Eastern religions talk about ego as something bad, however do you want to lose..
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Eastern religions talk about ego as something bad. However, One's Ego makes one an individual. Who would find the idea of one losing himself And merging into a shared consciousness as something attractive?
Really is this what is it all for?
Sound a little but dissepointing to say the least.
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Ego es something new, I mean from not longer than two centuries ago. What it is I suppose is the feeling of onselfness.
One thingis true God m us with an ego, just as He made us with a body and a sex and a mind... Why should it be bad or why should we want to get rid of it. My take is that like everything else we should not kill it but trascend it when we reach a condition that has no longer use for an ego, like snakes loose their small skin. But wanting to get rid of it as if it was something bad would be like taking off our eyes because they see bad things...Salaam
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Peace hansolo.
"Put your gun down". Relax brother.
This is not the "Sheriff" or "Marshall" talking to you, this is your friend "good logic"!I admire your enthusiasm ,but asking too many "confused questions" without reflecting ( and checking Qoran/scripture) on the answers/advice given to you by many brothers and sisters here will lead you to trouble.- I also give this advice to myself when I am hot headed-
First ,do not confuse ego with "real self" or "spiritual self".. There is nothing bad in being "yourself" if the outcome is good, but what is bad is "arrogance and selfishness ( This is what is meant by ego) i.e a bad outcome.
Second, a person with an ego is different from a person with a good self esteem and a good personality. Bad and good are not the same.
Finally ego leads to destruction, without ego leads to success.My understanding brother. I am not armed brother, If I had a gun I hope I would only use it against my ego.
But of course you are entitled to ask any questions.
GOD bless you.
Peace. -
Eastern religions talk about ego as something bad. However, One's Ego makes one an individual. Who would find the idea of one losing himself And merging into a shared consciousness as something attractive?
Really is this what is it all for?
Sound a little but dissepointing to say the least.
They have misunderstood the ancient insightful persons (buddha/nabi) in many cases. The own person is not at all bad and you are encouraged to be your own person. What you should not be identifying with is the Homo sapiens body that you reside within and this is your so-called false self. Even once you merged with the Unity of Being (allahu ahad) you will be independently "operating" and have a sensation of personal integrity except that you will feel like "online" with the whole of existence and you will be Ethereal (i.e. bodiless) and henceforth omnipresent.
This is because you are not confined to a body and therefore not limited to its senses of perception (and you are free of its primitive urges). Being in the body is a test whether you can operate in a difficult environment and evolve independently as an individual. If you can take care of yourself and as a bonus take care of others you are also fit of being in a merging with God from which originator you are severed for during your stay on Earth.
You are like Yin and Yang, one good and one bad part. But the best way of perceiving it in my opinion is that you are two persons, much like in the mental disease Schizophrenia and one part of you is a seed of God and the other part is a created contradiction/illusion much like in 'Star Trek' when they enter a 'Holo deck' and its environment acts against them. Even the body you are within is not friendly (healthy) towards you but it seeks to ruin your life although not intentionally but it is just an unknowing poor animal. Its instinctive impulses calls for you to do what makes you only diminish your independent spirit (your true self) and not develop it. This is why one wise spiritual teacher once said "make a separation between the spirit and the flesh" and I am sure that more than only him has ever said it.
Perhaps you might feel that it is mistreatment of your body to not let it indulge in its natural environment, but it will do it even when it does not require it. And the human is highly dangerous to its own environment with its mixed capability of a conscious mind (independent free thinking) and instinct, even more so than any predator animal. All the chaos in the world to date is due to the instinct. It is a blend of all factors in the 'Ten Directives' involved, which prime directives is a remedy to prevent the instinct of ruling over you. E.g. jealousy leads to disturbed thinking which leads to thoughts of greed which leads to desire to dominate which eventually leads to action = war. That was one example, but the human is obviously weak enough to simply give in to the instinct to dominate with a sufficiency weakminded spirit. All the factors of the prime directives lead to a weaker person. And factors combined can overcome a slightly developed spirit.
Be well
Amenuel -
Ego as in thinking about yourself has existed for millennia, but it was in the 19th century they started to research on it as a science called psychology (Freud is a known person on that subject).
GOD made two factors; the spirit and the body. The body is created and it entices to please itself and affects the spirit (the real you), but the question is if that necessarily is a good thing.
One example is It is easier to think something than do it. The reason it is more difficult to do it than think it is because the body drives to make it more difficult. That already shows "the you" consist of two conflicting parameters.
A practical example is for people to quit physically rewarding (stimulating) activities; it might be easy to think "now I will stop it", but the body makes it harder than the thought.
That is also evident in some people who say one thing but do another. The instinct might make it difficult to uphold the promise even though the person was not intentionally meaning to be deceptive. It is therefore important to focus with the mind on letting your yes be a yes and your no be a no, and avoid letting your public reputation (sense of social status) prevent yourself, among other factors.
