We, as living beings, search for and find comfort in a solid sense of identity. “Who am I?” gets at the heart of one of our most basic needs: our need for identity. We’re a whole system of ideas and experiences. In a nutshell: we’re a lot more than one thing. Then, once we have understood the components of our identity, we can get a big-picture look at who we are. These components we can identify and understand. Why? Because we can break up identity into components (values, experiences, relationships). Identity is a critical component of understanding who we are. Our identity is our all-encompassing system of memories, experiences, feelings, thoughts, relationships, and values that define who each of us is. The “answer” to “who am I” is our identity. How can dissolving my identity help me figure out who I am? “The question, ‘who am I?’ is not meant to get an answer, the question ‘who am I?’ is meant to dissolve the questioner.”
When these questions overwhelm me, I find myself inspired by this quote by the Indian sage, Ramana Maharshi: How many times have you questioned your very existence?Īnd the question itself makes me ask more questions: can I ever know who I am? Why do I need to know who I am? Will any answer ever satisfy me? How many times have you questioned why you’re supposed to be on this earth? How many times have you asked yourself this question?
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