Bookish knowledge of Advaitic Vedanta is inadequate to acquire the Advaitic wisdom of Sage Sankara.+

There is no need for Advaita Vedanta or any other dualistic Vedanta in pursuit of truth. Nothing has to be accepted without verification. There is no need to study Vedanta or any scriptures for Self-realization.

Advaitic wisdom of Sage Sankara cannot be attained by the study of the scriptures and intellectual understanding or by bookish knowledge.  Therefore, there is no use in studying the scriptures and other books to acquire Advaitic wisdom.

That is what Sage 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.

Guru’s interpretations of sacred texts, the force of religious merit— the grace of the physical Guru none of these lead to Self-realization. The Ultimate Truth is revealed in the clear reflection of the Soul-centric reason.

The truth will be revealed only when one realizes ‘What is the mind? ‘what is the substance of the mind and ‘What is the source of the mind? 

Fortunate is the seeker who does not lose himself in studying Vedanta. Conviction of the Truth comes only by adequate reasoning and by the counsel of the wise. Even mere bookish knowledge of Advaitic Vedanta is inadequate and useless, to acquire the Advaitic wisdom of Sage Sankara.

The conceptual divisions invented by Advaitic gurus of the East and West by their excessive analysis are based on the dualistic perspective. Such teachings keep the seeker permanently in the prison of ignorance.    

The seekers who are dwelling in ignorance, but thinking himself wise and erudite, go round and round, by various tortuous paths, like the blind led by the blind.   and then explain

Fortunate is the seeker who does not lose himself by following these Gurus and their teaching. Second-hand knowledge of the Self-gathered from books or Gurus can never emancipate a man until its truth is rightly investigated and applied; only direct realization will do that.   

Realizing the ‘Self’, not you but the Self is the Soul the truth hidden by the ‘I’ will be revealed.

That is why Sage says: ~ ‘What is accepted without a proper inquiry will not lead a person to the final goal. On the contrary, such acceptance will result only in evil, in something detrimental to our spiritual progress. 

Sage Sankara: ~ 'Like a servant who carries a lamp in front of you to find your way, and you have found it, so becomes the Veda to that person. What is the Veda? ~ utterances of those who have known the Truth. Here is one who has known the Truth; why should he or she depend upon the Veda further? Actual realization takes you beyond books. At a certain stage, books become a botheration. The Upanishad itself says that 'words are only so much distraction for such mindset.'

When the seeker is ready, the guidance comes on its own.  An earnest desire to grow and a sense of deep commitment are the hallmarks of one who aspires to be a seeker. When at the core of one’s being a person comes to realize he/she needs to seek a path for coming out of one’s unconscious and conditioned life, mysteriously the guidance appears to guide and shows the way.

One sees many stars in the sky at night, but not when the sun rises. Can he, therefore, say that there are no stars in the sky during the day?

The world in which you exist hides the Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness. Without consciousness, the world in which you exist ceases to exist. The world in which you exist is nothing but consciousness.

One is unaware of the Soul the Self, due to ignorance. The Soul or consciousness is Self-evident. It is not established by extraneous proofs. It is not possible to deny consciousness because it is the very essence of the one who denies it. Consciousness is the basis of all kinds of knowledge, presuppositions, and proofs. Consciousness is the true Self.

Consciousness is hidden within the world in which you exist. Until one thinks of his body as a body, ego as ego the universe as the universe he remains in ignorance because he is still in ignorance and he is unaware of the fact that they too are consciousness.

The consciousness is not an object, as it is invisible, beyond the reach of the eyes. It is not another. It is all-full, infinite, changeless, Self-existent, Self-delight, and Self-knowledge. It is the essence. It is the essence of the knower. It is the formless substance and witness of the dualistic illusion.

Remember:~ 

Sage Sankara strongly advocated the study of Upanishads, and at the same time cautioned that the study of Upanishad alone would not lead to moksha. In matters such as spiritual attainment, one’s own realization was the sole authority and it cannot be disputed

Sage Sankara also said the study of Upanishad was neither indispensable nor a necessary prerequisite for attaining the human goal, the moksha.

Sage Sankara pointed out; that even those who were outside the Upanishad fold were as eligible for moksha as those within the fold were. He declared that all beings are Brahman, and therefore the question of discrimination did not arise. All that one was required to do was to get rid of ignorance (Avidya or duality).

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