I would say Think, but leave the body out of it. Think outside of the scope of your instincts and be aware of them. Know yourself. When you make decisions do not let the body interfere. Only then you have the necessary traits of your originator. You need to build up a strong mind, so practice on everything in life. Master the body instead of it mastering you. The faint-spirited will not prevail.
But if you perceive the world as a gift from GOD and to be indulged then unfortunately you have gotten unto the wrong track. That means being deluded, deceived and affected by the intentional corruption of the Earth. Next time you get seriously ill, cannot you also think that "this is a gift from my god"? Okay, now I was mean in sarcasm, but what helps in honestly persuading people like this that the Earth is surely meant to corrupt its inhabitants in all ways, especially the Homo sapiens itself. The Earth is a test environment for you, not a gift, it is something you are subjected to. And your alternative whereabouts as Ethereal is many many times better, so much it cannot barely be compared and then only as lightness and darkness.
Be well
Amenuel -
Peace hansolo.
"Put your gun down". Relax brother.
This is not the "Sheriff" or "Marshall" talking to you, this is your friend "good logic"!I admire your enthusiasm ,but asking too many "confused questions" without reflecting ( and checking Qoran/scripture) on the answers/advice given to you by many brothers and sisters here will lead you to trouble.- I also give this advice to myself when I am hot headed-
First ,do not confuse ego with "real self" or "spiritual self".. There is nothing bad in being "yourself" if the outcome is good, but what is bad is "arrogance and selfishness ( This is what is meant by ego) i.e a bad outcome.
Second, a person with an ego is different from a person with a good self esteem and a good personality. Bad and good are not the same.
Finally ego leads to destruction, without ego leads to success.My understanding brother. I am not armed brother, If I had a gun I hope I would only use it against my ego.
But of course you are entitled to ask any questions.
GOD bless you.
Peace.What is bad is coming from Satan which is of the bodily.
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Eastern religions talk about ego as something bad. However, One's Ego makes one an individual. Who would find the idea of one losing himself And merging into a shared consciousness as something attractive?
Really is this what is it all for?
Sound a little but dissepointing to say the least.
Eastern religions do recognize the ego is a critical necessity for the individual to survive. If someone point a gun at a person, that person must protect that 'me' with the body by either flight or fight whichever is optimal to the circumstances.
However at the higher and more refine levels of life, one must not cling to the ego, i.e. mine, mine, only my way and getting to the extreme of narcissistic.
This is like in a team situation where one let go of one's ego and flow with the team as a team player without emphasis on one's primal ego. The sacrifice of one ego results in synergy thus one will benefit more than if one were to go egoistically alone with one's ego.Since the ego is still essential at the basic level, it is not easy to let go of one's ego when the situation warrant it at the higher level. This is where spiritual training is very necessary to loosen one's ego so that one can use it appropriately in the right circumstances.
So Eastern religion only regard the 'ego' as bad if one do not know how to use it correctly at the right place, conditions and right time.
Losing one's ego at the right time and circumstances results in a net gain .
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Eastern religions talk about ego as something bad. However, One's Ego makes one an individual.
The fatalistic view of everything as absolute Good and Bad actually started by ancient persian (Zoroastrianism)... which then serve as foundation of future religion/tradition to come on the region under Persian domain which then become the prominent religion / tradition on western hemisphere...
The eastern view doesn't hold such absolute good and bad on things.. as it merely a 'perception'..
"When people see things as beautiful, ugliness is created. When people see things as good, evil is created."Death can be good or bad.. it depends.. and so does Birth....
Ego can be good or bad.. it depends....Hard to grasp concept for common westerner...
But kudos to George Lucas who managed to somehow introduce the concept on his popular saga called "Star Wars" series..A 'metaphoric' example Cancer cells...
Cancer cells are cells who refused to 'die' when it supposed time of death are due, it went awol and 'strive' for prolong existence, and some cancer cells even go as far of trying "To Conquer The Entire World" by duplicating itself as many as possible trying to outnumber the 'kuffar'/'infidel'/'unenlightened' normal cells... This effort is obviously fruitless, as the 'host' will eventually die as cancer cells spread and caused 'disharmony' on the entire body function... When the host dies.. so does all of it's cells, cancer or non-cancer cells..Cancer cells seems to be 'evil' on this story.. but are they really?
Even 'evil' cancer cells has their purposes.. it causes 'death' to the entire host marking the end of the host's lifetime... as the host itself also has it's own purposes of being alive and then die...Who would find the idea of one losing himself And merging into a shared consciousness as something attractive?
Those who understand... those who has managed to conquer his/her ego.. as ego strive for continuous existence..
But in any case, any ego / identity will die, it just a matter of time... whether it's individual identity or group identity..(Religion, Nationality, Ethnicity, Race etc..)
What's then the appropriate attitude? Acceptance...
Inner Peace can be as simple as letting go, and resting under the shade of an old tree.