Knowing The Essential Self

Journey through the layers of self, reflecting on how you are seen to the world around you and what your potential is for the future. Understand and connect to the essential being that underlies everything you do, and everything that you are.

Transcript

Hello.

Well done on setting this time aside for yourself.

As you find your way to your seat,

Take a moment to offer yourself a bit of gratitude for embarking on today's exploration.

You can choose to sit or lie down.

Honor your body's wisdom by positioning it in the way that you can find balance between alertness and being comfortable enough to focus on our journey without the physical distractions of frequently shifting position.

Take a few moments to focus on your breath,

Allowing your observations of that breath to guide you inward,

Turning your attention from the external world to an internal place.

Not changing anything about your breath.

Just watch as it flows in and out.

Perhaps you notice the pace of your breath,

Fast or slow,

Noticing any pause or the absence of pause in between inhale and exhale.

Maybe you notice where the breath lands in the body,

Just under the clavicle or deep in the belly.

You might feel your back or side ribs expand on each inhale.

Any observation is correct.

Take this time to appreciate what is.

As you continue to sit,

Begin to imagine that you are on a walk.

Picture yourself strolling down a sidewalk,

Warm weather with a delightful breeze blowing through a line of trees.

Begin to notice what else is around you.

Perhaps it's houses,

Office buildings.

Maybe to one side of you is the beach or a park.

Allow a peaceful day to manifest in your mind.

While on this walk,

Notice someone walking on the other side of the street.

They are walking toward you,

But on the other sidewalk.

This is someone you don't know,

But they are simply out enjoying their day as you enjoy yours.

You notice them and they notice you.

Having just seen you for the first time,

What might this person think about you?

What does your appearance and the way you carry your body communicate to someone who doesn't know you?

What vision of you might this person manifest in their own mind?

Continue to imagine your walk down the street.

Maybe you pop into a coffee shop or another little store and you notice that the person you saw on the street walks in behind you.

While waiting in line,

You two strike up a conversation and they get to interact with you for the first time.

What might this person learn about you?

Will any of the assumptions that they made about you before getting to interact change through this first conversation?

Feel invited to let go of focus on this new person that you've met in your mind.

Think now about people whom you might consider acquaintances.

Folks you've met a few times or more but may not yet be at the level of being considered your friend.

How might these acquaintances describe you?

Notice if this perspective of you and your character is different or the same from how strangers or folks that you are meeting for the first time might see you.

Perhaps there are parts of this perception that you prefer or don't prefer.

Calling to mind now the people that you would consider to be your friends.

Not the inner circle but people who know you well and perhaps with whom you have established a fair bit of trust.

How do your friends perceive you?

What is the version of you that they know that might be unknown to those who know you less well?

And considering now your inner circle,

The family or friends who are closest to you and have a deeper understanding of your character than anyone else you've thought about yet today.

Who are you to this inner circle?

What role do you play in their lives?

And how is this version of self different than the version of you that everyone else knows?

Bringing awareness now to self.

Imagining if you like that you are looking in a mirror.

Who is the person looking back at you?

What are their good qualities?

But are there less desired qualities?

Are there pieces of you that you hide from others?

Or are you a completely open book?

How does your description of self compare to the description others might have for you?

Try now going a step deeper.

Imagine the parts of you that might be there under the surface waiting to be discovered.

Skills you are yet to realize,

Goals you are yet to attain.

What might be awaiting you in the future as you peel back the layers of self-discovery?

And finally,

Reach even deeper to the core of your being.

Underneath biased perception and beyond what may manifest another day to the deepest piece of who you are.

Your essential self.

This part of you that depends not on context or mood,

But represents the unwavering character that is carried with you no matter where you are or who you are around.

Sit with this sense of essential self.

Notice if any descriptive words or phrases come to mind.

Perhaps your sense of essential self is a bit more abstract.

Does it have a symbol,

A color,

A light?

Is there movement or stillness?

Is it large,

Taking up space?

Or does it feel more compact?

How dense or heavy does it seem?

Continue to explore any other ways that the essential self makes itself known to you.

Understand that this version of self is capable of informing every decision,

Every behavior,

Every interaction that you have as you walk through your life.

Know that it is woven through every fiber of who you are.

Feel encouraged to picture any words,

Symbols,

Or sensations filling up your entire body.

Perhaps beginning in your heart and expanding outward to fill your torso,

Your arms,

Legs,

Neck and head.

Feel yourself full of this understanding of essential self.

Notice any new sensations or emotions that arise by taking ownership over this manifestation of who you truly are.

Breathe in deeply,

Letting these feelings sink into every organ,

Every muscle fiber,

Every neuron that you have.

Continue to breathe,

Noticing not only your ability to breathe out the strength of your essential self into the world around you,

But also your power to inhale the gifts of the world around you.

Be those gifts the kind words of others or a sense of faith in something bigger than yourself.

Allow the world to feed you as you feed it with every breath,

In and out,

Finding strength in this symbiotic relationship,

Knowing that the essential self and the essential power that binds the universe are one and the same.

Taking your breath,

Continuing to enjoy this relationship to the world around you,

Ready to step back into that world empowered by who you truly are.

You might choose to wiggle the finger or circle an ankle,

Beginning to bring some movement as you transition your alertness back into the room and step forward into your day,

Strong and ready to lead from your essential self.