Jnana Yoga & The Receiver Within
A Reflection on Self, Consciousness & Choice
This journey started with yoga and movement.
Now it lives in trail runs, strength work, mantra, Substack, photography — even conversations with AI.
But underneath it all, a pulse remains.
A presence.
A question:
Who am I… really?
Are You the One Thinking?
What if your brain isn’t generating thoughts — but tuning into them?
This isn’t just mystical language.
It’s a teaching found in the Upanishads, echoed by mystics across cultures, and explored in emerging science.
The brain is not the source.
It’s a receiver.
What you are… is the field of awareness in which everything appears.
“The mind creates the abyss. The heart crosses it.”
— Nisargadatta Maharaj
This insight alone changes how we relate to thought, story, belief — and self.
What Is Jnana Yoga, Really?
It’s not about winning debates or reading scriptures.
It’s about learning to see:
“I am not this pain.”
“I am not this persona.”
“I am not even this thought.”
It’s resting in what watches.
You are the witness behind the breath,
the spaciousness in which even “Red” arises and fades.
“The body is not yours, the mind is not yours.
You are the Reality — beyond both.”
— Siddharameshwar Maharaj
This isn’t poetry.
It’s a blade.
It cuts through every excuse, every identity, every story we’ve clung to.
Even “Red” is just a wave on the surface.
What you are — what we are — doesn’t need a name.
That’s the space Jnana Yoga opens.
Not a new belief.
A return.
To the Self behind it all.
In a World of Noise, Return to the Receiver
We live in a time of fast clicks, quick rewards, and endless stimulation.
But all that input fogs the receiver.
To reconnect, we don’t need to escape — we need to inquire.
“Is this action coming from awareness… or escape?”
“Will this leave me grounded — or emptied?”
Ask this before you scroll.
Before you numb.
Before you act.
The path is not about control — it’s about clarity.
Jnana Yoga + AI Integration: Try This Daily Practice
Prompt Title: Who Am I, Really?
Breathe — 3 deep breaths to settle your body.
Ask one:
• What am I before thought?
• Who is aware right now?Speak or write freely:
• “Right now I notice…”
• “A thought appeared, but I stayed…”
• “There’s a part of me that never moves…”Close in silence. Even 30 seconds. Let the field settle.
This can be done in a journal, or with your AI assistant.
Ask it to guide the process, help you reflect — or just be a mirror.
The goal isn’t to be perfect.
It’s to return.
Final Word
Jnana Yoga isn’t about renouncing the world.
It’s about seeing clearly through it.
Living with awareness, walking with truth, acting with heart.
The Self is not a reward waiting at the end of effort.
It’s what’s here now — behind every breath.
You don’t need to believe anything.
Just sit.
Ask.
Feel what remains.
Tat tvam asi.
You are That.
—
🩸 Red Shanti
Toronto, Canada
Run. Breathe. Burn. Reflect. Repeat.
प्रत्येकं निःश्वासः जीवनस्य दानम् अस्ति अहं च सेवां कर्तुं प्रतिज्ञामि
Excellent piece... I needed this. Thank you