Why is it important to be aware? You will find that not only will awareness allow you to go beyond your ego-based mind and fill your life with a clearer "view" of reality, but it will also keep you out of harm's way. Awareness can also bring more peace and enjoyment into your life. This is because you can begin to really choose your experiences and choose feeling good over feeling bad. Not only that, but awareness is also one of the stepping stones to pure awareness.
To recognize when you are aware and stay there sounds easier than it really is. Once you attempt to become aware a problem arises. That problem is being able to know when you are aware. Without knowing what awareness is, you cannot begin to recognize it. And if you can't recognize it, you can't maintain it.
As humans we experience life in five different states of consciousness. People's minds are in one of five places at any given time. They can be driving a car, walking, listening, meditating, reading a book - practically anything and their minds will be in one of five places. Even when they are asleep they will be experiencing one of these five places whih are: waking sleep, absorption, attention, awareness and pure awareness.
If you can recognize these five experiences, you will be able to recognize the moment you become aware. And when you are able to recognize awareness you can practice staying there. That ability to recognize awareness and maintain it is necessary for pure awareness. It's that simple. By closely examining these different experiences, you can see how they are indeed individual experiences. Once you are capable of recognizing them, awareness becomes clear and identifiable.
Next, we will explore the five experiences of consciousness. Check back tomorrow.
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Transcend the Ego
When you are able to recognize the ego as simply an attachment to your values and feelings, you can transcend it. To transcend the ego doesn't mean to get rid of it - it means to see it for what it is, an illusion, a manifestation of the mind. This is why knowing the self is so important. The technique of being able to observe yourself while talking and listening is one of the best ways to self-observe. The knowledge of one's own identify releases the ego from the self. Your ability to recognize the ego for what it actually is depends upon how far you are willing to go in developing awareness.
A friend of mine recently had an experience of transcending the ego. He said, "I was at the airport last week waiting for my wife and some of her garden club friends to arrive from Georgia. While I was walking around inside the terminal, I was intentionally observing how the self would vacillate from being awake and aware to being egocentric. I was walking down the hallway and saw a drinking fountain and decided to go get a drink of water when a young woman walked in front of me heading for the fountain. My ego took hold, and I began walking faster. Observing this little reaction in the self led me to slow down, smile and graciously motion for her to go ahead. She smiled back and accepted my offer to go first. A feeling of well-being enveloped me with the knowing that it is possible to observe the self."
This was one simple gesture of tolerance between two beings that occurred by simply being awake in the moment. One wonders if that tolerance could occur between nations; it's nice to think that it could.
The ego as well as the self, is an illusion, pure and simple. They are both obstacles that stand in the way of becoming purely aware. Ideas about yourself and concepts of the outside physical world keep you from realizing that you are the same energy that is everywhere and in everything. By understanding how your ego works, you can slowly and steadily move further into the reality of what you truly are.
Next, we will take a look at how you can recognize awareness.
A friend of mine recently had an experience of transcending the ego. He said, "I was at the airport last week waiting for my wife and some of her garden club friends to arrive from Georgia. While I was walking around inside the terminal, I was intentionally observing how the self would vacillate from being awake and aware to being egocentric. I was walking down the hallway and saw a drinking fountain and decided to go get a drink of water when a young woman walked in front of me heading for the fountain. My ego took hold, and I began walking faster. Observing this little reaction in the self led me to slow down, smile and graciously motion for her to go ahead. She smiled back and accepted my offer to go first. A feeling of well-being enveloped me with the knowing that it is possible to observe the self."
This was one simple gesture of tolerance between two beings that occurred by simply being awake in the moment. One wonders if that tolerance could occur between nations; it's nice to think that it could.
The ego as well as the self, is an illusion, pure and simple. They are both obstacles that stand in the way of becoming purely aware. Ideas about yourself and concepts of the outside physical world keep you from realizing that you are the same energy that is everywhere and in everything. By understanding how your ego works, you can slowly and steadily move further into the reality of what you truly are.
Next, we will take a look at how you can recognize awareness.
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Let go Ego!
Sit comfortably in a chair and take a few deep, slow breaths. Place you attention on your breathing and imagine a soft, white light coming down from above enveloping your body giving you more love and kidness than you have ever had. Feel the light and the love and just let it be absorbed into your very being while you relax and breathe.
Slowly allow the light to enlarge and encompass anybody who happens to be nearby. Let the soft, white loving-kindness light fall upon you and the other people. Think of someone you love very much and envision what they might be doing at this very moment. Allow the loving-kindness to shine down on them giving them all the love and kindness the light has to offer. Sit for a while and just enjoy watching them receive the love.
