Last Updated on August 5, 2015
In many spiritual teachings and also through the words of people I know and meet, I discern what I would best describe as form of multiple personality disorder in relationship to the ego. What I observe is an approach which perpetuates an apparent split between the “Self” within Man, and with the so-called “ego” (which is the “I” within Man). What is this ego that is talked about as some kind of entity separate to the Self that is identifying it and talking about it? Often I hear the ego being talked about in third person — this is me and that is my ego, “Oh, my ego really wanted me to get that new car… but I thought the better of it”. Who was it thinking the better of it?
In my experience the approach to the ego taken within most spiritual traditions I have studied is a potentially distorted way of relating to the ego, and I question the long-term benefits of such an approach. The ego is simply our sense of “I”; our sense of self; our sense of I-dentity or what I sometimes call the I-entity. The word entity comes from entitas, which relates to character/nature of being also a relation establishing that a thing exists. The I-entity (our identity) is that character of self that we use to establish that “I” exists. On planet Earth the existence of the “I” is, as far as I know, unique to Man.
Is there something wrong with people having a sense of self existence? Is there something life-taking about a person having a sense of the “I” within their awareness? In my experience, many religions and spiritual paths and New Age teachings suggest there is. I disagree.
I think that where we get into problems is not so much that we have an ego (a sense of self) but rather that at our present level of evolution in consciousness we (the vast majority of human beings) have a relatively limited and oftentimes distorted awareness of what the “I” actually is and what it incorporates. I don’t see this as some sort of error or fault in the human psyche but rather a natural consequence of the present state of development within Man. Would we condemn the caterpillar for identifying with the particular form it takes in that stage of its development, ignorant of the butterfly that is yet to come? Of course not.
What I would like to suggest to you is this: The ego is not something to be suppressed, denied, controlled, condemned, or destroyed. This is as mad as kiling the caterpillar in order to bring about the manifestation of the butterfly. I’ve seen much reference to the notion of transcending the ego, and again it is often suggested that this be done through some form of separating from the ego (in some way), possibly squashing it (in some way), and voila, we go beyond it. Yet how effective is this? Really?
Would it not be more sensible to heal the ego in its present state–to heal our sense of self in our present state–so that this sense of self may evolve into an even higher, fuller, and more spiritually integrated Being? The problems the ego appears to create in this world are the natural result of where it is presently at within its evolution within Man. Just as the monarch caterpillar completely ravages the Swan plant before it establishes its chrysalis and eventually emerges as a butterfly, the ego is also ravaging its world. I’ve seen caterpillars ravage a Swan plant to the degree that the chrysalis’ already formed are chewed off, so they drop to the ground and die. Just this past summer I had a Swan plant which started out with about 15 caterpillars. Eventually only one chrysalis remained hanging, to eventually produce a butterfly. Many others rotted on the ground. Each of these caterpillars was behaving selfishly (moving toward the self) yet at their present state of evolution (in terms of consciousness) their appreciation of what that self is is rather limited. Human beings have the inbuilt capacity to operate at a level well beyond that of the caterpillar.
As I was saying, the key is to heal the ego–to heal our limited and dysfunctional sense of self. Our ego in its present state is setting us–individually and collectively–up with the exact challenges we require in order to evolve to the next natural state of Man. Currently ordinary man is living under the illusion that he/she is seperate and apart from the Cosmos, and this is what we are moving beyond right now. The question is, will a few consume the Swan plant at the expense of everyone else or will we do it some other way that incorporates the life, development, and evolution of all beings?
I think that separating from what we call the ego is a mis-take on reality, just as much as it is a mis-take to think that our limited egoic self is the sum total of what it means (or could mean) to be Man. I think one only has to look at India and America to see an example of each of these extremes playing out and the pain and suffering each approach to reality brings about. In a place like India one can find the height of development of spiritual tradition and exploration along with the denial or at least the devaluation of the ego-self. The result is a country that is on the one hand immensely “spiritual” and spiritually enriched and yet on the other hand in deeply impoverished with people suffering and dying through starvation, poverty, abuse, caste segregation, and exploitation.
In a country like America we find a very different and yet paradoxically a very similar situation. The ordinary sense of ego rules. The ego is it, the be-all and end-all of what life is about. The recent popularity of the movie The Secret is just one tribute to this, where spiritual principles are being promoted (at great financial profit) as a means to the ultimate satisfaction of the egos many socially implanted desires and addictions. I think the capitalization and commercialization of materialism in America is the commercialization of the ego in its present state of evolution–that of being identified with a purely physical (even machine-like) body and the emotions, thoughts, and desires experienced within the framework of that body. Yet here in a country of ego-maniacs and ego-gratification we again find the same situation. People dying not of starvation but of greed and obesity and health degeneration that results from such greed. Oddly, death by starvation and death by chronic gluttony are both caused by malnutrition! In the USA we find a nation of people living in relative luxury yet at the same time impoverished with debt, the relatively absence of heart, and a level of consciousness commonly devoid of a deep sense of spirituality.
Of course, in both situation there are exceptions. If you’re reading this it’s probable you are one of those exceptions. I don’t wish to nullify the reality of those who are an exception to the norm in either of these examples. I fully acknowledge I am using two generalizations to make a point. Generalizations that I think have a great deal of basis in reality.
So, in my experience I observe that neither of these approaches is in itself the answer. Denial of ego and worship of the ego both represent a limited approach to the reality of the Self and the evolution of awareness. Each is a stepping stone along the path we are all on–”we” being humanity. Each brings important lessons in the form of challenges that move the Man toward something that is evolving into a greater embodiment of awareness, and a fuller expression of Divinity.
The key is to expand our sense of self–our I-entity–so that it incorporates more of what is real and less of what is unreal. What I am referring to is not about the inflation of the ego the results in egomania, but rather in each human being expanding their innate awareness of “That which I AM” beyond the limitations it is presently infused with. Just as the caterpillar must answer the call to let go of its present sense of iidentity so that it might arise from that chrysalis as a butterfly, we must let go of out limited sense of self/I and incorporate through the heart a greater slice of Life.
This article is continued in Part Two. Click here to read it.
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