The Ultimate Question! - "Who are you?"

You cannot be your physical body because -

Even if some one cuts off a person's hands and legs, that handicap person still exists. We don't say he partially exist. So, physical body cannot be That person. That is just his body. A vehicle to carry him on this planet earth.

The fact that the body has been damaged does not mean that it stops being the person it used to be. The cut off part is no longer part of that self, but the rest, if it is still alive continues to be the person it was before.

So where in your body do "you" live? I suspect most would say the brain, so am I my brain?

MARCO

I am the body, I do not live in it. It doesn't matter where the thinking is taking place (brain), I am the body. It is not a vehicle but me, unless you can prove it is a vehicle, which would mean that there exists something more than what we can see (e.g. soul) and that that something can "change" vehicles or exist independent of them.

I apologize if my English sucks, it's not my native language.

The only question which NO humans can answer is - "Who are you?"

- you may say your name, but that is your name, NOT YOU.
- you may say your educational qualifications, your achievements, your society status, your current job etc. All these are something which YOU possess. But Who are you?
- then you may answer, I'm a human being. And you will point to your body. But again, that is YOUR body, the question is, "To whom does that body belongs?" You may answer ME. Now answer Who is that ME?

This is the only question which is worth asking in this planet earth!

I think the only question that we need to ask of ourselves is, How do I live my life without causing harm and suffering to others? If we could answer that than we all would be free. Free in thought, Free in belief, Free to exist in this very short life.

The only question which NO humans can answer is - "Who are you?"

- you may say your name, but that is your name, NOT YOU.
- you may say your educational qualifications, your achievements, your society status, your current job etc. All these are something which YOU possess. But Who are you?
- then you may answer, I'm a human being. And you will point to your body. But again, that is YOUR body, the question is, "To whom does that body belongs?" You may answer ME. Now answer Who is that ME?

This is the only question which is worth asking in this planet earth!

the only answer to this question is that you are pure consciousness. remember it is who you are.

Ultimately, "I" am experience, and nothing owns that experience.

How can something be experienced without a person? If there is no person, then who is experiencing? On what platform that experience is happening?

Without the mind of a person, nothing can be experienced!

Now, who owns that mind that is experiencing? Or who is the one who is experiencing through that mind?

I agree with Dimebag. My experience is the primary thing that undeniably exists. 'Mind' and 'Person' are secondary concepts within that experience, it's not the other way round as 'Let us Reason Life' is suggesting.

Ultimately, "I" am experience, and nothing owns that experience.

How can something be experienced without a person? If there is no person, then who is experiencing? On what platform that experience is happening?

Without the mind of a person, nothing can be experienced!

Now, who owns that mind that is experiencing? Or who is the one who is experiencing through that mind?

I agree with Dimebag. My experience is the primary thing that undeniably exists. 'Mind' and 'Person' are secondary concepts within that experience, it's not the other way round as 'Let us Reason Life' is suggesting.

The only thing that undeniably exists is your physical body. All else as far as we know cannot exist if the body ceases to exist(Unless proven otherwise, which we cannot do). Experience is something that happens within the body.

let us reason life, yes I believe in dualism. So for me it can be.

"I am" includes my body, persona, mind, attributes.

But without your body, "persona, mind, attributes" cease to exist. So, Can I say 'you are your body?'

I am "as one" with all of me.

Pls explain?


with all of me?!?

Which "you" is the real you without which you cannot exist?

If i didn't have a body we wouldn't be hving this conversation, can you provide me with proof that varifys bodyless beings exist?. My body is part of me, my brain which is part of my body generates my mind, other people may see my physical body yet in my presence they will experience and percieve my persona/character/attributes.

reason for life asks: "Which "you" is the real you without which you cannot exist?"

What do you mean which you? there is only one me, that is the real me, that is what is meant by I am as one with all of me. There are sepreate parts to me but I am an individual entity and am reffered to as one person, THAT IS ME.

Youre simply playing linguistic games in an attempt to establish a claim with no grounds, why try to seperate the physical and mental as two individual ID's? I have a body and I have a mind that is primarily what I am. I am NOT my body I am NOT my mind, my body and mind collectively make me who I am.

I watched a really good talk about the self in philosophy a few days ago. I thought you might be interested.
http://iai.tv/video/who-looks-back-in-the-mirror

Thanks Emily, that certainly was interesting.

You are your physical body. I think it's the only thing you can be sure you own, and it contains everything that defines you (your thoughts, experiences, emotions, memories).

I cannot be identical with my physical body because my physical body is nothing but the aggregate of certain parts, and these parts change. If the parts change, then the body I inhabit at time t is not identical with the body I inhabit at time t-1. Therefore, you must either give up the notion of identity over time or identify yourself with something else.

Let us reason life, "That cannot be." Really? Let me hear your argument that makes fools of all people that believe in dualism. Your argument not someone else's that you accepted as truth and use as your own.

During the making of the first film of the planet of the apes, they laid out vast tables in order to feed the cast. At the start everyone mingled and chatted, later on as the film progressed they noticed something astounding, all the chimps sat together, all the baboons sat together, all the gorillas sat together. No one told them too, but all took on a new approach to the self, and just like that they became what made them different, rather than acknowledging that in fact, they were not.

-- Updated February 13th, 2012, 5:20 pm to add the following --

Now you know why the stars don't mingle with the rest of us.

-- Updated February 13th, 2012, 5:54 pm to add the following --

"It's been so long since I found out, what people mean by down and out".

-- Updated February 13th, 2012, 6:16 pm to add the following --

All followed the story book, conjured up from the imagination of another's mind. Their reality caught up in another's dream, they collided with that dream and were subdued by it, and carried away with the flow of time. Dreams are very infectious, our reality depends upon them, lets hope we share dreams rather than nightmares.

As stated before, the body is only a vessel for the inner self. I suppose the only real answer to the question "Who are you?" is whatever makes us unique. This can't be our body, for we all have a body and many are very similar to one another. It can't be what we own or what lies in our future, for it has already been possessed by others. The only truly unique perspective we all own is our mind.

Certainly, we each share thoughts and feelings, though if there is any truly unique quality that we attain, it is the ability to form thoughts and emotions that are completely unique to anyone else. If I hold out an orange with abstract designs carved into it to two different people, even if both the subjects are identical twins, the orange would still be perceived differently.

Inside those different thoughts and impulses lies the real "us."

"Who am I?"

I think that the answer to this question depends on the existential perspective that we view ourselves from, and the beliefs that we hold as true. For example: I would say that I am the working combination of a body and mind. I am a functioning human being with my own character and experiences, which equate to me being myself. However, due to my spiritual belief in the God of Christianity, I would also say that I am "a child of God." Whereas, the atheist may consider themselves as being 'only' a total sum of their physical and metaphysical parts. I think that our beliefs and experiences play a huge part in who we perceive ourselves to be. And that depending on what they are, people can view "who they are" completely differently. That said, I think that the most generic way that we answer the question of "who am I" is to say that "I am a body and a mind" because it makes the most sense.

You are your physical body. I think it's the only thing you can be sure you own, and it contains everything that defines you (your thoughts, experiences, emotions, memories).

I cannot be identical with my physical body because my physical body is nothing but the aggregate of certain parts, and these parts change. If the parts change, then the body I inhabit at time t is not identical with the body I inhabit at time t-1. Therefore, you must either give up the notion of identity over time or identify yourself with something else.

I don't deny the fact that probably something more exists than my physical body, but I can't be certain about it. So my body is the only thing I am sure exists, therefor, it defines who I am.