Sartre and Samkhya- Yoga on Self 113

one's life will nlakc its marks; fourth, what a human being+. sliould or sliould
not become cannot be stated in general terms; and last, onc's acts during
onc's life will dctcrrnine how one's self is to be defined.
At the core of Sartre's position is the notion that the self is a nonsubstan-
tial nothingness. In Being and Nothingness, while presenting a phenomeno-
logical analysis of this nothingness, be reveals the following six semantic and
ontological layers of meanings: the self as a prereflective consciousness, an
ego, a body, a social being, a value, and an egoless person.

Prereflective Consn'ottsness as Self

According to Sartrc, since a human being possesses no essence or naturc at
birth, he or she can be described as a mere consciousness (being-for-itself).'
Moreover, this consciousness that lacks any substantial conrent is nothing-
ness, In radical comrast to this consciousness, the world of objects (bcing-
in-itself), which has a substantial essezlce, is nonconscious. Sanre describes
this consciousness as prereflective. The unique feature of prereflective con-
sciousness is that it reveals itself by being conscious of s0mc.t-hing; i t is an
awareness of being nor an object. By combining the two statements in the
previous sentence, we can obtain a view of the self of the prereflective con-
sciousness. This sdf is the consciousness's realization that ir is notching more
than an awarelless of an object and that, at the same time, it is nor that object.
To put it differently, the consciousness apprehends itself as distinct from the
object of which i t is awarc. Consciousness is other than the object, yet
through awareness of the object, consciousness is revealed, It is never identi-
cal wSh the object except a; death. According to Sartre, the freedom of the
yrcreflective consciousness lies in appreherrding itself as different from the
object.
Sartrek phenomendogical analysis provides the following descriptions of
the prercflcctive consciousness as the self. First, it is nonpersonal and yet
uniquely individual; second, it is an egoless consciousness; third, all emo-
tions, motives, desires, passions, or psychic qualities reside outside it; fourth,
it is the basis for all acts of consciousness; fifth, it cxists as a revelation of an
object; sixth, it is something other than an object; and seventh, it is a nonper-
sonal self-consciousness identical with freedom.

Ego as Self
The yrcrellective consciousness is the basic intentional awareness of the ob-
ject. Through intentional acts, it reveals the world, which is other than itself.
Whiie performing these conscious acts, it becomes aware of them. The con-
glomeralion of these acts, attitudes, and experiences through which con-
sciousness relates to the external worid constitutes one's ego. The self as ego