Sage Sankara said: ~ (1) Brahman (Atman) is real (2) The universe is unreal, and (3) Brahman is the universe.+

The Advaitic wisdom of Sage Sankara can be summed up in the following statement:-

Brahma satyam, jaganmithya, jivobrahmaivanaparah: - Brahman alone is real; the world is non-real and the individual Self is essentially not-different from Brahman.

This is the quintessence of Sage Sankara’s wisdom. 

Consciousness is the one single reality or Brahman. The individual self is a reality within the duality. There is no individual in the realm of the non-dual reality.

Advaita says:~ One alone exists, and the rest is all superimposition on that One, due to ignorance.

Through a systematic inquiry into the nature of the mind, which is present in the form of the universe, one arrives at the position that the soul, the innermost self, which is present in the form of consciousness, is the ultimate truth or Brahman or God in truth.

The Soul, the Self is constant and, therefore, real, while the phenomena constituting the universe is constantly changing and, therefore, unreal. The final conclusion is that the form, time, and space or the universe are one in essence. That essence is consciousness. Thus, no second thing exists other than consciousness.

The seeker of truth has to take into account all three states of our existence, which is waking, dream, and deep sleep ~ in waking or dream one experiences duality, and in deep sleep, there is only non-duality. In order to obtain a complete picture of our existential reality, we need to include evidence from all three states. This is the phenomenology of consciousness.

The consciousness is one only, without a second. One experiences the manifold universe ignorance ~ led illusion “covers" the One and "projects" the Many. The illusion is the veil on consciousness. In truth, only One, non-dual Reality is all there is. Consciousness is all-pervasive. It is intrinsically Real, self-effulgent, infinite, undifferentiated pure.

When the Soul, the Self, wakes up to its own formless nondual true nature, the ignorance ceases, and the illusion, which is present in the form duality never again experienced as reality.

The show of the illusory duality, however, continues, as before. Only our identification with a particular actor's role is gone forever because the self is in its own awareness.

Self-awareness is Brahmic Bliss! This state is already ours always in deep sleep in a "general" way. When the Self-Knowledge dawns then one is awake to it in a "special" way in the midst of duality.

Atman is Brahman or the Self, capture the essence of the immanent (Self) and the transcendent (Brahman) Reality. Humanity has not yet conceived a more lofty conception of its position in the universe.

Advaita only means the negation of duality. The soul, which is present in the form of consciousness, is the ultimate truth or Brahman. The consciousness is the cause of the origin, maintenance, and withdrawal of the universe is Advaita (i.e. non-dual), which means that the consciousness transcends all conceptions, positive and negative. Nothing positive can ever be imagined or said about it.

Consciousness is existence absolute, awareness absolute. Existence absolute means that consciousness is not unreal or non-existent. And it is not the unconsciousness. Nothing positive can be stated about consciousness.

Remember:~

Sage Sankara was criticized for his views on Maya (illusion) without understanding him.

Sage Sankara said: ~

(1) Brahman (Atman) is real

(2) The universe is unreal, and

(3) Brahman is the universe.

He did not stop at second because the third explains the other two. It signifies that the universe is real if perceived as the ‘Self’ and unreal if perceived as apart from the Self. Hence, Maya or illusion and reality are one and the same.

The realists criticize the concept of illusion without understanding it. He said:~

(1) Consciousness (Atman) is real

(2) The universe or mind is unreal

(3) Consciousness is the universe because the universe is an illusion created out of consciousness.

One need not stop at second because the third explains the other two. It signifies that the universe is real if perceived as the Self (Atman or consciousness) and unreal if perceived as apart from the Self (consciousness). Hence, illusion and reality are one and the same because both are one in essence. Realizing the essence, which is consciousness as the innermost Self, is Self-Realization or Truth-Realization of GOD- Realization. Thus, Sage Sankara‘s declaration is the rational truth, scientific truth, and also the ultimate truth.

The world is both real and unreal. It is real because it is a manifestation of consciousness, but is unreal, in the sense, that it is not absolute and eternal like consciousness itself.

People's approach is more practical, and they are stuck with the reality of the world, they take it as real. That is why all the confusion.

In Self-awareness-- the witness and witnessed are one in essence. That essence is consciousness. There is no second thing that exists other than consciousness.

Thus, whatever seen, known, believed, and experienced as a person is a reality within the waking experience (duality) but waking experience (duality) itself is merely an illusion.

The Soul which is present in the form of consciousness is the innermost Self. The Soul is the witness that experiences the action, the actor, and the world of separate things. It is like a light that illuminates everything in a theatre, revealing the master of ceremonies, the guests, and the dancers with complete impartiality. Even when they all depart, the light shines to reveal their absence.

What is not consciousness (formless) in the three states because the three states are created out of consciousness? The three states cease to exist without consciousness. The seeker, seeking and his destination all are one in essence.

There is only a need to realize the whole universe in which we exist is created out of the Soul or the consciousness. On the standpoint of the Soul, the Self, the universe is merely an illusion. 

Thus, on the standpoint of the Soul, the Self, no second thing exists other than consciousness. Thus, consciousness is the ultimate truth or Brahman. The Brahman is God. : ~ Santthosh Kumaar