoretical philosophy, and base the truth on the Athma, it is Adyathma.

Adyatma is based on the ultimate truth, which is based on the Atman or Spirit, which is the Self. Sage Sankara's Advaitic wisdom is pure spirituality or Adyathma.

According to Advaita Vedanta, the Veda addresses itself to two kinds of audiences: 1, “The ordinary ones who desire the transitory heaven and other pleasures obtained as a result of ritual sacrifices”. 2, “The advanced seekers who seek to know the ultimate truth or Brahman, pr God in truth.”

Thus, the Purva mimam. sa, with its emphasis on the karma kanda of the Vedas, is meant for the first audience, to help lead its followers along the way. However, the Vedanta, with its emphasis on the jnana kanda, is meant for those who wish to go beyond form, time, and space.

Those who are seeking the truth have to discard the Theological Advaita without mercy to realize the Advaitic truth, which is beyond form, time, and space.

The Advaitic orthodoxy is based on the birth entity. The one that is born, lives, and dies in the world is not the Self.

Sage Sankara says the world is an illusion, Brahman alone is real, and Atman is Brahman.

Thus, it proves the world in which birth and death happen is merely an illusion. The invisible Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness, is the cause of the world is reality. The invisible Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness, is the ultimate truth or Brahman or God in truth.

Orthodoxy is the path of ignorance. And ignorant worship mechanically performs the prescribed sacrifices without any thought as to why they are doing them.

That is why the Ish Upanishads says:~ Such people, no wonder they grope in the dark. They are doomed unless someday the truth dawns on them that to save themselves, they must seek Self-knowledge.

The Advaitic orthodoxy is conduct-oriented and tries to prove the truth on the base of scriptural authorities, whereas the ultimate truth is based on the invisible Soul, the Self.

The religion, concept of God, and scriptures are the greatest obstacles to acquiring Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana, or Atma Gnana.

Scriptural knowledge fuels the ego. And ego makes one experience the duality as reality. Duality makes one blind to the truth and makes one accept the egocentric theories based on the false self as an authority. The ultimate truth has to be proved without the scriptures.

The Advaitic Orthodoxy holds the caste, religious rites, religious God based on blind belief, and glorifying the Gurus, scriptural studies, virtues, good deeds, and physical conduct as the means to acquire the Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana.

The Advaitic orthodoxy believes in the worship of non-Vedic Gods barred by the Vedas.

Bhagavad Gita: ~ Brahmano hi pratisthaham ~ Brahman (God in truth) is considered the all-pervading consciousness, which is the basis of all the animate and inanimate entities and material. (14.27).

When the Bhagavad Gita says, God is considered the all-pervading consciousness, which is the basis of all the animate and inanimate entities and material, then nothing has to be accepted as God other than consciousness.

The Vedas confirm God is Atman (Spirit), the ‘Self’.

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

Do not accept any other God other than the invisible Soul. The invisible Soul is God in truth. Nothing is real but the invisible Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness. Nothing matters but realizing 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 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 dualistic worship of "God” is only for the ignorant populace. The God in truth is only Atman, the Self. In reality, there is no duality, no differentiation. Only Atman exists.

As per the Ish Upanishad: ~ Those who worship Gods and Goddesses go into deeper darkness because they seek rewards for their worship.

That is why Sage Goudpada says that:~ The merciful Veda teaches karma and Upasana to people of lower and middling intellect, while Jnana is taught to those of higher intellect.

This clearly indicates that religion, which is based on individual conduct, prescribes karma and Upasana to people of lower and middling intellect; therefore, religion is suited for those with a lower intellect. And wisdom is for those who are capable of inquiring into their own existence. : : ~ Santthosh Kumaar

There is no need to study the philosophies of Berkeley, Kant, Hume, and other western and eastern philosophers; they are not the means to acquire Self-Knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana.+

There is no need to study the philosophies of Berkeley, Kant, Hume, and other Western and Eastern philosophers; they are not the means to acquire Self-Knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana.

They are, in fact, an obstacle in the pursuit of truth because they are based on the dualistic perspective. There is no necessity to study the philosophy of any great thinkers to ensure a firm realization.

