The Vedas bar polytheism thus, it proves that the Hinduism believes in polytheism is not Vedic Religion or Santana Dharma.+

People in India believed in polytheism, believing all of their Gods to be separate individuals, which were introduced much later by the founders of Hinduism, which contains diverse beliefs, castes, and creeds.

The Vedas bar polytheism; thus, it proves that Hinduism believes in polytheism, is not the ancient Vedic Religion or Santana Dharma.

Bhagavad Gita Chapter: ~ “All those whose intelligence has been stolen by material desires, they worship many Gods. (7- Verse -20)

Rig-Veda 1.164-46 and Y.V 32-1 clearly mention that God is “One”.

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

Rig Veda: 1.164.46: ~ Ekam Sat Vipra Bahudha Vadanti” -” The Reality (Truth or God) is One.

Rig Veda 1/164/46: ~ “They call him Indra, Mitra, Varuna, Agni, or the heavenly sunbird Garutmat. The seers call in many ways that which is One; they speak of Agni, Yama, and Matarishvan.

Rig Veda 8/58/2:~ Only One is the Fire, enkindled in numerous ways; only One is the Sun, pervading this whole universe; only One is the Dawn, illuminating all things. In very truth, the One has become the whole world.

The Upanishads say in effect that: ~ if you believe that you are one and God is another, you cannot understand Truth.

Religious Gods are based on blind belief. The religious God cannot be considered the cause of the universe because the invisible Soul, the Self, is the cause of the universe. Without the invisible Soul, the universe in which you exist ceases to exist, which means the religious Gods are dependent on the universe for their existence. Without the universe religious God ceases to exist.

Brihad Upanishad: ~ “If you think there is another entity, whether man or God, there is no 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)

Rig Veda declares God is ‘ONE’ and God is Atman, then why believe and worship in place of the real God?

Maitreyi Upanishad 2:26 says: ~ All those who desire to have salvation without taking several births, should worship God in spirit and truth.

ISH Upanishads: - By Worshiping Gods and Goddesses, you will go after death to the world of Gods and Goddesses. But will that help you? The time you spent there is wasted because if you were not there, you could have spent that time moving forward towards Self-knowledge, which is your goal. In the world of Gods and Goddesses, you cannot do that, and thus, you go deeper and deeper into darkness.

It clearly indicates that:- If the human goal is to acquire Self-Knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Athma Gnana, then why indulge in rituals and glorify the conceptual Gods, Goddesses, and gurus to go into deeper darkness. Instead, spend that time moving forward towards Self-knowledge, which is one’s prime goal.

Upanishads: ~ They alone in this world are endowed with the highest wisdom who are firm in their conviction of the sameness and birthlessness of Atman. The ordinary man does not understand their way. (Chapter IV — Alatasanti Prakarana 95-P-188 in Upanishads by Nikilanada)

Sage Sankara’s Supreme Brahman (God) is impersonal, Nirguna (without Gunas or attributes), Nirakara (formless), Nirvisesha (without special characteristics), immutable, eternal, and Akarta (non-agent). It is above all needs and desires. It is always the Witnessing Subject. It can never become an object as it is beyond the reach of the senses. Brahman is non-dual, one without a second. It has no other beside it. It is destitute of difference, either external or internal.

Brahman cannot be described because description implies a distinction. Brahman cannot be distinguished from any other than It. In Brahman, there is no distinction between substance and attribute. Sat-Chit-Ananda constitutes the very essence or Svarupa of Brahman and not just its attributes. The Nirguna Brahman of Sage Sankara is impersonal.

The Brihadaranyaka Upanishad says:~ "He who worships the deities as entities entirely separate from the Self does not know the truth. For the Gods, he is like a pasu (beast)”. (1.4.10)

That is why Sage Sankara:~ VC~.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?

Sickness is not cured by saying the word “medicine.” You must take the medicine. Ignorance will not vanish does not come by merely saying the word “God nor by worshiping God of belief. First, one must know what God is supposed to be. God must be realized. One must know God in truth.

Perfect undemanding and assimilation of ‘what is what’ leads to truth realization, truth realization itself is Self-realization. Self-realization itself is God-realization. God-realization itself is real worship: ~ Santthosh Kumaar

Advaita Vedanta has nothing to do with Advaitic wisdom of Sage Sankara.+

Advaita Vedanta has nothing to do with Advaitic wisdom of Sage Sankara. Advaita Vedanta is only an indicator to show the truth hidden by the illusion.

