Why is there an ego?

[Tistepiste]

It seems as if the path to enlightenment first and foremost is to get rid of the ego. Becoming ego-death.
But if the ego is such a blockage, why is it there in the first place?

Isn't the ego necessary for 'survival'? It's all linked to identity.

How I would see the ego, it is used as a sort of defence - and survival mechanism.
eg.: feeling threatened, so you become more defensive, protective.

Why is it there if it is considered such a thing that blocks you from improving yourself?
Is it a flaw?

[Inliytened1]

Ahh, but to understand this, you must understand infinity itself - it is ALL possibilities.

Your ego, my friend, is one possibility.

It is infinity/GOD, making itself forget that it's infinity in order to become one possibility.  One perspective.

In that way the "great mind" of reality can "be" in all of it's infinite ways.

The questions you are asking are coming from the perspective of YOUR ego, so of course you would ask those questions!

 If infinity wasn't infinity, there wouldn't be a YOU asking THESE QUESTIONS!

[SoonHei]

@Tistepiste keep this in mind

this "ego" becomes a thing once you come to know it

 

just like "gravity" is now a thing vs 2000 years ago... gravity was still there but without its label

 

10 minutes ago, Tistepiste said:

It seems as if the path to enlightenment first and foremost is to get rid of the ego.

what if someone does not know the concept of an ego... does that person still need to get rid of it? as a checklist on the way to enlightenment?

 

getting rid of all concepts is what's required... ego is ONE of the concepts

 

and getting rid of all concepts is what's required <- is also a concept  <- is also a concept  <- is also a concept .... 

 

ALL JUST IS

 

[Inliytened1]

@Yousef Because infinity is everything............... EVERYTHING.   Everything means every POSSIBLE thing - one of which is the illusion of your ego. ...and "nothing" (can't put a word on that really) and the computer in front of you, and the sky, and on and on and on. 

It might seem like a shallow, woo woo answer - but once you get an actual "hit" of absolute infinity through enlightment, it becomes very apparent.

[SoonHei]

@Inliytened1 have you had direct experience or glimpses?

[TheAvatarState]

@Tistepiste it seems everyone else is giving abstract answers, which don't really answer you're question... Let's look a little more practically. 

In the universe's infinite intelligence, why would a thing as "ugly" as an ego need to be created? Is it not the source of all suffering in the world? Yes. But let's start to appreciate what it actually did: All scientific progress, all national competition, all striving and dominating, has accelerated the human race (technologically) to what it is today. The ego is the driver, and it simply wouldn't have been possible without it. The illusion of you having a separate experience, that's ego, and very necessary for survival. 

And yet, society is still in the dark ages psychologically, because we're still dominated by egoic desires. Start to see ego as what was necessary to become what we are today, and we're just now getting  to a point where rapid increases in consciousness are possible without hindering our survival. We're entering an age of global transcendence of the ego, to really reach our full potential. 

[Inliytened1]

Yes i sure have, i responded to your other post just now...

[Inliytened1]

@TheAvatarState Good points!

[Tistepiste]

@TheAvatarState So you're saying, the ego was necessary to come to this point.
And the way we developed til now (thanks to the ego), we've passed the survival point for which the ego is not necessary anymore?

 

@SoonHei I am not sure if I agree with that. If you "label" the ego or not, it is still there and will still cause an effect on you.

I didn't know lots of my mental struggles were due to my Ego. I didn't know what an Ego was until 3 years ago.
And until I realized that, I got better at handling it.

My point is, if you don't know what an Ego is, that doesn't mean that the Ego doesn't have you in its grip.

Edited December 14, 2018 by Tistepiste

[Aquarius]

The ego doesn't die when you get enlightened. It keeps your body alive. It just becomes dormant and functions in the background. Ego is not evil, it just... exists. 

Heal your ego before you let go of it. It ain't going anywhere because it's a construct of the mind-body.

Edited December 14, 2018 by Aquarius

[Jack River]

Is there room for fear/confusion/conflict in everyday living? 

[TheAvatarState]

@Tistepiste Yeah, that's basically how I see it. You have to appreciate the amazingly complex social structures (societies, governments) that had to be created in order for people like us to survive after dropping ego. Don't take any of this stuff for granted. Not just the structures, but the freedom of speech, millions of people had to die for us to have the freedom to do this work and not get persecuted or hanged. Of course we still have a ways to go (legalization of psychs, etc.) but in most first world countries, you can do this work from the comfort of your home, without worrying too much about base survival needs.

I said we're starting an era where the average person can do this stuff, not that all of society is READY to do this. We're still far from it. So much of the world is still at stage red/blue/orange! I'm just saying that transcending the ego is our main goal, but the ego was needed in order to create the vast and intricate social systems necessary for this to work. We are at the precipice of a vast, global awakening, just watch.

[Shin]

Because otherwise you couldn't experience suffering.

[Nahm]

@Tistepiste There isn’t an ego.   The why question is asked from the level of reason & rational thinking, and seeks a satisfying “why” answer. But that “why” answer will also be in the level of reason & rational thinking, so that could go on forever, in a relativity loop. There is much more than reason & rational thinking. 

[Shin]

2 minutes ago, Nahm said:

@Tistepiste There isn’t an ego.   The why question is asked from the level of reason & rational thinking, and seeks a satisfying “why” answer. But that “why” answer will also be in the level of reason & rational thinking, so that could go on forever, in a relativity loop. There is much more than reason & rational thinking. 

There is from his point of view.

[Tony 845]

@Tistepiste Mooji quoted once as saying prior Enlightenment your ego is like the sun during a sunny day & after enlightenment you're ego is like the moon during the day time! It's there but you can barley see it, great analogy. 

[Hellspeed]

Society. 

[Inliytened1]

You are partitioned consciousness.    Why is consciousness partitioned? Again God cannot experience everything without partitioning itself.  

[Nahm]

@Shin ?

[Hellspeed]

3 hours ago, Inliytened1 said:

You are partitioned consciousness.    Why is consciousness partitioned? Again God cannot experience everything without partitioning itself.  

Not true. This partition is created by society.