Who Am I...??

"Cogito ergo sum - I think, therefore I am." - Rene Descartes - Philosopher

I am is, no doubt, one of the most used phrases in our language. We use it to introduce our selves: "I am John..." to describe our gender: "I am a male..." to describe our profession or position in society: "I am a Doctor..." to describe the role we play in our surroundings: "I am a parent... or to describe our feelings and emotions: "I am happy...sad...lonely...or tired". Combining all, gives us a clear picture of the roles we play on the stage of life, so: Mr (gender) John Smith (introduction) is a doctor (profession). He is married (role of a husband) with two children (role of a father) and most of the time he is tired but happy (feelings and emotions). As you can see, all roles can be played simultaneously. Yes, we are actors.

"All the world is a stage, and all the men and women merely players. They have their exits and their entrances; And one man in his time plays many parts." - William Shakespeare - Playwright

Accepting all our daily roles that we play - do we really know - who we are? Did you ever ask yourself this question?

From the time of our birth we undergo an intense process of "conditioning to life" by our parents or other family members and as a result, sooner or later, we begin to hide our inner self away in order to adapt better and survive in the outside world. Our families, educators, friends, peers and media teach us socially acceptable behavior. Everything we learn through the educational system: social, technical and economic skills, are designed to sustain and support a material life. In adulthood we join the "rat race", chasing "the mighty dollar", gathering earthly possessions and accumulating wealth. In the process of doing that, we produce the new generation - our children and we teach them what we have learned from our parents.. so the cycle of focusing only on an outer material world continues.

"What will you gain, if you own the whole world but destroy yourself or waste your life." - (Luke 9:25)

The unfortunate result is that we tend not to accomplish our real desires, because we are unable or unwilling to listen to the voice within guiding and directing us to the real mission in life. Consequently the inner self becomes lost. Yes, we have lost the TRUE SELF. Here is a simple analogy: Imagine your life as a garden and yourself as a gardener, planting seeds, cultivating, fertilizing and nurturing your life. In the process of these activities, your hands and fingernails become dirty and stained. We definitely don't clean them, because it is "too hard" or "we cannot be bothered" - we simply apply a nice, shiny, colorful coat of nail polish to cover up all imperfections and dirt. When the nail polish becomes dull or chipped we put on yet another, brighter layer. In fact, we never see our true and natural fingernails - we never see our True Self. In order to become more acceptable to society, we perform the "big cover up act". Throughout our life we accumulate more and more of these artificial layers: ego, arrogance, ignorance, jealousy, intolerance...the list is long, but underneath all these layers is the Real You - Your True Self.

"On the path to self-realization, we are not required to do anything, we begin to be what we are. In order to be what we are, we have to come out of what we are not. All the unreal world is created by our own thoughts and ideas; give up those, and we come to the real." - Sri Shankaracharya - Self-Knowledge - Hindu Philosophy

The only way to define who you are is to identify who you are not. Only then you will find the lost SELF and only then you can say - "This is who I am and because of this - I AM". When you know who you are, you will start to understand your place in the world and in the Universe.

"I AM the Law of the Truth, I AM the path of integrity, I AM the harmony of peace, I AM the preserver of virtues, I AM the "I" within my soul - I AM..." - Ancient Wisdom - Origin Unknown

Jesus Christ said: "I am the Light, I am the Way...I AM who I AM.." - (John 8:28)

Only deep down underneath the thick layers of existence, away from prying eyes of the world, in solitude of the darkest night - you can find and re-discover your pure self - Your True-Self of Being and only then - you can say...this is who I AM.

In other words: "Be yourself. Nobody is better qualified". - Anon

- To find out who you really are, ask yourself: Am I loving? Am I jealous? Am I compassionate? Am I greedy? Am I generous? Am I loving?...

- Eliminate everything that you are not, the longer the list, the better indication of your True Self. Answers should be honest as only you can see them. Identify the "weak points" and areas that need to be changed or improved.

- The True Self cannot be confused with: personality, nature, ego or a psychological profile.

- The True Self resides in the heart not in the mind; therefore it cannot be established through psychology.

- Psychology deals with mental and emotional processes of the mind and associated with them behavior of humans and animals.

- The True Self cannot be found through psychoanalysis, which is designed to treat mental disorders through analysis of emotional conflict, repression and personality dysfunction.

- Ancient Greeks believed that the True Self dwells in the electromagnetic energy field surrounding the body known as 'the etheric body" or "aura".

- The ego is often mistaken for the True Self creating false self image.

- The True Self - the real I AM - is called The Soul.

Who we are is always changing, but what we are, never does.