Within cognitive systems endogeneous representations exist in their purest form, i.e., in the form of our own experience. It is argued that this private experience, which has image- as well as language-like aspects, can be seen as the product of self-organizing processes in the brain. A functional model of such processes is discussed in terms of memory traces, loop propagation, and formation of temporary loops. The correspondences of this exogeneous representation with the endogeneous representation of our private experience are pointed out.