On the Illusion of the Illusion of a Separate Self

August 16, 2007

Hello, dear reader. I wrote this last night and I would like to share it with you. This is the best way I know how. If you enjoy it, there is much more to read freely on my blog page at www.myspace.com/revspirit. Thank you. Steve On the Illusion of the

Illusion of a Separate Self 8/15/07 Since my most recent awakening experience, I’ve been in contact with more than one “spiritually advanced” person who has rebutted my descriptions of my own experiences with the idea that self-improvement is pointless because there’s no “self” to improve. They appear to take the stance of Jiddu Krishnamurti, who once said to Alan Watts

something like: “Bring me your self and I’ll tell you how to improve it.” In other words, the existence of a self, separate from the Universe, is an illusion. The idea these folks (not Krishnamurti himself) present is that, since our True Self is the same as the Self of the Universe, our little old individual self pales so much in the True Self’s radiant glory that it is no longer worth considering as a “thing.” They appear to say that it is a falsehood, a fiction, and an imposter. A similar idea, expressed by people of a similar mindset, is that a truly spiritual person has overcome, lost, or killed one’s “ego,” which appears to fit the same description as the annihilated individual “self” of the so-called awakened or enlightened person. If I am to understand this way of thinking correctly, it appears that I am supposed to accept the following idea: “An awakened person, recognizing the Universal Self as one’s own True Self, identifies only with this Self and never with the ego, or individualized self, which has been effectively destroyed (or minimized beyond usefulness) by the realization of the True Self. Any action whose purpose is to bring about change or improvement in the self or the world is by its nature an action of the ego, which is always to be denied.” There are some problems with this viewpoint that I will attempt to clarify.

In the process, I will also deal with the Christian idea that “dying to” or “denying” oneself is a means of spiritual advancement, as well as a sign of a truly advanced spiritual person. I will also demonstrate that following a particular viewpoint, rather than riding the ongoing wave of Reality as you meet it in each moment, can result in a stagnated state in which the system or viewpoint becomes as much a hindrance to spiritual realization as the false self or ego was in the first place. The Human “Self” First, let’s examine the makeup of the human “self,” for it is here that we first encounter the incorrect thinking that results in wrong conclusions. A human being usually consists of three apparently distinct aspects of selfhood: the True Self, the false self, and the Earth self. The Earth self is the biological container, the Earth’s contribution to the human package—the body. The body includes the brain, in which one’s genetic makeup contributes certain potentials and characteristics to the self such as personality traits, intelligence, musical ability, and so on. These biologically-derived characteristics are valid and legitimate aspects of the self. The Earth self is a neutral entity, as it were, in that it is not something to be overcome or annihilated, but to be uncovered and understood. The traits of the Earth self are, in fact, aspects

of the self that become sharpened or enhanced as a result of “spiritual” growth. (In other words, the body’s functions improve with spiritual growth: spiritual growth makes you more who you “really” are.) As a part of this physical realm of existence, the Earth self has certain needs that are not to be overcome but fulfilled, such as the need for oxygen, nutrition, and sex. The True Self is the aspect of self that many spiritual traditions are meant to uncover, and whose characteristics are historically regarded as spiritual values to be developed:

love, peace, forgiveness, happiness, and so on. The True Self is the voice of God as expressed through human beings. It is the ground of being, the connection between apparently unconnected parts of the Universe. The True Self is Spirit, and its realization is the hallmark of spirituality in many traditions, though expressed differently in each tradition. The Earth self and the True Self are the “legitimate” aspects of self that are integral to an individual’s existence. A whole and fully functional human being operates as Earth self plus True Self: body plus Spirit, without hindrance. The false self is the individual’s only hindrance to the realization of the True Self. It consists of false ideas held in mind that obscure an individual’s correct view of self and Reality, such as fear, anxiety, worry, doubt, anger, and depression. The false self is responsible for the continuation of negativity within the individual, relationships, and society at large.

This false self really IS an illusion; it is the “self” that is to be denied, “died to,” and destroyed. Its destruction, accomplished little by little, brings about the correct view of self and Reality that we call “enlightenment.” Enlightenment is the natural state of a human being whose view of self and Reality is unobstructed by false ideas, concepts, and mental images. It is characterized not by total detachment, but by total immersion in, and enjoyment of, every moment of

life. The Pilot-Plane Unity Here’s an analogy. A pilot enters an airplane and flies it. He relies on his instruments to take him where he’s going, and to give him accurate information about his aircraft and the conditions surrounding it. (In this

scenario, the pilot represents the True Self. The plane represents the Earth self.) Suddenly the instruments begin to give the pilot false information about the flight. Afraid, the pilot manipulates the plane in various ways to try to regain control and save himself from certain death. But the computer controlling the plane’s instruments has, unbeknownst to him, acquired a virus that makes the controls give incorrect readings even while the plane is flying perfectly fine. This virus is like the false self. Its presence in the pilot-plane unity causes confusion and error, which would be avoided if the virus were removed. It is clear from this imaginary scenario that both the pilot and the plane are legitimate participants in the flight. The virus is an intruder that causes problems in the pilot-plane unit, and therefore also with the pilot-plane’s interaction with the world outside the plane. To claim that all aspects of self except the True Self (Spirit)

are illegitimate is like claiming that the pilot is necessary for the flight, but the plane is not! If a pilot is flying a plane, and a virus is interfering with the plane’s operation, the solution isn’t to junk the plane, but to junk the virus, even if this means re-installing the computer software that controls the instruments the pilot depends on to operate the plane successfully. Thus, the Earth self (body) and its needs are legitimate to a human, even to one on the spiritual path—even to one at an advanced place on the

