The Eggo, lacking camouflage, is soon eaten. The ego, lacking substance, is more durable. The Eggo, however, satisfies a hunger. The ego, sadly, only creates one.
@ The Crow: Yes! It sees ego of others too well, but incapable of seeing itself. This is also my message of my latest post on my blog, feel free to visit :) http://thesoulsanctuary.us/2010/02/the-mirror-of-ego/
@ Doug: "I'm an exception to the rule, says the ego..." this reminds me of America's double-standard politics, "no countries should possess nuclear weapons, but me (and my allies) are exception." Whahahahaha. Then I guess the government is one big ego on throne--madness! :p
"...if I were free of ego, would I even bother writing this stuff..."
People often assume that anyone who writes anything must be doing it because of ego. I disagree with this assumption. One may have worked hard at gaining some knowledge, and having won it, may feel moved to share it. Again, this sharing is often seen as being motivated by a desire for some personal gain.
One does what one does. The motive for doing so, may be easily misunderstood. But anything one reads may be suspect, if one is unable to read it with goodwill.
We have all suffered from an overgrown ego. The most important realization is that there is an ego, in the first place. Understanding this, one may choose to demote it to a lesser station, rather than have it shout from the rooftops, posing as the one who displays it.
There must be some use for an ego. It probably exists when nothing else does. But once something more substantial exists, ego is of less and less use.
Ha, ha . . feeding our ego's with eggo's are we Shinzen? Yes, I also love The Crowe's poem, although I'm British, we don't know or have eggo over here, and no ego either, ha, ha . . as if . . ;-)
So, good people, my question to one and all is, "How does one know when the I-ego is no longer ones master?"
Well said Crowe. That is my realization also, as well put as one could possibly hope to put it! The question was designed to get such a response from being ;-)
All there is is this. Writing is happening, it just happens to be happening through this form. It all simply happens :-)
"How does one know when the I-ego is no longer ones master?"
When one realizes the value of complete and total honesty. Honesty: not for virtue, or the effect it has on how others see us, but for the glory of being. When one embodies honesty, the ego holds no further sway. One may no longer misrepresent oneself. One simply is what one is. The completely unique and indispensable fragment of the whole.
Of course Integrity precedes honesty. Integrity is truthfulness with oneself. Honesty is being truthful with others.
Integrity comes from self-integration. Self-integration is the natural 'integrated' state of being. The integrated state is: Being. Character. A body in existence.
In the integrated state there is no egoical personality in action within the psyche. Stillness 'is'.
All that remains is what is, as it is . . just this unfolding . . .
I speak from direct realization of 'This'.
'This' can also be described as the 'nothingness' unfolding as 'everything'.
By the way, Douge: it's crow, not crowe. I know you are English, and shop becomes shoppe, but I am English too, and crow stays crow :) Give my fondest regards to Hemele Hempsteade.
But I digress... For me, what you call integrity and honesty are one and the same: I embraced it/them at the same moment. Also by direct realization. It was easy. It just seemed really, really stupid to not be honest, any more. And so I wasn't. Dishonest, that is. The results are pleasing, if sometimes uncomfortable... Even if one never learned another thing, in life, one could do far worse than to simply be honest.
People, remember the title to this blog post, remember it well; 'The Ego Trap.'
Obviously I've given the Crow something to 'Crowe' about, it's all an aspect of the ego trap . . . Squawk!
Seriously though, I apologize to the Crow, no insults were intended here and I appreciate your honesty Crow. I just happen to know a man by the name of Jason Crowe (with an e) and I fell into the incorrect spelling through name association :-)
However, I find within my being more words are unfolding in response to the last comment. None of these words are intended to be taken personally by anyone, but if you find your ego reacting personally/emotively to the writers words, may I suggest that you observe those reactions within yourself? And then perhaps move beyond them into the nothingness that is unfolding as everything.
You'll notice that the ego will look for an argument even when there isn't one to be had??? Only Ego can argue or fight with ego . . . I can't participate because . . there is no right or wrong here, unless thinking makes it so. If the ego 'thinks' it has been wronged it will let you know, for sure.
