Ego? What Ego?
There’s a lot of emphasis these days on taming the ego. As if this facet of the human personality is responsible for all the ills we suffer from. But what if the ego doesn’t exist? How are we supposed to free ourselves from something that isn’t even real? If we really want to free ourselves from the domination of the ego, we need to take a closer look at what we really mean. We need a more effective way to set ourselves free.
We can start by understanding that the term ‘Ego’ is a description, a convenient way of describing something for which there is no measurement. Just as we use arbitrary terms such as hours, centimeters, direction or longitude, these are convenient references that we’ve invented to help us describe the world around us. Yet, when we create a term such as Ego, it’s very tempting to imagine that we’re describing something that’s real. A centimeter has an agreed and precisely-controlled set of characteristics. An hour can be tracked mechanically with phenomenal precision. But the ego doesn’t fall into measurable parameters. It’s a vague description of something we can only try to understand as an aspect of the human personality.
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It's more helpful to appreciate that the entire sense of self is an artificial construct that's been framed and formed by our early childhood conditioning. If we could reduce the impact of ego, we would still be trapped within the illusion of our roles and masks and personalities. No. If you want to experience a deeper sense of identity, the answer is to let go of the layers that trap you within the framework of your familiar thoughts and feelings. Practise mindfulness. Detach yourself from the stream of consciousness. Lose your familiar feelings of identity. There is no difference between you and the rest of the universe. In this moment of profound connection, the illusion falls away and there is no more you and there is no ego.