‘I’ Before ‘I Am This’

“Where being exists before becoming.”

What you seek outside is already shining within

Dear Consciousness,

'This Consciousness', is writing to “That Consciousness” which is reading these words now. I hope you read them with consciousness.

Beloved, 'you' and 'I' are not two. We are one and the same Consciousness. And yet, you feel separate. Why?

Pause for a moment and ask yourself:

Where does this sense of separateness come from?

The truth is simple—there is no real separation at all. What you experience as “separate-ness” is only an illusion, born from a quiet but persistent delusion: the imagination of a separate identity, strengthened by the feeling of possession.

This sense of separation is nothing more than a thin screen—created by you, for you, by you again. It exists only to support a mistaken identity. And because you created it, only you can remove it. Only you can lift that veil and discover, directly and unmistakably, that you were never separate—that you have always been resting in your own true state of pure being.

There is never truly a “you” and an “I.”

There is only 'I'—the I that belongs to nothing, while everything belongs to it.

The 'I' that cannot be defined, described, or contained.

As you read on, this “why” will quietly reveal itself.

Oh Beloved, Ego is one of the most mysterious realities you will ever encounter.

Ego is power.

Ego is the creative force.

Ego is the very principle through which the universe appears.

And yet, Ego is nothing other than the mind itself.

The same Ego can be divine or demonic. The difference lies only in how it stands.

Beingness is natural. It belongs to every creature in this vast universe. Every being appears through a vessel called the body. But what is a body, really?

Think of a glass—it exists to hold water.

Think of a bulb—it exists to transmit electricity, heating the filament until it glows.

In the same way, the human body exists as an instrument.

Without what animates it, the body has no meaning.

Just as a bulb without electricity is useless, the human body without Consciousness is inert.

That animating current—the power that makes the body alive—is what you commonly call “I am.”

Whether you name it Life, Ego, Mind, Intellect, Citta, or Ahamkāra—it is all Consciousness alone. The labels differ, the essence does not.

“I am” is the fuel that energizes the inert body.

When this power enters a body, it not only animates it—it claims it. Ownership arises. Possessiveness follows. And from this possessiveness sprouts the very first thought:

“I am the body.”

“I am this.”

“I am that.”

The moment pure beingness—the simple “I am”—begins to think “I am this body,” it transforms. That thought alone turns the divine into the individual, the pure into the impure. This is what is called the bodily ego, the individual ego, the impure mind.

But when “I am” rests simply as “I am,” without attributes, without identification, it remains divine. This is the pure ego, the pure mind—the Divine-state.

The universe itself is nothing but the expression of this pure “I.”

Beyond creation, it is known as Parabrahman, Paramātman—the Supreme Self.

Within creation, it shines as “I am.”

When the same Consciousness identifies with a particular form, it becomes “I am this body.” And suddenly, the 'one' creates a problem for itself—though in truth, there was never a problem at all.

Consciousness has never ceased to be what it always is: eternally pure, absolute being.

Now reflect, dear one:

Your beingness continues—but upon what does it depend?

Is your beingness dependent on the body, or does the body depend on beingness?

Just as you experience gravity without knowing how gravity works, you experience beingness without knowing its source. Mistaking the body as yourself makes it appear as though your existence depends on the body’s survival. This is the core illusion.

When this illusion dominates, the “I” clings to the body and senses. This is the dangerous face of ego. It is self-deception. It is the birth of the inner demon.

From here arise cravings for superiority, dominance, authority, and control. Slowly, one sinks—like quicksand—into inner darkness.

And yet, without ego there would be no experience at all. No experience of the world, no experience of the body, no experience of joy or sorrow. Ego itself is not the enemy. It is the misunderstanding of ego that causes suffering.

The same “I am,” when rightly understood, leads to bliss. When unguided and unchecked, it becomes the seed of destruction.

For the spiritual seeker, this danger is even greater. Why? Because the seeker’s ego acquires subtle powers—expanded abilities, influence, charisma. What is already dangerous in ordinary life becomes far more perilous when empowered.

This is why a seeker must be a hundred times more vigilant than an ordinary person. Otherwise, the ego becomes not a doorway, but a prison—reinforced by pride, spiritual identity, and imagined greatness.

“I am the body” is confinement. “I am powerful” is deeper confinement.

In truth, all of this is nothing but a play of Consciousness with itself.

When Consciousness contradicts itself, contradictions multiply.

When it negates itself, negation grows.

When it confines itself, confinement strengthens.

When it fights itself, the inner war becomes unbearable.

Call it a play, a journey, a battle, a search—it remains the same truth: Consciousness alone appears as 'All This All'.

It is the doer and the non-doer.

The experiencer and the non-experiencer.

The knower, the known, and the witness—and even that which lies beyond witnessing.

Only those who clearly see the necessity of understanding Consciousness undertake this supreme inquiry. And here lies the great revelation:

The seeker is Consciousness.

The goal is Consciousness.

The method is Consciousness.

The instrument is Consciousness.

And the journey ends—not in answers, but in silence.

For only in silence does Consciousness rest as itself—without conflict, without division. Silence does not oppose, deny, or restrain Consciousness, because silence is its true nature.

In silence, realization dawns. In silence, the realized one abides.

Pure Beingness.

Pure Consciousness.

Supreme Self.

All these words point to the same reality: Silence.

So understand this, beloved: the path is the path of silence.

There is no one to convince, no one to fight, no one to prove anything to.

There is only you—as Consciousness.

Only I am—as Consciousness.

Only I—as Consciousness.

And that is all there ever was. And that is all there ever will be.