Ego: An Anti-Evolutionary Force

Another Quote of the Week by Andrew Cohen

What is ego?

In an enlightenment context, the word ego refers to a deeply ingrained, unconscious, compulsive, and mechanical need to remain separate and superior at all times, in all places, under all circumstances. Ego is expressed as an irrational refusal to say yes to life, to love, and to God—to an unconditionally positive relationship to the human experience.

The true face of ego is rarely seen for what it is except at those brief moments when you have recognized something as being absolutely positive, wholesome, and good, and are compelled to respond, to say a wholehearted yes to that which you have recognized. It is only in those moments that you come face to face with the force of a powerful inertia within you that blindly resists, defies, and denies that which is radically positive.
This is what ego is: that immovable stance, deep in the human heart and mind, that irrationally resists any call from within or without to embrace the greatest goodness. When we aspire to evolve at the level of consciousness, to live a spiritual life, to become an enlightened person, we open our hearts to the thrilling possibility of something so inconceivably glorious that it's just too positive for most of us to bear.
And it is only when we dare to even consider saying yes to this highest good that we will experience this kind of profound confrontation with our own self—both with the anti-evolutionary force that exists in all of us, and with our normally untapped potential for extraordinary developmental leaps.

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Identifying Your Illusionary Ego

To help you identify your illusionary ego, here are a few common ego game identities that people play with. Each of these ego identities holds a belief about itself and copes with the world by embodying this way of being.

Mr. Defensive:
"I want nobody to like me. If I am unlovable, I can never be hurt again."
Mr. Enlightened:
"I am above it all and don't have any problems or places where I need to grow in my life. Everybody else has problems."
Mr. Nice Guy:
"I want everybody to like me. I am a really a great and loving person."
Miss. Perfect:
"Everything must be perfect in my world. If things are not in order something terrible will happen."
Miss. Lone Ranger:
"I don't need anybody to help me. I am so strong and independent."
Miss SuperGirl:
"I must be successful at all costs. If I am not successful, I am nothing."

One of the most important things that you can do is figure out the ego game that is running your life. The first clue to look at how you tend to act, behave and respond to others generally, specifically when you are feeling uncomfortable. Most people revert back to one way of operating and repeat it over and over their entire life. This game runs every aspect of their lives from their personal life to their financial life. For instance, if your ego plays the Superman or SuperGirl game, your whole life may be about accomplishment to such an extent that you only think of things as how will this help you be more successful. You may ignore your relationships in favor of professional success, or even use relationships to help you create more success. The point is that you build your life around whatever game your ego wants to play and this may stop you from having the kind of life you truly love.

The biggest game of all however is believing that your ego is real. It's about as real as a mirage in the desert.

You walk up to a mirage and think there is an oasis of water there, yet when you reach into it you only pull up a handful of sand. When we hold onto this illusion that the ego exists, we remain trapped in the cyclical wheel of suffering forever. The truth is that the game you are playing will eventually blow up like a balloon and explode! This way may be painful, yet you will one day see how the ego never truly satisfies. Only finding your true authentic self will satisfy you, and truly abolish the illusionary ego from its grip on you forever.

It is difficult to manifest what you truly desire when your ego is in the way. It causes an energetic block to the feelings and thoughts that allow your dreams to manifest. Uncovering your ego game will make you into a manifesting magician! It will set you soooo free so that you stay focused in the direction of your dreams and naturally attract whatever you desire.

Remember that behind this ego masquerade is what you have been searching for, the infinite loving essence that loves every part of who you are. So let's strip off that ego mask today, and discover the truth of who you really are. You deserve to live from the most enlightened place of all, where you know yourself as the Divine Authentic Self.

Courtesy of enlightenedbeings.com

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The Mists of Paroketh: The Veil of Illusion

In Kaballah, The Tree Of Life is a diagram representative of both the process by which the universe came into being and the Path to God. The Veil of Paroketh lies between the Upper Realms and the Lower Realms. It is a symbolic portal through which the consciousness must traverse when traveling upward through the Tree of Life to reach a conscious Union with our Soul.

The Veil of Paroketh is the barrier between our ego and our Soul. "Below" the Veil, the ego believes itself to be the individual's sole identity. Paroketh is called the Veil of Illusion because everything "below" the Veil is an illusion.

True Reality is on the other side, where our Sole resides.

The Veil is in itself an illusion, because there is no real division between the physical and the Spiritual realms.

Many "Lightworkers" have taken the first step towards piercing the Veil and can begin to feel our connection with the wholeness and love of our own Souls. Unfortunately, the Ego has great inertia and as the traveler approaches the Veil, they see reflected back all of the unresolved fears and desires, projected into forms that seem real. The traveler may believe that they have passed through the Veil when in fact they are still lost in an illusion made up of their own preconceptions.

Remember, the Soul's purpose is not personal advancement or self-gratification.

It is to Serve.

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Always Now

The ego will always insist that it needs more time.

But if your intention to evolve, to become enlightened, is more important to you than anything else, you won’t need time.
If there is integrity in your spiritual aspirations, you will be ready now. Good intentions for the future only flatter the ego. When you’re serious, the time is always now.

Unless you intend to do it now, you won’t do it. Evolutionary Enlightenment—which is the experience of consciousness beyond ego in a developmental context—only emerges when now is the only time that means anything to you.

Andrew Cohen

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