This recent video documentary from the BBC delves into the relationship between memory and the sense of self:
Horizon: How Does Your Memory Work?
Because we have a sense of self, we interpret events as happening to us, rather than just happening.
“The findings reveal the startling truth that everyone is little more than their own memory.” - BBC - Horizon
One classic approach to recognizing your true nature is to persistently reject all identification with the false - “not this, not that” - until nothing is left but that which is the true Self, that which is the silent witness to all that arises in consciousness.
But an opposite approach - much simpler, more direct, more immediate, and having far fewer pitfalls because it is fundamentally nondualistic in its assumptions - is to recognize that everything, both the witness and the witnessed, without any exceptions, are the Self, and that there is only the Self.
In other words, it is possible to recognize instantly and simply that there really isn’t any separation, that all is one, that everything is the Self, that you are the Self, that you are everything, and that you are the world.
(Beware: When you see the truth of this, you might laugh with delight at how obvious it is.)
“One of the most important philosophical insights in Buddhism comes from what is known as the theory of emptiness. At its heart is the deep recognition that there is a fundamental disparity between the way we perceive the world, including our own experience in it, and the way things actually are. In our day-to-day experience, we tend to relate to the world and to ourselves as if these entities possessed self-enclosed, definable, discrete and enduring reality. For instance, if we examine our own conception of selfhood, we will find that we tend to believe in the presence of an essential core to our being, which characterises our individuality and identity as a discrete ego, independent of the physical and mental elements that constitute our existence. The philosophy of emptiness reveals that this is not only a fundamental error but also the basis for attachment, clinging and the development of our numerous prejudices. According to the theory of emptiness, any belief in an objective reality grounded in the assumption of intrinsic, independent existence is simply untenable. All things and events, whether ‘material’, mental or even abstract concepts like time, are devoid of objective, independent existence. To intrinsically possess such independent existence would imply that all things and events are somehow complete unto themselves and are therefore entirely self-contained. This would mean that nothing has the capacity to interact with or exert influence on any other phenomena. But we know that there is cause and effect – turn a key in a car, the starter motor turns the engine over, spark plugs ignite and fuel begins to burn… Yet in a universe of self-contained, inherently existing things, these events could never occur! So effectively, the notion of intrinsic existence is incompatible with causation; this is because causation implies contingency and dependence, while anything that inherently existed would be immutable and self-enclosed. In the theory of emptiness, everything is argued as merely being composed of dependently related events; of continuously interacting phenomena with no fixed, immutable essence, which are themselves in dynamic and constantly changing relations. Thus, things and events are ‘empty’ in that they can never possess any immutable essence, intrinsic reality or absolute ‘being’ that affords independence.” - Dalai Lama, from The Universe in a Single Atom: The Convergence of Science and Spirituality
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“Reality is merely an illusion, albeit a very persistent one.” - Albert Einstein
Have you noticed patterns in your life? Recurring similarities of images, incidents, themes, characters, etc.? As if you’re living in a movie? As if your life is a script unfolding? As if your inner world reflects your outer world? As if your outer world reflects your inner world? As if there is no dividing line between them?
Have you noticed that there is no inner and outer, that everything arises in consciousness without separation, as one? Have you noticed that you are that consciousness in which everything happens?
Have you seen that the world exists in you and as you? Have you seen that you are the world?
When you have become accustomed to the enjoyment of resting in the peace and stillness of the Self, you may notice a peculiar pattern that arises. A period of enjoyment may be followed soon after by a period of strong mental resistance and restlessness. And the pattern may repeat in cycles. If you do not notice the pattern, you might be misled into believing that something is wrong with your understanding. You might begin to have doubts that your realization is valid. But, in fact, nothing is wrong. One state is not better or more significant than the other. When the disturbance occurs, don’t become absorbed in it. Instead, trust your Self. Merely return to resting in the Self, and regard the disturbance as nothing more than insignificant mental activity.
Thought is located in the head, but presence is located in the Heart. When thought subsides, stillness remains.
In stillness, consciousness radiates as presence, the Self, the real you.
In stillness, you are presence. In stillness, you alone are.
Presence has a feel of energy and fullness. It has the feel of a sun shining forth. And it has a location, a point of origin, in the chest. That is the Heart. The Self radiates from the Heart. The Heart is everything. Presence is everything. You are everything.
