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Here is a brief description of the book:

Are you confused about the fundamental concepts of Advaita Vedānta?

Dennis Waite, author of over 12 books on Advaita, presents Volume 2 of his rigorous exploration into the most contentious topics facing spiritual seekers. While the first volume looked specifically at the relative value of knowledge and experience for enlightenment, this essential sequel asks whether ignorance is an actual entity that must be destroyed.

This book is designed for spiritual seekers who are committed to the teaching of Advaita but remain uncertain about the ‘correct’ understanding of the core principles. This work reveals Śaṅkara’s view of the matter and show where other authors diverge, enabling the reader to discern essential teaching from academic complexity.

All of the key, post-Śaṅkara concepts and arguments are addressed, such as mūlāvidyā, avidyāleśa, mithyājñāna. Contrary views such as those of Ramanuja’s ‘Seven Untenables’, are covered, and the attempts by Sri Satchidanandendra to re-establish Śaṅkara’s authentic teaching.

The book then considers exactly what happens, once Self-knowledge has brought about ‘enlightenment’. What happens to the jīva who is now a jñānī, and does the world disappear?

Waite explicitly highlights areas of confusion to enable the reader to understand what is important and what can be safely ignored. The fundamental purpose is to lead seekers to a deep and proper understanding of traditional Advaita Vedānta.

The Contents of the book are as follows:
About the Book  9
Who is this book for?  9
Traditional versus Modern  9
Learning from books  10
Difficulties with this book  11
Specific Topic of this Volume  11
What qualifications/authority?  12
1. Terminology  14
a) Introduction  14
b) Words for ‘Ignorance’ 18
i) Avidyā and ajñāna  19
ii) Adhyāsa  29
iii) Māyā  42
2. The Power of Ignorance  56
a) Āvaraṇa and Vikṣepa  56
b) Non-apprehension and non-existence  58
c) Pratiyogin  58
3. The Existence of Ignorance  61
a) Introduction  61
b) Difference between ‘real’ and ‘existent’ 61
c) Not ‘absence of knowledge’ 62
d) A Positive Entity  63
e) Ended by knowledge  65
f) Ignorance is not objective  66
g) Epistemology versus ontology  68
h) Mind — cause or result?  69
j) ‘Destruction’ of ignorance  71
i) Is avidyā nivṛtti real?  71
ii) ‘Rise of knowledge’ 72
k) Perception and Error 74
i) A brief diversion into Nyāya philosophy  74
ii) Advaita continued! 75
l) Khyāti 76
4. More Terminology  78
a) Mithyā  78
b) Anirvacanīya  79
c) Difference between mithyā and anirvacanīya  81
d) Self-ignorance  81
e) Other terms  82
5. The ‘Key Players’ 84
a) Pre-Śaṅkara  84
b) Sureśvara  85
c) Rāmānuja and ‘The Seven Great Untenables’ 86
i) Locus of ignorance — āśraya anupapatti 86
ii) Obscuration — tirodhāna anupapatti 94
iii) Ontological status — svarūpa anupapatti 95
iv) No pramāṇa — pramāṇa anupapatti 96
v) Right knowledge cannot remove —nivartaka anupapatti 96
vi) Inexplicability — anirvacanīya anupapatti 97
vii) Cessation of avidyā — nivṛtti anupapatti 98
d) Vimuktātman — anirvacanīya khyāti 98
e) Vidyāraṇya  100
f) Sarvajñātman  101
g) Satchidanandendra  103
i) Introduction  103
ii) His objections  106
iii) Existence of ignorance  107
iv) Cause of avidyā  110
v) Beginninglessness  111
vi) Deep-sleep state  112
vii) Re-emergence of avidyā in waking and dream   118
viii) Locus and object of ignorance  119
ix) Result of ignorance  120
x) Removal by knowledge  120
xi) Problems with his understanding  121
xii) Final Remarks  122
6. Related Topics  124
a) Self-knowledge  124
b) Unmanifest creation  124
c) Plurality  125
d) Language  126
7.            Some Conclusions  128
a) Who is ignorant?  128
b) Malevolent force  129
c) Removal of ignorance  129
e) Arrival of knowledge  130
f) What and where is ignorance?  131
g) Shell-silver and anubhava  131
h) Summary of key aspects  132
j) A final example  134
8.            What happens on enlightenment?  136
a) What happens to the ‘person’ 136
i) The rope-snake metaphor 136
ii) Enlightened Man disembodied  137
iii) Enlightened Man has no ego  140
iv) Enlightened Man has no mind  141
v) Expiration of prārabdha  143
vi) Enlightenment means the end of saṃsāra  144
b) Enlightened Man still sees the world  145
i) Upadeśa Sāhasrī 145
ii) Aṣṭāvakra Gītā 18.72  146
iii) Gauḍapāda Kārikā 2.31  147
iv) Naiṣkarmya Siddhi 4.51  147
v) Brahmasūtra 3.4.50  148
vi) Brahmasūtra 1.1.4  148
vii) Gauḍapāda Kārikā 3.32  149
viii) Bhagavad Gītā 5.18  150
ix) Realizing the truth  150
9. What Happens to the World  152
a) The confusion  152
b) The problems  153
c) The world is Brahman  154
d) Negation of the error 156
e) World has never existed  157
f) It is Self-ignorance that disappears  159
g) World appearance cannot be denied  161
h) Anṛta  165
j) Relevance of Dream metaphor 165
k) Relevance of the Deep-sleep State  167
l) Misconstruing and mis-translation  169
i) Brahmasūtra Bhāṣya 3.2.21  169
ii) Brahmasūtra Bhāṣya 4.1.3  172
iii) Brahmasūtra Bhāṣya 2.1.14  174
iv) Kaṭha Upaniṣad 1.3.14  175
m) Eka-jīva-vāda  176
n) Post-Śaṅkara teachers  176
i) Sureśvara  176
ii) Vidyāraṇya  177
iii) Ramakrishna and Vivekananda  177
iv) Ramana Maharshi 179
v) Nisargadatta  181
10. Summary of the Essential Points  182
Conclusion  184
Glossary  185
Bibliography  211
Index  226