You are bound by birth, life, death, and the world.+

Q:~ Some people believe that our 'lives' are scripted. What do you say to this?

A: Santthosh Kumaar:~ Deeper self-search reveals that the Self is not you. You are bound by birth, life, death, and the world. The invisible Soul is the Self. The invisible Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness, is a formless, timeless, and spaceless existence.

Only ignorant people believe that their 'lives' are scripted because they have not investigated the truth, which is beyond form, time, and space.

If the Self is not the form (you), but the Self is formless, then such theories hold no water. Thus, Self-realization is necessary to realize ‘what is truth and ‘what is the untruth.

People think there is life after death. The one that is born, lives, and dies is not the Self. The one which born, lives, and dies in this world is within the dualistic illusion or Maya; therefore, whatever happens within the dualistic illusion or Maya is bound to be an illusion.

The invisible Soul, the Self, is birthless and deathless, because it is the ever formless, timeless, and spaceless existence. Birth, life, and death take place within the domain of the dualistic illusion or Maya.

From the standpoint of the invisible Soul, the Self, the present experience of birth, life, death, and the world itself is an illusion. Thus, the question of life after death is bound to be an illusion. : ~ Santthosh Kumaar

Sage Sankara says: Keep the scriptures for children but throw them on the fire for wise seekers.+

Sage Sankara says: Keep the scriptures for children, but throw them on the fire for wise seekers.

In the Brahma Sutras, Sage Sankara takes for granted, assumes that a world was created: He there mixes dogmatic theology with philosophy.

That God created the world is an absolute lie; nevertheless, you will find Sage Sankara (in his commentary on the Vedanta Sutras) clearly says this! He has to adapt his teachings to his audience, reserving the highest for philosophical minds.

The text of Brahma Sutras is based on religion, dogmatism, but in the commentary, Sage Sankara cleverly introduced some philosophy. If it is objected that many Upanishads are equally dogmatic because they also begin by assuming Brahman, but a few Upanishads do not, but prove Brahman at the end of a train of proof.

The causality and creation, but these are for religious people only. Religion is only for those who are unable to understand the truth beyond form, time, and space. Religion is not final. It only gives satisfaction to the populace.

Self-knowledge is for the whole of humanity to free them from experiencing birth, life, death, and the world as reality.

People of small intelligence follow religion and believe that the world was created by God. But how do they know that He did so? When a pot is created, one can see both the pot and its maker, but not in the case of the world.

Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana is meant only for those who have an intense urge and the courage to accept the truth with humility and reject the untruth. Since people start comparing with their scriptural knowledge, it becomes impossible to assimilate and realize the Advaitic truth. Therefore, there is no need to convince anyone other than our own selves to get a firm conviction. :

Mundaka Upanishad condemns rituals. The Para or Higher knowledge is the knowledge of the Supreme Being, while the Apara or Lower Knowledge is that of following sacrificial rites and ceremonies. (1/2/ 1 – 6): : ~ Santthosh Kumaar

The religious God, based on blind belief, heaven, hell, paradise, sin, karma, rebirth, and reincarnation, is a myth propagated by the religion.+

It is for every human being to know the cause of the universe in which

we exist to realize the ultimate truth, which is God in truth.

Without unfolding the mystery of the universe, ignorance will not vanish.

Without getting rid of ignorance, the illusory universe prevails as reality.

If the universe prevails as reality, the experience of birth, life, and death is considered as reality.

Because the experience of birth, life, death, and the universe are considered as reality, religion and its idea of religious God, heaven, hell, paradise, karma sin are accepted as reality.

If religion and its idea of a religious God are accepted as reality, then there is diversity in humanity. Diversity is the cause of wars, violence, and terrorism in the name of religion and God, without knowing what God is supposed to be in truth.

By unfolding the mystery of the universe, one becomes aware that the cause of the universe is the ultimate truth, or Brahman or God in truth.

Remember:~

The religious God, based on blind belief, heaven, hell, paradise, sin, karma, rebirth, and reincarnation, is a myth propagated by the religion.

Rig-Veda 1-164-46 and Y.V 32-1 clearly mention that God is “One”.

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)

Yajur Veda also says:~ God has no image and His name is Holy. (32.3)”

Yajurveda – chapter- 32:~ God Supreme or Supreme Spirit has no ‘Pratima’ (idol) or material shape. God cannot be seen directly by anyone. God pervades all beings and all directions.

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

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

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 (Gita 14.27)

The Upanishads say in effect that ~ if you believe that the Soul is one and God (Brahman) is another, you cannot understand Truth.

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

Lord Krishna says Ch. V:~ “Those who know the Self in truth." The last two words (tattvataha) are usually ignored by pundits, but they make all the difference between the ordinary concept of God and the truth about God.

