What is not the Self should be known exactly as it is. Thoughts come and go, things change, emotions change, but the Self remains untouched by all of them. To abide in this understanding is Self-realization.
Self-realization becomes possible only when attention turns inward toward the inner mind. It is not an achievement to be acquired from the outside, but a return to the natural awareness that has always existed, hidden beneath the veil of ignorance.
What Is Self-Realization?
Self-realization is not actually the knowledge of the Self. We call it Self-realization, but in reality, it is the knowledge of the non-self. Just as you recognize the external world as the non-self, whatever is perceived through the senses is not the Self (Atman).
However, a person mistakes the body and experiences for the Self. Self-realization simply means recognizing that the mind, thoughts, senses, and the experiences or understanding arising from them belong to the non-self. It is not about discovering something new, but about seeing clearly and completely what has always been present.
For most people, Self-realization is not as effortless as understanding the external world. This is because the journey is not outward but inward—not through the eyes, but through awareness. The senses are sufficient for knowing the external world, but to know the inner truth, one must go beyond the senses, because the senses themselves are part of the non-self. This is why ordinary intellect cannot fully comprehend it, and the mind repeatedly runs toward the outside.
For self-observation, awareness should not be based on any belief. It must be pure awareness, free from beliefs, assumptions, and superstition. The moment awareness becomes bound by an ideology, tradition, or prejudice, it loses its purity and can no longer become the means to Self-realization. Therefore, the seeker must look within with the attitude of a witness, free from every belief.
When you become aware of yourself, you realize that what you have been searching for as the Self is something entirely different. But the ignorant mind assumes something else to be the Self, and the root of this misunderstanding is self-interest. Self-realization cannot exist where a person is attached to the ego through selfishness. Instead, one simply abides in awareness. The ego constantly creates new identities to preserve itself—sometimes in the name of knowledge and sometimes in the name of renunciation. A truly awakened person remains untouched by all such identities and simply remains the witness.
How to Attain Self-Realization?
What you seek to attain is not Self-realization, because it is not something that can be obtained. No action can grant you Self-realization, nor is reading books alone sufficient. You do not have to know something new. You only need to understand what you have already assumed to be true. You do not know the Self; you know the non-self, and Self-realization is the end of identification with it.
It is important to understand that the greatest obstacle in the search for Self-realization is that the mind wants to attain it as another goal, just as it seeks worldly achievements. But Self-realization is not reached by traveling a distance. It reveals itself when the illusion of mistaking the non-self for the Self disappears. The quieter and purer the mind becomes, the more clearly this distinction is revealed.
Spiritual practice truly begins after Self-realization, when attachment to the entire world comes to an end. The human body is the basis through which the world is experienced. To become connected with the world, one must first identify with the body and accept it as the Self. This attachment itself is the absence of Self-realization.
When you, or anyone, becomes awakened, the center of action is no longer selfishness because one’s true need has been understood. The ignorant, however, does not know this fundamental need and therefore seeks fulfillment in the external world. As a result, the mind remains constantly attached to worldly objects while awake. This attachment repeatedly traps a person in the cycle of pleasure and pain because the objects in which happiness is sought are themselves temporary.
To realize the Self, one should simply observe with complete selflessness. Even for this, inner attachment and the actions born from attachment must dissolve. In this process, the guidance of a teacher, spiritual fellowship, and regular self-observation become valuable, because the mind alone repeatedly becomes entangled in the illusions it creates for itself.
What Are the Benefits of Self-Realization?
The benefits of Self-realization are immeasurable, but not in the sense of gaining something new. Rather, one becomes free from the suffering that ignorance creates. Ignorance and superstition never truly benefit a human being, whether they relate to the external world or to the Self.
The End of Maya (Illusion): We have explained how Maya becomes an illusion because of ignorance. Gradually, a person becomes so deeply trapped in this illusion that the joy of living is lost. Happiness, sorrow, and mental suffering begin to depend upon external circumstances. As situations change, inner well-being also changes. You can further understand why the mind becomes restless or why the mind becomes anxious, and the true causes behind these conditions.
Freedom from Fear: When a person realizes that whatever changes is not the true Self, the fear arising from changes in the body and external circumstances naturally fades away. Gain and loss, honor and dishonor, birth and death can no longer disturb such a person because one’s identity is established beyond them.
Natural Relationships: The relationships of a Self-realized person are no longer based on selfishness or expectation. Having recognized inner completeness, such a person does not relate to others in order to gain something but interacts naturally with compassion and understanding.
Spiritual Bliss and Liberation: Recognizing ignorance and its consequences marks the true beginning of spiritual practice, which ultimately leads to spiritual liberation. Liberation is the highest joy of life. This joy does not depend upon external achievements, which is why it remains permanent and unbroken, whereas worldly happiness always comes and goes according to changing circumstances.
