The ups and downs of the life within the world are nothing to do with the Soul the Self.+

Brihadaranyaka Upanishad says: ~ In that unitive state there is neither father nor mother, neither worlds nor Gods nor even the Scriptures. In that state, there is neither thief nor slayer, neither low caste nor high, Neither Monk nor ascetic. The Self is beyond good and evil, beyond all the suffering of humanity

It is erroneous to mix practical life and the practical world in the pursuit of truth.  The ups and downs of the practical life within the practical world are nothing to do with the Soul, the Self. 

In Self-awareness, nothing disappears on the dawn of wisdom, but the unreal nature of the waking is exposed in the midst of the duality. One sees his body as the consciousness, his ego as the consciousness, and the world as the consciousness. Thus there is a unity in diversity in his understanding. In Self-awareness, the unknown restlessness has disappeared.  Self-awareness brings stillness to the mind in the midst of action or duality.    

Thus, searching for the truth within an illusion with the illusory Self, within the illusory world is bound to be an illusion. The illusion is created and sustained and finally dissolves as the Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness.  Since there is no second thing other than the Soul or the consciousness; the consciousness itself is the ultimate truth or Brahman. 

Advaitin sage and Maya

The King of the Hoysalas was a dualist and was greatly incensed at the doctrine taught Advaitin sage that everything here below is an illusion. He wanted to teach the exponent of this doctrine a lesson. So he invited the then Advaitin sage to his palace. That Advaitin sage went there and stoutly maintained that everything in this world was an illusion. The king had arranged to let loose an infuriated elephant against, Advaitin sage. The beast rushed at Advaitin sage who took to a precipitate flight to save himself.

'Oh, Venerable Sir,' shouted the king, 'why do you run so fast seeing that the elephant is only an illusion?'

'Oh, king,' said Advaitin sage in the course of his flight, 'my running too is an illusion. Everything in this world is an illusion.’

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Similarly, the practical life within the practical world is merely an illusion. All our hopes and desires or pleasure and pain are a reality within the illusion.  We all are searching for truth within the illusion,  not being aware of the fact that the illusion is created out of single stuff which is the Soul or the consciousness. The Soul is the Self.  

When the waking entity realizes it is not the Self in the midst of the waking experience it enters the nondual Self-awareness, which is free from form, time, and space. 

A Gnani is fully aware of ‘what is the truth’ and ‘what is untruth’. A Gnani e is fully aware of the fact that the experiences the pleasure and pain within the waking experience are merely an illusion because the waking experience itself is an illusion.

Thus, life within the waking experience will go on, on its own.  It is nothing to do with the Soul, the Self.  The waking or dream is merely an object to the formless witness. The Soul is the Self. 

The Soul is the witness. The Soul the witness is nothing to do with the three states, because it is a mere witness of the coming and going of the three states or illusion.  : ~ Santthosh Kumaar