What Does ‘I Am Nothing’ Mean?

What does it mean when we use the statement ‘I am nothing?’ or ‘there’s nobody here’ in non-duality?

Rupert says the recognition ‘I am nothing’ or ‘there's nobody here’ is not what is traditionally referred to as enlightenment. In contemporary non-dual circles, it masquerades as enlightenment, but that's a misunderstanding. In some cases, it can be a first step to that recognition, but it is not itself the recognition. It’s not that what is ‘here’ is just a blank empty void — it means ‘I am not a thing, but what I am is presence; being; consciousness’.

It is not enough to know ‘I am not a thing’ or ‘I am nothing’ in that sense. You have to know what you are, not just what you are not. The understanding ‘it is not a snake’ does not give us knowledge of the rope. It is knowledge of the rope that gets rid of the belief that it is a snake. The non-dual understanding is the recognition of what I am. It is not the recognition of what I am not.

*This video is taken from one of Rupert's in-person retreats at The Vedanta, 3 to 10 June 2023. To view and book for upcoming retreats (many of which can be attended online via livestream) go to:

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