What is the Ego?

[ChiForce]

Is your post contributing in any sense ? No. See if you can try and contribute instead of mounting yet another personal attack.

Look at this..

 

http://thedaobums.com/index.php?app=forums&module=extras&section=stats

 

I don't make over 30 posts per day talking about the same shit.  You have only been a member for less than 1 month but you have more post counts than me...Hahahahhahahahahaha.....   Maybe 100 posts short but  I am sure you will surpass me in few days...hahahahahahah...yeah, talking about the same shit......

Edited August 11, 2015 by ChiForce

[Karl]

Look at this..

 

http://thedaobums.com/index.php?app=forums&module=extras&section=stats]http://thedaobums.com/index.php?app=forums&module=extras&section=stats[/url]

 

I don't make over 30 posts per day talking about the same shit. You have only been a member for less than 1 month but you have more post counts than me...Hahahahhahahahahaha..... Maybe 100 posts short but I am sure you will surpass me in few days...hahahahahahah...yeah, talking about the same shit......

What has that to do with the definition of ego ? Unless you are simply demonstrating yours of course. It appears to me that most of your post count appears to be mud slinging and most of mine are polite replies to your mud slinging. Better I think if you simply desist from doing that, it serves no purpose but to wind you up and increase my post count, which then winds you up.

Edited August 11, 2015 by Karl

[Perceiver]

Ego is to believe. Knowing is its opposite. I suspect that everyone on the planet has an ego.

[MooNiNite]

Ego is to believe. Knowing is its opposite. I suspect that everyone on the planet has an ego.

 

Interesting distinction. 

 

Knowing has some type of limitation? Like a person believing isnt enough?

[Bindi]

I can directly know evidence of my activity, but I see no evidence of any other.

 

 

Maybe it really doesn't matter [for now] if it's separate or not in reality, as long as ego itself is recognised.

Edited August 11, 2015 by Bindi

[Kubba]

Ego (in the meaning of the cause of delusion) is just the grip on the body and it is limitted to its own boundries, which are simply desires that causes all suffering..., thats all that has usefull meaning for the beginning

Edited August 11, 2015 by Kubba

[3bob]

Ego can certainly be a clever lawyer seeking to twist everything to it's own ends. I think the unchecked, undisciplined ego followng it's own false perspectives can be insane, but there are healthy integrated egos too.

 

The irony is that it is often said that one has to develop a strong healthy ego before it can be intergrated/transcended.

 

I believe this is a very important point Rex touches on... btw, an ego that at some point or another has been blown away and cracked open by truth deeper than itself and which even it can't fully deny starts coming around and no longer has the iron grip of hidden or not so hidden doubt/ fear that it once did.  In other words a certain honesty that recognizes that the inner war can't go on forever in the way it had been before the first big crack in its shell.  (also lets not forget the saying of a Lotus flower rising up out of the murky mud and water) 

[Bindi]

I believe this is a very important point Rex touches on... btw, an ego that at some point or another has been blown away and cracked open by truth deeper than itself and which even it can't fully deny starts coming around and no longer has the iron grip of hidden or not so hidden doubt/ fear that it once did.  In other words a certain honesty that recognizes that the inner war can't go on forever in the way it had been before the first big crack in its shell.  (also lets not forget the saying of a Lotus flower rising up out of the murky mud and water) 

I agree it is an important point, and I question whether healthy ego is possible or if healthy ego is another function separate from ego, what I am calling 'a sense of self worth'. Can ego have a dual character? If unhealthy ego transforms into healthy ego, then where is the need for transcendence, transformation would seem to be enough.

 

So my question is 'is the nature of ego dual, or singular and negative'.

[3bob]

I don't know, try the caterpillar analogy with the larva and then the bug-(ego) becoming the butterfly - thus at some point the larva and bug-(ego) die but they are not killed per-se for if that was the case then there would be no resulting butterfly or matured soul,  and that is a very simple example that try's to point to the evolution of the soul - yet inside the larva, the bug, the butterfly and the soul there is that which is  beyond evolution, not unlike an eternal sub-atomic force/Being which was never born and never dies but still ultimately powers the previously said forms, which I'd say points to the "Self" per Sanatana Dharma.

