1) Is there a separate entity 'self', 'me' 'I', at all, anywhere, in any way, shape or form? Was there ever?

There is no such entity, nor has there ever been. The idea of a separate self is just that, an idea, a thought.

2) Explain in detail what the illusion of separate self is, when it starts ...

Happy Thursday John!



I could go on asking questions until the cows come home, but what point would that serve? Bottom line is that now it's really up to "you" ;-) to determine if you truly see--in all ways possible--that there is no self.Do you? Are there any doubts? Do you find any remnant of ...

John,

To add to the last part of the response, the seeing before thought arises is experience, just as the seeing + thinking is experience. Thought labels these as different, but they are both pure experience.

Hi John,

What about the experience before the "thought of the body arises"? I could almost interpret this statement as suggesting that thought somehow interrupts experience.

What was meant was that thought "names" a particular aspect of experience, such as "body". Body is not in fact separate ...

Hi John,

Thank you for the message. Yes, all is quite clear.

Hope this doesn't sound mischievous, but the verb "scrutinized" caught my attention. Is there anything doing the scrutinizing (or scrutiny)? Is scrutinizing simply another arising...coming and going in the flow of experience?

Thought ...

Hi John,



Here you put the word "intend" in quotes, but not the word "I." (Of course, I tend to avoid that quote mark thing, unless it helps alleviate misunderstanding) Still you say that "sometime I 'intend' the movement. What is this "I" that "intends."

In this instance "I" is simply a ...

Good morning John,

We know that there is breathing, heartbeat, numerous bodily functions. Is there a self that does these, that chooses or decides to do these?

Such a doer or chooser cannot be found. Doing is similar to experiencing in that in the moment of doing, there is not a doer and an ...

Hi John,

I'm looking at all this closely. Will reply sometime on Tuesday.

Thanks again for all of your support,

Adam

Hi John

By all means prod!!

I'm not quite sure what "it" refers to.

By "it" I meant things as they really are. There was the belief that even though "Adam" could not be found as an entity, there was something more subtle, a perceiver outside of thought, and "I" was that. But upon looking, it is ...

Good morning John,

I see it.

Why "wonder" instead of looking? What about the latter part of my question? Can you find evidence of a self in direct experience? If so, please point to it and describe it so that I can see it too. If not, can belief in a self drop away?

No, there is no self which ...

Hi John,

Thanks for the response.


But right at the center of all that, is there anyone experiencing all that coming and going of changing experience? Is there anyone at all? Can you find him? If so, where? Can you describe him? Have you up to this point believed that there was someone there...a ...

Hi John,

I wanted to offer an update from last night and this morning before proceeding to read your post. After I posted last night, I read one of the dialogues from the book. This led me to reflect on the idea that “I” was never born. This seemed to put me into a place of pretty deep internal ...

Who is experiencing all this? Whose mind is turning this over? Who is thinking those thoughts? Who feels the warmth in a chest...and whose chest? Look, using your senses. Responses should be the obvious response that comes from direct experience...but not from thinking, debate, and analysis. Don't ...

Hi John,

Thank you for both responses. The clarification of your first response wasn’t necessary, but is appreciated.

Have you read the book Gateless Gatecrashers that can be downloaded from the Liberation Unleashed website?

I began looking at dialogues on the site and read through a few of ...

Dear John,

Thank you so very much for your willingness to guide. I do agree to all of the "terms" outlined. I'm in Hawaii, just want to make you aware of possible time difference between us.

What are your expectations with regard to liberation? How do you think it will feel, and how do you think ...