Illusion of Self

So one of the biggest challenges in meditation is letting go of this idea of a lasting, permanent self. At first, that sounds ridiculous. "But I exist, I'm right here." But of course that's the intellect. meditation's about going beyond the intellect, being able to let go of thoughts. Not just some of them, but every thought, even the ones that provide a comforting sense of security, certainty and control. Ideas that are really important to our identity. There are some real advantages to releasing our grip on that fixed sense of me, myself and I. You can see the difference if you're experiencing a strong emotion like anger. If we attach ourselves to the anger and think, "I am angry," all of a sudden we become the anger. We've identified with it so strongly that's who we are in the moment. But by stepping back, we can watch the anger rise in the mind. "Oh yeah. Look, anger." When we do this, both the experience and the outcome of the experience are radically different. Applying this perspective to every thought and feeling doesn't mean that we don't get to experience the full breadth of emotion, joy, sadness or whatever else it may be. It just means we can choose more skillfully how to engage with them and to be able to let go of those things that trouble us. By practicing letting go of feelings and thoughts in meditation, even the ones we think we really need, even the ones we may believe define us, we can start to have more balance outside of our meditation too. The effect of this practice can be life-changing....