I am going to try to give you a shortened version of the first part of Chapter 2 of A New Earth. Chapter 1 is basically the purpose of the book which is to bring you a transformation of consciousness or even just a recognition of the unawakened you. It was slow going and I got lost a few times but the good news is that the more you read of the book, the more Chapter one starts to make sense.
The Ego is basically identification with form - physical form, thought form and emotional form. Those are his words – almost exactly. Now here is my take – and remember that I am still connected to the ego so it may be skewed : ) The ego is your association with the world – things, other people, your feelings and emotions and even your own thoughts. It is that constant voice in your head telling you what to do. The problem with that voice is that it is not really who you are because it is skewed by your environment. He calls this your illusionary sense of self. It is who you think you are but that is based on the past. You are not your past. You are who you are right now. That was and still is hard for me to comprehend - how can what I think not be who I am? But if my thoughts are not based in the now then they are based in the past. The good news is that if you can recognize this self as an illusion then it can not exist. An illusion ceases to be an illusion if you know it is one. You will become awakened or aware if you can recognize this illusion. He actually says that this thinking without awareness is the main dilemma of human existence. He goes into detail about how your false sense of self identifies with what you possess – your house, your car and your material possessions – even by what others think of what you have. These things become “identity enhancers”. We need things like shelter and food and housing and transportation but we have lost the ability to honor them. Page 37- “we cannot really honor things if we use them as a means to self-enhancement, that is to say, if we try to find ourselves through them. This is exactly what the ego does. Ego- identification with things creates attachment to things, an obsession with things". You have to figure out if the things you have contribute to you sense of self. If you lost something that was very precious to you how would you feel? Can it just be a thing or does not having it change the person that you are. Think about that one for a minute because it was an “aha moment” for me. Is there anything that I have that would change who I was if I didn’t have it? I thought about all my pictures of the kids – I would be heartbroken if the house burnt down tomorrow and I lost them. But would it change who I am? Of course not! So is it wrong to feel a sense of pride for what you have or feel that you have nicer things than someone else? No! The need to stand out is always there. But you have to recognize it for what it is – the Ego. The Ego isn’t wrong, it is just unconscious. When you can see it you can go beyond it.
So I think I will end here for now. There is a lot more in this chapter but I want to know your thoughts on what I have written so far. Have a great weekend everyone!
3 comments:
OOOOH! So philosophical, my university days (not so long ago) flood back and I smile. This seems like a book I would really like. I look forward to chatting at great length with you on this. I find myself asking if you'll confront the situation of the other, it's a good one and will likely be another good aha moment. This is all very positive get to know yourself better stuff.
As a pack rat, I must say that it's very hard to see the ego for what it is for longer than a few moments because part of us really doesn't want to. When you can regularly see how little the things mean in comparison to the people in your lives it's easier to declutter.
I love this post, you're traveling down a fun path of self actualization, tres cool! I hope it rubs off on me :)
Wow! It has taken me 3 reads to get through it without any distractions. I understand the Ego part, but how do we stop it from "defining" us and who we are? Also the fact that our past should not be who we are?
We all put worth in what we own but the question is how often do we really us ourselves "how does it contribute?". I know I do not ask that question. I have a "need". I guess this will be my new question to myself.
I agree this is a hard read and a finding of you. Can't wait to hear more about it.
It is an interesting concept and one that I've thought alot about. Another one you may remember from university days is the allegory of the cave. What is is all in how you perceive things. You think the shadows on the wall are real if you don't know that the shadows are only the shadows....it really is intersting and very true when you think about it. Some of us allow our egos to rule while others prefer to hide out in the caves and not venture outside to see what is really there.
What happens in the next chapter? I may need to borrow this book from you.
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