I am that. You are that. All is that.
Or as in the Bible, I am that I am. (Taken as a story reflecting something here now.)
It is one of the most profound pointers, and – depending on how it is received, as with any teaching – one of the most helpful ones as well.
And as with any statement, it is a question and an invitation to explore for ourselves.
What am I really? Am I what I take myself to be? When I look here now, what do I find that I take myself to be? Is it in content of awareness? Is it something that comes and goes? Is what I really am content of awareness? Can it be? Is it something that comes and goes? If I am not what I take myself to be – this collection of sensations, sounds, sights and images – what am I then?
First, these may be insights coming from contemplation, from within stories. Then, as we explore what is here in immediate awareness, we can have genuine glimpses of what we are not, and what we are. And after a while, after getting more and more familiar with it, the center of gravity of our identity may shift from content of awareness and into what it all happens within and as – either gradually and slowly, or suddenly, or both.
In addition to sparking curiosity and exploration, it can also spark a desire to know, it can help us form an intention for inviting what we are to wake up to itself. And that too can be immensely helpful.