MONDAY MUSE (21 June 2010)

TRUE SELF

An eager student approached a Zen master with a poser, ‘I don’t know who I am. 
Please, help me see my true self!’ The master just kept silent. The man began 
to plead and persist, yet the master gave no response. Finally the man resigned 
to his frustration and moved to leave. At that moment, the master called out to 
him by name. ‘Yes!’ the man exclaimed as he spun back around. ‘There it is!’ 
exclaimed the master.

This Zen anecdote reminds me of the number of occasions when I search for my 
spectacles, only to have somebody else point out that I am wearing them! 
Obviously, it is yet another funny search to find what already is in my 
possession. Ditto for our search to discover our true self! 

However, if we really look, our true self need not be a blind spot. Our true 
self is obvious to the ones who encounter us often. Others can see the obvious 
because they see it in our behavioural responses. If we analyse the consistency 
or the lack of our behaviour in response to varied persons and situations, we 
will be able to understand the choices we make based on our wants and needs.

Others can help us realise what we really are, but it is only we who can choose 
what we want to be. Hence, rather than spend time, effort and energy on getting 
to know our true self, let’s be better at becoming the true self we would like 
to be. It is important to focus on what we would like to be, instead of only 
determining what we are!

Let’s BE BETTER at being true to our self…  
Rather than a shallow search of our true self!

- Pravin K. Sabnis 




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