Dropping the mask and bringing out your original face is the whole alchemy of meditation.

The human condition is such that we often adopt numerous masks throughout our lives. These are the personalities, the images, the roles that society expects of us and that we adopt in order to fit in, to achieve success, to be loved, or to avoid conflict. We become so accustomed to wearing these masks that we often forget who we truly are underneath all of these layers. We become actors on the stage of life, seldom living as our true selves but rather playing parts scripted by societal norms, cultural expectations, ego and fears.

To “drop the mask” is an invitation to let go of these pretences and to confront and embrace our true nature, our “original face”. This is not an easy process, for the masks provide comfort and a sense of identity, however false it may be. But in the dropping of the mask, we embark on a journey inwards, through meditation, where we begin the process of discovering and accepting our authentic selves, with all its perfections and imperfections.

Meditation is the alchemy that facilitates this transformation. Alchemy is about transformation, turning the base into the noble, the leaden personality into the golden essence of who we truly are. Through the practice of meditation, we observe, we become aware, and we start detaching from these layers. We stop identifying with the thoughts, emotions, and roles that are transient and begin to experience the eternal aspect of our existence, the being that remains unchanged regardless of the roles we play.

In this space of meditation, we are not doing, we are being. We are not thinking, we are witnessing. It is here that we may find a sense of peace and understanding that transcends the constant chatter and demands of the egoic mind. It is in this space that we find our true selves – that which does not need to act or pretend, because it is complete and perfect in its own existence.

Remember, the original face is not something new you need to create; it is your intrinsic nature, which is clouded by the unnecessary. It is a process of uncovering, of coming back home to where we started before the world told us who we should be.

So, the quest for one’s original face is at the very heart of the spiritual journey. It is about authenticity, vulnerability, and the courage to face the truth of who we are. It is the ultimate liberation from the bonds of conditioned existence. And this, in its highest form, is the goal of meditation – to know oneself utterly, to be oneself completely.