Sage Sankara said: ~ Talk as much philosophy as you like, worship as many Gods as you please, observe ceremonies and sing devotional hymns, but the liberation will never come, even after a hundred aeons, without realizing the Oneness.

Thus, by worshiping an individualized God and following the religion, studying scriptures is meant for those who are incapable of realizing the truth of their true existence.:~Santthosh Kumaar

Without getting rid of ignorance, the ‘I’ will prevail as a reality.+

All actions are possible only in the domain of form, time, and space. The form, time, and space exist till ‘I’ exists. The ‘I’ is an inborn samskara or condition. The ‘I’ is the cause of ignorance.

It is impossible to get rid of the inborn samskara, and without getting rid of the inborn samskara, the world in which we exist prevails as a reality.

Without getting rid of ignorance, the ‘I’ will prevail as a reality.

If the ‘I’ will prevail as a reality, then the form, time, and space will prevail as a reality.

If the form, time, and space prevail as a reality, then the world in which you exist prevails as a reality.

If the world in which you exist prevails as a reality, then the experience of birth, life death, which happens within the world experienced as reality.

If the experience of the birth, life death which happens within the world is experienced as a reality, then the dualistic illusion prevails as reality.

If the dualistic illusion prevails as reality, then ignorance will prevail.

Ignorance vanishes when wisdom dawns. Wisdom dawns when you realize the ‘Self’ is not you, but the Self is the Soul.

Until you get stuck to the ‘I’ based teaching, you will never be able to cross the threshold of the dualistic illusion.

The Gurus say get rid of the ego, but it is impossible to get rid of the ego. The ego, body, and the world are the products of ignorance. The seeker has to get rid of the ignorance, not the ego, to get Self-realization. :~Santthosh Kumaar

Sage Sankara says:~ ‘He who knows the Brahman (God in truth) is one and the Soul, the Self is another, does not know Brahman.+

Sage Sankara says:~ ‘He who knows the Brahman (God in truth) is one and the Soul, the Self is another, does not know Brahman.

The Atman or the Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness, is the Self.

Consciousness is the witness that experiences the action, the actor, and the world of separate things. It is like a light that illuminates everything in a theatre, revealing the master of ceremonies, the guests, and the dancers with complete impartiality. Even when they all depart, the light shines to reveal their absence.

What is not consciousness (formless) in waking, dream, or deep sleep? The waking and the dream states cease to exist without consciousness. The invisible Soul (witness and the three states (witnessed) are one in essence. That essence is consciousness.

Thus, the seeker, seeking, and his destination are all one in essence.

There is only a need to realize that the whole universe in which we exist is created out of the invisible Soul, the Self, which is present in the form of consciousness.

Remember:~

The ‘I’ is not different from the mind. The mind is not different from the universe. The universe is not different from the waking state. Without the ‘I’, there is neither the mind nor the universe nor the waking state.

The universe is verily consciousness. Without realizing what is the mind, it is impossible to get Self-realization. The universe is not different from the mind because the mind itself is the universe.

The mind is not different from the invisible Soul because the mind is the dualistic illusion created out of the invisible Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness.

Thus, the universe is nothing but consciousness. The universe is unreal because it is not absolute and eternal like consciousness.

It is impossible for any human being to challenge successfully the Advaitic position, as Sage Sankara says.

Sage Sankara asks his opponents, "How do you know there are separate individual Souls? Have you seen the Soul of a Man? You can only say that you have seen different bodies. To say more is to misuse language. Therefore, I call you liars unless you give proof, which is impossible.

A man who describes Sage Sankara's philosophy as negative (because of his Neti, Neti) does not know that this is applied only to the world of the Seen; the critic ignorantly believes that it is also applied to the Seer. Vedanta never negates the Seer, only the Seen.  : ~  Santthosh Kumaar

There is no need for a Guru to acquire Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana.+

Many Gurus in the past glorified the ‘I’. People got emotionally stuck with their Gurus worshipping them, and got entangled with studying the life and happenings of their Guru when their Guru was alive.

,

They forgot their main goal of discovering the truth of their true existence. The following Gurudom trend is still continuing.

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 by means of 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.

There is no need to condemn Gurus, but there is a need to highlight how they become an obstacle to the realization of the ultimate truth or Brahman.

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.”

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.

There are two kinds of audiences - the ordinary ones who desire the transitory heaven and other pleasures obtained as a result of ritual sacrifices, and the more advanced seeker who seeks to know the truth beyond form, time, and space.

The Gurudom is meant for the first audience, to help lead its followers along the way. The Atmic path is meant for those who wish to go beyond the domain of form, time, and space.

Sage Sankara gave religious, ritual, or dogmatic instruction to the masses but pure philosophy only to the few who could rise to it. Hence, the interpretation of his writings by commentators is often confusing because they mix up the two viewpoints. Thus, they may assert that ritual is a means of realizing Brahman, which is absurd.

