Freedom From Attachment to Self

What type of person are you?

I am a kind person, we might respond. An honest person. A wise person. A spiritual person.

These definitions of self might not appear problematic. On the contrary, they may appear desirable. But any definition of self is mind-made, and ultimately false. This includes self as “consciousness”, “God” or “awareness”, which is transformational when lived, but can easily become another concept for the ego to identify with.

Let’s say the ego enjoys the concept of being “a spiritual person”...

The ego may encourage the saying of words or doing of actions it labels “spiritual”, but are actually disingenuous. The ego may defend itself if someone offers a more loving / less illusory way of understanding a scenario; “How dare you! Can’t you see that I am at peace? I am spiritual! I know!”. The ego may scold us when an unloving thought, word or action is noticed, exclaiming; “You cannot be spiritual, for spiritual people do not act, feel or think like this!”.

If we know ourselves as the loving observer, then nothing is personal. We then do not identify with what is thought, said, felt or done as “me”. Instead, we notice, be with and respond to what is experienced, free of judgement. While what is experienced changes from moment to moment, the loving presence that notices and responds to what is experienced is unchanging. There is great peace and joy found, when one lives this.

The more we return to the position of witnessing what is experienced, the more the concept of the small-self diminishes, and suffering is replaced by being with whatever arises in the body, in the mind and in the “external world”, with a sense of joyful, loving calm.