A label is just that, it is not what 'I am' . . I am no name, I am no label; 'I' (the reader) am just this . . just 'this' unfolding as words written and read on a blog post. 'This' is unfolding . .
. . . seemingly . . . unfolding . . .
. . . in response to a posting on 'this' blog!
The egoical personality loves labels, and it is attached to them, it sees itself within the label, the label becomes an extension of the ego here in existence. That is why I am up front and let you know that my name, given at birth, is Doug McMillan. But that is not who or what I am :-)
Neither am I '1yogi2many', which is just a ridiculous way of letting you know, that I know, that there is no need for another Yogi in this world. Yogi's are redundant here as are all psychological and emotional labels/attachments. In other words, there has been a transcending of the attachment to being a 'Yogi' here.
If you, the reader of this, are attached to Taoism, Christianity, Buddhism, Vedanta, Advaita etc. May I suggest here and now, when the attachment drops off, then and only then, will liberation unfold; in the end you are all alone, which paradoxically is also oneness . . the liberated one! You may well remain a Taoist, Buddhist etc; but you'll no longer be personally-psychologically-emotionally attached to the subject. You'll be 'free'.
Also, the ego is given life through all attachment, which is reflected in its attitudes, beliefs and opinions. All of which it thinks is honesty, and it will therefore describe its attitudes, beliefs and opinions as being honest. It is all part of the ego trap.
To be 'attached' to a label, be it Crow, Doug, 1yogi2many, Shinzen, Suzanne, Ta-Wan, Simone, Rizal, Gary, C. Om or The Enlightened One is not to be free . . . there is no liberation in an attachment to ones label, be it the one given to you by your parents or one you 'tag' to yourself as some form of pseudonym.
By all means, refer to me as 1Do'h2many, ha, ha ... there is no label here, even if there is one in words, I am not the words . . .
I am 'This' unfolding here . . I am nothingness unfolding as form . . seemingly . . . . but I am one, I am whole; there is only oneness, wholeness, beingness . .
. . . in 'Truth' there is not even an 'I' here. Just this unfolding of nothingness as somethingness. Nothingness is unfolding as everything right now, and here you are reading this; 'this' being your unfolding.
The integrated being is a liberated being. In liberation there is no attachment. There is only 'this' unfolding.
Can 'this' unfolding, be offended by anything, really? Ha, ha, of course not :-)
I have taken, as my name, "Crow". Not because I am one, or identify overly with carrion-eaters. But because: I raised and loved an injured baby crow. Spent every minute attending to it, and observing it. Protecting it. Revering it. Loving it more than I have loved anything. Respecting it, and seeing it for what it was. Emulating it, for it taught me much of what I know.
You may see offense being taken, but that is humour, crow-style. You may see ego, but that is the assertiveness of a crow. You may see argument, but that is the enthusiastic squawking of a crow, hell-bent on living its life and being alive. You may also see yourself in whatever you see. You may be wrong. You may be right. You may be completely neutral. None of it matters to a crow. And that, possibly, is why crows are so often disliked by human beings.
Ego, however, is a hypocrite.
ReplyDeleteIt sees only too well the ego of others.
What it never sees, is itself.
. . . ain't that the truth! However, I'm an exception to the rule, says the ego . . .
ReplyDelete;-)
I like Ego...tastes good with butter and maple syrup...oh, sorry that's Eggos :)
ReplyDeleteWho said that ;-)
ReplyDeleteThe Eggo, lacking camouflage, is soon eaten.
ReplyDeleteThe ego, lacking substance, is more durable.
The Eggo, however, satisfies a hunger.
The ego, sadly, only creates one.
@ The Crow: Yes! It sees ego of others too well, but incapable of seeing itself. This is also my message of my latest post on my blog, feel free to visit :) http://thesoulsanctuary.us/2010/02/the-mirror-of-ego/
ReplyDelete@ Doug: "I'm an exception to the rule, says the ego..." this reminds me of America's double-standard politics, "no countries should possess nuclear weapons, but me (and my allies) are exception." Whahahahaha. Then I guess the government is one big ego on throne--madness! :p
You've just gotta love The Crow, ha, ha . . truth and humour embodied in a few succinct words.
