What the Buddha said is that you are a verb, not a noun. What you’re doing is what is real, not who’s doing it.

Buddha said this is the basic mistake we all make and is why we suffer.

For example, only walking is real, not the walker or the path. And, the more attached you are to yourself – “you” being a thing – the more trouble you get into. 

Mas Kodani, Jodo Shinshu Buddhist teacher