People who stuck to orthodoxy never will be able to cross the prison of duality.+

In the context of Advaita Vedanta: ~ Jagat (the world) is not different from Brahman; however, Brahman is different from Jagat

It has not been possible to preach Advaitic Truth entirely free from the settings of dualistic weakness it has not been more operative and useful to mankind at large because only a few will be able to grasp and realize it.

'To realize the Advaitic Truth a freer and fuller scope the seeker has to realize the form, time and space are one in essence. And that essence is consciousness. And the Soul, the Self is present in the form of consciousness.   

To realize the Advaitic truth the seeker has to be free from all superstitions and orthodox contaminations. The seeker has  the inner urge to acquire  the Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana alone.'

A  Gnani will easily appreciate the high flights of Sage Sankara’s Advaitic wisdom is one of the 'most majestic structures and valuable products of the Genius of man in his search for Truth.

In India, people think that religion is a stepping stone to a higher truth.   But it is not so, because religion is based on the false self (waking entity or ego) within the false experience (waking or world).

One must go beyond form, time, and space. The theistic tradition has been kept alive by the orthodoxy. The orthodoxy is the path of ignorance because it is based on ignorance.  The orthodoxy has nothing to do with the ultimate truth or Brahman. 

Thus it is not the path of ultimate truth or Brahman. People who stick to orthodoxy never will be able to cross the prison of duality. Without crossing the prison of duality self-awareness is an impossibility.  

Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana is necessary to realize the ultimate truth or Brahman or God in truth.

Dalai Lama said: ~ Buddhism need not be the best religion though it is more scientific and religion and inquisitive. But Buddhism has no answer to certain questions like the existence of Atama (soul) and rebirth.   Dali lama said that as an individual he believes in rebirth as he had come across a few cases of rebirth.  Modern science, Dalai Lama hoped would unearth the mystery behind the rebirth. (In DH –dec-212009-Gulbarga).

Same way, all religions of the world and all philosophies of the world are based on individuality (ego), and find no answers to many questions. Truth seekers all over the world are trying to find answers for themselves, and they imagine and write articles and books of their ideas and others will read and blindly accept them as truth.

There is no need to condemn anyone’s views and ideas or writing, but without being judgmental, the seeker has to verify whether the author is speaking from the standpoint of ego, or whether he is speaking from the standpoint of the Soul, the Self.  

If his views are based on the standpoint of the physical self (waking entity or ego or you), then there are many doubts and confusion. If his views are based on the Soul, the Self then there is no confusion and doubts of any sort.   

Nothing has to be accepted without verifying the validity of any claim in pursuit of truth. Only the uncontradictable truth has to be accepted as truth.  There is no need to condemn any religion or any saints or Gurus, but the seeker has to think beyond religion, scriptures, and individualized gods.   

It is difficult to understand and assimilate within a framework of some teaching or holding some philosophy as a yardstick.  We have to drop all our accumulated dross to understand assimilate and realize the non-dualistic truth.  

I am highlighting some scriptural citations only to show the seeker that the Advaitic sages themselves declare that scriptures, religion, and ideas of god are unimportant in pursuit of truth.  It is easier to understand, assimilate, and realize the ultimate truth or non-dualistic truth by rationalizing our views and understanding:~

 There is only the mind which is present as the universe. Thus we have to investigate the world that confronts us.

The Soul is the Self. The Soul is present in the form of consciousness.  Consciousness is that which knows everything, that which sees. Consciousness alone remains after one gets rid of all thoughts and ideas by identification with the Self.  

Consciousness is only the seer; it is not Brahman that is an error. It becomes Brahman only after a deeper inquiry and soulcentric reasoning.

Firstly, we have to realize the fact that, the mind is not within the body, but the body and world are within the mind. Therefore, all our practical life within the practical world is within the mind, which is in the form of the universe. The universe appears as a waking or dream (duality or mind or the universe) and disappears as deep sleep (non-duality or soul). 

Thus the waking entity is not the self. The self is that which witnesses the coming and going of the three states.  The Self is not an individual because it pervades everything and everywhere in all three states. Therefore, our practical life within the practical world, which is based on individuality, has nothing to do with the Soul, the  Self, which is ever formless, timeless, and spaceless existence.

One becomes aware of the fact that the universe or mind, which appears and disappears, is the only form and shape created out of consciousness and nothing else. 

The consciousness alone is positive proof and on the standpoint of the consciousness or Soul as the Self, one becomes aware of the falsity of this universe or mind, which is merely an appearance. 

The one which appears as mind (universe) and disappears as no mind (Soul) is consciousness alone. Therefore, the mind and Soul are one in essence.  Without the Soul, the Self, or consciousness, the universe ceases to exist. 

Remember:~

The mental analysis shows that, the existence of the formless witness, which witnesses the three states coming and going without a break. This, on closer analysis, is found to be that changeless, soul or consciousness itself.

The seeker has to focus his attention only on the three states.  The mind, which appears as waking or dream is duality and deep sleep is non-duality.  Therefore,  we have to find out: ~ what is it that becomes the duality (waking or dream) and non-duality (deep sleep).  

The individual experience happening within the waking and dream has nothing to do with the Soul or consciousness. Identifying consciousness as the  Self is necessary to realize the unreal nature of the mind. 

The mind cannot be destroyed but when one overcomes ignorance through wisdom then he realizes his body, his ego, and his experience of the world to be consciousness.

 For a Gnani the body is not the body, the ego is not the ego, the world is not the world but everything is consciousness even though he is in the midst of illusion knowing and realizing the ultimate truth in the midst of illusion or Maya is called wisdom.    It becomes very easy to assimilate non-dual truth if one can drop his accumulated knowledge and inborn samskara. 

Only one has to realize his body and his experience of the universe are one, in essence, to bring unity in diversity in our understanding, and in turn, it leads to self-awareness.   

 We all are searching for truth within the illusion, not being aware of the fact that the illusion is created out of a single stuff which is the unborn Soul, the Self. 

The soul is present in the form of consciousness.  Thus searching for the truth in the illusion with the illusory self, within the illusory experience, has to be an illusion.  The illusion is created and sustained and finally dissolves as consciousness.  

There is no second thing that exists other than consciousness. Consciousness is the ultimate truth or Brahman or  God in truth.