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.

People study Vedanta, and they are under the delusion and conclude that they declare: ~ "I-Am-Brahman", but they fail to realize the fact that Brahman is everywhere and in everything!

The existence of Brahman is not limited to his physical identity, because it is the very essence of form, time, and space.

Ashtavakra: ~ “My child, you may speak upon various scriptures or hear the sermons on the scriptures. But you cannot establish in the ‘Self’ unless you forget all. 16-1 – p49

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.

Yoga Vasistha:~ "Teachers, interpretations of sacred texts, the force of religious merit--none of these lead to the realization of that Ultimate Truth which is revealed in the clear reflection of the heart, engendered from contact with the good."

All the philosophies are mental fabrications. There has never been a single doctrine by which one could enter the true essence of things.

Philosophers have made philosophy very complicated with their excessive analysis.

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

By challenging, provoking, and passing opinion and judgment based on the dualistic perspective, the Advaitic wisdom will not dawn. By studying Advaita Vedanta, you will not be able to realize the truth.

By arguing, provoking, and passing opinion and judgment on Advaita based on the dualistic perspective belongs to orthodoxy, not Spirituality.

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)

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

Philosophy has to deal with the ultimate truth, not mere words, not this Guru's or that Guru's interpretation.

The key to it is, for a Gnani to be "ever the same." This means he sees and knows only one thing, the Soul, the Self, which is present in the form of Consciousness

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

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. :~ Santthosh Kumaar

Satsangha is not attending the sermons and retreat of Gurus. +

Satsangha is not attending the sermons and retreats of Gurus. A true seeker is not content with knowledge of spiritual realities based on hearsay; he insists on direct knowledge.

All those Gurus who preach Advaita are based on the dualistic perspective or orthodox perspective. Such preaching has nothing to do with the Advaitic wisdom of Sage Sankara.

Your inner work is on. There is no need to neglect practical life within the practical world.

There is no need to indulge 24/7 in spirituality, but use your spare time for that. Do not neglect your family and personal life, and spend money on your pursuit of truth.

Be happy like any other human being enjoys life with humility and dignity in the practical world.

Self-realization does not depend upon books or upon the existence of any religion, and books perish when ignorance perishes.

The Advaitic Truth is the ultimate truth, and it is hidden by the universe, which is a dualistic illusion or Maya.

No books or Guru can transmit Gnana to you. Even without Guru, you can realize the truth hidden by the dualistic illusion or Maya. You have to show gratitude for the wisdom and Sages of truth without being bound to them.

Do not blindly believe anything as truth without deeper verification. Think and reason for yourself. No blind belief can save you; work out your own salvation. Having only one idea of Self is an eternal help.

Chandogya Upanishad: ~ One who meditates upon and realizes the Self discovers that everything in the cosmos-- energy and space, fire and water, name and form, birth and death, mind and will, word and deed, mantrams and meditation--all come from the Self.

The Guru who pretends to be Self-realized and plays with the emotions and sentiments of the seeker is a fraud, not a Gnani.

If you emotionally and sentimentally hold on to the physical Guru as a guide, you will never be able to transcend the dualistic illusion to non-dualistic reality.

The idea of having a Guru itself blocks you from realizing the Self, which is hidden by the dualistic illusion.

It means the Gurus, Swamis, and Yogis who identify themselves as holy people are not Gnanis.

Those who are seeking truth need not follow any Guru or any teaching.

The one who thinks of himself as a Guru and the one who thinks of himself as a chela (disciple) will not be able to acquire Self-Knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana because both of them accept themselves as the body. And all their understanding, practices, and knowledge are based on the false self (ego or you). Therefore, the Guru–Shisya concept is a great obstacle in the pursuit of truth.

A Gnani never accepts himself as a Guru or accepts anyone as his disciple. A Gnani only shares Gnana and guides the serious and sincere seeker. He will never make anyone emotionally get attached to him because he is fully aware of the fact that such attachment hinders their spiritual growth.

Your inner work is on. There is no need to neglect practical life within the practical world. There is no need to indulge 24/7 in spirituality, but use your spare time for that.

