The Ego

# an inflated feeling of pride in your superiority to others.
# self: your consciousness of your own identity.
# Id, ego, and super-ego are the three parts of the "psychic apparatus" defined in Sigmund Freud's structural model of the psyche.
# The self, especially with overtones of self-importance.
# The most conscious part of the mind, which mediates with one's surroundings.
# In the well adjusted person the ego is the executive of the personality and is governed by the reality principle.

In spirituality, and especially non dual, mystical and eastern meditative traditions, the human being is often conceived as being in the illusion of individual existence, and separated from other aspects of creation. This sense of individual existence is that part which believes it is the human being, and believes it must fight for itself in the world, is ultimately unaware and unconscious of its own true nature. The ego is often associated with mind and the sense of time, which compulsively thinks in order to be assured of its future existence, rather than simply knowing its own self and the present.

The spiritual goal of many traditions involves the dissolving of the ego,[citation needed] allowing self-knowledge of one's own true nature to become experienced and enacted in the world. This is variously known as Enlightenment, Nirvana, Presence, and the "Here and Now".

Bibliography: Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Ego (spirituality). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ego_(spirituality). 18 January 2009.


The "ego" as such is something we are stuck with since those who have studied it extensively seem to believe that it is a "part" of us as humans. So when we say we must concur the ego in our practice are we really concurring it or are we simply learning to be in control of it vs. it controlling us?

If that part of us called the "ego" is a part of the mind that "is" and can not be removed entirely then reducing its influences on our thoughts and actions is all we can accomplish then that is enough. Think of it like static which with an effort can be filtered down to a very low, imperceptible, buzz so it is not so distracting is our actual goal of practice in following the Way.

Filtering the static of the "ego" will allow us to see through that curtain the ego continually tries to through up in front of what is and is sometimes called the "Tao", true nature, the Universe, the world as we experience it in this form.

The ego keeps telling us that we are individuals and are separate from everything yet the true nature is that we are not individuals or separate but a part of the whole, or the Tai Chi, that makes us the "one" with the Universe. It tries to hide us from the consciousness that is the Tao where everything comes from in this existence and where everything ultimately returns.

To achieve that connection to the myriad of energies or strings that connect everything to the one we have to lean to control our perceptions of time. We have to leave the past in the past. We have to ignore the thoughts of future for that is not written and is changed at each moment. We must concentrate on remaining in the present moment for that is the only moment that matters. This does not mean that we may need to deal with something of the past that is affecting the current moment nor what may be in the future but it does mean that we must put those past/future thoughts away until actually needed in the moment and focus our attention wholeheartedly in the present moment.

This singular practice we call the fighting arts of Okinawa is our means of achieving that level of comfort with our "ego's" as we practice we experience the achievement of being in the present moment or what some athletes call being in the "zone". This is where you are actually dealing with what is happening in the present moment with no thought of past or future. What we strive to achieve in every day life for health and well-being.

Sometimes even those who are not consciously seeking the way through their practices find the present moment. They find the "zone" and those who truly go beyond their practice find that this experiences carries over into their daily lives. Maybe this is why so much is through of our "coach". A coach is like a Sensei who through the practice of their "sport" helps us to achieve the same goal tho it may not be expressed outwardly.

This is the true meaning of life; it is the true meaning of following the "way"; it is the true meaning!