If you are seriously seeking truth you must complete your journey. +

If you are seeking the truth, but you still say "I," If you think the ‘Self’ is the ‘I’, you are not a wise seeker. You are simply a person dwelling in ignorance, but thinking yourself wise and erudite,  you go round and round by following the Gurus and their teaching and tortuous paths and practices, like the blind led by the blind.

Remember, the Guru is useless so long as the ultimate truth is unknown, and 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.

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.  

Bhagvad Gita: ~ “You must first see the ‘I’ as illusory before you see others as illusory. ~ CH.2 v.16 

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. 

Till 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. 

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

The ‘I’ hides the  Soul, the Self.

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:~ 

If you emotionally stick to the ‘I’-centric Gurus and their teaching you will never reach anywhere.

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.

Bhagavan Buddha: - There are only two mistakes one can make along the road to truth: not going all the way... and not starting

If you are seriously seeking truth you must complete your journey. Your emotions and sentiments towards the physical Guru keep you permanently in the mental asylum of the prison of ignorance.

Jesus said: ~ “Those who seek should not stop seeking until they find. When they find it, they will be disturbed. When they are disturbed, they will marvel and will reign over all. [And after they have reigned they will rest.]"

Meher Baba: ~ “When the reality appears this ignorance which one thinks as reality becomes unreal.

Swami Vivekananda says: ~ Advaita encompasses everything. Advaita requires heavy-duty intellectualism. From 'The Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda'...

 ‘I’, me and mine belong to you, not to the Soul, which is ever formless, timeless, and spaceless existence.

‘I’, me, and mine are a reality within the domain of form, time, and space.

Remember the ‘Self’ is not ‘I’ but the ‘Self’ is the Soul, the witness of the ‘I’.

Without the Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness, there is no ‘I’

There is no truth in ‘I’, me, and mine because ‘I’, me,  and mine belong to the dualistic illusion.

‘I’, me and mine are nothing to do with the Soul, the Self because the Soul is the fullness of the consciousness without the division of form, time, and space.

The ‘I’ is present in the form of the mind. The mind arises from the Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness.

 The ‘I’ rises as the mind.

 The mind is in the form of the universe.

 Thus, ‘I’ is the mind or universe.

The seeker has to divert his attention to the source from where the mind (universe) rises and subsides.

The universe appears as waking or dream (duality) and disappears as deep sleep (nonduality).

Ashtavakra Gita: ~ “The universe raises from the Soul, the innermost ‘Self’ like bubbles from the sea. Thus, know the Self to be one and in this way enter into the state of dissolution."

First, find out how this world, in which you exist, has come into existence. If you know the answer then all your doubts will vanish.

Taittiriya Upanishad: ~ “The Self in man and in the sun are one. Those who understand this see through the world and go beyond the various sheaths of being to realize the unity of life.

The truth is very simple. It is only to realize the world in which we exist is created out of single stuff. Knowledge of single stuff is Self-knowledge. Self-knowledge frees us all from ignorance.

Swami Vivekananda:~ “The wicked are always looking for defects. Flies come and seek for the ulcer, and bees come only for the honey in the flower. Do not follow the way of the fly but that of the bee.

The seeker has had to discard all accumulated knowledge accumulated from different Gurus and teachers.

Sage Sri, 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 dwelling in ignorance, but thinking themselves wise and erudite, go round and round by various blind beliefs and tortuous paths and practices, like the blind led by the blind.

Arise! Awake!

 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 Soul is the ultimate truth or Brahman. The Soul is only held in the illusory bondage of matter; perfection will be reached when this bond will burst, and the word they use for it is, therefore, Mukthi - freedom, freedom from the bonds of imperfection, freedom from ignorance."

That is why Sage Sankara says:~ “V C:~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 by 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.

In reality, three is no scope for two. Advaita means one without the second. Advaita means the Soul. The Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness, is one without the second.

The consciousness is one without the second because the world in which you exist is created out of consciousness. Thus, everything is consciousness. No second thing exists other than consciousness. The consciousness alone is real and eternal.

