A way to Self discovery

We need to know who and what we are in order to have a meaningful relationship to the whole. Most people see themselves as body mind organisms existing in this word of matter. They think that they are the body, the body has a mind, or perhaps even a soul; they constantly reinforce that thought in their daily lives.

Yet every day when we refer to our physical existence we say, ‘this is my body, this is my mind, body and mind belongs to me. We don’t say I body. No, we identified ourselves with a sense of ownership with the body and mind. But, if body and mind belong to me, rather than being me, why do we insist on being body mind beings? The obvious answer is habit. How do we break this habit? By identifying and realizing our true nature.

We start with being aware of having a body rather than being a body, of having a mind rather than being a mind; of being aware of the people around us and that people around us are aware of us. We also are aware that we exist, what exists, cannot not exist. We can say that we are awareness or consciousness itself; we are the Witness to that which is in and around us.

But what is that witness?  We will call it our soul the changeless reflection of the omnipresent Spirit, Holy Spirit or God; whatever name feels comfortable to us during this journey of Self discovery. The reality is, it is our true nature. Going one step further we discover, that our whole physical and mental existence is contingent on this Spirit, God, which is Existence Itself.

Let’s continue with our process of Self discovery.

We can prove the existence of this witness consciousness to ourselves in our everyday life as the observer of our inner world, our thoughts, mind, feelings and our outer world our actions and the activities of others around us; life expressing as life. We note, this witness in us is always silent, peaceful, and none attached, nevertheless ever present, it is the knower.

When we practice this witness consciousness on a daily basis, we will experience our world in a new way. We will become aware, that all of existence can be viewed from a peaceful, unbiased perspective, rather than seeing and experiencing circumstances through the screen of our mind in a fragmented manner according to our mental and emotional state of mind. Seeing the world in a peaceful demeanor is paramount in this tumultuous time in which we live. Ephesians 4:23, ‘be renewed in the spirit of your minds’.

This approach of seeing life from a witness perspective will take practice and needs to be a constant reminder to us that we are more than body mind organisms, which is what our conditioned mind tells us we are.

What is the process?

Generally when we think of being a witness to something, we think of what our eyes perceive and leave it at that. But is there something that is aware of our eyes? What is the observer of the eyes that knows for example that the eyes are sore or tired? It is the mind, Yet, we know, that even the mind can be observed. What is it that is the witness of the mind? It is our essence, our soul, which is nothing other than a reflection of Spirit.

This is very important for people on the spiritual path, who say that they are spiritual beings temporarily attached to the body, rather than human beings attempting to become spiritual.

We need to witness the mind without being attached to any of the images. When thoughts or images arise, we witness them and let them go.

This approach quiets the mind without repressing thoughts that are derives from the sub-conscious. It brings the sub-into the conscious and ultimately purifies the mind, enabling it to become a pure reflection of Spirit, our true nature.

We should be aware, that in general we are conditioned to think in terms of form, of objects, however. Spirit, soul, witness are without form.

What does this tell us? It tells us that the formless Spirit is expressing through form, through mind and body. The Spirit in us gives life to the mind and body.

We need to learn to rely more on being inner or soul directed, or Self or soul referring and realize that all knowledge of the universe and its processes are right with un. We are the microcosm of the macrocosm; as above, so below; as within, so without.

Additional practices to aid us in the awakening process

Most spiritual traditions offer some combination of four practices for those who would seek to know their true nature: devotion, meditation or contemplative prayer, selfless service, and wise reflection or inquiry. We will be more drawn to one or two of these practices than to the others. But the only way to discover which practices work for us is to do them.