There is a term used in modern psychology, “The False Mind.” The False Mind describes a state of consciousness where the individual believes themselves to be something but, in the their true essence, they are not.
 
The concept of The False Mind does not always have to be some grandiose ideology where the person believes themselves to be some holy figure, possessing the ability to communicate with god, the angels, or the great beyond, it can be as simply as someone who believes themselves to be that something that they are not. And, this can go across all of the spectrums of existence.
 
I believe with the arrival of age of technological and then later the digital age, the ability to fall into the condition of The False Mind has been exasperated as there became so few ways for one to be held to a universal truth. Instead, people were allowed to simply believe that they were that Some Thing and then send their message out to the world.
 
Certainly, people who believe they are the ONE who possesses some deep religious knowledge, that others are not privy to, has gone on since the beginning of time. But, it became intensified as humanity traveled into the twentieth century. For example, beginning in the 1960s, organization like, The Universal Life Church, advertised in newspapers, and were offering people the ability to become legally ordained ministers for a small fee. I became one. The problem with this mindset is, however, people whom either already possessed The False Mind about what they believed religiously knew, or were allowed to develop this mindset due to the ordination that they were provided with, gave them with the ticket to drawn in followers, devotees, and donators, all to be taught by someone who was simply a Self-Proclaimed Knower. How much damaged have people like that caused?
 
Once upon a time, and still to this day, people were required to go through extensive schooling to become a truly ordained minister. If nothing else, people who followed this path, proved they possessed the discipline for this vocation. They went to school, studied, and earned the degree. Thus, they possessed the true credentials to be what they claimed to be. Through organization like, The Universal Life Church, and others, that valid pathway was no longer required. What has the world be left with? Answer: People self-proclaiming what they are, based upon nothing more than their own belief in themselves. Thus, providing an ideal definition of, The False Mind.
 
Religion is obviously one of the biggest culprits in this psychological understanding. All you have to do is to look at most religious teachers and it is easy witnessed. Yet, people flock to them. In some cases, some teachers grow a vast following. But, what is this based upon? Answer: They are simply transmitting what they believe they know, and people believe them. Thus, is born the perfect storm of ego-driven False Mind and people who are guided down (in some cases) a very dark road.
 
The thing is, most followers of those people who possess The False Mind do know known them on a personal or intimate level. They only know them from afar. Thus, they cannot witness the flaws in their consciousness or the person they truly are. Thus, they remain a Believer.
 
From my own perspective, I have interacted, on a personal level, with a number of people who have claimed to be either spiritual or psychological teachers. Once I got to know them, and I could view beneath the surface of who they projected themselves to be, they were anything but a True or Pure human being. But, most people never get that close to these people to find out who and what they truly are. In fact, some followers just become so lost in the illusion of the person, defined by their own disciple-mind, that they never see through the actual falseness of the person they are devoted to.
 
Obviously, The False Mind is not only lent to those of the religious persuasion. I have seen it rampant in fields like the martial arts and in the film industry and everywhere…

You can always easily tell the person who follows this mindset. They are the one’s who want to be known as the knowers. They are the person who is always telling others what they believe and why. They are the one’s who tell you the what is and the way it should be. They are the one’s who are critical of others—especially those others who are in the same filed as they claim to be the knower of. They are the one’s who try to guide people to believe what they believe. They are the one’s who call themselves a teacher. They are the one’s who try to attract readers, listeners, followers, and disciples. They are the one’s who very intentionally find and develop their own method to get the knowledge they believe they hold disseminated out to the world.
 
As this digital age came upon us, and the internet came to dominate the entire world, The False Mind mindset became rampant. Any Body could seemingly become Any Thing and they would find people to believe and follow them.
 
The fact is, people want to believe. Some people need to believe. They need to find Some One or Some Thing to believe in. How about you? What do you believe in? Who do you believe in? And, do you ever question your reason why?

The thing to remember is that, yes, there are those people who study, learn, and offer their knowledge from a good and positive place. It is easy to define this person, as well. They are the one’s who are not attempting to unduly influence others. Instead, they simply provide them with unbiased information. They teach from a place of purity, offering no judgement, simply allowing any person, who may listen to what they have to say, with some elemental facts that the individual can learn from, use as they see fit, and hopefully grow in their overall understanding of life.

But, here’s the catch. And, it is a big one. The people who possess The False Mind will be the first to believe that what they are doing is being actualized from a good and a pure perspective. As they are locked into their own narcissism, all they can understand is what their own mind is projecting. From this, they will never be the one to understand that they are basing, what they are doing, solely from the perspective of ego, not purity.

There is no real answer for all the case of The False Mind. From the dawn of humanity, some people have possessed mindset. My only suggestion is that before you listen to anyone, before you follow anyone, before you do what anyone suggests that you do, before you ever believe in what they tell you to believe, check out who they really are. What was their training? Due they actually hold a valid, accredited degree in the field they are philosophizing upon? Or, did they simply proclaim themselves to be what they are claiming that they are? Or, maybe, they simply purchased a “Legally ordained ministers certificate,” from an ad in a newspaper.