The Self
Throughout this site you will see me referring to this concept of the Self. What is the Self? Myself, yourself, ourselves are terms widely used by everyone and taken uncritically to refer to the person that people experience themselves as being, to their ‘I-ness’ if you like. It is a term so universally accepted that the vast majority of people never question it, in the way they never question the core experience that they exist as a separate person, with its attendant personality. In Eastern religions and in several psychologies however, the Self refers to a deeply embedded a priori concept from which individuals take their sense of who they are. They take their ‘I’ from it and then automatically treat that as being their own.
Put very simplistically, the Self in Eastern religions can be broadly equated to ‘God’ (in whatever way you understand that term). In depth psychology, the Self stands for the unmanifest total potentiality of the psyche, and the organising principle which guides our personal life development. Understood this way, it is something which even atheists would be comfortable with. Depending upon your beliefs, however, these two can also be seen as one and the same. The more we grow and mature as individuals over our life course, the more we bring this potentiality into consciousness as part of who we are. In common everyday understandable terms, it is often directly experienced as being that ‘still small voice’ of our inner wise counsel or conscience. We also directly experience it as a kind of higher version of ourselves that we might aim to grow into as we mature.
In Hindu religion, from ancient Vedic times, the Self is mentioned. Hindu religion is a very eclectic corpus of loosely related beliefs about the cosmos and the Divine principles that have given rise to it and order its evolution.
One of the most basic and indeed ancient of Hindu beliefs is in a Supreme Spirit from which all of the visible universe comes forth, called Brahman (not Brahma, a later order creator god). Brahman is the source of all and Atman is ‘His’ Spirit in humanity, which is to say that every individual person has a soul or ‘self’, which is in fact God. This is sometimes referred to as being the Brahman-Atman equation. Therefore Atman is, in fact, also understandable as being the Self as It exists in humanity. The term Paramatman is given to the Supreme Self, beyond Its manifestation in humanity.
Although the underlying principal is the same, there are other terms which are used, depending upon which tradition is being followed and these can seem confusing. The Shivaite tradition for example, uses the term ‘Parashiva’ to express the highest aspect of Shiva as the Supreme Self. The ‘Para’ aspect (Para Brahman, Parashiva) denotes Ultimate Reality which is both the source and destination of everything in existence and beyond human comprehension (1). The common depiction of Hindu divinities in human form can seem to subvert the ultimately transcendent and formless concept of Ultimate Reality into something comfortable and knowable. The aniconic Shivalinga addresses this rather better by depicting Parashiva symbolically as the balanced unity of male (as stylised phallus) and female (as stylised uterus-vulva) principles.
Self Realisation
In the more evolved Hindu and all Yogic traditions, the sole purpose of spiritual practice is to realise this equation within ourselves, to let go of our very narrow identification with our worldly personalities and experience that deeper, timeless sense of being which is the Self. This is referred to as being ‘Self Realisation’. The primary methodology for doing this is meditation, which quietens the busy activity of the waking mind enough to allow a better, silent observation of the nature of our own inner depths.
There are powerful depictions of this and for me the most timeless and beautiful is that of Shiva Nataraja, oft called Lord of the Dance, who is always depicted in the dynamic dance of creation within a circle of fire, poised elegantly upon a small squirming figure beneath his feet, who is, in fact, the dwarf Ignorance (Apasmara). The Ignorance in question is, in fact, ourselves, experienced as we commonly experience ourselves, the small world obsessed person with its trivial fears and desires, ignorant of our true potential as part of the eternal cosmic play of creation and destruction. Shiva destroys illusion and allows us to be who we in fact already are, but rarely if ever experience ourselves as being. The vast majority of humanity remain as Pasu – ‘Ignorant Being’ – all their lives. It should be cautioned here that any notions of our inherent Divinity that is merely a product of egoic fantasy will only ever take us deeper into delusion, and is the cause of much of the suffering we see in the world today.
The ancient Upanishads contain much information on and guidance to finding the Self. Here the Katha Upanishad has this to say: “The Self is not known through study of the scriptures, nor through subtlety of the intellect, nor through much learning; but by him who longs for him is he known. Verily unto him does the Self reveal his true being.” However: “By learning, a man cannot know him, if he desist not from evil, if he control not his senses, if he quiet not his mind, and practice not meditation” (2). I would add that self awareness is also a critical requisite in order that the spiritual life disciplines of probity, continence and self control do not become draconian means through which our many natural desires and urges are simply repressed in some dark subterranean level of our psyches where they will simply live on and thwart our best intentions, in all manner of unconscious ways. The Zen practice of self observation and self analysis is a necessary part of the process to learn about ourselves and our life conditionings, which have made us the people we experience ourselves as being.
(1) A useful summary explanation may be found at:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/guides/zrf6pbk/revision/2
For longer explanations I recommend: https://hinduwebsite.com/
(2) 108 Upanishads. Commentary on the Katha Upanishad–by Swami Nirmalananda Giri: 88/908
There are many translations of these ancient Sanskrit texts which might offer slightly different wording, although the actual meaning is the same.
Featured image of a golden Shivalinga downloaded at: https://wallpaperaccess.com/shivalinga