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Real I

Real I is real identity, the Self, innate, whole, permanent, a unity of Being, rooted in God, in Ultimate Reality, free of content and untouched by circumstances. It is uncovered and experienced through the consistent and practical work of self-observation, non-identification and Self-remembering. In Christian terms, Real I is related to the idea of being created in the image and likeness of God.

Qualities of Real I include:

  • Ground or essence of being – immanent
  • As it moves to the forefront, it expresses as a coherence or unity of being
  • Center of gravity is in oneself and not circumstances or people; Real I is not unduly affected by life, allowing for non-attachment.
  • Self-love dies; there is no concern for self. Love of God and neighbor is a way of being.  Real I is unable to hate or resent.

“The Self [Real I] is beyond, yet innate, in all form – timeless, without beginning or End, changeless, permanent, and immortal.  Out of it arises awareness, consciousness, and an infinite condition of ‘at homeness.’ It is the ultimate subjectivity from which everyone’s sense of I arises.  The Infinite Reality does not even know itself as ‘I’ but as the very substrate of the capacity for such a statement. [Behind Real I lies God.] It is invisible and all present. In ordinary terms, it is more like a quality that is devoid of any innate content but is capable of any content. It is the quality that makes experiencing or witnessing possible.  The source of the Self is the reality of Divinity.  Although it is the source of existence, it is not subject to it nor is such a term applicable.”
– David R. Hawkins, M.D., Ph.D., I: Reality & Subjectivity

“All religion, all esoteric teaching, is about the fact that we are born as self-developing organisms … in order, by a certain kind of work on ourselves, to reach something inherent in us (as a new being is inherent in an egg) which is called Real I … the object is to have what is called ‘Christ’ born in us. … The Kingdom of Heaven lies within you and that means the realization of Real I. … Now the application of the Work to yourself is all about making it possible to go on a journey, spiritual or psychological, towards what is really you, Real I in you.”
– Maurice Nicoll, Commentaries, “On Practical Work,” December 18, 1949, Vol. 4