Advaita Vedanta, a school of Hindu philosophy, emphasizes
the non-dual nature of reality, asserting that the true self (atman) is
identical to the ultimate reality (Brahman). Here are some quotes that capture
the essence and greatness of Advaita Vedanta:
The ultimate identity of the individual and the supreme soul is the great tenet of the Vedanta. 'That art thou' (Tat Twam Asi) is the first lesson of the beginner, and the last vision of the perfected mystic.
The one supreme soul alone exists; all the separate consciousnesses of individuals are but the reflection of the one soul on the multitudinous 'internal organs' which are the creation of 'ignorance' or illusion.
To reach reality we must strip off the successive veils – the waking world first (where the soul is disguised by the gross effects) and the world of dreams next (where it is disguised by the subtle effects), till we reach that of sound sleep. Here for the time the individual soul does attain its real nature, but its inherent delusion remains latent, and is still capable of being called out into actuality.
Only the knowledge of the highest truth, as taught in the Vedanta, can abolish ignorance, and so destroy personality in its germ.
Prof. E. B. Cowell (Source: The Indian Antiquary, A Journal Of Oriental Research VOL. IX. Published in 1880, Page 25)
Brahman is the only truth, the world is an illusion, and
there is ultimately no difference between Brahman and individual self. - Adi
Shankaracharya
The self-existent One has projected out of himself the
entire universe as his own body. Again, he enters into every object of his
creation. Apart from him, there is nothing else. - Swami Vivekananda
You are what your deep, driving desire is. As your desire
is, so is your will. As your will is, so is your deed. As your deed is, so is
your destiny. - Brihadaranyaka Upanishad
The Self is everywhere. Bright is the Self, indivisible,
untouched by sin, wise, immanent and transcendent. He it is who holds the
cosmos together. - Katha Upanishad
A man who sees all beings in his own self, and his own self
in all beings, feels no hatred by virtue of that realization. - Isha Upanishad
The essence of Vedanta is that there is but one being and
that every soul is that being in full, not a part of that being. - Swami
Vivekananda
When you realize that everything springs only from yourself,
you will learn both peace and joy. - Dattatreya
The waves belong to the Ganges, not the Ganges to the waves.
A man cannot realize God unless he gets rid of all such egotistic ideas as 'I
am such an important man' or 'I am so and so'. - Sri Ramakrishna
He who sees everything as nothing but the Self, and the Self
in everything he sees, such a seer withdraws from nothing. For the enlightened,
all that exists is nothing but the Self, so how could any suffering or delusion
continue for those who know Oneness? - Isa Upanishad
The soul is neither born, nor does it die. It has neither
being nor non-being. It is unborn, eternal, ever-existing, undying, and
primeval. The soul is not slain when the body is slain. - Bhagavad Gita
(Chapter 2, Verse 20)
These quotes reflect the profound wisdom and insight of Advaita Vedanta, offering guidance on realizing the ultimate truth and attaining liberation from the illusion of duality.