Edited August 12, 2015 by 3bob

[Bindi]

How about replacing the words 'healthy ego' or 'sense of self worth' with 'mature persona'. So it is the mature persona which recognises the reality of the situation, and which doesn't have to be destroyed, that is immune to the delusions that ego promotes.

Thus the whole ego can be transformed/transcended, through the insight of mature persona, which knows its own true value and has no need of ego's delusions.

[Apech]

How about replacing the words 'healthy ego' or 'sense of self worth' with 'mature persona'. So it is the mature persona which recognises the reality of the situation, and which doesn't have to be destroyed, that is immune to the delusions that ego promotes.

 

Thus the whole ego can be transformed/transcended, through the insight of mature persona, which knows its own true value and has no need of ego's delusions.

 

 

Person or persona is a word derived from the masks that ancient greek actors wore on stage.  usually it is said that the 'person' is the mask but actually the word per-sona means 'through sounding' and refers to the actors voice which comes through the mask.  the mask could be that with which one identifies as being you but the 'through sounding' voice is the energy of the field/spirit which vibrates through i.e. life itself, divine power whatever - your true identity.

 

This is to me the trick with the ego - that it is false and your true nature is the spirit itself - we need to realise this.  But as the ego is a falsehood then it is important not to waste time in struggle with it but to learn to lift identification.

 

'waste not time opposing evil but steadfastly affirm the good'.

[Bindi]

I use the word persona in the psychological sense, ie. (in the psychology of C. G. Jung) the mask or façade presented to satisfy the demands of the situation or the environment and not representing the inner personality of the individual; the public personality (contrasted with anima ).

I mean mature persona as having broken down this façade that was created without awareness from a very young age, breaking it down on purpose as an adult, to create a new persona formed with awareness and thus in tune with inner reality and spirit. It is this persona that I am suggesting has no need for ego delusions.

[Karl]

I use the word persona in the psychological sense, ie. (in the psychology of C. G. Jung) the mask or façade presented to satisfy the demands of the situation or the environment and not representing the inner personality of the individual; the public personality (contrasted with anima ).

I mean mature persona as having broken down this façade that was created without awareness from a very young age, breaking it down on purpose as an adult, to create a new persona formed with awareness and thus in tune with inner reality and spirit. It is this persona that I am suggesting has no need for ego delusions.

 

That's close. Still, accepting who you are without prejudice is easier than inventing new persona. Saves energy. Green ego.

[Bindi]

I wouldn't choose to accept my subconsciously motivated ego without prejudice, leaving it free to weave its delusions at will. I'd prefer the long way around. I think the potential rewards of ego transcendence more than justify the extra energy required.  

[Karl]

I wouldn't choose to accept my subconsciously motivated ego without prejudice, leaving it free to weave its delusions at will. I'd prefer the long way around. I think the potential rewards of ego transcendence more than justify the extra energy required.  

 

You are perfect as you are Bindi. If you choose to do this or that then that's your choice. One way or another it makes no difference, you can't escape you essential being.

[Apech]

You are perfect as you are Bindi. If you choose to do this or that then that's your choice. One way or another it makes no difference, you can't escape you essential being.

 

 

What?  It doesn't matter what you do, what choices you make?  really?

[3bob]

going back to the caterpillar analogy if you will, no matter how clever the creeper bug -(or ego) on the ground becomes it  will   never be butterfly enabled or fly with true wings, thus it can read about butterflies, get visited by butterflies, and may even be given a short ride through the air by a butterfly but until it grows and at some point gives up its creeper bug-ness it is still limited to the ground... btw. can a butterfly land and then creep along on the ground like it used to as a bug? - yes, if it has a need to but it will never again be the creeper it once was. 

