dissolving the illusory self
Written by Desmond Olubunmi · Founder of Sunya
Meditating on the nature of death, on what existed before birth, and on the ending of time — to cut through the illusion of the separate self at its deepest root and realise pure consciousness.
We maintain a deeply rooted sense of “I, me, and mine” — a vague, illusory mental identity that exists due to a lack of awareness and the underlying fear of being nothing. This false identity leads to self-centred activity and inevitable suffering, taking charge whenever we become unconscious.
The physical self is constantly fleeting — it is time itself, in motion. But this limited, time-bound experience happens within a deeper dimension: consciousness itself. That consciousness has no shape or form. It is formless, timeless, and beyond birth and death.
When we realise the limited self is a mirage, we see that reality is pure consciousness — which had temporarily veiled itself in the appearance of a separate identity.
Meditate on the endings: Meditate on the nature of death. Enquire into the ending of time, the ending of thought, the ending of memory, the ending of the known, and the ending of all experiencing. What remains when these end?
Enquire before birth: Ask yourself: “Who was I before birth? What was my nature before I existed in this form?” Recognise that before you were born, as far as the body and mind are concerned, there was non-existence — and after death, the body and mind will return to that non-existence. The body and mind are time itself.
Investigate the “I”: Meditate on this sense of “I, me, and mine.” Who is this “I”? Look closely. Seek to understand the nature of this self, this identity. Perceive that it does not truly exist as something solid and real — it is a vague, illusory mental idea sustained by unawareness.
Rest in not-knowing: Let go of all identities. Rest in not-knowing, in silence, in pure being. Just be. Rest as awareness.
Dissolve duality: Seek to unveil the livingness that exists beyond birth, death, and non- existence. Allow experience, the act of experiencing, and the experiencer to dissolve into a nothingness that is timelessly alive as the eternal Now. Go deep into your being and realise the truth. Beyond this limited reality of time-bound existence, there is the eternal, transcendental consciousness that is witnessing everything perceived.
Rest in this ultimate realisation: “I am not the body. I am not the mind. I am not my past. I have no future. I don’t belong to the movement of time. I have no shape or form. I have no identity. I am nothingness. I am life itself. I am pure consciousness. The supreme reality.”
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