Who Am I?

The purpose of this meditation is to guide you in a direct experiential inquiry to recognize who you are on a fundamental or essential level. This comes as an intuitive “felt sense,” not a concept, not something you figure out, not something you think you are, but a direct realization, an “AHA” of insight that arises in direct experience. Self-inquiry is a process to allow that to shine forth in your experience as self-evident and known beyond doubt. This can be a powerful liberation that releases you from the confines of egoic consciousness into the peace, light, and joy of your essential Being.

Transcript

Who am I?

The purpose of this meditation is to guide you in a direct,

Experiential inquiry to wake up to who you are on a fundamental or essential level.

This practice has a long tradition and is clearly laid out in an accessible way by Ramana Maharshi in his book,

Who Am I?

We'll begin with steps suggested by Ramana and expand from there.

So first of all,

What does it mean to wake up?

It means to realize very simply,

Directly,

And non-conceptually who you are.

It's a recognition which can become a permanent realization of your essential being.

This comes as an intuitive,

Felt sense,

Not a concept,

Not something you figure out,

Not something you think you are,

But a direct realization,

An aha of insight that arises in direct experience.

Self-inquiry is a process to have that shine forth in your experience as self-evident and known beyond doubt.

Ramana expresses this in terms of three lines of inquiry that lead to this realization.

First there's the setting aside of what you are not,

Setting aside who you think you are,

And sitting with what remains.

Second is to sit with the question,

Who am I?

Not thinking about it or analyzing it conceptually,

But allowing it to draw you deeper into direct knowing.

And a third way that we can apply in any moment of our lives,

Especially in moments of tension,

Pain,

Or struggle,

Is to inquire right into that feeling,

Into that experience of tension,

Struggle,

Or pain,

To realize the deeper I underneath the surface experience.

So let's begin with that,

With a simple inquiry into a tension,

Pain,

Or struggle that you're experiencing in your life right now.

First,

Settle yourself into a comfortable,

Upright,

Seated position.

Rest your hands in your lap and lightly close your eyes.

Take a deep breath and bring attention to the present moment sensation of breathing.

Now,

Call to mind a current or recent pain,

Struggle,

Or tension,

Something that you feel some angst about in your life.

Choose one situation to focus on for this inquiry.

Now,

Call this situation onto the screen of your mind.

It's clear that you are not reliving this experience.

You are simply witnessing it on the screen of your mind.

Observe the details of this situation.

Who is involved?

What is the issue?

Inquire deeper into the emotion around this situation.

What is the emotion?

Is it anger,

Frustration,

Fear,

Anxiety,

Or sadness?

What's the feeling?

Can you locate this feeling as a sensation in your body?

For example,

You might feel tightness in your lower back,

Or energy rising up into your head,

Or you might feel a deflated feeling,

Or like you've been punched in the stomach,

Or the air is let out of your sails.

Just notice if there's any sensation associated with this emotion.

Now,

What are your thoughts about this situation?

Notice your mental talk around this situation.

What do you feel compelled to do when you are thinking and feeling this way?

So,

You might react out of proportion to the situation,

Or withdraw.

What's the action that you feel compelled to do when you're thinking and feeling this way about this situation?

Now,

Inquire.

Who is aware of these thoughts,

These feelings,

These sensations,

These actions?

To whom do they arise?

See if you can inquire into this without thinking it out,

Without coming to a conceptual answer.

Just floating this inquiry to the depths of your being.

Who is aware of all of this?

So,

There is the content on the screen of the mind,

And then the one who is aware of this content.

Who is aware?

See if it's possible to have a felt sense of this,

Of the one who is aware.

Rest in this very subtle felt sense of the one who is aware.

Now,

A next inquiry.

You might normally think of yourself as this body.

This body has changed dramatically from birth until now.

Yet,

Through all this change,

There seems to be a consistent thread of who you are,

Through this ever-changing renewal of these cells.

Likewise,

You may have identified who you are with your mind,

Thoughts,

Feelings,

Or beliefs.

These too are ever-changing,

Yet there seems to be a consistent thread of who you are underneath all of these as well.

So,

Just for this moment,

See if it's possible to set aside who you think you are.

Just for this moment,

Set aside your thoughts about yourself,

Your self-image,

This body,

Your feelings,

Beliefs,

Actions,

Memories,

Roles,

History,

All your personal stories,

Your past,

Your possible futures,

Every way you've identified who you are.

See if you can set all that aside just for this moment and inquire into what remains.

What remains when you set all of this aside?

Leaving all this aside,

Setting this outside the space of this present moment,

What remains?

When you set aside all ideas about who you think you are,

What remains here,

Now?

Simply be open to what is present.

See if it's possible to have a subtle felt sense of what remains.

This felt sense is so subtle,

It almost feels like nothing at all.

