What is “I”?

What makes a person a person? Just the body? If you lose an arm, are you less you? “I” is hidden somewhere in the brain.

When a person dies, the brain stays mostly intact. Neurons are in place. But a brain scan won’t tell you if they sang in the shower. Or could juggle. Consciousness goes dark.

“I” is not the brain. “I” is the electrical impulses between neurons. They produce thoughts and emotions. Without them, the brain is just meat.

Why do we know so little about ourselves?

The body starts living before consciousness shows up. The heart beats, the lungs breathe, but the mind is still asleep. You arrive as a passenger in a car that’s already moving. Where’s the manual?

We barely notice the body. We remember it when something breaks: a backache, a rumbling stomach. And yet the body is the key to understanding yourself.

The sixth sense

Five senses are obvious: sight, taste, touch, hearing, smell. In Buddhism there’s a sixth — the mind. It’s the screen everything gets projected onto. A sunset isn’t just seen, it triggers emotions. Music isn’t just heard, it does something to you.

Buddhism teaches how to manage the mind through meditation. Tuning the screen. Thoughts settle down, clarity appears.

What else do you feel?

There are more than five senses. Right now your body is sending hundreds of signals. Sitting or standing? Balance. Warm or cold? Temperature. Where are your hands? Body position. Burned yourself? Pain.

There’s also pressure, acceleration, stretch. Scientists argue: 21 senses or 53? But the fact is: the body constantly sends signals. This started before birth and became background noise. Like a fish that doesn’t notice water.

Our sense of self is woven from body sensations. Before we could speak, we felt the warmth of hands, the taste of milk, the cold of air. Sensations come before thoughts. We don’t experience the world directly — we’re like blind men feeling an elephant. Is it a rope? A wall? A tree?

Listen to your body. Can you feel your heartbeat? The weight of your body? Sensations are the foundation of perception. But they’re only part of the picture.