I still need some time for this information to steep my vacuous brain 😊.

None of this can be understood. The illusion of separation might drop away and reveal the truth, but there’s no one who could make that happen.

Does meditation lead to liberation or a higher level of consciousness?

No. Meditation seems to be able to reduce anxiety and depression. Consciousness is an illusion.

Or conversely, do we get realized by constant meditation?

There is no “we.”

Meditation is a means to tap into deeper consciousness levels.

Consciousness is an illusion.

At least Hindu philosophy claims that pure consciousness = pure awareness = self-realization = liberation and one can attain this by meditating and practicing moral rectitude.

That’s not true. Liberation is what seems to be happening. There’s nothing to get and nowhere to go. It’s just this. The self can misconstrue the memory of the fundamental nature of reality, which was revealed when it was not there, as being “pure consciousness,” but that’s just another way of falsely claiming ownership of what seems to be happening.