not-self


What is the meaning of not-self?

What is the meaning of not-self? The unenlightened person assumes that there is a permanent independent entity behind our experience, and that this entity is our self, who we really are. We take for granted that this “me” is the one who sees, who thinks, who feels, who hears, who talks, who acts. The Buddha taught that this understanding of who we are is mistaken, based upon a certain fundamental misperceptions, and is the root of cause of human suffering. Buddhism teaches that far from being the solid center of experience, the sense of self is created moment by moment, […]