Human Becomings [Poem]

What is a human being?
Do you understand what goes on
between your ears, behind your eyes?

We are a cacophony of desirous voices,
each of them trying to shout above the others
to get itself fulfilled.
Have you ever taken the time to hear them?
Those myriad wantings,
each one calling itself "I"?

This one says:
"I want to express my vicious strength!!
Crush, Kill, Maim, Burn, Slice!
And is there anyone strong enough to return the favour?!"
In today's world one rarely listens to this violent "I".
It would be impolite. But sometimes he gets out of his cage.

This one says:
"My too-too tender heart is covered with scars,
each one deep, incurable, and horribly unjust"
says the I of melancholia.

This one says:
"I want to climb the highest peaks!
Where is the trial strenuous enough to purge me of my weakness?!
And who will lavish me with gold and glory when I am victorious?"
says that ambitious I.

This one says:
"Every inch of my skin desires to be touched!
Ah! This physical body was made for ecstasy.
More explosive pleasures! More, more!"
says the I of lust.

This one says:
"Oh, my heart is overflowing with sweetness!
Here, stranger! Here, friend!
Have some of this kindness and love.
There is enough for all!"
says the well-praised I of kindness.

This one says:
"Shiny toys, rare books, golden coins..
I hardly have enough space for it all!
Well then! I will just need more space!"
says the I of greed.

This one says:
"Everything in this world is a weight too heavy
for me to carry. Why should I even bother,
when this bed is so so comfy and warm?"
says the I of laziness.

This one says:
"This world! So much mystery!
I would need six eyes and three brains,
to learn everything I want to know!
Where is a great teacher who will fill my thirsty mind with knowledge?"
says that curious I.

What we call "self" is merely
the temporary compromise
between these innumerable longings.
"Self" is always subject to change,
and "Personality" is simply a set of habits.

You see,
The phrase "human being" is false.
We are not "human beings",
for the word "being" implies fixedness,
of which there is none in us!
The self is a turbulent river-
always changing relentlessly.

We are "human becomings"

for we are not the same person year by year
or day by day
or even from one moment to the next.

But there is more to us than this.
Deep within -
hidden by body, thoughts, emotions, and "I" ' s,
is the soul.

Just as space contains all,
but is itself unaffected by the thing it contains,
so too does the soul
contain your sensations, your past, your moods,
but is itself eternally unchanged by these things.

What you call your self is the weather,
and what is known as the Soul is the sky.
Aum.

If one could feel one's "I" to be located here,
in the soul,
then one could for the first time in their entire lives
be a human being
instead of a human becoming.
Aum.