There are many people who will say, "Advaita Vedanta is useless and fruitless. For it makes you want to leave everything and go to a monastery or go to a cave. And not be involved in this world at all because you begin to understand that the world is not real, it doesn't exist by itself." This is true and also not true. There are certain beings, certain people when they attain illumination, awakening, it is true they want to be alone. They want to be by themselves. After all they have realized they are the Self of the universe. They have realized that they are Brahman. So there really is no aloneness for them. They have realized that they are the consciousness of the entire universe. And the whole universe is superimposed on them. So wherever they go, whatever they do they are infinite reality. Yet there are many others who continue with their work, with their families, with whatever they were doing before. The only difference is they have attained total bliss and total joy, they have attained illumination. And the world no longer frightens them, causes them any pain and they do not have experiences like most people do.

Yet it's very paradoxical for when you look at such people they appear to be people like yourself. This is a paradox. While they're in the body they eat, they sleep, they do all the things that you do. The one difference is that they realize that they are not the doer, they are totally happy, filled with bliss and peace and joy. This answers the question that most people ask, "What good is attaining illumination? It appears that I'll lose everything that I have and want to run away some place and live by myself." Again this is true for some people and not true for others. But the thing that I want you to understand is that you become total joy. Why should you work toward awakening? For when you do you will no longer be the one you think you are. You will no longer be a man or a woman, a human being, a world or a God or anything. You will just no longer be. Yet the paradox is when people look at you, you will appear to them as you were before. They will see nothing different. Yet to the one who has realized knows for sure, for certain, that he or she is not a body or a mind.

–– Robert Adams.

Disciple of Remana Maharshi