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There is something good about our ego

Having an ego is not all bad and below I share with you the good side to it.

An ego I understand is our identity. So it gives us a scaffolding emerging from the pattern of our habits, thoughts and values. Now this identity might or might not be healthy but it affirms our existence as an individual. While it is important to grow and change by aspiring toward Oneness with the rest of existence it is important to return to this identity. This grounds us and helps in engaging the world using the habits, thoughts and values we have collected. Break a pattern and establish a new pattern but we should be grounded all the time.

So yes the ego is not real because it's changing all the time towards Oneness which is real but to not affirm our ego would mean that we let go of the structure it offers to us and that is very disorienting.

Comments

  1. ThinkingMarch 13, 2010 at 12:27 PM

    hmmm...ego is important for the formation of personality of any huiman being.

    No body can live without an ego...unless of their cpature as prisoners.

    Sometimes...one has to leave his/her ego behind and sometimes we have to play with it....

    hmm...nice post Fraz.

    ReplyDelete
  2. CNMarch 14, 2010 at 11:29 AM

    The metaphor of scaffolding is intriguing. How would we describe the self's experience of letting go of the smaller ego when doing so leads to becoming a part of the collective ego?
    Or do you find that this is never a wise action or process...letting go of the self's smaller "ego".

    One small note: I find that the term "ego" is used differently by otherwise similar masters and spiritual novices...so maybe we need help defining our terms? I'm sure I do...

    ReplyDelete
  3. Faraz HaiderMarch 15, 2010 at 12:36 AM

    The metaphor of scaffolding as applied to our ego [or 'smaller ego' term used in your comment] reffers to the habits we live by.

    Habit derives from the word habitat.

    The habits we live by then take the place of a second clothing we wear.

    These can be habits of thoughts we return to, values we live by, etc.

    Every time we emerge from a particular pattern; break it and form a new pattern our Ego changes.

    If the new pattern acquired is more benign and in touch with Reality it is a pattern that moves our ego toward the 'Universal Ego' or Allah.

    ReplyDelete
  4. CNApril 5, 2010 at 7:57 PM

    2nd time reading this...quite practical, Faraz, and helps in the various interpretations inter-culturally of "Ego" the expansive and "ego" the smaller...

    ReplyDelete

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