Do not neglect your family and personal life in pursuit of the truth. Be happy like any other human being enjoys life with humility and dignity in the practical world.

Internally focus your attention on the invisible Soul, the Self, which is present in the form of consciousness. The invisible Soul, the Self, is ever free from the illusory form, time, and space. There is no need to renounce and take sanyasa to get Self-realization.

No amount of Diksha or yoga meeting Gurus and visiting Ashrams leads anywhere. Your guide is within, and it guides you to the core that you are seeking.

Swami Vivekananda said:~ “You have to grow from the inside out. None can teach you, none can make you spiritual. There is no other teacher but your own Soul.”

Bhagavan Buddha said:~ Believe nothing just because a so-called wise person said it. Believe nothing just because a belief is generally held. Believe nothing just because it is said in ancient books. Believe nothing just because it is said to be of divine origin. Believe nothing just because someone else believes it. Believe only what you, yourself, test and judge to be true.

You should not neglect your individual and family life. Enjoy life as it comes, and also face the difficulties as they come.

As your inner conviction about the invisible Soul, the Self grows, you will be able to realize ‘what is the truth?’ and ‘what is the untruth?’ and be able to see the world in which you exist as a passing cloud that hides the truth, which is beyond the form, time, and space. : ~ Santthosh Kumaar

The Atman is the Sanskrit word, for Soul, the Self. The Atman or Soul is present in the form of consciousness.

Thus, Atman or Soul, or the Self or consciousness, is one and the same thing.

This universe in which you exist is merely an illusion created out of a single stuff. That single stuff is the Soul is present in the form of consciousness.

The experience of birth, life, death happens within the illusory universe or Maya.

The form, time, and space are a reality within the illusory universe. Without form, time, and space the illusory universe ceases to exist.

The universe is present only when the mind is present. The mind is present when ‘I’ is present.

From the standpoint of the Soul, the Self, the universe is merely an illusion.

If the universe is merely an illusion, then the experience of birth, life, and death happen within the universe is merely an illusion.

If the universe is merely an illusion, then form, time, and space are merely an illusion.

If form, time, and space are merely an illusion, then the mind is merely an illusion.

If the mind is merely an illusion, then the ‘I’ is merely an illusion.

If the ‘I’ is merely an illusion then the substance and the witness of the ‘I’ which is the formless Soul alone is real and eternal. : ~Santthosh Kumaar

Until ignorance is there, the illusory universe in which you exist prevails as a reality.+

Q :~Matt Pedro:~ Santthosh Kumaar blessings to you. If everything is an illusion, do you eat and drink, take a shower, and go to the washroom? Then why do you eat that is physical? Just asking so I can have a better understanding  

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 A:~ Santthosh Kumaar:-  Suppose if you had asked the same question in a dream, the dream becomes unreal when waking takes place. Similarly, the waking becomes unreal when Advaitic wisdom dawns. 

The Advaitic wisdom dawns when you realize the  Self is not you, but the  Self is the invisible Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness.

From the standpoint of the invisible  Soul, the Self, the world in which you exist is merely an illusion.

Thus, all the happenings within the illusory universe are bound to be an illusion. Until ignorance is there, the illusory universe in which you exist prevails as a reality.

When ignorance vanishes through Advaitic wisdom, then the world in which you exist, which you think of as reality, becomes an illusion.

Thus, whatever you have seen, known, believed, and experienced as a person within the waking experience is bound to be an illusion created out of consciousness. 

Thus, the invisible Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness alone, is real and eternal.:~Santthosh Kumaar

Ashtavakra or any other book is not final because it has been misinterpreted by different authors based on their egocentric perspective.+

Ashtavakra or any other book is not final because it has been misinterpreted by different authors based on their egocentric perspective.

The Soulcentric knowledge cannot be grasped through a dualistic understanding.

Nothing has to be accepted as truth without verification. What is accepted without a proper inquiry will not lead a person to the final goal.

The study of the Upanishad was neither indispensable nor a necessary prerequisite for attaining the human goal, the moksha.

All that one was required to do was to get rid of ignorance.

There is no need to read book after book. You need to realize that only the world in which you exist is created out of a single stuff. That single stuff is consciousness.