path. Misunderstanding Biblical Spirituality In the Bible, Jesus is made to say that anyone who would follow him must first “deny himself.” Many well-meaning people have taken these words (in combination with other mistaken or misinterpreted Biblical ideas about spiritual growth) to mean that they must not fulfill the “desires of the

flesh,” which to them appear to be “sinful” or wrong. Some have taken this idea as far as to say that any sensation beyond those necessary for survival are to be inhibited, curbed, or destroyed—in oneself and others! A strawberry milkshake is not a hindrance to spiritual growth. Neither is a healthy sexual relationship. Neither is a car that runs reliably. Neither are many other experiences and sensations on some people’s spiritual “(s)hit list”. The false self is the hindrance, and it is the only aspect of the self that can be destroyed! (Except for the body, which of course results in death—the exit of the pilot from the plane—and the end of any scenario we can discuss here.) A truly spiritual person is a naturally genuine person who encounters Reality moment by moment with the confidence that comes from understanding oneself and one’s place and function in the Universe and society. Such a person has

overcome the fears and so on that are part and parcel of the false self, and has no inhibitions regarding legitimate functions of the Earth self, even to the point of using understanding of the Earth self to further clarify one’s understanding of the True Self. Life for such a person is a process of self-betterment, not self-crucifixion. If Jesus’ life, as told in the Gospel stories, was a fulfillment of his function in the Universe, this doesn’t mean that everyone else has the same function. Everyone’s function is different—different enough that simply observing someone’s actions isn’t

normally sufficient to gain understanding of their spiritual state or how well they’re fulfilling their own individual function or purpose. This is one reason why following another person is not one of the more effective means of spiritual growth (beyond a certain point). The System and the Goal Latching on to a single idea, or a few

ideas, and trying to follow them exclusively to Self-realization is also not one of the more effective means of spiritual growth, and it has the added risk of unknowingly replacing the goal of realization with the system itself. For example, hatha yoga (the body-exercise that is the most commonly known form of yoga in the West) can be an excellent means of Self-realization. Its practices encourage a mindset that focuses on the NOW moment and the body’s movements at the same time, relaxing the mind-body while maintaining a sharp conscious focus. The

same can be said of martial arts, dance, and gymnastics, if practiced with the same attitude of mindfulness and conscious focus. Like any system, though, hatha yoga can for some people become the goal itself, rather than the means to a goal. One can become an acclaimed expert at these bodily exercises, perfecting the outward practice of the art, without achieving the inner development for which the practice exists. Again, the same can be said for any system that someone can become “good” at, such as prayer, healing, psychic powers, preaching,

philanthropy, or “denying the self.” True spirituality always seeks the goal, regardless of the system, and replaces the system when a better system is encountered. A Self-realized individual, though, becomes free to develop oneself in whatever way is appealing or most immediately useful. Such a person is in no danger of replacing the already-realized goal with a practice. Instead, the practice serves as a tool for further refinement. And so it is said that one who has found truth has found limitless freedom. The Truly Illusory Self Let’s

come back now to Krishnamurti. What do he and other highly advanced spiritual travelers mean when they say that the existence of a “self” apart from the Universe is an “illusion”? They cannot mean that the individualized self is not “really” individualized, or not functionally separate from any other person’s self or the Universal (True) Self, since this idea is not only false on its face, but also untrue upon closer inspection. The individual clearly does not have access (at the present time in evolution, anyway) to others’ individualized

selves. What they choose not to disclose to us, whether consciously or not, remains a mystery to us (except for those many human traits common to all of us). But there is always a part of us that we can keep hidden from others’ view. The answer instead is that the individualized self is an expression of the Universal Self, in the same way that an individual wave is an expression of the sea that gives rise to it. It is not only dependent on the ocean for its existence; it also cannot be considered in any

meaningful way to be separate from the ocean at large. To say therefore that the individual wave is not separate from other individual waves is folly. One wave is clearly not another wave, though they share the same source (the ocean). Moving back to humans, if there were truly no individualized self—if the existence of self in this regard were, as some supposed spiritual teachers assert, an illusion to be overcome and discarded—then I could step into old Jiddu’s shoes right now and begin to receive things like castles and Mercedes convertibles

freely from my benefactors just as he did. After all, there is no “real” separation between me and J.K., right? But there is, on a functional level and only with regard to the individualized consciousness that some mistakenly identify as the false self or ego. Conclusion The spiritual adventurer should be aware of various hindrances such as I have described here, and should understand also that any hindrance to the realization of the Self is merely another facet of the false self—either one’s own or another’s. It is true that the Universe continues to “do its thing” regardless of your actions upon it, but it’s also true that 1) you are the vessel through which improvement comes about (you are how the Universe “does its thing!”) and 2) your honest change within is the action that produces change without. Pursue the

self-improvement that you know will result in increased good for you and the world at large, and take so-called gurus’ admonishments to “deny the self” as the misunderstandings they are. If you don’t take that burning, creative idea for making change for the better and do something with it, who will? Nobody, that’s who. People who become conscious vessels for the Universe’s Grand Scheme don’t just sit on their enlightened asses and “be,” no matter what any half-enlightened people (who are likely wrapped up

in a system themselves) say. Truly spiritual people be, and then they do, in accordance with their own (Earth self’s) unique talents, interests, and abilities. You are your own judge, and the Universe judges through you. I encourage you to better yourself so you aren’t led down the wrong path by people who mistakenly think they can tell you how to walk your own path.----"All things can

be broken down or divided into their constituent parts, the smallest and largest of which are the Universe and the Universe, respectively."--from the new book Revolutionary Spirituality: Awakening to Your True Self by Steven E. Baxter