There is no need to inquire ‘WHO AM ‘I’? , because the ‘I’ itself, is an illusion.+

You and your experience of the world are nothing to do with the Soul, the  Self because the Self is not you.  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 innermost 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’ in order to realize ‘that you are part of the illusory world.

The Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness fills the form, time, and space together.   The Soul or consciousness is changeless, unattached, and motionless because it is ever formless.  

The Soul, the Self is not the body because it is birthless because it is formless.  If the Soul, the innermost Self is not the body then you are not the Self. The one who says I am not the body is you. You are born, live and die in this unreal world. If the world is unreal you are also unreal. 

Identifying the self as ‘you’ is erroneous, because you are the false self (waking entity) within the false experience (waking). 

The Soul, the Self is present in the form of consciousness. Consciousness is not limited to the waking experience alone, because it pervades everything and everywhere in all three states.   Thus, all three states are one in essence.  Thus, consciousness alone is real and eternal. 

Remember:~ 

When the Self is not the form, then the question of whom does not arise.  A deeper self-search reveals the fact that the ‘I’ itself is an illusion.  

If the ‘I’ is an illusion, then it is no use of inquiring ‘Who Am I?. Till one holds the ‘I’ as the Self, is caught up in the prison of the duality.  

Sage Sankara:~  VC~.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 go only by an inquiry into the nature of the external world.

A deeper self-search reveals the fact that by inquiring the Who Am I? the wisdom will not dawn. Who Am I?  inquiry is only for beginners and it is inadequate and useless in the later stages.

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?

VC-  v6~ Let erudite scholars quote all the scripture, let Gods be invoked through sacrifices, let elaborate rituals be performed, let personal Gods be propitiated---yet, without the realization of one‘s identity with the Self, there shall be no liberation for the individual, not even in the lifetimes of a hundred Brahmas put together.

Sage Sankara goes on to say: ~A sickness of not cured by saying the word “medicine.” You must take the medicine. Liberation does not come by merely saying the word “Brahman.” Brahman must be experienced. Until you allow this apparent universe to dissolve from your consciousness until you have realized Brahman, how can you find liberation just by saying the word Brahman? The result is merely noise. Until a man has destroyed his enemies and taken possession of the splendor and wealth of the kingdom, he cannot become a king by simply saying “I am a king.”

A buried treasure is not uncovered by merely uttering the words: “Come forth.” You must follow the right directions, dig, remove the stones and earth from above it, and then make it your own. In the same way, the pure truth of the Atman, which is buried under Maya and the effects of Maya, can be reached by meditation, and contemplation, but never by subtle arguments. 

Remember:~

All the Gurus glorified the ‘I’. Thus, it becomes very difficult to discard the ‘I’. Those who have accepted the ‘I’ based teaching refuse to accept anything other than their accepted truth.

Until you hold the ‘Self’ as the ‘I’, your knowledge remains skin deep.

What is it that appears as the ‘I’ and disappears as the ‘I-less? It is the Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness.

Do not make the mistake of holding the ‘I’ as the Self because it is not permanent. ‘I’ disappears and becomes ‘I’-less.

‘I’ is an illusion and the ‘I-LESS’ is real and eternal. The ‘I-LESS ‘appears as ‘I’ and ‘I ’‘disappears as I-LESS.

Bhagavad Gita: ~ “The permanent is always there, only the transient ‘I’ comes and goes. (2.18)

The ‘I’ hides the Soul, the Self, which is the cause of the universe. 

That is why Bhagavad Gita: ~ ‘The permanent (consciousness) is always there, only the transient ‘I’ comes and goes. (2.18)

People think the ‘I’ without the body is the Self. The seeker has to understand the fact that ‘I’ is not the Self, but the witness of the ‘I’ is the true Self, which is eternal. 

That is why Ashtavakra Gita 16:10:~ If you desire liberation, but you still say "I," If you feel the ‘Self’ is the ‘I’, You are not a wise man or a seeker. You are simply a man who suffers.

Remember this: “The ‘Self’ is not the ‘I’ but the ‘Self’ is the Soul, the witness of the ‘I’, which comes and goes.

There is nothing to realize other than realizing the fact that, you and the world in which you exist are created out of single stuff and that single stuff is the Soul, the Self. The Soul is present in the form of consciousness. 

Thus, you and the world in which you exist are nothing but consciousness. Thus, by realizing this truth the Soul becomes free from the cage of the illusory form, time, and space. : ~ Santthosh Kumaar