The illusion of the false self (the ego) is created and maintained by the most convincing thought of all: I. When we think I…, we really believe that that is what we believe. For example, when we think I like hot weather or I want a new car, we really believe this preference or desire is true for us. It defines, or identifies, us: I’m someone who likes hot weather. I’m someone who wants a new car. Or if we think I feel lost, we really believe that this is true about us—and meaningful. We don’t see that it is just a thought, which if believed, becomes true—a self-fulfilling prophecy. It seems true because we believe it, but it is not intrinsically true. It’s just a thought, after all.

Where do thoughts come from? Thoughts arise out of nowhere. Just because a thought is happening in our own head doesn’t mean it is any more true than a thought that arises in someone else’s head. However, we become attached to our thoughts—we identify with them as how I feel or what I like. But who is this I?

Is it true that you are who your thoughts describe? Your thoughts describe you and give you a sense of being a certain way, but who are they describing? Aren’t they just describing a character you identify as you, who likes certain things, has certain dreams and desires, believes certain things, sees himself or herself and life a certain way? Is that who you really are or is that the character you are playing? Who is it that is aware of these thoughts that define “you”? Who is it that actually reads this and moves your body, breathes, sees, touches, smells, experiences life? Does the character do this, or is there something else here that is character-less, that is just purely experiencing life, without ideas about liking or disliking, wanting or not wanting?

The mind creates a character with thoughts about I. When we believe these thoughts (which are very, very convincing), we begin to feel and think and act like this character. This is the false, or conditioned, self, and it is derived in large part from thoughts about I. The stronger you believe your thoughts about I, the more powerful this illusion of self is.

As we evolve as humans, we learn to take this character more lightly, we joke about it; we can even enjoy it. And eventually, we all wake up out of it. We come to see that it was created by believing our thoughts about ourselves. Meanwhile, all the while, the Being that we really are has been present in this life, living, breathing, moving, speaking, and acting through our body-mind. This Being lets us pretend we are the character that we think we are, but this Being is not the character but, rather, the Consciousness behind this life and ultimately behind every life.

Yes, the I thought is extremely convincing. If it were not, the illusion of being someone could not be maintained. Eventually, the I is seen as being an illusion, and life and the character continue, but now with more joy and ease and with love for this character and all other characters because it sees the truth: We are all made of the same Consciousness, and we’re only playing at being different.  What fun!