The Atmic path is straight. One travels from ignorance to wisdom by perfect understanding of ‘what is what’.

The search for the truth of our true existence ends in the discovery of the invisible Soul, the Self.

When the form, time, and space are created out of a single stuff, then there is no division in consciousness. The invisible Soul is the fullness of consciousness without the division of form, time, and space.

It is erroneous to identify the invisible Soul, the Self, as 'I' or 'I AM' because the invisible Soul, the Self, is not 'I' or I AM’. The invisible Soul, the Self, is that witness of the 'I'.

The ‘I’ is not the expression of the fullness of consciousness.

The ‘I’ is the cause of the division within consciousness.

The ‘I’ is ignorance.

The ‘I’ is the cause of experiencing the dualistic illusion as a reality.

The ‘I’ is the cause of the experience of birth, death, and the world.

The ‘I’ is the cause of the form, time, and space.

The ‘I’ is the cause of the universe.

The ‘I’ is the cause of the three states.

The ‘I’ is the cause of the mind.

But remember:~

Without the ‘I’, it is the fullness of consciousness.

Without the ‘I’, there is no division within consciousness.

Without the ‘I’, there is no ignorance.

Without the ‘I’, there is no dualistic illusion.

Without the ‘I’, there is no experience of birth, death, and the world.

Without the ‘I’ is there is no form, time, and space.

Without the ‘I’, there is no universe.

Without the ‘I’, there are no three states.

The ‘I’ is the cause of the mind.

People try all kinds of paths and practices to get Self-realization. Realizing the Self is not you, but the Self is the Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness, is ‘‘realization.

Consciousness is the cause of the world in which you exist, and it itself is uncaused.

Consciousness is pure, flawless, and full, beyond form, time, and space. Consciousness is the ultimate truth or Brahman.

Consciousness is beyond all limitations of form, time, and space. : ~ Santthosh Kumaar

The Atmic path is meant for those who wish to go beyond the domain of form, time, and space.+

Many Gurus in the past glorified the ‘I’. People got emotionally stuck with their Gurus worshipping them, and got entangled with studying the life and happenings of their Guru when their Guru was alive.

,

They forgot their main goal of discovering the truth of their true existence. The following Gurudom trend is still continuing.

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 by means of 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.

There is no need to condemn Gurus, but there is a need to highlight how they become an obstacle to the realization of the ultimate truth or Brahman.

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.”

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.

There are two kinds of audiences - the ordinary ones who desire the transitory heaven and other pleasures obtained as a result of ritual sacrifices, and the more advanced seeker who seeks to know the truth beyond form, time, and space.

The Gurudom is meant for the first audience, to help lead its followers along the way. The Atmic path is meant for those who wish to go beyond the domain of form, time, and space.

Sage Sankara gave religious, ritual, or dogmatic instruction to the masses but pure philosophy only to the few who could rise to it. Hence, the interpretation of his writings by commentators is often confusing because they mix up the two viewpoints. Thus, they may assert that ritual is a means of realizing Brahman, which is absurd.

The Atmic path is straight. One travels from ignorance to wisdom by perfect understanding of ‘what is what’.

The search for the truth of our true existence ends in the discovery of the invisible Soul, the Self.

When the form, time, and space are created out of a single stuff, then there is no division in consciousness. The invisible Soul is the fullness of consciousness without the division of form, time, and space.

It is erroneous to identify the invisible Soul, the Self, as 'I' or 'I AM' because the invisible Soul, the Self, is not 'I' or I AM’. The invisible Soul, the Self, is that witness of the 'I'.

The ‘I’ is not the expression of the fullness of consciousness.

The ‘I’ is the cause of the division within consciousness.

The ‘I’ is ignorance.

The ‘I’ is the cause of experiencing the dualistic illusion as a reality.

The ‘I’ is the cause of the experience of birth, death, and the world.

The ‘I’ is the cause of the form, time, and space.

The ‘I’ is the cause of the universe.

The ‘I’ is the cause of the three states.

The ‘I’ is the cause of the mind.

But remember:~

Without the ‘I’, it is the fullness of consciousness.

Without the ‘I’, there is no division within consciousness.

Without the ‘I’, there is no ignorance.

Without the ‘I’, there is no dualistic illusion.

Without the ‘I’, there is no experience of birth, death, and the world.

Without the ‘I’ is there is no form, time, and space.

Without the ‘I’, there is no universe.

Without the ‘I’, there are no three states.

The ‘I’ is the cause of the mind.

People try all kinds of paths and practices to get Self-realization. Realizing the Self is not you, but the Self is the invisible Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness, is ‘‘realization.

Consciousness is the cause of the world in which you exist, and it itself is uncaused.

Consciousness is pure, flawless, and full, beyond form, time, and space. Consciousness is the ultimate truth or Brahman.

Consciousness is beyond all limitations of form, time, and space. : ~Santthosh Kumaar