Process is something that is not permanent and it serves a
specific purpose. It is not the end means but just a way to
carry out something.
We could be seen as a set of processes. Our physical body
changes over time. It creates new cells and destroys the old ones.
It is in a continuous process of keeping itself alive—a biological
process. More interestingly, our consciousness could be seen as
processes as well. Our mind consists of various processes that
come and go. Our state of mind is not permanent. It changes all
the time. Our moods, feelings, thoughts, and observations keep
us busy. These sensations always appear from somewhere, stay
for a while, and then disappear. We cannot freeze them or make
them stay. Also, our self-image is not permanent. All the time
we re-create the concept of ourselves by defining in the now
time our past (i.e., memories) and the projected future consti-
tuting our current perception and definition of who we are.
After breaking apart in very broad sense our existence into
various sets of processes, it is a fair question to ask where we
are. Who are we—are we just the total sum of the processes
happening in us? Where is the self?
How about if there is no self, only processes that keep going
for a certain period of time? Processes do not need self. They
just carry on going. They flow in and out. The combination of
these processes creates the concept of self. Our mind is the
perception of these temporary processes that gives it a point of
view and illusion of “being.” It exists as long as there are
enough processes in motion. Still, it does not control the
actions. It cannot create the process or reproduce them. It can
only adapt and accept—and realize its own place in the puzzle.
And by doing so it disappears as artificial. But the processes
continue flowing in and out until their time has come.
This is the original text, and an edited version can be found in the Fragments of Reality -book.