Advaitic truth has to be grasped mentally by realizing the form, time and space are nothing but an illusion created out of the single clay, and that single clay is the Soul, which is present in the form of the consciousness. Knowledge of the single clay is Advaita, the one without the second. : ~ Santthosh Kumaar

Ishopanishad says: ~ They are steeped in ignorance and sunk into the greatest depth of misery who worships the matter, instead of the All-Pervading God.+

Religious Gods are not God. One must know God in truth. One must know God in truth. There is a difference between the ordinary concept of God and the truth about God.

Vedas say God is Supreme Spirit has not an idol or the material shape because God is ever formless, timeless, and spaceless existence. God cannot be seen directly by anyone.  God pervades all beings and all directions.

The idolatry does not find any support from the Vedas.  All idolatry Gods are based on Puranic concepts.

There is no scope for belief-based God because the belief is not God.  Religion and its ideas of Gods are based on the false ‘Self’ (ego), within the false experience (waking). Thus, whatever beliefs are based on the false ‘Self’ is bound to be a falsehood. 

Ishopanishad says: ~ “They are steeped in ignorance and sunk into the greatest depth of misery who worships the matter, instead of the All-Pervading God and those who worship things born of matter like trees, animals, man, etc. are sunk deeper in misery."

In 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)

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

Even The Bhagavad Gita says: ~ Brahmano hi pratisthaham ~ Brahman (God) is considered the all-pervading consciousness, which is the basis of all the animate and inanimate entities and material. (14.27).

When Bhagavad Gita says, God is considered the all-pervading consciousness which is the basis of all the animate and inanimate entities and material then nothing has to be accepted as God other than consciousness. 

That is why 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.

Kena Upanishad (6) Chapter I: ~  “That which cannot be apprehended by the mind, but by which, they say, the mind is apprehended-That alone know as Brahman, and not that which people here worship.

Kena Upanishad (7) Chapter I:~  That which cannot be perceived by the eye, but by which the eye is perceived-That alone know as Brahman and not that which people here worship.

Kena Upanishad (8) Chapter I:~  That which cannot be heard by the ear, but by which the hearing is perceived-That alone know as Brahman and not that which people here worship.

Kena Upanishad (9)- Chapter I:~ That which cannot be smelt by the breath, but by which the breath smells an object-That alone know as Brahman, and not that which people here worship.

Gods or no Gods have nothing to do with the spiritual path. The spiritual path is the inner (mental) path.  Your path is your own.  The Soul the innermost ‘Self’ is real God, not the objectified God you worship in the world. No one can walk your path for you.

When the Soul, the innermost ‘Self’, relates its identity with the waking entity (ego or you) and the waking world then it remains in ignorance of its own formless and non-dual nature.

It is because of the inborn conditioning or samskara one remains ignorant of the Soul, the innermost ‘Self’, which is beyond form, time, and space.   Identifying itself as a person perceiving the world it becomes attached to them…

Sage Sankara exclaims, ‘Soul is unattached, its pure awareness isn’t identified with any labels, it isn’t attached to anything it is not entangled with anything at all…’

As the seeker realizes that the Soul, the innermost ‘Self’ is not the ‘I’,   he must, again and again, reflect and realize this truth.

The Soul, the ‘Self’ is eternal, it is non-dualistic awareness, and it is completely free of all bondage of the diversity because it is ever formless, eternal and it is the whole.  The Soul, which is present in the form of the consciousness, is forever undecaying and indestructible…

The seeker has to remember this truth and constantly reflect on it, and gradually he will find the Soul start becoming disengaged and separate from all ‘identities’. And when the Soul, the  ‘Self’ will re-emerge into this world of labels and identity, then it will l find itself’-becoming detached and disinterested in the illusory world of name and form…

Nothing touches the Soul, the ‘Self’, it is not tarnished by any feelings or impulses.  It is not attached to anything at all. 

Until you hold the ‘Self ‘as the ‘I’ you will never be able to get Self-realization.  ‘I’ hides the Soul, which is the   Self.

