During my conversations with friends on general and fundamental problems, ego often takes center stage. While I use it indistinctly, I blame and
praise it as the main vehicle for behavior. But, what is it, where does it come from!!??
I've always think that ego is just a gadget in human existence. I believe that with less ego all we can be more useful because we can start to think in our existence as a important part of the structure of our culture/civilization, and figure how to use it for the benefit of all that can need it... of course that is going to have a good result for ourselves. Yet, I think ego is a natural capacity of see ourselves, part of our mental structure.
Further, I believe ego is what helped us make it through the past, ego is a tool yet we get identified with it in such a way that we end up believing its us. Ego should not be destroyed but understand and embraced in its smallness. Ego is pointing towards the areas where your true self is hurt cause ego was actually made as a way to cope with the environment by repressing ,blocking or holding back that which is really you that in most cases gets dismissed, criticized, judged or even punished. In other words, our minds decide not to show our true nature therefore developing an ego self. Or something like that!!
I did some readings and while one can find some fantastic descriptions (Deepak Chopra), it is mostly philosophical I believe. I read to Schopenhauer's "Studies in Pessimism" and it had a tremendous effect for sure (http://www2.hn.psu.edu/faculty/jmanis/schopenhauer/schopenhauer-4.pdf). I also read Solomon, a fantastic Philosopher who elaborates on the purpose of life and what, in the end, is a good way to spend it. I read some Ecclesiastes too, a pleasure to read--highly recommended.
Now, I'm not having an existentialist issue here.. is for the sake of maybe getting your point of view.
I would like to know what you guys think about it, it can be useful for me as I venture into this concept.
what is the utility of the ego in our existences? can we kill it completely? I don't think so.
-David
I've always think that ego is just a gadget in human existence. I believe that with less ego all we can be more useful because we can start to think in our existence as a important part of the structure of our culture/civilization, and figure how to use it for the benefit of all that can need it... of course that is going to have a good result for ourselves. Yet, I think ego is a natural capacity of see ourselves, part of our mental structure.
Further, I believe ego is what helped us make it through the past, ego is a tool yet we get identified with it in such a way that we end up believing its us. Ego should not be destroyed but understand and embraced in its smallness. Ego is pointing towards the areas where your true self is hurt cause ego was actually made as a way to cope with the environment by repressing ,blocking or holding back that which is really you that in most cases gets dismissed, criticized, judged or even punished. In other words, our minds decide not to show our true nature therefore developing an ego self. Or something like that!!
I did some readings and while one can find some fantastic descriptions (Deepak Chopra), it is mostly philosophical I believe. I read to Schopenhauer's "Studies in Pessimism" and it had a tremendous effect for sure (http://www2.hn.psu.edu/faculty/jmanis/schopenhauer/schopenhauer-4.pdf). I also read Solomon, a fantastic Philosopher who elaborates on the purpose of life and what, in the end, is a good way to spend it. I read some Ecclesiastes too, a pleasure to read--highly recommended.
Now, I'm not having an existentialist issue here.. is for the sake of maybe getting your point of view.
I would like to know what you guys think about it, it can be useful for me as I venture into this concept.
what is the utility of the ego in our existences? can we kill it completely? I don't think so.
-David
1 comment:
I do not know if you can kill the ego... depends on the size!! And you know... Argies...
The ego, as you said, is a tool. It is related to the need to be better than the day before, adn better than the neighbor. It is the fuel of evolution. It is what makes economy work.
Kill the ego, and you kill capitalist societies, but possibly also socilist ones. Because without ego, why would I be interested in doing anything for the survival of the species?
Ego is not a behavior. It is an instict. But if cold is only the absence of heat, a person without an ego would be a person without... personality. (I just like the concept that ego is like heat! No matter how cold it becomes, you never can make it absolute 0 degrees cold!)
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