Now think of someone you really don't like. Envision what they look like, what they might be wearing and doing right now. Allow the loving-kindness to shine down on them. Be contenct and watch them receive the love and kindness. Let the light get larger and completely envelop the entire world, giving everyone and everything loving-kindness.
As long as you are in loving-kindness the ego will stay at bay. You can practice as often as you like. Don't be concerned with how long it takes because the amount of time is not important. It could be an hour it could be a minute. The important thing is to be able to visualize and feel the light and the love.
Next - how to transcend the ego.
Slowly allow the light to enlarge and encompass anybody who happens to be nearby. Let the soft, white loving-kindness light fall upon you and the other people. Think of someone you love very much and envision what they might be doing at this very moment. Allow the loving-kindness to shine down on them giving them all the love and kindness the light has to offer. Sit for a while and just enjoy watching them receive the love.
Now think of someone you really don't like. Envision what they look like, what they might be wearing and doing right now. Allow the loving-kindness to shine down on them. Be contenct and watch them receive the love and kindness. Let the light get larger and completely envelop the entire world, giving everyone and everything loving-kindness.
As long as you are in loving-kindness the ego will stay at bay. You can practice as often as you like. Don't be concerned with how long it takes because the amount of time is not important. It could be an hour it could be a minute. The important thing is to be able to visualize and feel the light and the love.
Next - how to transcend the ego.
Monday, June 27, 2011
Evolution of the Ego
Why does the human have an ego? What good does it do to see yourself as separate and distinct as well as better or worse than someone else? Even though the ego is not tangible, it is something that is interwoven into your personality much like habits, dialect and mannerisms. The ego is the expresssion of all your values and feelings that have filtered down from thousands of generations in addition to all of the various environmental interactions that have occurred in your lifetime.
The human brain has taken a long time to evolve to its present day reasoning ability. No other animal on the face of this earth has the ability to see cause and effect like the human. Not only that, no other animal can speak and articulate thoughts like the human.
Humans have no defensive mechanisms such as scales, hooks, barbs, faings, claws, etc. Humans had a difficult time surviving in the hostile world thousands of years ago. Can you imagine having to live in an environment with large carnivorous predators that could rip your head off, no quick-stops or supermarkets, no ready-made clothes, no schools, none of the many conveniences we take for granted today. People back then had to survive on their own ingenuity, intelligence and capabilities. Those that survived passed their genes on to their offspring. As time went on the human brain became larger and smarter.
The cerebral cortex became the lifeline to living in the hostile environment of that ancient civilization. Humans became capable of performing complex cognitive functions such as thinking in the abstract, tool making and language. The brain became the organ of defense as well as offense. Humans soon were able to imagine, visualize and come up with ideas. They could now understand cause and effect and take control of their own destiny. The age of reasoning was born and humans became the hunters rather than the hunted. With this larger brain they saw themselves as separate from the world and all the other species that inhabited it. They now had a past, a present and a future - an identity they called self.
With the capacity of reasoning, conceptualizing and abstract thought, humans now had the ability to compare and judge. Humans could see one thing happen, then another thing happen and put the two together and formulate a cause and effect. They could compareand judge and predict the future, a tremendous advantage over all the other creatures. This ability to see one's self as not only separate and distinct, but also as better or worse, is what modern man calls the ego. The ego is impossible to isolate and describe because its roots go deep into the very fabric of our ancestral heritage. The ego is polygenic - reaching far and wide encompassing all humans that have ever lived - all of their fears, desires, relationships and pleasures - all of the values and feelings. The ego became an extension of the self.
Next, we will take a look at how you can lessen the hold the ego has on you, and transform negative thoughts into positive thoughts.
The human brain has taken a long time to evolve to its present day reasoning ability. No other animal on the face of this earth has the ability to see cause and effect like the human. Not only that, no other animal can speak and articulate thoughts like the human.
Humans have no defensive mechanisms such as scales, hooks, barbs, faings, claws, etc. Humans had a difficult time surviving in the hostile world thousands of years ago. Can you imagine having to live in an environment with large carnivorous predators that could rip your head off, no quick-stops or supermarkets, no ready-made clothes, no schools, none of the many conveniences we take for granted today. People back then had to survive on their own ingenuity, intelligence and capabilities. Those that survived passed their genes on to their offspring. As time went on the human brain became larger and smarter.