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

It takes time for the seeker to gain the perfect understanding of ‘what is the truth?’ and ‘’what is untruth?’. It takes time for the Soul, the Self to wake up from the sleep of ignorance, and it takes time for one realizes the truth, which is hidden by the illusory form, time, and space.

Come ye slow, or come ye fast; it is but the Soul that reveals itself at last.

When the Soul reveals then this universe which one thinks as reality becomes unreal. : ~ Santthosh Kumaar

The birth is the birth of ignorance. The physical life is the life of the ignorance. The death is the death of ignorance. +

The birth is the birth of ignorance. The physical life is a life of ignorance. Death is the death of ignorance. Whatever exists without ignorance is the ultimate reality.

Remember, the ‘Self is not you. You are born within the world and you are going to die within the world. The world in which you exist is an illusion created out of the Soul, the innermost ‘Self’, which is present in the form of consciousness. The Soul is birthless and deathless because it is a formless, timeless, and spaceless existence.

If you want self-realization, but you still say "I,” and still you think the ‘Self’ is the ‘I’, you are not a wise a seeker. You are still ignorant who is stuck to the ‘I’. you are foolish to cling to the ‘I'.

This is your bondage that you cling to the ‘I’. The world in which you exist appears when the ‘I’ appears and it disappears when the ‘I’ disappears. The ‘I’ is not the ‘Self’ but the ‘I’ is the world in which you exist.

The world, in which you exist, is the dualistic illusion. There is a Goal. You are not the Self; therefore, you are not the Goal. You are the false self within the false experience.

The ‘Self’ is the Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness. Consciousness is the cause of the world in which you exist, which is the dualistic illusion. And consciousness itself is uncaused.

Sage Sankara: ~VC~ if the universe is true, let it then be perceived in the state of deep sleep also. As it is not at all perceived, it must be unreal and false like dreams.

The ‘Self’ is not the ‘I’. The ‘I’ hides the Soul. Where there is ‘I’ there is no Soul. Where there Soul there no ‘I’. The ‘Self’ is the Soul. The Soul, the innermost ‘Self’s without the ‘I’.

If the ‘Self’ is without the ‘I’ then: ~

It is without ignorance.

It is without the dualistic illusion.

It is without form, time, and space.

It is without the universe.

It is without the experience of birth, life, death, and the world.

It is the fullness of consciousness without division and diversity.

Advaitic wisdom is to realize there are no two. Advaitic wisdom is impossible without inquiring into the nature of the mind. The knowledge of the matter and spirit is Gnana, not the knowledge of matter alone.

Advaita only means the negation of duality. The Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness, is the ultimate truth or Brahman. Consciousness is the cause of the origin, maintenance, and withdrawal of the universe is Advaita (i.e. non-dual), which means that consciousness transcends all conceptions, positive and negative. Nothing positive can ever be imagined or said about it.

Consciousness is existence absolute, awareness absolute. The Existence absolute means that consciousness is not unreal or non-existent. And it is not unconsciousness. Nothing positive can be stated about consciousness. :~Santthosh Kumaar 

When the Soul appears then this universe which you experienced as a reality becomes an illusion.+

The Soul appears as the universe (duality) in waking and the universe disappears as the Soul is deep sleep (nonduality).

When the Soul appears then this universe that you experienced as reality becomes an illusion. 

In reality, appearance and disappearance are an illusion. The illusion has no value the Soul alone is real and eternal.

The Soul is changeless and eternal. The reality is hidden by the dualistic illusion. The dualistic illusion is present in the form of the ‘I’. 

The ‘I’ is present in the form of the mind. The mind is present in the form of form, time, and space. The form, time, and space are present in the form of the universe. The universe appears as waking (duality) and disappears as deep sleep (nonduality).

People who are stuck up with the creation creator theory are unaware of the fact that they are worshipping the creation as God, not the creator.

The causality and creation but these are for religious people only. Religion is only for those who are unable to understand the truth, which is hidden by the illusory form, time, and space. 

