I Am Brahman – Dissolving the Illusion of “Me”
- Sukhdev Virdee
- Jun 25
- 4 min read
What if everything you thought you were—your body, your thoughts, your story—was just a dream?
What if your suffering wasn’t caused by the world, but by your false identification with it?
In I Am Brahman, the second book in the I Am Consciousness series, the seeker David enters the next phase of his journey: from listening to deep contemplation—from hearing the truth, to wrestling with it.
This book is rooted in the second step of Advaita Vedanta: Mananam—the intense inner process of reflecting on and logically analyzing what has been heard, until doubt collapses and clarity shines.
The Meeting With the Master
Having arrived at the ashram at the end of Book 1, David finally meets Swamiji, the enigmatic teacher who says little but sees everything.
Unlike stereotypical gurus surrounded by rituals and followers, Swamiji holds his satsangs in silence—under the stars, with nothing but truth between him and the students.
It is here that David is introduced to four other seekers:
Otto, a grief-stricken German man in his 60s, who lost his wife in a tragic car accident.
Amelia and Oliver, a young couple from Australia searching for identity and meaning.
Uchit, David’s humble guide, now increasingly drawn into the teachings.
This group becomes David’s spiritual family—fellow flames in the fire of transformation.
The Heart of the Teaching
Swamiji begins guiding them through the essential teachings of nonduality. With simplicity and precision, he dismantles every false layer of identity:
You are not the body.
You are not the mind.
You are not your past, your feelings, or your story.
You are Brahman—the pure, changeless, eternal awareness in which all phenomena arise and dissolve.
But hearing this is not enough. In I Am Brahman, David is challenged to think through these truths, to test them, to face his conditioning head-on.
Swamiji guides the group through the five koshas—the five sheaths that veil the Self:
Annamaya (physical body)
Pranamaya (vital energy)
Manomaya (mind)
Vijnanamaya (intellect)
Anandamaya (bliss sheath)
Each layer seems real, but upon inquiry, is seen to be not the Self. As each illusion peels away, something deeper begins to stir.
The Death of Ideas
What makes this book so powerful is its mental rigor. David doesn’t blindly accept Swamiji’s words. He questions. He doubts. He struggles.
But with every question, the inquiry goes deeper.
“I understand it intellectually,” David says.
“But I don’t feel it.”
And that’s the razor’s edge of Mananam. It brings the mind to the edge of the cliff—where it must see clearly that it cannot go further on its own.
Understanding is not realization.
But it’s a necessary doorway.
This book brings seekers to that threshold.
The Journey Expands
Swamiji, knowing that intellectual clarity alone is not enough, sends the group to meet three other realized masters—each embodying one of the other spiritual paths:
Karma Yoga – The path of selfless action.
Bhakti Yoga – The path of love and devotion.
Dhyana Yoga – The path of deep meditation.
Swamiji wants them to become complete—not to neglect the other yogas, but to integrate them, to spiritualize every part of their lives.
He knows that Jnana Yoga without humility becomes arrogance.
Love without clarity becomes sentimentality.
Meditation without insight becomes escapism.
And so, he sends them into the Himalayas to learn from different masters—each one a living embodiment of their chosen path, yet all of them united in their reverence for Swamiji, who had helped each one awaken through pure knowledge.
Why This Book Matters
If See God With Open Eyes was the call to adventure, I Am Brahman is the moment the seeker must look into the mirror—and not recognize what they see.
This is the book where the mind begins to disintegrate, and not through force, but through the light of understanding.
It shows us:
How deeply we are identified with the body and mind.
How easily we confuse knowledge for realization.
How necessary it is to contemplate, reflect, and churn the truth until it becomes real.
For the Seeker Ready to Go Deeper
If you've heard the teachings of Advaita before and found them beautiful—but distant or abstract—this book will bring them alive.
It’s not theoretical. It’s personal.
You will see your own mind in David’s questions.
You will see your own doubt in Otto’s grief.
You will feel your own heart open with Amelia and Oliver.
And through them, the truth may pierce a little deeper.
The Path Is Still Beginning
This is only the second step. But it’s a crucial one.
You cannot awaken from the dream if you still believe the dream is you.
You cannot know the Self until you doubt everything you thought was the self.
Read I Am Brahman Now
Let this book be your satsang. Let it challenge your mind and melt your concepts.
And most of all—let it point you back to what you already are.
Not this.
Not that.
But That which knows both.
Buy Book 2 – I Am Brahman ➤
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