Ernst Mach: The Analysis of Sensations and the Relation of the Physical to the Psychical

What we call “world” and what we call “self” originate from the same neutral elements—color, sound, pressure—prior to any division into inner and outer. The ego is a relatively stable pattern within this weave. Scientific laws do not uncover hidden substances; they trace recurring relations. Remove the metaphysical scaffolding, and only the patterned field remains.