ReplyDeleteExcuse me, but if I were free of an ego, would I even bother writing this stuff?
Am I playing devil's advocate here . . . ???
;-)
Rizal . . yes, very interesting analogy, thanks for sharing :-)
ReplyDeleteCrow: Love the ego/eggo 'poem'
ReplyDeleteFun post Doug...it feeds our ego's! But what the heck...at least we have some insight into our madness, right?
"...if I were free of ego, would I even bother writing this stuff..."
ReplyDeletePeople often assume that anyone who writes anything must be doing it because of ego.
I disagree with this assumption.
One may have worked hard at gaining some knowledge, and having won it, may feel moved to share it.
Again, this sharing is often seen as being motivated by a desire for some personal gain.
One does what one does.
The motive for doing so, may be easily misunderstood.
But anything one reads may be suspect, if one is unable to read it with goodwill.
We have all suffered from an overgrown ego.
The most important realization is that there is an ego, in the first place.
Understanding this, one may choose to demote it to a lesser station, rather than have it shout from the rooftops, posing as the one who displays it.
There must be some use for an ego.
It probably exists when nothing else does.
But once something more substantial exists, ego is of less and less use.
Ha, ha . . feeding our ego's with eggo's are we Shinzen? Yes, I also love The Crowe's poem, although I'm British, we don't know or have eggo over here, and no ego either, ha, ha . . as if . . ;-)
ReplyDeleteSo, good people, my question to one and all is, "How does one know when the I-ego is no longer ones master?"
Hmmm . . . .
Well said Crowe. That is my realization also, as well put as one could possibly hope to put it! The question was designed to get such a response from being ;-)
ReplyDeleteAll there is is this. Writing is happening, it just happens to be happening through this form. It all simply happens :-)
"How does one know when the I-ego is no longer ones master?"
ReplyDeleteWhen one realizes the value of complete and total honesty.
Honesty: not for virtue, or the effect it has on how others see us, but for the glory of being.
When one embodies honesty, the ego holds no further sway.
One may no longer misrepresent oneself.
One simply is what one is.
The completely unique and indispensable fragment of the whole.
Yes, Crowe . . that is true.
ReplyDeleteOf course Integrity precedes honesty.
Integrity is truthfulness with oneself.
Honesty is being truthful with others.
Integrity comes from self-integration.
Self-integration is the natural 'integrated' state of being.
The integrated state is:
Being.
Character.
A body in existence.
In the integrated state there is no egoical personality in action within the psyche. Stillness 'is'.
All that remains is what is, as it is . . just this unfolding . . .
I speak from direct realization of 'This'.
'This' can also be described as the 'nothingness' unfolding as 'everything'.
By the way, Douge: it's crow, not crowe.
ReplyDeleteI know you are English, and shop becomes shoppe, but I am English too, and crow stays crow :)
Give my fondest regards to Hemele Hempsteade.
But I digress...
For me, what you call integrity and honesty are one and the same:
I embraced it/them at the same moment.
Also by direct realization.
It was easy.
It just seemed really, really stupid to not be honest, any more.
And so I wasn't. Dishonest, that is.
The results are pleasing, if sometimes uncomfortable...
Even if one never learned another thing, in life, one could do far worse than to simply be honest.
People, remember the title to this blog post, remember it well; 'The Ego Trap.'
ReplyDeleteObviously I've given the Crow something to 'Crowe' about, it's all an aspect of the ego trap . . . Squawk!
Seriously though, I apologize to the Crow, no insults were intended here and I appreciate your honesty Crow. I just happen to know a man by the name of Jason Crowe (with an e) and I fell into the incorrect spelling through name association :-)
However, I find within my being more words are unfolding in response to the last comment. None of these words are intended to be taken personally by anyone, but if you find your ego reacting personally/emotively to the writers words, may I suggest that you observe those reactions within yourself? And then perhaps move beyond them into the nothingness that is unfolding as everything.
