Events happen, deeds are done, but there is no individual doer thereof. ~~Buddhist quote

Why Does it Seem Like I am the Doer?

Are you the one doing something? Is there a “you” that is making something happen? Or are you merely a witness to what is being done? And if you are not the doer, then who is doing the doing?

The topic of doership is very important because a large portion of the thought-stream running through our minds sounds like this: What have I done? What am I going to do right now? What am I going to do later on? and so forth. Doing, doing, doing. The mind even tries to turn spiritual awakening into something it needs to get done.    

The concept of doership is difficult to grasp. One reason is because the mind takes credit for everything. This “I” that we have been conditioned to identify with, believes I am in charge of my life…I am deciding when to get out of bed today… I am choosing to eat pancakes for breakfast…I am going for a walk after breakfast because that is what I want to do. The second reason is because there is only a split second between the action and the mind taking credit for it. It happens so quickly we do not recognize there is not an “I” doing anything, it is just happening automatically.

Ownership of “doing” keeps the ego-thought structure in place. Once you can clearly see that it is a hoax, the conditioning begins to dissolve and at times, very quickly. Why? Because it challenges the very foundation of the “I”-identity.

“I” appears to be the doer, but it is a thief.

Take a closer look: It is evening and beginning to get dark outside. There is a light switch on the wall near where you are standing. Your hand moves toward the wall and flips the switch. The light is now on. Was there a “you” deciding to flip the switch, or did the brain automatically instruct the hand to flip the switch? Are you the brain? And was a “you” necessary for the action to happen?

The mind, believing that it is its own, separate identity, takes credit for flipping the switch. It happens so rapidly that there isn’t any doubt it was done by “you.” This “I am doing” concept falsely believes it is in charge. Action and taking credit for the action happens so quickly there isn’t time to notice that you are not the doer. Recent scientific studies have shown that the brain makes decisions automatically before we are even conscious that it is happening. Yet the “I” that we believe we are takes credit for it. This is how the I-concept stays intact. It is constantly appropriating what is happening.

Conditioning is one of the main drivers of doing. And the more our minds respond to conditioning, the more automatic the doing becomes. Also, the more the mind is conditioned, the more distorted the actions may be since conditioning blocks the Light of our true, loving nature.

In truth, you are witnessing what is being done.  You are pure Love, Life Itself. This loving energy allows the heart to beat, the lungs to breathe, and the hand to flip the switch. Life is what is happening without direction, goal, or intention. This is the foundation of non-duality. Everything is purely Itself.

The same goes for thinking. Is there a thinker?  Or is thinking just happening? Please investigate this for yourself. Watch the thought stream running through the mind. Are you really in control of your thoughts? Can you stop your thoughts? Are you able to choose only the thoughts you desire to think about without interruption from other thoughts? Or, are you merely aware of the thoughts?  

Life/Source/Awareness is unfolding through the body/mind and the highest form of doing is extending the unconditional love that we are. Spontaneity and creativity abound freely when we no longer identify with a doer. When the mind stops taking credit for doing, we no longer anticipate what will happen. There is no more need for goals, for attaining, or for becoming.

Deep peace is your lived experience when you effortlessly abide in your True Being. Dropping the concept of doership sets you free to be fully aware, right here, right now. There is no more sliding between past and future, future and past. Past, present and future are not three, they are one. It is now…  

There is no doer. There is only Life unfolding. And you are the Infinite Loving Awareness that is witnessing everything.  

Namaste.