Becoming an Individual: Embracing the Journey Beyond Duality

The Meaning of Individuality: Whole and Undivided

Individual means “that which cannot be further divided.” Anything in existence can be divided through intellectual thought. We can break down and analyze anything—objects, people, even experiences. However, the only thing that cannot be divided is the unmanifested source, the infinite oneness known in spiritual traditions as the Shiva dimension, or Cosmos. At the very source of creation, there is no separation. It is nothing because it cannot be compared to anything else—it is the boundless potential of the universe itself.

Non-Duality: The Path to True Individuality

As manifestations of creation unfold, the illusion of separation takes root. This is the play of duality—light and dark, good and bad, life and death. These oppositions create the experience we call life. Yet, the deeper you journey into self-awareness, the more you realize that the dualistic forces of the world are simply an illusion, a play of the mind and the body.

True individuality emerges when one reaches a point in their evolution where they realize that they are not merely their personality or their body but the whole from which they emerge. Personality often identifies with certain traits, beliefs, and labels, defining itself based on external influences. However, an individual, at their core, cannot be incomplete or lacking. Individuality is the experience of wholeness—being complete within yourself and recognizing that your true nature is one with the whole universe.

Understanding the Illusion of Separation

This understanding often comes during times of great loss—when earthly attachments to people, places, and possessions are stripped away. It is in this moment of nothingness that one might feel empty, even meaningless, unsure of who they truly are. Yet, paradoxically, this feeling of emptiness is precisely where the realization of wholeness begins.

When you are stripped of all that you thought defined you, the stillness of being reveals itself. The awareness that you are still alive, still present, despite the absence of external attachments, is a profound experience of oneness. Wholeness arises from the knowledge that nothing is ever truly separate. The “me” that I am is a unique perspective on the universe, and the universe is but a reflection of this “me.”

The Role of Silence: Connecting with Our True Being

Language itself, with its divisive nature, can never fully express this profound truth. Words separate and categorize, yet silence unveils the presence of our true being. In the space between words, between thoughts, we feel the essence of what it means to be fully alive. This is the presence of our impersonal individuality, a realization that we are both distinct and interconnected with all that exists.

The Journey Toward Oneness: Living Beyond Separation

As we become aware of this presence, we no longer see ourselves as separate from the universe. We see that we are both individuals and the whole, playing our part in the grand dance of existence. This is true individuality—not the egoic personality that clings to identity and labels but the impersonal self that is one with the universe.

The path to becoming an individual is not about becoming more. It is about realizing that we have always been whole, that we are the universe experiencing itself through a unique perspective. Once we step into this realization, we can begin to live with a deep sense of wholeness and presence, free from the illusions of separation.