'Self' is an impression of dualism caused by karmic propensities
brought over from countless life, it is also known as the seventh
consciousness. 'Presence' is impersonal, pure consciousness. Shi fu
says even after a glimpse of reality, karmic strength can pull one
back to samsara... So of course there is a difference between 'jian
zhen' and 'xiu zhen'. Now, the seventh consciousness is due to this
karmic propensity, or karmic strength. It continues to be very
strong even after a glimpse. What happen after that is often one
will want to recapture the experience mentally.. It becomes an
object, 'I Am' or a 'self'. They sink back to a 'source', something
like a witness that is separated from the world, appearance and
samsara. We see a lot of that in other religions, "atman-brahman",
and so on. So to transcend that it is necessary for subsequent
realisations and deepening of the experience and clearing of bonds.
Thusness says, the formula for clarity is: 1/Self. It is alright to
say "all is Self"... Ken wilber still says that, many highly
enlightened authors say that. Even mahayana sutras sometimes say
that... But there is a subtle difference. If there is a slightest
sense of exclusion, a divide of the perceiver from the perceived,
then they have fallen into error. So j krishnamurti says, there is
no observer other than the observed. Or something like that. And
thusness says, appearance IS the source.