I am not my life story, the mind, the body, feelings, experiences of pain or pleasure, struggles, success, or failure. I am not loneliness, stillness, frustration, or compassion. I am not even what I think is my purpose, the seeking, the finding, or anything which is called spiritual experience.
When I don’t know what I am, I sanctify experiences, take ownership of them, give them great significance. I believe they mean something which, when understood, will provide me with answers and formulas. But these experiences are only consciousness concealing and revealing itself in order to be recognized. When I know “what” I am, I discover that I am not existence, I am the presence which allows existence to be. Existence either blossoms in that presence or reflects back my sense of separation.

Tony Parsons, ‘As It Is’