Metaphors are figures of speech in which a word or phrase is applied to something it does not literally apply to.

On the path of knowledge, metaphors are:

• Pointers to truth, not truth itself

• Useful teaching tools

• Not a valid means of knowledge

• Potentially misleading if taken literally

The path uses metaphors (like the dream metaphor, the screen metaphor) to point to nondual understanding, but the seeker must not mistake the metaphor for the reality.

See also refutation of evidence.