Today I heard somebody say, “Where am I?” I thought to myself, “You are right where you are.” You are always right where you are. You are always right here and now. Then I pondered my use of the word “always.” “Always” is a word that shouldn’t be used lightly. It’s an endless word like “never.” I started working it out in my head, Are we really ALWAYS right where we are? What about when we die, when we are buried below the ground, or have been turned to dust and thrown in the ocean. In death, since there is no conscious to think or say, “I am here,” are we sincerely no longer here? Which naturally raises the next question.
Who is “I”? When we speak of ourselves, when we say, “I,” is this “I” – us physically, or is “I” simply our conscious, or maybe something more? I’m sure this is an age old question, but I feel it is important to understand, to come one step closer to living aware and in the light of truth. If “I” or our “self” is just our “conscious awareness,” then when we die, I would assume that “I” would cease to be, thereby forcing me to remove the “always” from my previous statement. The reason I would have to “assume” that “I” would cease to be in death and not know it as a fact is because I have never died. I do not know what death consists of other then our physical parts cease to function and our bodies rapidly descend into decay.
If “I” is more then just our conscious, say for example it consist of our physical form, and even maybe a spirit (though I have yet to uncover proof of spirit existence) then perhaps the above statement has a chance of holding true even with the always, but It may be unlikely. The only thing I have found consistent in the world, that would constitute using the word “always” is “change.” Change is always occurring.
Even as I write this, I keep using the word “I” to reflect “me.” But what really is “I” or “me.” Further thought might conclude that “I” is a reflection or the resulting reaction of everything that “I” has come in contact with, thus making “I” a part of everything. So even if my body and my conscious die, The “I” still lives on in everything else. How is this possible you ask? In this scenario, “I” is not only a reflection or the resulting reaction of everything, but also a contributor to everything. Everything “I” comes in contact with is effected from that moment on. This motion is happening every moment, a continuous chain reaction linking us all together as one.
The conclusion, there is only one “I.” We are all “I.”
Think of it like this, each of us resembles one word, and these words create one diary, a diary that is continuously being written. If someone outside of this chain were to read this diary and every word in it. As they pass through each word, those individual words may die, but their meaning and contribution to the diary still lives on.
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Well, I must say our blogs have some interconnection going on. I’ve been exploring similar ideas, perhaps, not as advanced as you are able to. I have been having similar thoughts about the word “never” and more recently “always.” It occurs to me that those words signify a desire to have things stay as they–a sort of attachment…we hold on to the idea that things will always be the way they are or maybe we just want them to be. And sometimes we may think something will never happen or we will never be a certain way, which leads me to wonder if we, then, somehow will it to actually happen in the future, because more often than not whenever I say never, whatever I said never about happens. It seems, then, that we say never because we really never want whatever we are talking about to happen or, perhaps, we feel like something will never happen or not happen.
I like your diary analogy!
It should be noted that we THINK we want things to stay as they are.
Hi Eve, You went in a little bit different direction with this which is fine, it’s what it made you think of. So let’s go that way. Its fun.
When you say you don’t want something to happen, and then it doesn’t happen, reminds me of people and the type of attitude they have towards something. If they “think” they can, then they have the ability, if they “think” they can’t, then they end up not being able to do whatever it is they had given up on. Some people think they are sick when they are not. Give them a placebo, the suddenly feel they are better. So much of it is in our head.
When one says, “that will never happen to me” It may end up never happening to them as they thought, but often for a good reason. They already put “that will never happen to me” in their head, and though they may not feel they are doing anything to prevent “that from happening to them” they are. They are often subconsciously making decisions and moves that will prevent “that from happening to them.” It may appear to have happened on its own, but its often because of our own subconscious and sometimes conscious actions.
Yeah, actually the whole “never” concept is probably part of old thought that should be discarded.
As far as the whole of you message: yes, I agree that our lives are all intertwined and we are all, essentially, part of a book–in which the space we fill is only a part of the whole and without that part the book would be incomplete. We are all one. And we are always evolving together.
I had not commented on this earlier, thinking I (there’s the ‘I’s again) couldn’t contribute much other than that I’ve spent many ours in half-awake states contemplating this, only to suddenly reel back at some point because I, or my brain, suddenly short-circuited over the intensity and complexity of the problem. Like many others have, as well, I suppose.
Then I ran into this article, The Mystery of Consciousness, and decided to link you. I think it in fact touches on many of the issues discussed here: consciousness, the self, the inability to understand the deeper workings of our selfs and accept it in others.
Have a read.
Travis,
Good you start thinking of the same direction – on death – lets think on that also and also why people are afraid to face it. The fact you say like a whole diary – is more like a alphabet soup – all are letters with no significant difference, however attaching to each other they render a meaning. Without attachment – or the realization that we are all same as I discuss in my current post The Image of Self only the illusion of self will remain making us think “I am different” and bring in all the divisions and conflict :)
@ Eve – What you say conforms the fact we are, rather our actions are always in fact a product of knowledge acquired yesterday. We are truly Prisoners of the Past.
Love.
The Sparrow’s last blog post..Mind and the real ?Me? – breaking the illusion of ?Self?
The Sparrow, I wrote this a year ago.
Love the ” I ” in your rely :)
The Sparrow’s last blog post..Mind and the real ?Me? – breaking the illusion of ?Self?
Yup, such semantics are needed to communicate. The “I” refers to the same presence as your “your” refers to. :)