The cerebral cortex became the lifeline to living in the hostile environment of that ancient civilization. Humans became capable of performing complex cognitive functions such as thinking in the abstract, tool making and language. The brain became the organ of defense as well as offense. Humans soon were able to imagine, visualize and come up with ideas. They could now understand cause and effect and take control of their own destiny. The age of reasoning was born and humans became the hunters rather than the hunted. With this larger brain they saw themselves as separate from the world and all the other species that inhabited it. They now had a past, a present and a future - an identity they called self.
With the capacity of reasoning, conceptualizing and abstract thought, humans now had the ability to compare and judge. Humans could see one thing happen, then another thing happen and put the two together and formulate a cause and effect. They could compareand judge and predict the future, a tremendous advantage over all the other creatures. This ability to see one's self as not only separate and distinct, but also as better or worse, is what modern man calls the ego. The ego is impossible to isolate and describe because its roots go deep into the very fabric of our ancestral heritage. The ego is polygenic - reaching far and wide encompassing all humans that have ever lived - all of their fears, desires, relationships and pleasures - all of the values and feelings. The ego became an extension of the self.
Next, we will take a look at how you can lessen the hold the ego has on you, and transform negative thoughts into positive thoughts.
Sunday, June 26, 2011
Ego Characteristics
By studying the ego in myself and talking to others I have come up with seven characteristics of the ego. Do you agree or disagree and can you think of some others?
1. The ego maintains the world as an illusion. The ego doesn't allow you to see the world in awe and wonderment. It keeps you isolated and separate, biased, and judgmental. This is why the ego is often said to be an illusion.
2. The ego defends. When someone gives you constructive criticism you might start explaining to them why you did what you did. When you try to defend your actions, that is the ego talking. The ego takes everything personally. You may even come back at the person, telling them what they did wrong. The ego can be offensive as well as defensive. The ego must maintain a positive self-image.
3. The ego is never satisfied. When the ego gets what it thinks it wants, it wants more. A person can have a big house, an expensive car, fine clothes, money, and still not be satisfied.
4. The ego is who you think you are. When you are identified with your name, your past, your values, your desires and feelings - these things are who you think you are. In other words, the ego is the exaggereated expression of your values and feelings - the personification of your personal mandala.
5. The ego needs thought to exist. Without thinking, the ego cannot exist. You can experience this by simply concentrating you your breath and nothing else. You will have no thoughts and no other experiences, except for breathing, and, therefore, there will be no ego.
6. The ego is elusive. When you think you have gotten rid of the ego it will reappear as something else: another thought, another concept, another bias. The ego will do everything in its power to remain alive and well.
7. The ego is time-limited. The ego believes that death is the end of the person - the being that inhabits the body. The ego needs to see the body, the name, the past and the future as real in order to be real itself. The ego must defend and protect this identity at all times and at all costs.
As TKay and MBeloved point out, the ego is not always a bad thing. Go back down and look at the third paragraph under Deadly Ego. However, the ego is neither good nor bad - it just is. For the most part, the ego is an illusion - a manisfestation of the mind.
Next, we will look at the evolution of the ego. Where did it come from and what purpose does it serve?
1. The ego maintains the world as an illusion. The ego doesn't allow you to see the world in awe and wonderment. It keeps you isolated and separate, biased, and judgmental. This is why the ego is often said to be an illusion.
2. The ego defends. When someone gives you constructive criticism you might start explaining to them why you did what you did. When you try to defend your actions, that is the ego talking. The ego takes everything personally. You may even come back at the person, telling them what they did wrong. The ego can be offensive as well as defensive. The ego must maintain a positive self-image.
3. The ego is never satisfied. When the ego gets what it thinks it wants, it wants more. A person can have a big house, an expensive car, fine clothes, money, and still not be satisfied.
4. The ego is who you think you are. When you are identified with your name, your past, your values, your desires and feelings - these things are who you think you are. In other words, the ego is the exaggereated expression of your values and feelings - the personification of your personal mandala.
5. The ego needs thought to exist. Without thinking, the ego cannot exist. You can experience this by simply concentrating you your breath and nothing else. You will have no thoughts and no other experiences, except for breathing, and, therefore, there will be no ego.
6. The ego is elusive. When you think you have gotten rid of the ego it will reappear as something else: another thought, another concept, another bias. The ego will do everything in its power to remain alive and well.
7. The ego is time-limited. The ego believes that death is the end of the person - the being that inhabits the body. The ego needs to see the body, the name, the past and the future as real in order to be real itself. The ego must defend and protect this identity at all times and at all costs.