[3bob]

the "un-nameable" is perfect as it is, yet it can not manifest without a matrix to do so, thus all these neo types walking around saying you are already "perfect" are only doing so from a conceptual point of view in reference to that un-nameable (which is sometimes called Spirit) yet I'd say that does not mean said matrix/soul is fully built and or fully and actively functioning for Spirit, further it matters or has an effect on the  manifest as to what a matrix/soul does for the working of Spirit, yet that matrix/soul can do nothing without the power of Spirit.

Edited August 12, 2015 by 3bob

[Tibetan_Ice]

From Kundalini Tantra - Saraswati.

 

Love overcomes ego

Anahata chakra can be aroused and awakened by the practice of bhakti yoga, in which there is no place for egotistical consciousness. Your devotion can be for God or guru. It is easy to practise devotion to God because he does not check your ego, or even if he does, you don't know it. But when you practise devotion to guru, the first thing he does is 'egodectomy.' So when you direct your devotion to guru, you have lots of difficulties. If you only meet your guru from time to time, the problems are invisible, but if you live with him, the problems are greater. Therefore, many people think it is safer to have a guru who is no longer living.

Not only is ego an obstacle on the spiritual path, it is also the greatest barrier to harmony and cordiality in family and social life. Therefore, in order to treat the ego there are two very important paths. One is karma yoga and the other is bhakti yoga. Ego can never be removed by intellectual persuasion. It can never be subdued or eliminated unless you develop the highest form of love. Just as the sun removes darkness, love removes ego. These two can never coexist.

So, in order to induce anahata awakening we should definitely practise bhakti yoga.When kundaliniis established in anahata there is absolute devotion and even a confirmed atheist will change. However, awakening of anahata is not only a way to God or guru, it is also a way to complete unity and harmony in family life. Therefore, in India, most Hindu women are initiated into bhakti yoga at a very young age. When they are four to six years old they are taught to practise devotion to Lord Shiva, Krishna, Rama, Vishnu, Lakshmi, Durga and so on, because it is easier for women to develop anahata chakra. For this reason women are also told to use anahata as their center for meditation, whereas men are generally advised to concentrate on ajna chakra. Anahata is the seat of human love and the seat of divine love. They are not two things, they are one and the same.

 

 

From "Merging With Shiva"

In this text it also refers to the "death of the ego".

 

Friday

LESSON 285 Divine Sight

And Illumination

The sixth force center is âjñâ, or the third eye. Åjñâ chakra means “command center” and grants direct expe- rience of the Divine, not through any knowledge passed on by others, which would be like the knowledge found in books. Magnetized to the cavernous plexus and to the pineal gland and located between the brows, the âjñâ chakra governs the superconscious faculties of divine sight within man. Its color is lavender. Of its two “petals” or facets one is the ability to look down, all the way down, to the seven talas, or states of mind, below the mûlâ- dhâra and the other is the ability to perceive the higher, spiritual states of consciousness, all the way up to the seven chakras above the sahasrâra. Thus, âjñâ looks into both worlds: the odic astral world, or Antarloka, and the actinic spiritual world, or Íivaloka. It, therefore, is the connecting link, allowing the jñânî to relate the highest consciousness to the lowest, in a unified vision. This center opens fully to the conscious use of man after many experiences of nirvikalpa samâdhi, Self Realization, resulting in total transformation, have been attained, although visionary insights and, particularly, inner light experiences are possible earlier.

 

The composition of this chakra is so refined, being primarily of actinic force, that a conscious knowledge of the soul as a scintillating body of pure energy or white light is its constant manifestation. From here man peers deeply into the mind substance, seeing simultaneously into the past, the present and the future—deeper into evolutionary phases of creation, preserva- tion and destruction. He is able to travel consciously in his inner body, to enter any region of the mind without barrier and to reduce through his samyama, contemplation, all form to its constituent parts.

