What Is Ego In Terms Of Enlightenment?

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When we go around in a belief, “I am so great or I am the smartest person in the world”, people will immediately say, “Look, he has so much of ego”, isn’t it?

Even, in our day-to-day conversations, so often we pass judgements, ‘such and such person is so egoistic whereas that other person is quite humble.’ On what basis do we decide that a person is egoistic? When we see a behaviour that smells of pride, arrogance, rudeness or impoliteness of any kind, or it seems to be falling short of modesty, humility or a nature that is gentle and kind, we term that as ‘ego’ in the worldly life.

However in terms of spirituality, the end goal of which is enlightenment, the definition of the term ‘ego’ is very different. So, come let’s together understand that definition today…

Param Pujya Dada Bhagwan says, “The belief of ‘I am John (you may insert your name here)’ is ego.”

This may make us wonder how can there be ego in believing that, ‘I am John’? But that verily is called ego in the spiritual realm.

Param Pujya Dada Bhagwan specifies, “To impose ‘I’ where ‘I’ does not belong is called ego. Ego is when you do not know who you are and you identify yourself with that which you are not.”

We all living beings are aware that ‘I am’; however, we do not know ‘Who I am?’

Therefore, we mistakenly believe the body or the name given to the body to be our self. And where there is consciousness of ‘I am this body’, that is where ego is. To believe ‘I’ to be where ‘I’ is not is called ego.

What is the origin of the ego?

What does it take for a shadow to arise in the light of Sun or for a thing to reflect in front of a mirror

Nothing! It just happens naturally, isn’t it?!

Similarly, as soon as the two elements:

1. Matter, and

2. Soul (the true Self)

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come together, the ego arises.

Just as rust arises as soon as iron comes in contact with the salty air naturally, similarly the coming together of the matter element and the true Self gives an instant rise to ego naturally. Consequently, the wrong belief (illusion) of ‘I am the body and I am the doer’ arises. And through these wrong beliefs, the worldly cycle continues life after life.

The true Self and the Ego are totally distinct.

Until there is ego, the awareness of the true Self cannot be there; it is all illusory awareness. Therefore, as long as ego exists, worries, stress, tension are bound to be there. But when seated in our true Self, the worries and tensions are all gone; rather there is experience of only eternal bliss. Ego suggests impurity while the true Self is totally pure. Ego binds whereas the true Self liberates.

The ego dies and the ego lives; but people, due to the ignorance of the Self, say ‘I died’. ‘I’ is the true Self (Soul), which never dies for it is eternal by its inherent nature. Nothing happens to the true Self!

Where there is ego, the worldly life perpetuates. But as soon as we realize our true Self, our worldly life begins to come to an end. The worldly life has arisen because of ego, and ego stops after attaining Self-Realization.

To say ‘I am’ while being the true Self is not egoism, To say ‘I’ while being in the worldly self is Ego.

Where all we believe that ‘I am this…I am this…’, it is all egoism. Ignorance of the Self is the main impediment.

This implies each and every living being that has the ignorance of ‘Who am I’ has an ego. But if one’s ignorant beliefs somehow get fractured, egoism on its own disappears and ‘I am a Pure Soul’ manifests. With the knowledge of the true Self, our ego dissipates.

The Pure Soul is the true Self.

‘I am a Pure Soul’ is the only egoless state. When Gnani Purush, the Enlightened One, puts in a line of demarcation between the worldly self (Ego) and the true Self (Soul), the wrong belief of ‘I am the body’ gets fractured and our Soul is enlightened. We attain the knowledge of the true Self; we attain the awareness of ‘I am a Pure Soul’ and everything begins to settle down.

Thus, the quick and easy way to get rid of our ego is to attain Self Realization. And the quick and easy way to attain Self Realization is through the grace of the Living Gnani Purush!!!

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