As TKay and MBeloved point out, the ego is not always a bad thing. Go back down and look at the third paragraph under Deadly Ego. However, the ego is neither good nor bad - it just is. For the most part, the ego is an illusion - a manisfestation of the mind.
Next, we will look at the evolution of the ego. Where did it come from and what purpose does it serve?
Friday, June 24, 2011
Deadly Ego
In the last post we saw how a negative ego can cause an outward effect and possibly harm others. Next we will see how a negative ego can harm the one with the ego.
I had a good friend, whom I'll call Justin. His number one value was achievement. Justin got his bachelor's degree at 20 and his master's degree at 22. He married a beautiful woman and they had two lovely children. When Justin was 30 years old he began work on his doctorate. He finished all of his coursework for the degree but was having trouble writting his dissertation. It seemed every time he submitted his thesis to his committee they would reject it for some reason or another. His wife found him slumped over his desk at home one evening with a suicide note. Justin had shot himself in the head. He was so attached to achieving his Ph.D. that he completely lost sight of everything else in his life. It was a tragedy for everyone concerned.
This doesn't mean that the ego is always expressed in negative and unhealthy ways. There certainly are situations where the ego is expressed in positive ways. Single donations of one dollar are given by unknown donors to all kinds of needy causes every day adding up to millions of dollars a year. Even single donors giving millions of dollars is not uncommon. All of this is okay because there is nothing wrong with feeling good. This type of ego is healthy for both the donor as well as the recipient. Gift giving is done worldwide and among all cultures. It has been going on for thousands of years and will probably continue for a thousand more because it feels good for everybody concerned.
Next, we will take a look at the seven characteristics of the ego.
I had a good friend, whom I'll call Justin. His number one value was achievement. Justin got his bachelor's degree at 20 and his master's degree at 22. He married a beautiful woman and they had two lovely children. When Justin was 30 years old he began work on his doctorate. He finished all of his coursework for the degree but was having trouble writting his dissertation. It seemed every time he submitted his thesis to his committee they would reject it for some reason or another. His wife found him slumped over his desk at home one evening with a suicide note. Justin had shot himself in the head. He was so attached to achieving his Ph.D. that he completely lost sight of everything else in his life. It was a tragedy for everyone concerned.
This doesn't mean that the ego is always expressed in negative and unhealthy ways. There certainly are situations where the ego is expressed in positive ways. Single donations of one dollar are given by unknown donors to all kinds of needy causes every day adding up to millions of dollars a year. Even single donors giving millions of dollars is not uncommon. All of this is okay because there is nothing wrong with feeling good. This type of ego is healthy for both the donor as well as the recipient. Gift giving is done worldwide and among all cultures. It has been going on for thousands of years and will probably continue for a thousand more because it feels good for everybody concerned.
Next, we will take a look at the seven characteristics of the ego.
Thursday, June 23, 2011
Ego Out Of Control
Let's take a look at someone's mandala and see how the mandala expresses the self and how that in turn can produce a negative ego.
Sally's number one value is intimacy when it comes to relationships. She believes that intimacy is really the only way two people can stay together. According to Sally, anything else is purely artificial and could never last. Tom and Mary, on the other hand, value acceptance and take separate vacations every year. Sally can't understand how Tom and Mary can stand to be apart for two whole weeks. Sally's attachment to her values is being projected outward to other people. She expects other people to have the same values that she has. "Surely something must be wrong with their marriage," she thinks. She begins telling other people about Tom and Mary and how their marriage is on the rocks. This begins a vicious rumor that spreads within the surrounding community. Before too long everyboey is talking about how Tom and Mary can't get along and are having trouble with their marriage. This is just one little example how someone's attachment to the values can become an ego and, in turn, harm someone else.
Next, we will take a look at how an out of control ego can have even a more drastic effect on a person.
Sally's number one value is intimacy when it comes to relationships. She believes that intimacy is really the only way two people can stay together. According to Sally, anything else is purely artificial and could never last. Tom and Mary, on the other hand, value acceptance and take separate vacations every year. Sally can't understand how Tom and Mary can stand to be apart for two whole weeks. Sally's attachment to her values is being projected outward to other people. She expects other people to have the same values that she has. "Surely something must be wrong with their marriage," she thinks. She begins telling other people about Tom and Mary and how their marriage is on the rocks. This begins a vicious rumor that spreads within the surrounding community. Before too long everyboey is talking about how Tom and Mary can't get along and are having trouble with their marriage. This is just one little example how someone's attachment to the values can become an ego and, in turn, harm someone else.
Next, we will take a look at how an out of control ego can have even a more drastic effect on a person.
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