Sage Sankara says the world is unreal and Brahman alone is real. If n the world itself is unreal then what is the use of WHO AM ‘I’? - inquiry, which is based on the individual who is the part of the unreal world.+

Sage  Sankara: ~ “Brahman is the truth the universe is unreal everything is truly Brahman and nothing else has any value.

Sage Sankara says the world is unreal and  Brahman alone is real. If the world itself is unreal then what is the use of  WHO AM ‘I’? - inquiry, which is based on the individual who is the part of the unreal world. 

The individual exists in the unreal world it is of no use to inquire WHO AM ’I’? – instead, inquire into the nature of the world to make sure the world is an illusion.

What is the use of saying ‘I AM THAT’ without knowing what the ‘Self’ is in actuality? Without knowing the truth of the Self, without realizing the truth of the world in which you exist it is impossible to realize the truth beyond the form, time, and space. By a mere utterance of the word ‘I AM THAT', the truth will not be revealed.

Sage  Sankara says: ~ ‘What is accepted without a proper inquiry will not lead to the final Goal. (Commentary on Vedanta Sutra)

Sage Sankara says the transparent truth of the Self, which is hidden by the illusion, is to be attained through the instructions of a knower of Brahman, (Gnani). First, know ‘what is the truth’ and ‘what is untruth’ for sure. Without realizing what untruth truth is, it is difficult to know what truth is. 

The ultimate Truth should not only be known but should also be proved, and verified. Advaita does not prove that there is ONE! It proves that there is no second thing. Sage Sankara starts with no assumption whatsoever but proves every step taken, it does not even start with an assumption that Brahman exists; the discovery of the existence of Brahman comes only at the end of our inquiry and not at the beginning. The path of wisdom is a path of verification for every tenet; one needs proof, not poetry.

Some thinkers started with ‘one’ substance and some with the Absolute; but where is the proof of the existence of this one or the Absolute. Hence they started with assumptions; whereas Sage Sankara starts with no assumption whatever but proves every step taken, he does not even start with an assumption that Brahman exists; the discovery of the existence of Brahman comes only at the end of Soulcentric inquiry and reasoning and not at the beginning.

Those who tell you that Brahman is unity, that you can get it only by intuition, that you should not reason, you should not question or inquire, are deluding you. Verification must come by thought.

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. 

Sage Sankara says: ~AA-88. When the whole universe, movable and immovable, is known to be Atman (consciousness), and thus the existence of everything else is negated, where is then any room to say that the body is Atman?

That is why Sage Sankara says: ~ VC-63. Without causing the objective universe to vanish and without knowing the truth of the ‘Self’ how is one to achieve Liberation by the mere utterance of the word Brahman? — It would result merely in an effort of speech.

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 essence of Manduka is: Do not be satisfied with rituals, yoga, etc. which are good in their own way, but inquire. Into what? Brahman and Atman are things you can never see. So do not inquire into them. Inquire into the world around you, which you can see.  Inquiry tells you it is passing away every second. Everything is dying repeatedly. Where is it going? Thus, you follow up your inquiry into what you can lay hands on. How can you inquire into Atma which you cannot see? So first we deal with the known and seen, this inquiry leads up to the unknown in the end.

First, realize what is this illusion or Maya.

Maya or illusion is the most important contribution of Sage Sankara. Maya or illusion is the complex illusionary power of the Atman (Soul), which is present in the form of consciousness.

This Māyāvāda of Sage Sankara was highly criticized and misunderstood. Bhaskaracharya described Sage  Sankara to be indebted to the Buddhists for his concept of Maya. The term Maya, however, appears in the Bhagavad Gita 7.14 and also in many Upanishads.

The concept of Māyā seems to be a hypothesis. Since according to the Upanishads only Brahman is real, but we see the material world to be real, Sage Sankara explained the anomaly by the concept of this illusionary power Māyā. 

The universe itself is Maya. Maya is a dualistic illusion.

Just as a piece of rope is mistaken for a snake, the Atman is mistaken for this diverse universe.

Just as the snake is superimposed on the rope, this world and this body, are superimposed on Brahman or the Soul, the Self’.

The snake is only an idea: it disappears on inquiry, but a deeper self-search reveals that the rope is also the idea and its reality will be exposed when wisdom dawns. There is neither a snake nor a rope in reality because, from the ultimate standpoint, the duality is merely an illusion created out of consciousness.

Consciousness is the root element of the universe. From consciousness, the universe comes into existence. In consciousness, the universe resides. And into consciousness, the universe is dissolved. Consciousness is the parent of all that is there.

Consciousness is the only reality, and the universe too but an illusory manifestation. 

The world in which we exist (waking) is a mere superimposition like seeing a snake superimposed on a rope on a dark night.

The snake has no independent existence, apart from the rope, it exists because of the rope, and it ceases to exist as soon as light is brought. The snake then dissolves into the rope. In the same way, when the Soul remains in its own awareness, the mind (I)    merges into it.  The mind and Soul are one in essence. To attain this knowledge is the goal of the truth seeker. The three states then cannot taint the Soul, the Self.

