Based on the provided texts, what is the true nature of the self, and what is it not?

Chapter 3 provides a detailed explanation of the true self by first defining what it is not. The self is not the gross body, the mind, the intellect, or the senses. It is also not the unmanifest potential (Hiranyagarbha). Instead, the true self is described as the 'ancient, beginningless Witness,' a form of 'pure, complete bliss.' This 'cloud of consciousness' is our true nature, and the 'descent of Maya' is simply the forgetting of this form. The realization 'I am Consciousness-Bliss' is the state of true Knowledge, where the soul is recognized as Brahman.