Sage Sankara says: ~Whatever thing remains eternal is true, and whatever is non-eternal is untrue.+

Sage Sankara founded his Advaitic wisdom either on reason independent of sruti or on sruti confirmed by reason."

Sage Sankara's commentary on the Manduka Upanishad, II, 1: This [the unreality of duality] is borne out by the Srutis ... But it is possible also to show the unreality of the object world even from pure reasoning, and this second chapter is undertaken for that purpose.

Sage Sankara himself had often said that his philosophy was based on Sruti, or revealed scripture. This may be because Sage Sankara addressed the ordinary man, who finds security in the idea of causality and thus in the idea of God—and Revelation is indispensable to prove the latter. He believed that those of superior intelligence, have no need of this idea of divine causality, and can therefore dispense with Sruti and arrive at the truth of Non-Dualism by pure reason.

Remember;~

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 Truth is the unchanging thing. Since the world is changing, it is not true.

Whatever is independent of space and time is true, and whatever has space and time in itself is untrue.

Just as one sees dreams in sleep, he sees a kind of super-dream when he is waking. The world is compared to this conscious dream.

The world is believed to be a superimposition of the Brahman. Superimposition cannot be true.

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.

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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.

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).

Sage Sankara’s Supreme Brahman is impersonal, Nirguna (without Gunas or attributes), Nirakara (formless), Nirvisesha (without special characteristics), immutable, eternal, and Akarta (non-agent). It is above all needs and desires. It is always the Witnessing Subject. It can never become an object as it is beyond the reach of the senses. Brahman is non-dual, one without a second. It has no other besides it. It is destitute of difference, either external or internal. Brahman cannot be described because the description implies a distinction. Brahman cannot be distinguished from any other than It. In Brahman, there is not a distinction between substance and attribute. Sat-Chit-Ananda constitutes the very essence or Svarupa of Brahman and not just Its attributes. The Nirguna Brahman of Sage Sankara is impersonal.

Sage Sankara's commentary to Brahma Sutras: ~ A Gnani "should pass through life", not run away from life, and should take a middle course between seeking worldly honor and worldly abasement. (ch-3.4.50)

Sage Sankara varied his practical advice and doctrinal teaching according to the people he was amongst. He never advised them to give up their particular religion or beliefs or metaphysics completely; he only told them to give up the worst features of abuse: at the same time, he showed just one step forward toward the truth. Sage Sankara was extremely precise and careful in his choice of words.

Sage Sankara gave religious, ritual, or dogmatic instructions to the masses but pure philosophy only to the few who could rise to it. Hence the interpretation of his writings by commentators is often confusing because they mix up the two viewpoints. Thus they may assert that ritual is a means of realizing Brahman, which is absurd.

Sage Sankara believed that those of superior intelligence, have no need for this idea of divine causality, and can, therefore, dispense with Sruti and arrive at the truth of Non-Dualism by pure reason.

Sage Sankara’s supreme Brahman is Nirguna (without the Gunas), Nirakara (formless), Nirvisesha (without attributes), and Akarta (non-agent). He is above all needs and desires.

Sage Sankara says, "This Atman is self-evident. This Atman or Self is not established by proofs of the existence of the Self. It is not possible to deny this Atman, for it is the very essence of he who denies it. Atman is the basis of all kinds of knowledge. The Self is within, the Self is without, the Self is before and the Self is behind. The Self is on the right hand, the Self is on the left, the Self is above and the Self is below". : ~ Santthosh Kumaar