Know Thyself - Part II

An excerpt from the Float Book

So you're an onion. Each layer is a layer of ego, of identity, of illusion. From the surface - your outer beauty and ugliness, now go deeper.

Here are a few methods that I have used to get to know and peel back the layers of my self (an ongoing process).

• Reflection and Journaling
• How many thoughts go through your mind each day? How many of these thought trains do you follow without stopping to actually reflect on them? We are not our thoughts, but they are a part of us. A great way to know yourself is to reflect on our thoughts. Where did these thoughts come from? Which experiences in your life have shaped and molded those thoughts? Be truthful in your reflections, and truths about yourself will be revealed to you.
• Be Alone
• Sounds simple enough... and yet, many people don't know how to be alone. They are afraid to be alone, so they constantly surround themselves with people, consume unhealthy doses of television, or stay glued to their phones. Anything to preoccupy their minds and distract them from themselves. Learning to be alone means learning to love yourself - the good, the bad, and the ugly. Until we cultivate love of ourselves, I do not believe we can fully love others.
• Mindfullness and Meditation
• Be present in the here and now. Through mindfullness and meditation, your inner wisdom will begin to blossom. In meditation, we are connecting to that source behind the thoughts. We ask 'where are these thoughts coming from?' and we strengthen our connection to our true selves, to the core of that onion.
• Go on a Hero's Journey
• Think of the Lord of the Rings, Alice in Wonderland, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. What do they all have in common? They all have the primary aspect of Joseph Cambell's monomyth, The Hero's Journey.
• Basically, go on an adventure!
• Use psychedelics with the intent to know yourself
• When used appropriately, psychedelics are a powerful tool for self-exploration and self-improvement. They allow you look at yourself and at your life from different perspectives. They can help you see the bigger picture. They can break you and put you back together better than before. Shamanic cultures have used psychedelics for these deeper reasons for as long as they have been around. With proper guidance and intent, psychedelics provide a lens through which you can view and scrutinize yourself as if under an objective microscope. 

These are just a couple of ways I've come to know myself, and it can be different for everyone. It is an ongoing process as we are always change and evolving. In physics terms, it's impossible to know yourself fully because of The Observer Effect - the act of observation changes the thing being observed.