According to Sage Sankara, it is the ignorance of the Soul, the  Self hidden by the universe is the cause of experiencing the dualistic illusion or Maya as reality. are.

When Sage  Sankara says the world is an illusion, it includes birth, life, and death, which happens within the world.  Thus the seeker's main aim is to mentally trace the formless substance of the illusion, which is also the witness of the illusion. The formless substance and witness of the illusion (world) is the Atman, and this Atman itself is Brahman.

Remember:~

To say the universe is an illusion without first examining it and inquiring into its nature thoroughly is to delude oneself. This world is common to every one of us; therefore, the seeker of truth must begin his inquiry with it. It is only after he has inquired into the nature of the objective world, that he realizes the universe which through ignorance appears as of diverse forms, is nothing else but the Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness and is absolutely free from all the limitations of form, time and space.

The Soul, the Self, which is present in the form of the consciousness is hidden by the Maya.

That is why Sage Sankara says: ~ 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 discriminating between real and unreal, and renunciation of the false leads to Self-awareness.

Remember: ~

Sage  Sankara: ~ “VC~ All this universe which through ignorance appears as of diverse forms is nothing else but Brahman (Consciousness) which is absolutely free from all the limitations of Maya.

When you finally realize the ‘‘Self’ ‘is not you but the ‘‘Self’’ is the Soul, then you will realize the world in which you exist is merely an illusion created out of the Soul. The Soul is present in the form of consciousness.

Sage Sankara says: ~ VC-47- All the effects of ignorance, root, and branch, are burnt down by the fire of knowledge, which arises from discrimination between these two—the Self and the non-Self.

Remember: ~ All is consciousness. The whole universe is consciousness. From consciousness, the universe comes. When the universe disappears, the consciousness still remains without form, time, and space.

Remember: ~

Ashtavakra Gita: ~ “The universe rises 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."  

Sage Sankara says: - Whatever thing remains eternal is true, and whatever is non-eternal is untrue. Since the world is created and destroyed, it is not true.

The Atman is the ultimate truth and it is unchanging because it is ever nondual. Since the world is changing, it is not real.

Whatever is independent of form, time and space is real, and whatever has the form, time, and space in itself is unreal.

Just as the dream is superimposed on Atman,  the waking also is superimposed on Brahman.  The dream is a parallel waking,  and waking is a parallel dream 

The world is believed to be a superimposition of the Brahman or consciousness. Superimposition cannot be real.

On the other hand, Sage Sankara claims that the world is not absolutely false. It appears false only when compared to Brahman. In the pragmatic state, the world is completely true—which occurs as long as we are under the influence of Maya. 

The world cannot be both true and false at the same time; hence Sage Sankara has classified the world as indescribable. The following points suggest that according to Sage  Sankara, the world is not false (Sage Sankara himself gave most of the arguments)

·        If the world were false, then with the liberation of the first human being, the world would have been annihilated. However, the world continues to exist even if a human attains liberation.

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·        Sage Sankara believes in Karma or good actions. This is a feature of this world. So the world cannot be false.

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·        The Supreme Reality Brahman is the basis of this world. The world is like its reflection. Hence the world cannot be totally false.

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·        False is something that is ascribed to non-existent things, like Sky-lotus. The world is a logical thing that is perceived by our senses.

Consider scientific logic. A pen is placed in front of a mirror. One can see its reflection. To our eyes, the image of the pen is perceived. Now, what should the image be called? It cannot be true, because it is an image. The truth is the pen. It cannot be false, because it is seen by our eyes.

The Soul the Self is Self-evident It is not established by extraneous proofs. It is not possible to deny the Soul which is present in the form of consciousness, because It is the very essence of the one who denies It. The Atman is the basis of all kinds of knowledge, presuppositions,  and proofs.

Sage  Sankara wanted to establish the existence of the Brahman. For this purpose, He made the Atman as the Brahman. He brought out the identity of Self with the consciousness and made the Atman the Brahman. Since one will not negate the existence of his Self, he will accept the existence of the Brahman, which is the Atman or Soul, the Self. Both Buddha and Sage Sankara kept silent about the absolute unimaginable God. The same philosophy was dealt with by them from different angles in different situations.

Sage  Sankara not only proved the existence of God from the Vedic perspective but also proved the existence of God rationally by pure reason. 

 Brahman— The One Without A Second.  

The Atman is Self-evident (Svatah-siddha). It is not established by extraneous proofs. It is not possible to deny the Atman, because It is the very essence of the one who denies It. The Atman is the basis of all kinds of knowledge, presuppositions, and proofs. Self is within, Self is without; Self is before, Self is behind; Self is on the right, Self is on the left; Self is above and Self is below. Brahman is not an object, as it is Adrisya, beyond the reach of the eyes. Hence the Upanishads declare: “Neti Neti—not this, not this....” This does not mean that Brahman is a negative concept, or a metaphysical abstraction, or a nonentity, or a void. It is not another. It is all-full, infinite, changeless, Self-existent, Self-delight, Self-knowledge, and Self-bliss. It is Svarupa, essence. It is the essence of the witness. It is the Seer (Drashta), Transcendent (Turiya), and Silent Witness (Sakshi). : ~ Santthosh Kumaar