What Are You?

Look at your hands. Move your fingers around. Your brain is simply sending signals to move each finger. Just like a car being controlled, with a driver telling it what to do.

Now this exercise seeks to separate the car from the driver, in order to take a closer look at your driver...you. What are "you"?

The Barrel Exercise

Imagine standing next to an empty barrel.

Now if I asked you where you were, you could say, "I'm here", outside of the barrel.

Now imagine your hand was cutoff, and placed in the barrel. You could still say "I'm here", while your hand would be in the barrel.

Now imagine your arms were cut off and placed in the barrel. Again, you could still say "I'm here", with your arms and hands inside the barrel.

Now imagine your legs were cut off and placed in the barrel.

And next your torso.

Then all of your remaining hair.

Then your face.

Then the rest of your skin.

Then all of your muscles, joints, veins, ligaments, and bones.

And all of your remaining organs except for your brain, which was then somehow kept alive and conscious through an imaginary life support system that allowed you to maintain communication with us.

Now if we were to ask you where you were, your brain could still think and communicate to us "I am here", with all of your body parts in the barrel.

Now take a closer look at the human brain.

Think of your favorite car. Really, take a moment to stop and quickly picture it in your head before proceeding.

What did you see? What color was it? What was in the background? What angle were you viewing the car at? From the front? From the inside? From the side?
Do you know where this image originated from?

When you have a thought, or a memory, or say something, or do something, it is just a series of electric signals firing across a web of synapses in a certain part of the brain, that then communicate to the rest of your body. So if we were to continue in our journey of removing all that is truly not the "driver" in your body, could we remove all those remaining pieces of the brain that are just parts of the "car"?

When I then ask you where you are, and something responds to my query, it is just a series of electrical signals that specify a message "I am here", while the rest of your body parts that are not needed for this direct communication are in the barrel.

So is that what you are? A series of electrical signals that compose thoughts of response?
Now take a closer look at electrical signals. It is merely a flow of charged particles.
Is that what you are? No, that is still just the message being sent from the driver. Like the pieces connecting the steering wheel all the down to the wheels turning.

So then when I ask you, "where are you?", and some electrical signals are fired off, specifying a message back to me "I am here", the question is, from where are these electrical signals originating? Once the sounds of my question leave my mouth, and are then heard through your ears, then quickly processed by your brain, there is a brief moment of response preparation.
The incoming message is translated, interpreted and then You, the driver prepares the response and sends it out. Before the outgoing response is projected, like a stopped car in an open lot, it has a plethora of directions, or choices to choose from. It then selects one. This selection helps to define You. Just like the favorite car you pictured a moment ago. Where did that image come from? It came from the driver.

Once you're more aware of your driver, you must then ask him/her where are they driving to?
See the post Conscious Driving next.