Who Am I? I Am Thine!
હું કોણ છું? હું તારો છું!
ડાયટ્રિચ બોનહોફર દ્વારા
હું કોણ છું? તેઓ વારંવાર મને કહે છે
કે હું મારી કોટડીની કેદમાંથી બહાર નીકળતો
શાંતિથી, પ્રસન્નતાથી, દૃઢતાથી,
જાણે કોઈ જાગીરદાર પોતાના નિવાસમાંથી નીકળતો હોય.
હું કોણ છું? તેઓ વારંવાર મને કહે છે
કે હું મારા પહેરેદારો સાથે વાત કરતો
મુક્તપણે, મિત્રતાથી અને સ્પષ્ટપણે,
જાણે કે હુકમ આપવો એ મારો જ અધિકાર હોય.
હું કોણ છું? તેઓ મને એમ પણ કહે છે
કે મેં મુસીબતના દિવસો સહન કર્યા
સમભાવે, હસતાં મુખે, ગર્વથી,
જાણે એવી વ્યક્તિ કે જે જીતવા માટે ટેવાયેલી હોય.
તો શું હું ખરેખર એ જ છું જે બીજાઓ મારા વિશે કહે છે?
કે પછી હું માત્ર એ જ છું જે હું પોતે મારા વિશે જાણું છું?
અશાંત, ઝંખતો અને બીમાર, પિંજરામાં પૂરાયેલા પક્ષી જેવો,
શ્વાસ લેવા માટે ઝઝૂમતો, જાણે કોઈ હાથ મારું ગળું દબાવી રહ્યા હોય,
રંગો માટે, ફૂલો માટે, પક્ષીઓના કલરવ માટે તલસતો,
દયાભર્યા શબ્દો માટે, માનવસહજ હૂંફ માટે તરસતો,
મહાન ઘટનાઓની અપેક્ષામાં ઉથલપાથલ અનુભવતો,
દૂર દૂર રહેલા મિત્રો માટે અસહાયપણે ધ્રૂજતો,
પ્રાર્થના, વિચાર અને કામથી થાકેલો અને ખાલીખમ,
નિર્બળ, અને આ બધું જ છોડી દેવા માટે તૈયાર.
હું કોણ છું? આ કે પેલો?
શું હું આજે એક વ્યક્તિ છું અને કાલે બીજો?
શું હું એક જ સમયે બંને છું? બીજાઓની સામે ઢોંગી,
અને મારી પોતાની નજરમાં એક તિરસ્કારને પાત્ર, દુઃખી, નબળો માણસ?
અથવા મારી અંદર હજી પણ એવું કંઈક છે જે હારેલી સેના જેવું છે,
જે પહેલેથી જ મેળવેલી જીતથી અસ્તવ્યસ્ત થઈને ભાગી રહી છે?
હું કોણ છું? મારા આ એકલવાયા પ્રશ્નો મારી મજાક ઉડાવે છે.
હું ગમે તે હોઉં, હે ઈશ્વર, તું જાણે છે, હું તારો છું!
મનન માટેના બિજ પ્રશ્નો :
- ‘હું કોણ છું?' – આ પ્રશ્ન સાથે તમે કઈ રીતે સહમત છો? અને જ્યારે તમે આ પ્રશ્ન પર વિચાર કરો છો, ત્યારે તમારા મનમાં શું ભાવો કે વિચારો જાગે છે?
- શું તમે તમારા જીવનનો કોઈ એવો અંગત પ્રસંગ વર્ણવી શકો છો, જ્યારે તમે આ પ્રશ્ન પર ઊંડાણપૂર્વક ચિંતન કર્યું હોય અને તેના પરિણામે તમને કોઈ નવી આંતરસૂઝ પ્રાપ્ત થઈ હોય?
- જ્યારે તમે આ પ્રશ્ન પર ઊંડું મનન કરો છો, ત્યારે કઈ બાબત તમને તમારા 'અહં' (ego) થી પર જવામાં મદદ કરે છે?
Learn more about Dietrich here.
SEED QUESTIONS FOR REFLECTION: How do you relate to the question 'who am I?' and what comes up for you in response to that question? Can you share a personal story of a time you inquired deeply into that question and unlocked new insights? What helps you go beyond your ego as you lean into that question?
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8 Past Reflections
On Oct 21, 2025 David Doane wrote :
I see 'who am I' as the most important question of my lifetime and of anyone's lifetime. What comes up for me in relation to that question is to sort out real I am from appearance I am. First, there is Ultimate I Am that is the Ground or Source of all that is. Second, there is real I am that is an extension of Ultimate I Am and is the essence of me. Third, there is appearance I am that is real I am in form as body, mind and ego. Real I am is eternal, not of this world while briefly in this world in form. Appearance I am is very temporal, briefly in this world and of this world. I began scratching the surface into 'who am I' decades ago, and got into it deeply a couple decades ago as I realized clearly there is I am that is more than body, mind and ego. Realizing this has unlocked more reflecting and insights. Awareness of this helps me go beyond ego and lean more and more into the question of 'who am I'.
