René Descartes famously stated “Cogito ergo sum” – Latin for “I think, therefore I am“.

Do you agree?  As you think about whether you agree, does the act of thinking prove to you that “I am” –  that you exist?

Clearly something exists – the experience, or appearance, or sense, of being you – thinking (and reading) right now.

But is what exists “I“?

Was Descartes making an assumption that what exists is “I“?

In the experience of being you, is the sense of there being an “I” really primary?

Is “I” the field within which experiences arise – or is “I” actually a feature of the experience itself – part of the form of the experience?

Suppose each moment of experience of being you is like a painting on a canvas.  Is “I” the canvas itself, or an aspect of what’s painted on it?

Or if you prefer a more modern analogy…

Is “I” like the screen of a TV (or smartphone or tablet or whatever gadget you watch stuff on!) or is “I” part of the show playing on the screen?