 

It is not recommended on the classical Hindu yoga path for one to sit and concen-trate on this force center, as the psychic abilities of the pineal gland can be prematurely awakened over which control is not possible, creating an un- necessary karmic sidetrack for the aspirant. Visions are not to be sought. They themselves are merely illusions of a higher nature around which a spiritual ego can grow which only serves to inhibit the final step on the path, that of the Truth beyond all form, beyond the mind itself. Therefore, the pituitary gland, which controls the next and final center, should be awakened first. This master gland is located about an inch forward and upward of the left ear, near the center of the cranium. At that point one can inwardly focus awareness and see a clear white light. This light is the best point of concentration, for it will lead awareness within itself and to the ultimate goal without undue ramification.

 

The sahasrâra, or crown chakra, is the “thousand spoked” wheel, also known as sahasradala padma,

“thousand-petaled lotus.” Actually, according to the ancient mystics, it has 1,008 aspects or attributes of the soul body. However, these personae are transparent—a crystal clear white light, ever present, shining through the circumference of the golden body which is polarized here and which seems to build and grow after many experiences of sustained nirvikalpa samâdhi, manifesting a total inner and outer transformation.

 

The crown center is the accumulation of all other force centers in the body, as well as the controlling or balancing aspect of all other sheaths or aspects of man. It is a world within a world within itself. When the yogî travels in high states of contemplation, when he is propelled into vast inner space, he is simply aware of this center in himself. In such deep states, even the experi- ence of light would not necessarily occur, since light is only present when a residue of darkness is kept, or since light is the friction of pure actinic force meeting and penetrating the magnetic forces. In the sahasrâra, the jñânî dissolves even blissful visions of light and is immersed in pure space, pure awareness, pure being.

 

Once this pure state is stabilized, awareness itself dissolves and only the Self remains. This experience is described in many ways: as the death of the ego; as the awareness leaving the mind form through the “door of Brahman,” the Brahmarandhra, at the top of the head; and as the inexplicable merger of the âtman, or soul, with Íiva, or God. From another perspective, it is the merger of the forces of the pituitary with the forces of the pineal. Great inner striving, great sâdhana and tapas, first activate the pituitary gland—a small, master gland found near the hypothalamus which regulates many human functions, including growth, sexuality and endocrine secretions. It is inwardly seen as a small white light and referred to as “the pearl of great price.” When the pituitary is fully activated, it begins to stimulate the pineal gland, situated at the roof of the thalamic region of the brain and influencing maturation of consciousness expansion. The pineal is inwardly viewed as a beautiful blue sapphire. For man to attain his final, final, final realization, the forces of these two glands have to merge. Symbolically, this is the completion of the circle, the serpent devouring its own tail. For those who have attained this process, it can be observed quite closely through the faculty of divine sight.

 

[Kubba]

 

 

 

From "Merging With Shiva"

In this text it also refers to the "death of the ego".

From my understanding The second is more like a description of how yogis are practicing, and seems they do it after piercing all granthis. It is not the description of what to do before it takes place, and it shouldent be forced.

[Karl]

What?  It doesn't matter what you do, what choices you make?  really?

 

Only from the perspective of self. You already are as you are. You can go on and on thinking that this isn't so, or you can choose to accept you are as you are.

 

 

[Apech]

Only from the perspective of self. You already are as you are. You can go on and on thinking that this isn't so, or you can choose to accept you are as you are.

 

Well, that just seems meaningless to be honest.

[Wells]

.

Edited May 10, 2016 by Wells

[Tibetan_Ice]

Gurudeva says here that the ego is actually a form of dualism:

From Merging With Shiva:

To reach this emancipation beyond all joy and sorrow, all difference and decay, the soul must remove, in order, the three fetters: karma, which is “the power of cause and effect, action and reaction;” mâyâ, which is “the power of manifestation” sometimes called illusion; and ânava, “the power of egoity or veil of duality.” Once freed by God’s grace from these bonds— which do not cease to exist, but no longer have the power to bind—the soul experiences nirvikalpa samâdhi. This is the realization of the Self, Atattva Parabrahman—timeless, formless, spaceless—a oneness beyond all change or diversity. Self Realization is man’s natural state, which each soul eventually comes to.

 

Edited August 12, 2015 by Tibetan_Ice

[Tibetan_Ice]

Well, that just seems meaningless to be honest.

I think it might be some form of Neo-advaita.