Many people live with a fear that everything is an illusion and we don’t really exist. This fear is intricately intertwined with a fear that there is no purpose; we can’t examine one without the other.
The fear of non-existence often stems from philosophies suggesting we shouldn’t be who we currently are—that we should be something “better” or more “perfect.” These philosophies use mystic language about removing ourselves from our minds, ignoring emotions, and trying to live in a place of nothingness. While based on subtle truths, when misinterpreted, these ideas can make it seem like we shouldn’t exist at all. Some people go so far as to say, “I don’t exist. Nothing exists.” Because if you claim nothing exists, you must also claim you don’t exist, right?
And yet, we do exist.
It seems far more valuable to examine who we actually are rather than what we are trying not to be. This makes obvious sense when you think about it. How can we examine what we aren’t supposed to be? You can’t examine it because there’s nothing there. We can play silly mind games like, “I’m not supposed to be a flower”—well, yes, you aren’t. But it’s much more valuable to inquire into: Who are we? What are we, actually? You have to start with the basic premise that you do exist.
You exist. Your imagination, however, can create things that don’t exist. That’s the only problem. If we get confused between reality and imagination, we get caught in a vicious loop of trying to figure out who we are based on illusion. You can’t find who you are based on illusion; you can only find who you are based on reality.
You are you.
In non-duality, things often get twisted. Some fantastic teachers throughout time have tried to explain this, but the words get mangled. Take Papaji’s statement: “I am that I am.” That’s totally true if you know what it means, but if you don’t, it’s simply confusing. I think it’s much easier to say, “I am me.”
Now, what does that mean? You can step into yourself that way. There’s no way to confuse whether you exist when you say, “I am me.”
This idea is intricately intertwined with purpose. Is there a purpose to life? To you? If you don’t know you exist, how could you find a purpose? But the moment you acknowledge, “I’m me,” and start examining how deeply connected that “me” is with everything, purpose naturally emerges.
We can trust our bodies. Your body knows it has purpose. Try not to breathe for a minute, and your body will rebel. It wants that next breath without thinking about it. Purpose is an inseparable part of who we are. Your breath just wants to breathe. Your heart beats. Your hair grows. You get hungry.
You can trust this urge of your body to exist and let yourself be an integrated part of it. You want to exist. You know you exist. Once that is the solid core of your being, life can arise without constantly hitting walls of your imagination regarding who you think you are. We have to hit that starting point before we can examine what it means.
From that point, you can go deeper. When you inquire this way, the only thing you will ever find is connection. You will only find relationship. Once you exist, you absolutely do not exist as a separate entity. You are so intertwined with everything that life becomes an adventure of discovering these connections—with the Earth, with the people around us.
Once we acknowledge our existence, purpose naturally exists. We then want to express that purpose with each other just as much as we want to draw in that next breath.
Yes, you do exist. Your illusions, however, are just that—illusions. Illusions exist, otherwise we couldn’t create them.
So, it’s simple. Your spiritual practice should include regular times where you just relax into who you are. Do you know who you are? Yes. You’re you. I’m me. Life is life. The Earth is Earth. Everything interconnects, and finding that out is an adventure.