You'll notice that the ego will look for an argument even when there isn't one to be had??? Only Ego can argue or fight with ego . . . I can't participate because . . there is no right or wrong here, unless thinking makes it so. If the ego 'thinks' it has been wronged it will let you know, for sure.
A label is just that, it is not what 'I am' . . I am no name, I am no label; 'I' (the reader) am just this . . just 'this' unfolding as words written and read on a blog post. 'This' is unfolding . .
. . . seemingly . . . unfolding . . .
. . . in response to a posting on 'this' blog!
The egoical personality loves labels, and it is attached to them, it sees itself within the label, the label becomes an extension of the ego here in existence. That is why I am up front and let you know that my name, given at birth, is Doug McMillan. But that is not who or what I am :-)
Neither am I '1yogi2many', which is just a ridiculous way of letting you know, that I know, that there is no need for another Yogi in this world. Yogi's are redundant here as are all psychological and emotional labels/attachments. In other words, there has been a transcending of the attachment to being a 'Yogi' here.
If you, the reader of this, are attached to Taoism, Christianity, Buddhism, Vedanta, Advaita etc. May I suggest here and now, when the attachment drops off, then and only then, will liberation unfold; in the end you are all alone, which paradoxically is also oneness . . the liberated one! You may well remain a Taoist, Buddhist etc; but you'll no longer be personally-psychologically-emotionally attached to the subject. You'll be 'free'.
Also, the ego is given life through all attachment, which is reflected in its attitudes, beliefs and opinions. All of which it thinks is honesty, and it will therefore describe its attitudes, beliefs and opinions as being honest. It is all part of the ego trap.
To be 'attached' to a label, be it Crow, Doug, 1yogi2many, Shinzen, Suzanne, Ta-Wan, Simone, Rizal, Gary, C. Om or The Enlightened One is not to be free . . . there is no liberation in an attachment to ones label, be it the one given to you by your parents or one you 'tag' to yourself as some form of pseudonym.
By all means, refer to me as 1Do'h2many, ha, ha ... there is no label here, even if there is one in words, I am not the words . . .
I am 'This' unfolding here . . I am nothingness unfolding as form . . seemingly . . . . but I am one, I am whole; there is only oneness, wholeness, beingness . .
. . . in 'Truth' there is not even an 'I' here. Just this unfolding of nothingness as somethingness. Nothingness is unfolding as everything right now, and here you are reading this; 'this' being your unfolding.
The integrated being is a liberated being. In liberation there is no attachment. There is only 'this' unfolding.
Can 'this' unfolding, be offended by anything, really? Ha, ha, of course not :-)
It is in my nature to be misunderstood:
ReplyDeleteI have taken, as my name, "Crow".
Not because I am one, or identify overly with carrion-eaters. But because:
I raised and loved an injured baby crow.
Spent every minute attending to it, and observing it.
Protecting it.
Revering it.
Loving it more than I have loved anything.
Respecting it, and seeing it for what it was.
Emulating it, for it taught me much of what I know.
You may see offense being taken, but that is humour, crow-style.
You may see ego, but that is the assertiveness of a crow.
You may see argument, but that is the enthusiastic squawking of a crow, hell-bent on living its life and being alive.
You may also see yourself in whatever you see.
You may be wrong.
You may be right.
You may be completely neutral.
None of it matters to a crow.
And that, possibly, is why crows are so often disliked by human beings.
Short and to the point. Thanks for the contemplation and reminder.
ReplyDeleteThis made me think of the Yoga Sutras. See http://alwaysbeom.blogspot.com/2009/01/egoism-asmita-ys-ii-6.html
OK Crow, well said, now PLEASE . . stop squawking, ha, ha . . and I'll do the same, sorry ;-)
ReplyDelete. . by the way I had a look at your 'Crow' blog, great stuff!
Thanks Eternal Om,
ReplyDeleteI'm away at the moment but will follow up on your link as soon as I can. :-)