Religion is not final. It only gives satisfaction to the populace. The ‘Self’ - knowledge is for the whole of humanity to free them from experiencing the illusory birth, life, death, and the world as a reality.

Yoga Vasistha: ~ “The sun and the worlds become non-objects of perception, to those who have gone beyond the realm of objective perception and knowledge, even as lamps lose their luminosity while the mid-day sun shines.

From the standpoint of the formless Soul the innermost ‘Self, the effect is non-different from the cause. However, in the realm of duality cause is different from the effect. The non-difference of the effect from the cause has to be grasped perfectly to realize from the ultimate standpoint there is neither the cause nor the effect because the cause and effect are one, in essence. That essence is consciousness.

Sage Sankara says:~  If the cause is destroyed, the effect will no longer exist. For example, if from the effect, cotton cloth, the cause, threads, are removed, there will be no cloth, i.e., the cloth is destroyed. Similarly, if in the effect, thread, the cause, cotton, is removed, there will be no thread, i.e., the thread is destroyed. (Brahmasutra Bhashya, commentary on the Brahma-sutra, (9) 2.1.9)

Despite the non-difference of cause and effect, the effect has its Self in the cause but not the cause in the effect. The effect is of the nature of the cause and not the cause the nature of the effect. Therefore, the qualities of the effect cannot touch the cause because the cause and effect are present only when the duality is present. The duality is present only when there is an illusion.

The illusion is present only when there is ignorance. When there is no ignorance then there is no illusion. When there is no illusion then there is no duality. When there is no duality then there is neither the cause nor the effect. When there is no cause and effect then only the nondualistic reality prevails.

Sage Sankara says:~ During the time of its existence, one can easily grasp that the effect is not different from the cause. However that the cause is different from the effect is not readily understood. As to this, it is not really possible to separate cause from effect. But this is possible by imagining so. For example, the reflection of the gold ornament seen in the mirror is only the form of the ornament but is not the ornament itself as it (the reflection) has no gold in it at all. (Chandogya Upanishad Bhashya, commentary on the Chandogya Upanishad, 6.3.2)

All names and forms are real when seen with the Brahman but are false when seen independent of Brahman (Soul).

This way the seeker of truth establishes the non-difference of the effect from the cause.

In the context of Advaita Vedanta: ~ Jagat (the world) is not different from Brahman (Soul); however, Brahman (Soul) 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 to be dedicated to acquiring 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.

All the misery is of the dualistic illusion (world), which is experienced as a reality. Why worship anything of the creation (illusion) as God when the creator of the illusion is the ‘Soul,’ the innermost ‘Self’. The Soul is nothing to do with the creation because creation is merely an illusion, the illusion has no value, from the standpoint of the Soul, the innermost Self. In the realm of the Soul, there is neither creator nor creation but it is only formless, timeless and spaceless existence.

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 pot and its maker, but not in the case of the world.

Then there is the question which nobody has answered till now, viz. Why did God create all these evils, these sufferings? Even a father would never do that. 

If He did so, assuming that God did create, then what sort of an evil God is He! All religions which begin with "God created the world," are fit only for children. It is a lie; it is inconsistent and fit only for ignorant people.

It takes time for the seeker to gain the perfect understanding of ‘what is the truth’ and ‘’what is untruth’. It takes time for the Soul, the innermost Self to wake up from the sleep of ignorance, and it takes time for one realizes the truth, which is beyond the form, time, and space. : ~ Santthosh Kumaar

If you are seeking truth then do not get stuck to Gurus and their teaching.+

Remember, all the ‘I’ based teachings are dualistic. Such teaching keeps the Soul in the cage of the dualistic illusion. Sticking to such teaching will not free the Soul from ignorance.

Bhagvad Gita: ~ “You must first see the ‘I’ as illusory before you see others as illusory. ~ CH.2 v.16

If you are seeking truth then do not get stuck to Gurus and their teaching. Sticking to gurus emotionally is sticking to ignorance. Do not be a slave, be an independent thinker.

