Tag Archives: selfhood

Originally the subject matter of this series was planned to be included in our previous one, The Doctrine of the Void, but it was evident that the riches contained therein were just too many and therefore justified its own run.  Bernadette’s contemplative acumen began at an early age, but later coalesced into the monastic Carmelite tradition, one whose goal was centered in Absolute Union with the Godhead. It was within this framework that “loss of self” is automatically configured into the total transformation of personhood into the majesty of the transcendent. Throughout this process the self always maintains its unique identity and never once “loses its ontological sense of personal selfhood.” She later awoke to the fact that there was being revealed a form of a “permanent state in which there was no self, not even a higher self, a true self, or anything that could be called a self.” It needs to be unequivocally stated that this realization is not satori-like in fashion, but one which is slowly revealed in two distinct movements: read more