Knowledge of that single stuff is Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana.

Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana is Advaitic Gnana.

No books can do more than help us to find it, and even without them, we can get all the truth if we search for the truth that is hidden by the world in which we exist. You have a love for books without bondage to them, and read the books, but do not believe blindly because it is well written in the ornamental world, but think for yourself. No blind belief can save you; work out on your own to find the truth, which is hidden by form, time, and space. Think the Soul is your inner Guru - that Soul is an eternal help.

There is no need to read books to realize the truth, which is hidden by the illusory form, time, and space.

Like a servant who carries a lamp in front of you to find your way, and you have found it, so become the spiritual books to that person who has realized the Truth. Why should the Seeker depend upon any book further?

Actual realization takes you beyond books. At a certain stage, books become a botheration.

All the books written on Advaita by eastern and western authors are based on the dualistic perspective and orthodox point of view. Thus, they do not have the Soulcentric vision of the truth.

Advaita is the nondual nature of the invisible Soul. There are so many books by many authors, but none will help the seeker to reach the ultimate understanding.

Advaitic Wisdom is not found in scriptures or books. There are only hidden parables here and there. There is no clear-cut wisdom whatsoever in the scriptures or philosophy. Mere words ~ just a collection of words.

Advaitic Wisdom is hidden within the world in which we exist. The truth is not found in the world because the world is merely an illusion created out of consciousness. The Truth is hidden by the illusory form, time, and space, but it is beyond the form, time, and space.

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 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.

Religion was given to the masses, and knowledge of the spirit is given only selected a select few. Thus, we find traces of the knowledge of the spirit in the religious books in the form of parables. :~Santthosh Kumaar 

There is no need to follow anyone. There is no need to practice anything to acquire Advaitic wisdom.+

Self-realization is not easy because you refuse to accept that the Self is not within you, because some guru said it. After all, it is generally held.

After all, it is written in the holy book. After all, someone else said it. After all, you refuse to accept anything other than your accepted truth.

You indulge in what is not needed to unfold the mystery of the Self, which is hidden within form, time, and space. Your stubborn attitude blocks you from Self-realization.

Mundaka Upanishads: ~ “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)

Sage Sankara says: ~ 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.

There is no need to follow anyone. There is no need to practice anything to acquire Advaitic wisdom.

Perfect understanding and assimilation of ‘what is what’, lead to the realization of the truth, which is hidden by the illusory form, time, and space.

Yoga Vasistha says: ~ Self-knowledge or knowledge of truth is not had by resorting to a Guru (preceptor) nor by the study of scripture, nor by good works: it is attained only through inquiry inspired by the company of wise (Gnani). One’s inner light alone is the means, naught else. When this inner light is kept alive, it is not affected by the darkness of inertia.

Sage Sankara says: ~ There is no need to study the Scriptures to realize the ultimate truth or Brahman

~ then why indulge in studying the scriptures?

Sage Sankara says: ~ there is no need to study philosophy, to realize the ultimate truth or Brahman.

~then why indulge in studying philosophy?

Sage Sankara says: ~ there is no need to indulge in rituals, to realize the ultimate truth or Brahman.

~then why indulge in rituals?

Sage Sankara says: ~ there is no need to indulge in yoga, to realize the ultimate truth or Brahman.

~then why indulge in yoga?

Sage Sankara says the transparent Truth of the Self, which is hidden by the illusion, is to be attained through the instructions of a knower of Brahman (Gnani)

~ then why stick to a Guru who is not a Gnani?

Sage Sankara says: ~ “The exercise in discrimination between real and unreal and renunciation of the false is real meditation, then why are you following other paths.

Sage Sankara regards personal realization as independent and convincing evidence.

Sage Sankara says that an individual’s experience cannot be disputed because the experience he went through was real to him, though that may not be real from the absolute point of view.

Sage Sankara makes a distinction between the absolute view and the relative view of things.

If one starts with the idea that the universe exists, they can never see the invisible Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness, because the universe is an illusion, and only ignorant people read it as a reality.

Hence, Sage Sankara says:~ V.63 ~"Without knowing and examining the external world, one can’t know the Truth, as the idea that the external world exists won't go. It can only go by an inquiry into the nature of the external world. : ~ Santthosh Kumaar