Philosophical Authoritarianism merely assumes as true what another says, but what has yet to be proved.

The philosophical argument leads nowhere. If a philosopher says the ’Self’ is formless, another will reply, "No, Self has a form! If one says "his adopted philosophy has a higher value than all other philosophies,” another will say, "No, that is lower and there are many philosophies higher than that." It is impossible to get anywhere with such talk because both sides are merely assuming and imagining.

There is no need for any philosophy to verify the truth of the Self.

All that is intellectual wealth, useful in explaining doubts and difficulties if others raise them, if he encounters them in the course of thinking. But to attain realization, all that is not necessary.

The seeker of truth should not hold any philosophy as a yardstick. One needs fresh water to drink, but he does not require all the water of the whole lake to quench his thirst for truth.

Remember:~

All philosophies are a mental fabrication. There has never been a single doctrine that reveals the ultimate truth.

There is no need to study Advaita Vedanta or Buddhism to acquire Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana. All accumulated knowledge is of no use to realize the Advaitic truth, which is beyond form, time, and space.

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.

Mastering the philosophy of Vedanta will not help to get rid of ignorance. The realization of one's identity with Brahman is Liberation, possible by no other means.

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.

There is no need to study Advaita Vedanta to realize the Advaitic truth, which is hidden by the illusory universe or Maya.

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 your 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.

Advaita is not a theory or a philosophy. Advaita is the nature of the Soul, the innermost self. There is no need for any theory, philosophy, or scriptures to acquire Self-knowledge. Only a perfect understanding of ‘what is what’ is needed.

Sage Sankara clearly says:~ Neither studying philosophy nor by worshiping as many gods nor observing ceremonies nor by singing devotional hymns nor by uttering mantra nor by mastering the scriptures, liberation comes without realizing the Oneness.

There is no need to buy the books on Sage Sankara to acquire Self-knowledge. A perfect understanding of 'what is what' is needed. Nothing else is needed other than realizing the fact that the form, time, and space are one in essence, and that essence is the soul, which is present in the form of consciousness, to get nondualistic Self-awareness.

There is no wisdom whatsoever in any of the philosophies; they are just a collection of words.

Self-knowledge cannot be attained by the study of the scriptures and intellectual understanding or by bookish knowledge. Therefore, there is no use in studying the scriptures and other scriptures to acquire non-dual wisdom.

That is why Buddha rejected the scriptures, and even Sage Sankara indicated that the ultimate truth lies beyond religion, the concept of God, and the scriptures.

The fortunate is the one who does not lose themselves in the study of philosophies. All conceptual divisions were invented by philosophers through their excessive analysis.

Fortunate is the seeker who does not lose himself in the labyrinths of philosophy but goes straight to the source from which the universe arises and is dissolved.

There is only one Reality to be known, the same for all seekers, but the ways to it are hidden by religion. Self-discovery is the only way towards a non-dualistic absolute without any religious doctrines, which will help the seekers to unfold the mystery of the illusion in which we all are searching for the truth of our true existence.

Sage Sankara said :~Neither by the practice of yoga nor philosophy, nor by good works nor by learning, does liberation come, but only through the realization that Atman and Brahman are one in no other way. (1) VivekaChudamani v 56, pg 25

The citations from scriptures are not proof. The ultimate truth has to be proved without the scriptures. The ultimate truth is the universal truth, and it does not belong to any religion. Religion causes diversity in unity, whereas the ultimate truth brings unity in diversity.

That is why Sage Sankara himself says: ~ VC 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?

It is not that one should pore over the ancient scriptures. There is no need to study first and then realize. One has to realize first, then only he will know ‘what is truth’ and ‘what is untruth’. One has to make their discoveries through the process of rational thinking.

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 come 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.

He who has not rectified his reasoning base from the ‘I’(form) base to soul(formless) base and one who does not have the intense urge to know the non-dualistic or Advaitic truth, and who is not tranquil and subdued and whose mind is not receptive, cannot acquire Self-Knowledge or brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana. : ~ Santthosh Kumaar