There's been a lot of talk lately of the 'ego' and how this illusion is the root of all our problems. It got me thinking, what is the point of the ego? Where did it come from? My guess would be that it's a bi-product of the mind in order to give it a sense of identity. I've heard it referred to as the bridge between spirit and mind. What do you guys think?
If you are referring to Freud's idea of the"ego", there really is no such thing. Freud was pretty much a quack. The only thing that he got right was the existence of a subconscious, which influences your conscious thoughts and actions.
Because we try to experience this world, we need a point of view to experience it from. This creates ego.
hear hear.. now in sense the ego is said to be manifested from the sub conscious, if this is the case no two ego's are the same because the way they will be created will depend entirely on what is perceived by the sub concious. This is also the fundemental reason why people argue and can not see eye to eye is because they forget that no two perceptions/ego/identity/self etc etc are the same, they might be simliar but never the same because they are ever changing. If im walking around and the way i percieve my ego in this reality is based on everything in my past, but the future and time exist so eventually ill be exposed to other entities and these entities will show me their perspective. if i accept what is being explained to me then my ego changes accordingly if i dont accept what is being explained my ego changes accordingly. But you can even say that the ego changes with out perception, because your perception of your ego will change when you feel emotion, the emotion will be the fuel of your perception and it will make it seem ever lasting but the truth of it is that its just a temporary state cause eventually something will change it. There is no right or wrong when it comes to the ego because you have to accept that the perception of the ego cant be defined its ever changing cause time and other egos exist.
Well I briefly touched on that in my original post. This is the whole point of making the thread. It's obvious in that we've all experienced it. I just want peoples personal thoughts into how they'd define it/where it comes from/what its point is.
good question. I would define our ego as how we view ourselves. we feel emotions in everything we experience, we feel in every second. maybe when we experience more memorable events that change our thoughts or emotions essentially create the sense of ourselves and that i turn becomes our ego. our role or maybe what we expect of ourselves. the point of an ego is probably to keep us as balanced as possible. i guesss
People simply need to feel good about themselves. They want to think that they're somewhat important, and the feeling of being more important than others is what creates an ego. The thing about an ego is it will never shrink, but only grows more and more.
just like the universe, it doesnt shrink only expands. patterns patterns everywhere you look you see patterns, god created us in his image in the same sense that the conciousness is the same as the universe. but unfortunitely our physical manifestion we call a ego/identity/self is limited due to the fact that all things come to pass and this is the point im trying to make, this is the reason why you cant define ego because you cant define something that is every changing. it theoretically doesnt exist. and the reason we will never bare witness to the truth is because if we are created then we have a god and if we have a god to live in his kingdom we need to not define according to our own perception but just accept it and flow with it and be connected to it. (its not about understanding cause understanding is a physical thing, and all physical things are subjected to change and eventually come to pass. So it theoretically doesnt exist because you cant define something that is ever changing it has no meaning it only is) Cause when you try and define something its proven wrong, cause its ever changing so it theoretically doesnt exist. But the counter arguement to a god is accepting that you are then god because something has to be created and to be created you need a creator a god. But the paradox to this is that then you are only limited to a physical world because you are god and you are aware of your self. and to confine yourself to a physical is stupid.... because you will die! (try not to confuse my words with physical meaning)
Some ppl need an ego, big or small, to give them a reason to live, a sense of purpose/importance, where you stand in your reality ya know what Im tryin to say, I dunno Im pretty baked, makes sense to me though.
You cant fight fire with gasoline or more fire, and you cant fight the ego with more ego. The purpose of ego is sence of identity. The ship must allways have a captain. It gives comfort. Safety. A wall of bricks. The purpose of the ego is to survive. But in the end, its all an illusion. It creates problems (thougts) just to solve them, so it can feel active. The only way to hold it alive is identification with thoughts
the ego, or the self, is a conceptual synthesis; its not just one thing and its not a stable thing, and, as it already been mentioned before, its very difficult to define. a lot of people here seem to think the ego is just pride, or desire, or basically any 'negative' emotion, when the truth is (as i see it) the ego/self is all these things plus more. its your emotions, your passions, ambitions, and instincts. its your very nature, in other words, and its in constant change along with everything else.
I honestly don't know where the ego came from, but I know that it is specific to Earth. Souls incarnate on earth to experience the ego and the 3D reality. The ego gives the soul an experience like no other, and it simply helps us grow. The ego is not "wrong" or "bad. The ego is the ego. Nothing more nothing less. If you are ego-free you will be in bliss and if you are really stuck in the ego than your experience will be much more unhappy...neither is right or wrong though. It ultimately depends on the soul and their path. - peace, joy, love, and light
People worry about having too big or small of an ego. A large ego usually results in a big idiot who condescends those around them. You CANNOT win an argument with them because they have the false illusion of being right all the time. Those with a small ego are pushed aside in society, and look down upon themselves as unimportant and worthless. This causes a lot of teen suicide. Weed makes me feel less important than the rest of the world, but worth more than shit. I know I'm a good person, but I see those who truly are greater and smarter. I like to look at everything through a perspective, and I know that I can always improve Weed helps me put it in perspective I guess
So it's all about managing the negative effects of the ego, rather than trying to destroy it or detach from it completely?