That is why 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.”

You have to begin your inquiry into the nature of the universe and in due course, this inquiry produces the realization of the Soul, the universal spirit as the result.

Sage Sankara: ~ “VC~ All this universe which through ignorance appears as of diverse forms, is nothing else but Brahman which is absolutely free from all the limitations of human thought

The universe is not different from the Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness because the universe is made of consciousness. Thus, the consciousness alone is and all else (universe) is merely an illusion. Thus, the illusion is not different from consciousness,  is the ultimate truth or Brahman or God in truth.

You cannot separate the ‘I’ from the universe in which you exist. The ‘I’ is the very basis of the world in which you exist. The ‘I’ itself is the universe.

Without realizing, what is this ‘I’ supposed to be in actuality, how can you realize the truth, which is beyond the form, time, and space?

Without the ‘I’ the form, time and space cease to exist.

If the form, time, and space cease to exist then the universe, in which you exist cease to exist.

If the universe, in which you exist ceases to exist then the ‘I’ cease to exist.

The Soul is not different from the universe because the universe is merely an illusion created out of the Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness. Only in ignorance, there is diversity or separation. In reality, diversity or separation has no place.

If the ‘I’ cease to exist then there is ‘I- LESS’-awareness, which is the nature of the Soul the Self. The Soul is the ultimate truth or Brahman or God. :~Santthosh Kumaar 

Sage Sankara Says:~The Advaitic orthodoxy is meant for ignorant people.+

      Sage  Sankara says:~   The Advaitic orthodoxy is meant for ignorant people.

Sage Sankara says the scriptures dealing with rituals are addressed to an ignorant person.

Upanishad aspiration is best expressed in the following sutra:~

OM Asato ma sad gaMaya , tamaso ma jyotir gaMaya , mrityor ma aamritaam gaMaya . Shanti, Shanti, Shanti

"OM Lead me from ignorance to truth, from darkness to light, from death to immortality. Peace, Peace, Peace" (Brhadaranyaka Upanishad (1/3/28)).

According to Advaita Vedanta, the Veda addresses itself to two kinds of audiences - the ordinary ones who desire the transitory heaven and other pleasures obtained as a result of ritual sacrifices, and the most advanced seeker who seeks to know Brahman. Thus, the Purva mimam.sa, with its emphasis on the karma kanda of the Vedas, is meant for the first audience, to help lead its followers along the way. However, the Vedanta, with its emphasis on the jnana kanda, is meant for those who wish to go beyond such transient pleasures. 

Those who lack the intelligence to discriminate between formless witness (subject) and three states (object) will not be able to grasp what is real and what is unreal. Both subject and object are consciousness, not subject alone. 

Ish Upanishad declares: - Those people who have neglected the attainment of ‘Self’-knowledge and have thus committed suicide ~10/11/12

Those people who have neglected the attainment of ‘Self’-knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana and have thus committed suicide, as it were, are doomed to enter those worlds after death.

This is a condemnation of people who do not try to attain ‘Self’-knowledge. They are, in a real sense, committing suicide, for what can be worse than being a slave to sense enjoyment, completely oblivious of the real purpose of life, which is to be one ’s own master?

The Brahma Sutras together with Sage Sankara's commentary thereon do not contain higher Vedanta. They are intended for duffers.

Sage Sankara's commentary on Brahma Sutras is not on the philosophical basis, but on a religio-mystic one, with an appeal to Vedas as the final authority.

In Brahma Sutra Sage Sankara takes the position that there is another entity outside us, i.e. the wall really exists separately from the mind. This was because Sage Sankara explains in Manduka that those who study the Sutras are religious minds, intellectual children, hence, his popular viewpoint to assist them. These people are afraid to go deeper because it means being heroic enough to refuse to accept Sruti, and God's authority, in case they mean punishment by God.