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On Oct 21, 2025 Craig wrote :
His life is definitely worth reading about, too. I had never heard of him before. He was a hero who resisted the Nazis—a Christian who protected and sheltered Jews during the Third Reich—so he and his family were executed for their views and actions.
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On Oct 21, 2025 Patricia wrote :
It is when a moment of change is felt or acknowledged whether welcomed or not that I seek understanding who I am. Before I got out of bed I scanned my embodied self and attempted to pause thinking. Am I a blob I asked. I am breathing I pay attention. I am existing I am being. I become more aware this changing unraveling of ideas of who I am is nothing more than pausing to realize I've always been unraveling at same time being knitted or woven to next. Then I sit with regret of not being attentive to the truth of who I am in relationship to all existence and give thanks in connecting because I have a mind to reflect on connection and I stand up with intention to live this day with the zest of breath gift of who I am becoming along with you and you and you...I am one in caring and connecting and I do so by brushing my teeth looking in the mirror and smiling a good morning to me and me in you and you in me and crazy weird, right? LOVE ❤️
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On Oct 21, 2025 Rajat Mishra wrote :
1. It reflects the strength shown by Dietrich Bonhoeffer in the face of imminent death, and I can relate to it — recognizing moments when I’ve shown courage, as well as times when I’ve faltered under questioning.
2. I’ve arrived at the answer to this question many times before, but never with the calm awareness that Dietrich had. My usual response has been one of anger toward my own bondage, which only drains me before my death. If death is certain, why exhaust myself struggling against compulsions? In doing so, I lose my connection with God when confronted with difficult or awkward situations.
3. A calm and detached mind helps me transcend my ego.
2. I’ve arrived at the answer to this question many times before, but never with the calm awareness that Dietrich had. My usual response has been one of anger toward my own bondage, which only drains me before my death. If death is certain, why exhaust myself struggling against compulsions? In doing so, I lose my connection with God when confronted with difficult or awkward situations.
3. A calm and detached mind helps me transcend my ego.
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On Oct 20, 2025 inder dutt salwan wrote :
WHO ARE YOU
👇
I AM THAT
I realize my inner & outer being are two different identities-
I AM CONTENTMENT & Happiness 'WITHIN',
& just a human being 'without'.
I AM THAT. . .
A proud father,
Working to create a legacy with ethics & hard work for my son, my family & the community at large.
I love to work with passion & integrity in my heart. . .
I love running,
Running
& more running
Running in the rain,
in winters
& in the winter rains too,
especially when it's foggy,
just me & my two feet-
one stride at a time,
One foot in front of the other,
slowly but surely,
as if there’s a no tomorrow,
Running ahead of the past. . .
That moment is mine & Only mine.
I AM THAT...
I believe Compassion & Forgiveness are the highest virtues of life,
& that TIME will mould me into a complete human being,
& that there is nothing deeper than a Mother's love
Or higher than one's respect for father.
I AM THAT. . .
A trusted friend,
Love travelling,
Meeting peopl... [View Full Comment]
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On Oct 20, 2025 manmohan wrote :
My philosophical foundation is a belief in the essential oneness of the human spirit. This conviction naturally dissolves all superficial boundaries of color and gender, moving my attention from the anxiety of self-definition to the clarity of meaningful action.
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On Oct 20, 2025 Jaliah Mayali wrote :
When I ask myself ‘Who am I?’ I realize that my answer shifts with time and experience. Some days I feel confident, capable, and certain of my purpose. Other days, I feel uncertain and searching, like there’s more to discover beneath the surface of what others see.
What has helped me go beyond my ego when I ask that question is pausing sitting with silence and honesty. It’s when I stop trying to be what others expect that I start to hear a quieter, truer voice within. That voice reminds me that I am not only my roles or achievements, but also the awareness, love, and resilience that move through them.
What has helped me go beyond my ego when I ask that question is pausing sitting with silence and honesty. It’s when I stop trying to be what others expect that I start to hear a quieter, truer voice within. That voice reminds me that I am not only my roles or achievements, but also the awareness, love, and resilience that move through them.
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On Oct 16, 2025 Jagdish O Dave wrote :
Who is the real Me? I have a body but I am not my body. I have a mind but I am not my mind. I have a heart but I am not my heart, I have breath but I am not my breath. I have fame but I am not my fame. I have a name but I am not my name. The Real Me is formless, nameless, rightness and wrongness. Then who is Me? The real Me is beyond all these dualities. I am free not bound by any dualites. But we get caught up in the mine and thine mindset and that way we lose our real identity. We tend to forget there is oneness in manyness.
The last sentence of this writing offers my understanding of this question "Who am I? They mock me, these lonely questions of mine. Whoever I am, Thou knowest, O God, I am Thine!
Namaste!
Jagdish P Dave
The last sentence of this writing offers my understanding of this question "Who am I? They mock me, these lonely questions of mine. Whoever I am, Thou knowest, O God, I am Thine!
Namaste!
Jagdish P Dave