The doubt is to be got rid of "by the sword of Advaitic wisdom.+

Man is misled by what confronts him or influenced by what he experiences. Man exists in the world, which is merely an illusion, and he experiences it as reality because man thinks of himself as the Self and he experiences birth, life, death, and the world as a reality.  

This Self-knowledge is necessary to realize the fact that,  man and his experience of the world are part of the illusion. 

The Soul is the Self is not part of the illusion, but the Soul is present in the form of consciousness,  is the formless substance, and is the witness of the illusion. The illusion is present as mind (I) other universe or waking experience.

 Many seekers in this path of inquiry are still struggling even after long years and waiting for something to happen. Even after reading and inquiring deeply enough, still, they are still unable to progress further.  

Even if they are unable to get any benefit in their spiritual pursuit through Self - inquiry they are unable to give up the Self-inquiry due to the attraction of  Sage  Ramana Maharishi. 

Self-inquiry prescribed by Sri Ramana Maharishi is a good tool at the beginning of the pursuit of truth. However, the seeker will find it inadequate in the latter stages. However, it creates lots of doubts and confusion.  

The seeker has to find the answers on his own through deeper reasoning, all his doubts and confusions will be cleared, and he will be able to move ahead in the path of inquiry, and he will be able to reach his non-dual destination.

You and your experience of the world have nothing to do with the Soul, the Self because you are not the self.   WHO AM ‘I’?- inquiry is for beginners.  WHO AM ‘I’?- inquiry is inadequate in the later stages. 

There is no need to inquire ‘WHO AM ‘I’?-because, the ‘I’, itself is an illusion. The seeker has to realize how this ‘I’ is an illusion,  by a perfect understanding of ‘what is what’.

The Soul, the Self is not you, but it is the witness of you and your experience of the world together. Therefore, when you are not the self, then how can you say ‘I AM THIS’ or ‘I AM THAT.  Therefore,  it is necessary to realize self is not ‘you’ to realize ‘that you are part of the illusory world. 

One has to get rid of his doubts, But that does not mean, simply going and believing everything he is told. The doubt is to be got rid of "by the sword of  Advaitic wisdom.

In WHO AM ‘I’ and ‘I AM THAT’ teachings,   the ego, is not the truth. To get ultimate truth one has to inquire into the nature of the mind, which is in the form of the universe.  Inquiring into the nature of the mind or the universe is higher.  Thus ‘WHO AM ‘I’? and ‘I AM THAT’   will not reveal the truth of the whole,  thus the journey is incomplete.

‘WHO AM ‘I’ and ‘I AM THAT’ serve only as the starting point. What one has learned from the teaching of the sages be understood through the exercise of reason as far as the reason might go.  And what one has assimilated must be realized. There are stages in the seeker's goal.

The seeker of truth must realize the fact that Self-awareness is not some mystical experience propagated by yogis. Self-awareness comes only from the Gnana or Advaitic wisdom. 

That is why Sage Sankara indicated:~ 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 of 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.

There is only one Reality to be known, the same for all seekers, but the ways to it, are hidden by the religion.  Self-discovery is the only way, towards the 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 varied his practical advice and doctrinal teaching according to the people he was amongst. He never advised them to give up their particular religion or beliefs or metaphysics completely; he only told them to give up the worst features of abuse: at the same time, he showed just one step forward toward the truth.  Sage  Sankara was extremely precise and careful in his choice of words. 

Sage  Sankara' gave religious, ritual o,r 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. 

Sage Sankara says:`  in the commentary in the Vedanta Sutra that what is accepted without proper inquiry will not lead a person to the final goal. On the contrary, such acceptance will result only in evil, something which is detrimental to our spiritual progress.

Seekers of truth should not believe blindly in traditional orthodox Advaita without verifying all the facts from every angle. The orthodoxy has nothing to do with spirituality, which is based on the soul or spirit.  One has to reflect through reasoning over and over again without getting tired of the process.  Santthosh Kumaar