What is Your True-Self?
What is True-Self?
Your True-Self is your most authentic self, your being, your Soul.
Your body is home to your mind and True-Self. Your mind is holding your True-Self hostage.
Break free, discover your True-Self, and reap the benefits.
Who am I?
Have you ever pondered, "Who am I? Not [your-given-name], but really who am I?"
Well, that is one of the eternal questions we are all faced with. Odds are. as a child, you were taught that you are a "child of God." And maybe even was brainwashed with songs about it. 🤷 I surey was.
What if you were lied to? What if you aren't a child of God in the context you were taught.
Well, let's take a look at who you are.
Your Body
Let's start with your body.
Imagine your friend sitting there reading this to you, suddenly reached over and pinched your leg. Your initial reaction might be, "OUCH!! Why the %#$& you pinch my leg?" At which point, you identified the leg as yours. You claimed ownership of the flesh as a part of you.
Pretty simple, we have biological bodies.
Right?
Well, no, if you were Google's "sentient" AI. Then your body would be silicon-based. Regardless of the medium, your body is a host of something greater.
Maybe as a kid, you were taught at church that "your body is a temple." What if that isn't far off from the truth?
Keep reading to find out why.
The Mind
Researchers at Cornell University define the mind as what the brain does, which is a procedural view.
Have you ever had a conversation with yourself? Odds are that conversation was happening in your mind. It's what your brain was "doing."
Maybe you haven't spent much time trying to understand your "mind," so let's switch perspectives for a moment. You are probably familiar with the science of psychology.
Like biology and our body, science has a field dedicated to the mind.
Think of a psychologist as a mind doctor, like your family doctor is your body's doctor.
What are some of the things people see psychologists about?
Maybe, marriage problems (egos) or perhaps anxiety struggles (our deepest fears). Regardless of what they see a psychologist for, they are visiting them for issues in the mind or mental state.
Our mind is where our egos and fears reside. It is often referred to as our ego-mind or our conditioned self. The mind is a product of our environment. It is "programmed" by our experiences and influenced by fears, egos, passion, and curiosity.
It feeds off fear and lives within binary, black-and-white paradigms. The mind can be needy and cling to people and things.
In the book Secret of the Golden Flower, Osho teaches, “Your mind is the devil. Your body is pure and Innocent”.
Your Soul
Now let's get to the fun part of this article.
The predominate "Christian" faith of my childhood describes it as:
The soul is used to describe a person in premortal life—before birth. During earth life, the soul is joined with a physical body. At death, the soul leaves the body and goes to the spirit world to await resurrection. In the Resurrection, the body and soul are inseparably connected.
Sorry for that; that was a bit rigid and difficult to read myself. My point here is even my childhood faith understood there is something deeper than our Body and mind states.
If you are familiar with the work of Utah native Orson Scott Card, maybe you've read Ender's Game. In Card's "Enderverse" he uses the term Aiua, to describe the soul of Ender's best friend, a sentient AI being named Jane.
Mind vs Soul
If you are confused, don't worry. So was I.
The difference between the Mind and Soul didn't connect until fate and curiosity brought me to the teachings of the ancient Yoga practice.
No, not tight pants Yoga, but the physical, mental, and spiritual practices originated in India aiming to control and still the mind.
Ancient Yoga teachings put this concept straightforward in their Sutras:
Sutra 1.3: When the mind is entirely focused without distraction, only then will you understand and become established in your True Self.
Sutra 1.4: When not in the state of mind called yoga, we forget our True Self. We confuse our thoughts and the activities of our mind to be who we are.
Catch that?
We confuse our thoughts and mind with our own identities.
I was guilty of this mindset, for 33 years... Thank "God", not anymore.
How do we recognize our True-Self
This is where things get tricky.
On paper, it's a bit abstract, but how can is this tangible? How can this knowledge make my life better?
Ever heard the terms Self-awareness, consciousness, or empathy? These are all results of the True-Self steering your avatar or ship.
Steven Covey, Utah Native, and internationally renowned educator and author, said:
"We are self-aware. This awareness means we can stand mentally outside ourselves and evaluate our beliefs and actions. We can think about what we think."
Covey is describing meta-thinking. Thinking about thinking.
How could this be possible if you are your Mind? Or if your mind is at the end of the line? Because it's not! Your True-Self is the one steering "your ship."
The exciting part about understanding this concept is that we can access that greater consciousness, grow our self-awareness, and learn empathy.
If you had a chance to take that "magic mushroom" to level up your life, wouldn't you?
How would having more self-awareness, more empathy, more focus, and more consciousness impact your life?
Probably for the better... right?
Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom.
- Aristotle
Summary
The Body is the hardware or avatar hosting our most authentic self. To simplify this concept, your body is the "temple" of your divine being.
The Mind is where our egos and fears reside. The mind is the conditioned self.
The True-Self is your innermost being, our consciousness.
Now that you know the fallacy of the mind. I'll pose the question again. Who are you? Who are you truly?
You are not your body!
You are not your mind!
Good luck on your journey of self-discovery!