This is the most important part of the FBY Basic Exercise Series (and also for practicing for the rest of the day). All previous exercises serve primarily to prepare, clear, and open up the body system for being able to experience higher states of consciousness and to maintain these states.

In yoga there is relative and absolute self-knowledge: Relative self-knowledge is knowledge of one's own body system and personality.

Absolute self-knowledge (Atma Jnana) is the highest knowledge of the true self, equivalent to enlightenment. Relative self-knowledge was discussed in chapter '2.1. Holistic healing' and the following chapter now is about absolute self-knowledge.

The Ultimate Question That Every Soul Will Ask Itself at Some Point in the Course of Its Evolution is: 'Who Am I?'

Spiritual traditions of this planet have always devoted themselves to this question and how to find the answer to it. It is quite easy to open yourself to the conceptual understanding of 'who you are' taught by various spiritual teachers, but that is not what it is ultimately about. Certain mental concepts about it can be helpful up to a point, but essentially it's all about experiencing the answer to this ultimate question as a direct experience for yourself.

Every person always strives (more or less consciously) to be/become happy. We rush from one experience that promises happiness to the next, often without realizing throughout our whole lifes that the ultimate fulfillment that we really long for cannot be found in the forms of this world (material objects, people, thoughts, feelings,...). Sure, you can experience certain temporary feelings of happiness from the forms, but not what you truly long for deep down inside. As soon as you realize that what you are looking for cannot be found on the 'outside', the premise is given to shift the focus from 'outside' to 'inside' – and the conscious journey of self-knowledge can begin.

Some people reach this point, for example, when they have achieved everything on the outside that they expected would bring them absolute happiness – a good partner, great children, a beautiful house, a fulfilling job, etc. – and then notice that they are still not completely and continuously fulfilled on the inside. A Swami (=Hindu monk, yogi, guru) in whose ashram I was in India calls this phenomenon 'depression of success'.

But I don't want to devalue the world of forms here – it is also very important for a holistically fulfilled and balanced life – but it simply cannot give us the highest fulfillment that we long for.

There are countless methods in spiritual traditions to change certain aspects of people and their lives for the better, but there are not so many that serve to achieve the highest self-knowledge (and truly return 'home'). I will introduce you to one of these meditations in the next chapter.

The Very Limited Perception of the Senses

Humans can only perceive a tiny part of the reality that really exists through their senses. According to Dr. Joe Dispenza, of the 400 billion bits of data that the brain receives every second, we only consciously perceive around 2000 of them. We only need to look at the electromagnetic spectrum, for example – the visible range of it lies between around 400 and 700 nm. This means that we cannot (normally) see all frequencies that are above and below this range with our eyes, although they of course exist!

'Resting in the ocean of silence, I experience light and love in the ever-changing forms'

I received this description of the highest state of being in a meditation many years ago. It hints at a state in which you are no longer identified with the body, the emotions, the thoughts, or with the 'I' that observes them. You see what all this really is - the manifesting play of the two fundamental creative forces: light and love (or Yin and Yang, Shiva and Shakti, male and female energy, etc.).

Next, let's move on to 2.2.1. The Causal Body and Beyond