Yet,

An unnameable,

Indefinable,

Very subtle felt sense remains.

What remains?

Now,

A next inquiry.

Having set aside all thoughts about who you think you are,

There is a sacred silence and stillness of the mind.

In this still,

Silent,

Openness,

Ask.

See if you can let go of thinking about an answer.

Let go of figuring out a response.

If there's any sense of movement of mind,

Any memory,

Image,

Any formation at all,

Any thought,

Feeling,

Just notice that and allow it to fade to the background.

Inquire in the deep silence and stillness.

Listen to the silence.

Feel the stillness.

Who am I?

Who am I?

Who am I?

There's a very subtle,

Immediate,

Intimate felt sense.

Who am I?

Who am I?

We can point or speak in analogies,

Yet the knowing of who you are is only known as a direct,

Experiential,

Intuitive recognition.

Who am I?

Who am I?

There's a subtle felt sense of who you are underneath it all.

How do you integrate this recognition with the mind?

Pointing in words.

You are that within which this inquiry arises.

You are that within which all experiences,

All perceptions,

All knowing arises.

Know yourself as the one who is aware of all the contents of experience.

Know yourself as the one within which they arise.

You are like a vast,

Open,

Dimensionless space of pure consciousness.

You know this directly.

It is self-evident.

This knowing changes everything.

Rest as this knowing.

Rest back and feel out into this knowing presence.

This vast,

Open awareness.

Rest as awareness itself.

Awareness is like a vast,

Open field within which all thoughts,

Feelings,

Sensations,

Memories,

Actions,

And all experiences arise,

As well as the knowing of what arises.

You are the space of experience and the knowing of experience.

You are the space within which experience arises and the knowing of what arises.

Be aware of being aware.

Inquire deeper.

Are there any boundaries to awareness?

Does it have a beginning or end?

No,

It is foundless,

Timeless,

Dimensionless.

Rest as awareness itself.

Let go.

Relax down as awareness itself.

Feel out into vast,

Dimensionless awareness.

Anything that arises,

Any thought,

Feeling,

Or sensation,

Is a modulation of awareness itself,

Like waves in the vast,

Open ocean of awareness.

Rest as awareness.

Now,

Be aware of the space of your body as an expression of this soft,

Open space of awareness,

As arising within this space,

From this space,

As an activity of this space.

A ripple in this vast ocean of awareness,

Playing for a while,

Then dissolving,

While the vast,

Open space of awareness,

Which you are,

Remains.

Rest as awareness.

Ever steadfast and peaceful.

Timeless.

A gentle lightness of being shines forth in this non-dimensional openness,

Within which all relative experiences arise.

You are vast openness.

You are awareness itself.

Unnameable,

Peaceful,

And unchanging,

While the play of forms arises and dissolves.

Rest as vast openness,

Indivisibly one,

Dimensionless.

Rest as awareness.

Slowly,

Very slowly,

Begin to open your eyes,

And feel the space inside your skin,

Together with the space all around,

As one space of awareness.

What would life be like if you recognized yourself as awareness itself?

What would life be like if you recognized yourself as openness,

Vast,

Timeless,

Indivisible,

Dimensionless,

And free?

Take a moment to record the felt sense of vast,

Indivisible awareness in every cell of your body.

As pure consciousness,

You can choose to inhabit and maintain certain thoughts,

Roles,

And actions.

You can choose relationships,

And choose the purposes that you invest in.

You can take up any of these things that you previously identified with,

And live through them,

Without thinking that they define who you are.

When you stake your claim as consciousness itself,

Expressing itself in this apparent body,

In this seeming time and place,

You abide in the truth of being.

You let go of identifications which cause suffering,

And live from and as awareness itself.

Your life resonates with the qualities of abiding peace and compassion,

Which are naturally present even in the midst of what sometimes feels turbulent.

All is seamlessly one.

From this indivisible unity,

When it's time for activity,

Activity effortlessly arises.

When it's time to think something out,

You can think as needed,

Allowing thoughts to flow.

And when the need for thinking is done,

You can set that aside.

When you notice any tension arising,

You can inquire deeper,

Under the surface currents.

Settle into a deeper knowing,

And allow resolutions to come forth naturally.

Every movement of life,

Every relationship and interaction,

Is an expression of this deeper knowing.

A modulation of awareness itself,

Knowing itself in the play of form.

Anchored in this deeper knowing of who you are,

You can allow everything to flow to its natural resolution.

What would life be like knowing yourself as this vast,

Open,

Indivisible presence,

Attending to everything and everyone as an expression of awareness?

Take a moment to write down anything you'd like to remember from this meditative experience,

Along with any insights and inspirations.

Well done.

Reviews

This helped me realise and go deeper into who I truly am. Very grateful for your profound guidance ! Namaste 🌊🙏🏻