Identity Crisis

 The primary quality or the original condition of a pure mind, a pure self,
is peace. Initially there was no confusion about 'who I am'. As time passed
by, and we came in the process of birth and rebirth, we began to identify
with what we are not, starting with our own physical form, and then with
external things like lands, positions, material possessions and people.
These multiple identities generated the first confusions. In those moments,
our inner peace was broken. This is why today so many people suffer from an
identity crisis, but are so used to living in this crisis that they are not
even aware that it is a crisis. They are not sure what they should be. They
are constantly comparing themselves with others. They regularly aim to be
like others. They even imitate (copy) the lifestyles of others: all signs
that they don't know who or what they are. And if they think they are sure
about who they are, the stability it brings does not last for long, as it is
almost always based on 'something' external to the 'self’, something that
must therefore be subject to change. In other words each and every one of us
has learned to identify with something we are not.
This loss of true self-identity, at the most deep level, the spiritual
level, is what gives rise to fear. And when what we fear might happen
actually does happen, we get angry and try to control what we cannot
control, so that it doesn't happen again.