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

In 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 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 Sankara cleverly introduced some philosophy. If it is objected that a number of 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 are for religious people only.  Religion is only for those who are unable to understand truth beyond the form, time and space. Religion is not final. It only gives satisfaction to the populace. The ‘Self’ - knowledge is for the whole of humanity to free them from experiencing the birth, life, death, and 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 pot and its maker, but not in the case of the world.

This is following prescription prescribed by orthodoxy in the name of Sage Sankara.  The orthodoxy has listed down in 5 verses, 40 steps of Sadhanas (discipline) to be followed to achieve the (only meaningful) goal of human life Moksha, liberation.  Use it as every day as contemplative prayer.

1. Study the scriptures (Vedas) daily

2. Perform diligently the duties (sva dharma) ordered by the scriptures

3. Dedicate all the actions thus performed (as above) to Ishvara (IshvarArpanna Buddhi)

4. Gradually give up the performance of ‘Selfish actions

5. Filter sinful/adharmic likes and dislikes

6. Recognize the inherent defects of material pursuits

7. Seek moksha with the consistent endeavor

8. Get out from the bondage of activity (specified to the ones which end up entangling us)

9. Seek companionship with men of wisdom

10. Be established in firm devotion to Ishvara and perform Upasana

11. Gain mind control, sense control, withdrawal, forbearance, faith, and focus

12. Give up karma and Upasana  are not required any longer for spiritual growth

13. Seek Knowledge from a Sat Guru

14. Serve his lotus feet

15. Ask for Brahma vidya

16. Listen in-depth, to the Upanishadic declarations

17. Analyze the meanings of Upanishadic commandments

18. Perform such analyses by sticking to scriptures

19. Get away from the logic-based system (logic is good when it corroborates scripture, in the sense, don't try to substitute it)

20. Dwell upon the discriminative rationale of Shruti (basically, develop Viveka)

21. Constantly remain steeped in the fact that you are Brahman

22. Renounce pride/vanity/arrogance

23. Give up the delusionary misconception- "I am the body"

24. Do not argue with wise men

25. Consider hunger as a disease

26. Treat hunger, the disease, by taking bhiksha food

27. Beg no delicious food

28. Live contentedly with whatever comes your way as prasadam

29. Endure all pains of opposites- heat/cold, likes/dislikes, pleasure/pain. 

30. Avoid wasteful talk

31. Be indifferent and avoid groupism

32. Don't get attached to either someone's love or criticism

33. In solitude also, live joyously

34. Quieten your mind in Ishvara

35. Realize and see the ‘Self’ in everything, everywhere

36. Recognize the universe as a finite projection of the ‘Self’

37. Destroy the effects of deeds done in earlier lives (sanchit karma) through the strength of knowledge

38. Through wisdom, become detached from AgAmi karma (give up doership/enjoyership)

39. Experience and exhaust the prarabdh, fruits of past actions

40. Thereafter, live eternally as Brahman

But

 Sage  Sankara says,   that, the orthodoxy is meant for ignorant people.

Sage  Sankara: ~ "Though I wear these robes of a Sanyasin, it is only for the sake of bread."

~ This shows  Sage Sankara  was wearing the religious robe only for the sake of bread."

All the rituals based on the false belief of Gods will not yield any fruits and they are meant for the ignorant populace who are unable to grasp the God beyond the form, time, and space.

One of Sage Sankara’s missions was to wean people away from a ritualistic approach advocated by Mimamsakas and to project wisdom (jnana) as the means of liberation in the light of Upanishad teachings.

Sage Sankara criticized severely the ritualistic attitude and those who advocated such practices. However, the orthodox texts that combined rituals with wisdom (jnana_karma_samucchaya) more in favor of the Mimamsaka position came into vogue, projecting Sage Sri, Sankara as the rallying force of the doctrine.

