Why is the doer so important? Or, to be more specific, when
is the doer important? In most of the cases, the performer is
relevant only when we are doing it ourselves. We emphasize
the subject more than the actual deed or the doing process. In
brief, when we are the subjects it is very important but when
others are the contributors, we are not as interested.
Confusing?
This is very evident if we observe our own life. Just think
back to the last movie or theatre play you saw or book you
read. Who were the actors and authors? Do you remember?
Some of us have naturally better name-recall memory, but
still. We concentrate and focus on the substance itself and not
so much on the individual actors’ contributions and relevance
per se. A theatre play is a team effort for the overall atmos-
phere and experience combined from individual contribu-
tions. Similarly, the author creates the novel but for us the
storyline and the substance is the thing. When we are the
doer, it is something exceptional and unique but when others
do it, that’s a different case—it is something usual or rather
normal at least. The same applies when we are simply talking.
It is a rare skill to be a good listener because we often prefer
talking to listening. Listening is often the opportunity to
think what we are going to say next, isn’t it?
So why is it so important who is doing the action? In real-
ity, it is not relevant at all. The most important thing is the
deed itself and its effects. The only one who craves recogni-
tion is our own mind. Our mind lives from our attention and
focus. It needs our undivided notice and recognition of
importance. There are many words for this type of behavior:
greed, selfishness, vanity, ego, and so on. The doer is impor-
tant only in conditional and relative terms. If the actions were
totally selfless, the performer would be irrelevant. In all the
other cases there is some conditional reason or purpose for
the deed as a vehicle to something else. It does not serve a
purpose itself.
The world does not need the doers—only the actions.
Therefore, the doer is not relevant—actually it is only an illu-
sion. This imaginary performer is living only in our own
mind. We would still exist without it and perform the same
tasks and duties. The only thing missing from the picture
would be the self-appraisal and egocentric behavior. Who
needs them, anyone?
This is the original text, and an edited version can be found in the Fragments of Reality -book.
