Self-knowledge cannot be attained by the study of the scriptures and intellectual understanding or by bookish knowledge.+

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 the 'words are only so much of distraction for such minds'

The Upanishad itself says that:~ vacho viglapanam hi tat~ words are only so much of a distraction for such minds'.

Someone posing as a Gnani is not a Gnani. If someone poses himself as a direct disciple of some Guru is not a Gnani. Those who pose themselves as Gnanis are not Gnanis.

A Gnani never poses himself as a Saint or Guru, a swami, a sadhu or a yogi, or some Guru’s disciple. There is nothing to discuss and there is nothing to argue in the Atmic path but only to realize ‘What is truth?” and ‘What is untruth?’. By agreeing and disagreeing the ignorance will not vanish.

Sage Sankara:~ VC Let erudite scholars quote all the scripture, let Gods be invoked through sacrifices, let elaborate rituals be performed, let personal Gods be propitiated---yet, without the realization of one‘s identity With the Self, there shall be no liberation for the individual, not even in the lifetimes of a hundred Brahmas put together. (verses-6)

Then why waste time discussing, which yields no fruits. The citations from scriptures are not proofs. The ultimate truth has to be proved without the scriptures. The ultimate truth is the universal truth and it does not belong to any religion. Religion causes diversity in unity, whereas, the ultimate truth brings unity in diversity.

I quote quotations in my blogs and posts to show them as authoritative only after deeper verification to prove the truth and point out that the texts teach the same thing. If I quote them before having demonstrated the truth, then it is scholasticism.

It is not that one should pore over the ancient scriptures. There is no need to study first, and then realize. One has to realize first, then only he will know ‘what is truth’ and ‘what is untruth’. One has to make his discoveries through the process of rational thinking and reasoning.

Self-knowledge cannot be attained by the study of the scriptures and intellectual understanding or by bookish knowledge. There is no need to study the scriptures to acquire non-dual wisdom.

That is why Bhagavan Buddha rejected the scriptures, and even Sage Sankara indicated that the ultimate truth lies beyond religion, the concept of God, and the scriptures.

Sage Sankara himself says: ~ VC-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?

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.

Stick to Sage Sankara’s advice drops what is not needed to acquire Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana. : ~ Santthosh Kumaar