Dialogue 'Self-Knowledge'

I have one last question for you, Sir.

Yes?


Who Are You?

Who Are You?

I am Joris.

 You are a name? A sound, a mere utterance?

Well I am my memories, as well.

You are a vision of the past seen through an infinitely small peephole?

Well I am my body, I suppose.

Then why do you call it yours? Are you a possession of your self?


If I keep giving you answers, will you only reply with questions? How can I define myself? Can you give me a real answer?

He smiled. 'Who' is not the more pertinent question, indeed. You know very well who you are. Do not let you fool yourself. Your knowledge does not stretch only as far as you are able to define and put restrictions on an abstract something. Do not be daunted by having no definite answer, for one can only define the finite. You can never answer 'who' somebody is. Therefore, I cannot answer your question.

How shall I know you, then?

The way you know yourself.