The Higher Self - your take on it

The Higher-Self is supposedly the permanent aspect of yourself, or the part that acts as the shell of your divine spark, etc.

In the Qabalistic tradition it is sometimes referred to as the Holy Guardian Angel. In Hinduism & Jainism it is called the Atman. In Christian mysticism it is called the Kingdom of Heaven within you.

From my understanding of the concept - it is the vessel of your pure, eternal aspect, whether you call it your soul, divine spark or seed of consciousness. The mind is the mirror of it, a mirror that is tinged with the psychological aspects that give us our personalities and our egos. I also see this mirror has having scuffs, and scratches upon it from karmic influence in due to our past lives, etc.
The mind acts as a mirror to the higher, but the higher does not mirror the lower.

Or at least, that's my understanding of it.

What is everyone's thoughts on the subject?

I was told by my 'higher' self that there was no higher or lower, there was just the undefinable essence that exists within us infinitely. It's undoubtedly a hard concept to explain.

I believe, in my own opinion, the higher self is an energy reflection of our true essence. Therefore we see the unscathed reflection of who we really are, in symbolism.