Sage Sankara said: ~ Neither by the practice of yoga nor philosophy, nor by good works nor by learning, does liberation come.+

The truth is beyond all philosophy. When the seeker realizes all his accumulation of knowledge from different sources is inadequate and useless in quenching his spiritual thirst, he will start his inner (mental) journey on his own.  

The journey is full of obstacles because the seeker has to drop all the accumulated dross and all the conditioning (samskaras) to cross the ocean of duality or samsara.

That is why Sage Sankara said: ~ Neither by the practice of yoga nor philosophy, nor by good works nor by learning, does liberation come, but only through the realization that Atman and Brahman are one in no other way. (1) Vivekachoodamani v 56, pg~25

As one indulges in deeper Self-search he will know somewhere he is going wrong, and it is for him to overcome the entire obstacle on his own by knowing what is obstructing his realization.  

The greatest hindrance is mixing religion, God, scriptures, yogic theories and intellectual speculations, and logical conclusions. Moreover, attachment to scriptures, personal God, and religious code of conduct keep one permanently in the grip of duality.

Scriptures are not needed in pursuit of truth. Even the Upanishads and the Sages of truth declare the same.

The ultimate truth has to be ascertained without the scriptures by realizing the Self is neither the waking entity not the dream entity but the Self is a formless Soul which is present in the form of consciousness. 

In the realm of truth form, time, and space are created out of single stuff. That single stuff is consciousness. Realizing the single stuff as the ultimate truth is Self-realization or truth realization. To realize this truth there is no need for the scriptures. 

The ultimate truth has to be realized first then only it is possible to know what the scriptures are saying.

Scriptures are being added from time to time. This process will go on. There is the final authority among them? One contradicts the other: duality reigns supreme.

I quote Scriptural citations only after verifying reality and proving the truth, to point out that the scriptures teach the same thing. If one quotes them before having demonstrated the truth, then it is scholasticism.

Remember:~

Self-knowledge cannot be attained by taking sanyasa or by the study of the scriptures and intellectual understanding or by bookish knowledge.  Therefore, there is no use in studying the scriptures and other scriptures in order to acquire non-dual wisdom.  That is why Buddha rejected the scriptures, and even Sage Sankara indicated that the ultimate truth lies beyond religion, the concept of God, and the scriptures.

There is only one Reality to be known, the same for all seekers, but the ways to it, are hidden by religion.  Self-discovery is the only way, towards the non-dual 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.

That is why Sage Sankara says: ~ VC 56. Neither by Yoga, nor by Sankhya, nor by good work, nor by learning, but by the realization of one's identity with Brahman is Liberation possible, and by no other means.

58. Loud speech consisting of a shower of words, the skill in expounding the Scriptures, and likewise erudition - these merely bring on a little personal enjoyment to the scholar but are no good for Liberation.

59. The study of the Scriptures is useless so long as the highest Truth is unknown, and it is equally useless when the highest Truth has already been known.

60. The Scriptures consisting of many words are a dense forest that merely causes the mind to ramble. Hence, men of wisdom should earnestly set about knowing the true nature of the Self.

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?

62. A disease does not leave off if one simply utters the name of the medicine, without taking it; (similarly) without direct realization one cannot be liberated by the mere utterance of the word Brahman.

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.

64. Without killing one’s enemies, and possessing oneself of the splendor of the entire surrounding region, one cannot claim to be an emperor by merely saying, ‘I am an emperor’.

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.

66. Therefore, the wise should, as in the case of disease and the like, personally strive by all the means in their power to be free from the bondage of repeated births and deaths.

Then there is no need for the scriptures, religion, and idea of God.  One has to be more rational to realize the Advaitic truth, which is the ultimate truth or scientific truth. :~Santthosh Kumaar