Sometimes Enlightenment Intensive participants need some clarity on the difference between the two ‘I’ questions:

Who am I? • What am I?

Both questions are designed to uncover the truth of oneself, leading to self-enlightenment or self-realisation. But the aspects of oneself that they uncover are not exactly the same.

‘Who am I?’ asks about your true identity. You seek to know the ‘you’ that is always ‘you’, the unique self that you have always been, the one you call ‘I’. 

 ‘What am I?’ asks about your true nature. You seek to know what it is that defines your existence ⎯ your ultimate essence, the true ‘substance’ of your very being.. 

Think of many objects made of gold.

Each object has its own identity (it is uniquely itself), but all of the objects are of the very same nature: gold. Likewise, your true identity is unique to you, so the realisation of who you are applies to you and you alone. Your true nature, however, is shared by all of us, so the realisation of whatyou are applies both to you (self) and to everyone else (other).

A direct experience of who you are reveals the tip of the iceberg, as it were, but not necessarily the hidden depths of it. You may know who you are, but what does it mean to be who you are?  What is the ultimate nature of your existence? Are you a physical thing? Are you a mental process? Are you fundamentally spiritual or material? Is your existence fleeting or eternal?

The ‘What am I?’ question is wide open to the hidden depths of our true nature. It is more challenging than the ‘Who am I?’ question, but also endlessly rewarding.

Generally, it helps to first break through on the question ‘Who am I?’ before delving into one’s true nature. Individuals who do not really know who they are will tend to go through life thinking that who they are is defined by certain ideas. Some of these ideas may be conditioned into them from childhood (such as ‘I’m a good little girl’). Others may be self-constructed in adulthood (such as ‘I’m a total rebel’). So long as an individual is identified with a mere self-concept or social persona, it is difficult for them to enquire into their true nature. Whose true nature are they seeking? Asking ‘What am I?’ without actually knowing who the word ‘I’ refers to is tricky.

That said, it is not uncommon for a self-realisation using ‘Who am I?’ to reveal both ‘who’ one is along with some element of ‘what’ one is. In other words, you may realise your true identityplussome facet of your true nature to boot.