That is what Sage Sankara says:~ (11) As regards the rituals, Sage Sankara says, the person who performs rituals and aspires for rewards will view himself in terms of the caste into which he is born, his age, the stage of his life, his standing in society, etc. In addition, he is required to perform rituals all through his life. However, the ‘Self’ has none of those attributes or tags. Hence, the person who superimposes all those attributes on the changeless, eternal ‘Self’ and identifies the ‘Self’ with the body is a confusing one for the other; and is, therefore, an ignorant person. The scriptures dealing with rituals, rewards, etc. are therefore addressed to an ignorant person. Adhyasa Bhashya

Sage Sankara:~ (11.1) This ignorance (mistaking the body for ‘Self’) brings in its wake a desire for the well-being of the body, aversion for its disease or discomfort, fear of its destruction, and thus a host of miseries(anartha).This anartha is caused by projecting karthvya(“doer” sense) and bhokthavya (object) on the Atman. Sage Sankara calls this adhyasa. The scriptures dealing with rituals, rewards, etc. are,  therefore, he says, addressed to an ignorant person. Adhyasa Bhashya

Sage Sankara:~ (11.2) In short, the person who engages in rituals with the notion “I am an agent, doer, thinker”, according to Sage Sankara, is ignorant, as his behavior implies a distinct, separate doer/agent/knower; and an object that is to be done/achieved/known. That duality is Avidya, an error that can be removed by Vidya. -Adhyasa Bhashya

Sage Sankara: ~ (12) Sage Sankara affirming his belief in one eternal unchanging reality (Brahman) and the illusion of plurality, drives home the point that Upanishads deal not with rituals but with the knowledge of the Absolute (Brahma Vidya) and the Upanishads give us an insight into the essential nature of the ‘Self’ which is identical with the Absolute, the Brahman. -Adhyasa Bhashya

No conceptual God can exist, apart from consciousness.  People are not aware of the fact that there is no individual God that can exist, apart from the Soul, which is in the form of consciousness. Thus, the Soul or Consciousness is the true ‘Self’.   If there is no consciousness, then there is no-body, no ego, no universe, no religion, and no conceptual Gods. :~Santthosh Kumaar 

Consciousness powers the whole universe there is no second energy other than consciousness.+

There is no such thing as an individual Soul. The Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness pervades in everything and everywhere in all three states. The three states are the product of ignorance.

From the standpoint of the Soul, the ‘Self’-there is no ignorance; therefore, the three states are non-existent. Only from the dualistic perspective, one can speak about the individual Soul and the universe. On the non-dualistic perspective, there is no second thing that exists other than the Soul or the consciousness.

What is it that becomes the waking? What is it that becomes a deep sleep? What is that becomes the dream?

It is the Soul, which is present in the form of the consciousness that appears as waking or dream (duality) and disappears as deep sleep ( nonduality).

Thus, there is no second thing that exists other than the Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness. 

Remember:~

The Soul is not different from the universe because the universe is merely an illusion created out of the Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness. Only in ignorance, there is diversity or separation. In reality, diversity or separation has no place. 

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, mantram and meditation--all come from the Self. 

Man and his senses and his experience of the world are a reality within the waking experience. The dream man and his senses and the dream world are a reality within the dream. 

The dream becomes unreal when the waking takes place. Similarly, the waking also becomes unreal when you realize the fact that, the ‘Self’ is not you, but the ‘Self ‘is Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness. 

Thus, the theory of Prana Shakti or energy is based on the false self (waking entity) is imagery. When the body, ego, and the world are created out of a single clay and that single clay is consciousness then there is no second thing that exists other than consciousness. 

Consciousness powers the whole universe there is no second energy other than consciousness. Everything is consciousness. Remember, the world in which you exist is nothing but consciousness. 

If the  Soul, the Self is non-dual then the question of inward and outward does not arise, because in Self –awareness the body, ego, and the world are nothing but consciousness because they are a mere mirage created out of consciousness. 

Thus, all these yogic theories hold no water on the standpoint of the Soul, the Self, which is present in the form of consciousness. 

Brihadaranyaka Upanishad: ~ A wise man, having realized Brahman as his Self, should keep his higher intuitive faculty (prajna) united with Brahman (consciousness). He should not oppress his mind with many words, for they are a mere waste of energy. :~Santthosh Kumaar