When the qualities of the Self (referred to in the previous post), such as blissfulness, warmth, and energy, begin to emerge, they might seem to flow from a specific place around the center of the chest. Some Nonduality teachers, the most important being Ramana Maharshi, call this area The Heart. Its radiant qualities can feel as though you’re having an intimate relationship with the presence of a very warm and loving person.
Depending on one’s cultural and religious background, the presence might be identified as a specific religious figure. In the born-again Christian tradition, for example, it’s popularly identified as Jesus. But, if no traditional beliefs are imposed, it might be identified simply and vaguely as divine presence. That’s how I described my own experience, which happened long before I ever heard of the Heart or of any traditions surrounding the experience. But that divine presence, which might be felt initially as “other,” is ultimately revealed to be one’s own limitless Self.
Note: Ramana Maharshi said that the Heart appears as a center in the chest only as long as one identifies with the body, but that it is truly unlimited and unconfined to any physical region. Interestingly, recent scientific experiments shed some light on the relationship of the body with the usual sense of self.
Out-of-Body Experience Recreated Scientists have found a way to trigger an out-of-body experience in volunteers.
The Science of Out-of-Body Experiences “…the studies relate to humankind’s most enduring question: what makes us ourselves in the first place? ‘I’m not really interested in out-of-body experiences,’ says Henrik Ehrsson, one of the study’s authors and an assistant professor at the Karolinska Institutet in Sweden. ‘I’m really interested in in-body experiences: how the brain keeps and updates a model of the world and the body. To have a perception of your own body is the foundation of self-consciousness.’”
As mentioned in the previous post, Nisargadatta Maharaj said that he found his true nature just by observing the sense of “I am.” That sense of “I am,” which is the same as one’s sense of being present or existing, is one of the simplest, easiest, quickest and most effective ways to discover one’s own true nature. In fact, the recognition can happen in an instant, merely through quiet self-observation. That’s because, as Nonduality teachers and texts have repeatedly stated - and I state again - your true nature is not hidden. It is self-evident and always present as presence, as existence. It is what Nonduality writings call the Self. Once you discover it, return to it continuously until the recognition of it becomes stabilized. Then, its other qualities, such as blissfulness and energy, will emerge.
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“Whereas it requires no time to awaken – you can only awaken now – it does take time before you can stay awake in all situations. Often you may find yourself being pulled back into old conditioned reactive patterns, particularly when faced with the challenges of daily living and of relationships.” - Eckhart Tolle
3rd Millennium Gateway Posts is an extension of 3rd Millennium Gateway, a Nonduality site. Nonduality has many different expressions and names, such as Zen Buddhism, Taoism, Advaita Vedanta, and others. In Western philosophy, it is sometimes called monism. Nonduality means simply that reality is one without separation. It teaches that nothing exists but consciousness, and consciousness is what you are. In essence, it is not a religion, or a system of belief, or an ideology. In fact, it does not require belief of any kind; all it requires is self-discovery. It is nothing more than seeing, understanding, or awakening to one’s own nature, which can occur in a split second. It is a completely natural shift from a separate identity to an inclusive identity. (For more information, see Frequently Asked Questions About Nonduality, or the Nonduality sites listed at Nonduality and on the right side of this page.)
When Buddha, whose name means “the awakened one,” was asked what made him different from others, he replied simply, “I am awake.” He also taught that enlightenment is already inherent in all beings. Everyone, therefore, is a potential Buddha; everyone can awaken spiritually.
But there are as many gateways to becoming awake as there are people. Each person is unique; each approaches and expresses spirituality differently. Yet, each gateway is also an illusion; upon passing through the gate, it is instantly self-evident that there never was a gate blocking the way. The discovery is humorous, because it reveals that what you have searched for you have never lost or can ever lose. As often pointed out, the search is as silly as a fish swimming in a lake and looking for water.
The search is fulfilled in the discovery of your own nature, but the truth of your nature is always available, always self-evident, always obvious. It is ever here, ever now, always who and what you already are. Thinking that it is elsewhere, or must be found, is what classic Nonduality texts call illusion.
There are various ways to discover your true nature. Ramana Maharshi, for example, advocated self-inquiry in the form of the question, “Who am I?” Nisargadatta Maharaj, one of the most important teachers of Nonduality in modern times, said that he found his true nature just by observing the sense of “I am” (which is the same as the sense of “presence” or of being present):
“When I met my Guru, he told me: ‘You are not what you take yourself to be. Find out what you are. Watch the sense ‘I am’, find your real Self.’ … All my spare time I would spend looking at myself in silence. And what a difference it made, and how soon!”