The self is the reference frame, or the 'filter' that world is perceived through. It's the "Me" or the "I". It's an illusion because things that we'd think of as "me" or "I" or "self", when one truly investigates them, aren't what they originally seemed. They turn out to be things that we hide behind in order to interact and deal with the world. They're the stories we tell ourselves.

For instance, all off the matter in your body is the leftovers from the death of long dead stars. Your body was created for you, from a blueprint that has been handed down from generation to generation, since the birth of life on the planet. Your "self" had little to do with it. And it's one we share with all of life here; it's in no way unique. The chemical processes and reactions that allow life to happen work because of the laws of physics that were created by "The Universe". "The Universe" appears to have found a way to conjure up a way for it to experience itself. If the laws of physics were any different, even they tiniest bit, we wouldn't be here.

Your body is made up of, and has grown from the things that you've eaten. "You" created none of it. And it was all powered by the sun. And, what is it that you're calling "You"? Is one of the cells in your body "You"? What about you're liver? Is that You? If you were to lose your left leg, would it still be You? If you had a stroke, or Alzheimer's? All of the things you know are things that have come from outside of your self. Can you tell me about yourself without referring to the outside world? Would you be You if the outside world was different? How would your community changing affect You?

When you look out into the world, what is it that you think you see? You see the thing that you "know". Things you want, and things that get in your way. We don't see things how they really are. Whatever than means. With our eyes, we only see a very limited portion of the electromagnetic spectrum. We see the world only at a certain order of magnitude. We don't see the small. The "self" doesn't see itself as the community of cells that it is. It takes the work of all of them, and calls it "Me". And we don't see the large. We don't really see ourSelves as part of an emergent system of communities we live it.

The Self likes to think that it's important, and it colors and filters all that was see. It's very loud and likes to have it's way. The body processes far more information than the Self gives it credit for, and we have access, in various ways, to much more than the Self is aware of. If one can keep the Self quiet, and not have to label and define and categorize and generalize, and filter, and plan, we have access to the raw infinite that the world really is. Infinite nothingness.