Alan Watts Explains How To Find Your Authentic Self

When we look at the works of William Shakespeare, we discover hidden truths deep within the roots of our society, our egos and the illusions of the self that maintain a firm grip on our perception of reality.

‘All the world is a stage, and all the men and women are but players; They have their exits and their entrances, and one man in his time plays many parts” – William Shakespeare

World-renowned philosopher Alan Watts taught his students to understand that at birth we make no distinction between the external and internal worlds. We do not understand “that which exists outside of ourselves and that which exists internally” and therefore as we grow we learn to distinguish what I am and what you are. This was the true understanding of duality and the ego; that without you there could be no I and if there were no I then in fact there would be no you.

With this insight, we begin to see that we all wear a social mask – a role that each of us plays on the grand stage of life. That, the description each of us gives ourselves, is only measured by someone else’s perception, and when you start to care about others’ perceptions and what others think, you are emotionally involved. You have become subject to the judgment and perception of others and have sunk too deeply into your role. You have essentially lost yourself in the role you are playing and the game of hide and seek has begun.

Understanding this concept allows us to take off our mask and just sit there thinking and perceiving.

And so today we’re here to ask. Who are you really? Do you believe that you are the role you have assumed in society? and do you associate yourself as the thinker of your own thoughts? Are you the mastermind behind every emotion that arises and every thought that enters your mind?

Is that the real you?

Give yourself time to think about this for a moment and when you realize that this thinker, which you think is you, is also just a thought, then you can begin to see that you are not the thinker of your own thoughts . With this realization the question arises: what is beyond thought? A being, a nothing, an observer perhaps?

Taking a journey to find the center of yourself is a journey of grasping air with your own hand. You won’t catch anything. There is a Zen poem that speaks of this nothingness,

“You cannot grab hold of it, nor can you get rid of it. By not being able to get it, you get it. When you speak it is silent, when you are silent it speaks. There is no method, all methods are gimmicks to strengthen your ego.”

In basic spiritual practice we understand that energy follows the mind and therefore we can safely say that every thought form creates a verifiable electromagnetic energy field that radiates out into the universe and creates our own existence. And
Science has recently discovered that the universe is mental, immaterial and spiritual. This means that everything is spirit. Thoughts actually create our existence and put an end to materialism. In lamenic terms, this means that every object, including your chair, your car, your house and your own body, is made up of particles.

These particles vibrate at different frequency levels and it has been proven that these particles make up 99.999% of space. So if you think you are sitting on the couch watching television, you have actually created the perception that you are sitting on the couch watching television.

This is the true power of the mind.

And even with all this scientific data – the teachings of the sages and the practices of the past – we still wonder. Who are we?

About a year ago I woke up at night from the most terrifying dreams. A dream where I was trapped inside a girl and didn’t know how to get out. I was lost, I was scared and my mind was frantically racing to try to get out of my own incarnated body to find freedom. I watched this poor girl as she suffered day in and day out trying to fight the illusions, the emotions, the vicious cycle of thoughts and then I woke up in a cold sweat feeling absolutely horrible. I remember thinking, how can I help this girl? And then I realized it. I looked at her.

From all levels of creation to the grandest scale of the universe, eternal consciousness, the energy of all, is within each of us. And as we tap into this vibration, we quickly realize that we are not puppets on strings or a cloth caught in the wind to endure whatever life throws at us.

So when you finish playing hide and seek with yourself, you will see that you are not a victim of the world, but you are the world. We are not supposed to dance to the beat of the earth’s drum, because we are not the dancers…. We are the dance.

By tapping into the eternal energy of the universe, the cosmic consciousness of man is incarnate. Creating every moment of our existence through the energy of thought, manifesting before our eyes as we consciously and seamlessly walk through it.
We are the creators of our own world and as we expand our consciousness and awareness, we become the creators we were all meant to be.

The awakening does not come as something to be expected far off in the distant future. The awakening is now. In every moment, in every circumstance and by changing our perception, we know that now is the time to create.

“What you are doing is something that the entire universe is doing, in the place you call here and now. You are something that the entire universe does, just as a wave is something that the entire ocean does” – Alan Watts