Philosophy Now Forum

Hello Everyone!

I am so glad to be here with all of you!

Is the self a real entity or merely a constructed illusion?

I am seeking this profound question which has been debated across various fields such as philosophy, psychology, and cognitive science for millennia.

On the basis of empirical materials from Theravada Buddhism and the scientific mechanism behind Buddhist meditation, I develop a new “Self-Model”compared with Metzinger’s Self-Model Theory: the self is the illusion emerging out of the rapid alternation of “awareness” and “awareness of awareness”.

Furthermore, I crack the enigma of the Heart Sutra from the perspective of the progressive stages of “emptiness”.

Best wishes,

Wenge Huang

Wenge Huang wrote: ↑Tue Apr 01, 2025 4:10 am…Is the self a real entity or merely a constructed illusion?

Interesting question!
I’d say it’s definitely real in that it causes real influence. But it’s also illusion-based, since it operates from subjectivity.

What do you think of consciousness as energy?

Btw, welcome to the forum! I’ve been here a while but only recently have been frequenting the forum again. I think it’s awesome how we may be from so many different parts of the world yet we can share our perspectives & learn from each other.

constructed illusion reconstructed every subsequent moment

and then it was gone

-Imp

Perspective wrote: ↑Sat May 03, 2025 7:26 pm

Wenge Huang wrote: ↑Tue Apr 01, 2025 4:10 am…Is the self a real entity or merely a constructed illusion?

Interesting question!
I’d say it’s definitely real in that it causes real influence. But it’s also illusion-based, since it operates from subjectivity.

What do you think of consciousness as energy?

Btw, welcome to the forum! I’ve been here a while but only recently have been frequenting the forum again. I think it’s awesome how we may be from so many different parts of the world yet we can share our perspectives & learn from each other.

Just for your reference:

https://www.academia.edu/127576855/A_Ne ... s_Diagram_

https://www.academia.edu/128055045/A_Ne ... Awareness_

Wenge Huang wrote: ↑Tue Apr 01, 2025 4:10 am
Is the self a real entity or merely a constructed illusion?

Very simply when, and if, the 'self' word is defined, then, and only then, will 'you', also, work out and know, exactly, if 'that' is a 'real entity', a 'constructed illusion', or is just something else.

Which, by the way, applies to many, or all, other 'words', or 'things', as well.

Wenge Huang wrote: ↑Tue May 06, 2025 4:21 am

Perspective wrote: ↑Sat May 03, 2025 7:26 pm

Wenge Huang wrote: ↑Tue Apr 01, 2025 4:10 am…Is the self a real entity or merely a constructed illusion?

Interesting question!
I’d say it’s definitely real in that it causes real influence. But it’s also illusion-based, since it operates from subjectivity.

What do you think of consciousness as energy?

Btw, welcome to the forum! I’ve been here a while but only recently have been frequenting the forum again. I think it’s awesome how we may be from so many different parts of the world yet we can share our perspectives & learn from each other.

Just for your reference:

https://www.academia.edu/127576855/A_Ne ... s_Diagram_

https://www.academia.edu/128055045/A_Ne ... Awareness_

Can you sum up your thoughts currently regarding consciousness as energy?

You could say the Self is a constructed illusion created by a real entity