Play of the Ego
The soul’s repeated pursuit of worldly objects is driven by the fact that it has seen no other path. Its focus has been fixed on the external world since time immemorial. True sight is obtained when one turns his focus toward the self; until then, despite having physical eyes, the person remains spiritually blind.
There is a critical distinction between pleasure and bliss. The direction of pleasure flows from the self towards the world, chasing fleeting shadows. While the direction of bliss flows from the world back towards the self. The root of all misery is the separation from one’s true nature, that is, the forgetting of the self. Consider a tree uprooted from the earth: it dries up, its leaves wither, and it can no longer bear flowers or fruits. Similarly, a being separated from his spiritual roots dries up in anguish. Its leaves of peace fall away, and the flowers of bliss and fruits of contentment fail to manifest. The enlightened ones have seen only one remedy for this infinite restlessness: to become established in the self.
The Architecture of EgoWhen one loses connection with the self, his vision settles on external associations. Identifying with these temporary associations, the being develops an ego. Ego is essentially the proclamation: “I am separate, I am something.” It is the attempt to stand apart.
This ego is so dear to the ignorant soul that it spends its entire life preserving and nourishing it. Hearing, believing, knowing, and every action is done while keeping the ego at the centre, serving only to strengthen this false identity. To understand the tragic comedy of the ego, consider this insightful parable.
Parable of the Arrogant StoneA child once picked up a stone from a pile and threw it forcefully toward a palace window. As the stone flew through the air, it looked back at the pile of stones – its friends and relatives – and spoke with immense arrogance. “Your standard of living is so low that I can no longer associate with you,” it declared. “Therefore, I am going to the palace”. Its words were designed to make the other stones feel small, inciting jealousy and a sense of wretchedness in them, for they too wished to go to the palace but lacked the opportunity.
The stone, rising high in its conceit, collided with the glass window of the palace, shattering it. The glass broke due to the force of the throw and the hardness of the stone; there was no feat on the stone’s part. Yet, the stone boasted, “Did you see? Whoever stands in my way, I finish them in a snap! This is the fate of my enemies”.
After crashing through the window, the stone landed on a plush carpet. Even in its fallen state, the ego found a way to spin a narrative of success. “How great I must be,” the stone thought, “that a precious Kashmiri carpet is spread for my arrival. I have travelled a long journey and defeated my enemies; such a hero deserves this welcome”. It lay there out of helplessness, its momentum exhausted, yet it deceived itself into believing it was resting by choice.
Looking around the room at the paintings, chandeliers, and furniture, the stone was overwhelmed. “What hospitality! All this has been arranged just for me,” it believed. This is the way of the ego – it believes the sun and moon rise solely for its benefit, that it is the centre of the universe.
Suddenly, a palace servant entered, hearing the noise. He picked up the stone. The stone immediately thought, “The owner appreciates me; he is bestowing honour upon me”. But the servant, in anger, threw the stone back out of the window. It landed back on the original pile of stones. It returned not by choice, but by compulsion. Yet, to save face, it told the other stones, “I missed you all so much. The palace was beautiful, and I was treated with great honour, but I could not bear the separation, so I returned”. The other stones, thoroughly deceived, looked at it with awe. “You are so lucky and great,” they said. “You must write your autobiography so the new generation can learn from you”.
The stone is still writing that story. And is this not the story of every human being? We strive endlessly to nourish our ego. We measure our worth by honour and insult, gaining nothing but delusion.
Until the veil of ego is removed, one cannot become one with the true nature. One tries to live by separating from his real nature, but in doing so, he keeps breaking, keeps losing. Only the one who lives by becoming one with the true nature wins.
The Ego is Extremely PainfulWe often view the ego as a form of security, but in truth, it is the source of our greatest pain. The ego is like an open wound. When someone bumps into a wound, it hurts. We blame the person who stumbled into us, but the true cause of the pain is the wound itself.
If there were no wound, the collision would not hurt. Similarly, when someone speaks abusive words, we feel pain only because the ego exists within us to receive that insult. An egoless person feels no pain when insulted; instead, he feels compassion for the abuser.
The Only RemedyThe soul, separated from its true nature, writhes in agony in the fire of worldly existence; like a fish out of the water. The only remedy for infinite, undisturbed bliss is becoming established in the self.
There is, however, a difference between the fish and the soul. The fish physically leaves the water, but the soul never actually separates from the self; it only forgets it. Therefore, the path to peace is very simple. It is not a physical journey but a remembrance of the self, awareness of the self and attunement with the self. Living in accordance with the self brings bliss; living against it brings defilement and pain. When ‘self’ is misunderstood as ‘ego,’ freedom is corrupted into self-will. True spirituality is to uncover the self and remain steady within it.
Authored by: Pujya Gurudevshri Rakeshji
There is a critical distinction between pleasure and bliss. The direction of pleasure flows from the self towards the world, chasing fleeting shadows. While the direction of bliss flows from the world back towards the self. The root of all misery is the separation from one’s true nature, that is, the forgetting of the self. Consider a tree uprooted from the earth: it dries up, its leaves wither, and it can no longer bear flowers or fruits. Similarly, a being separated from his spiritual roots dries up in anguish. Its leaves of peace fall away, and the flowers of bliss and fruits of contentment fail to manifest. The enlightened ones have seen only one remedy for this infinite restlessness: to become established in the self.
The Architecture of EgoWhen one loses connection with the self, his vision settles on external associations. Identifying with these temporary associations, the being develops an ego. Ego is essentially the proclamation: “I am separate, I am something.” It is the attempt to stand apart.
This ego is so dear to the ignorant soul that it spends its entire life preserving and nourishing it. Hearing, believing, knowing, and every action is done while keeping the ego at the centre, serving only to strengthen this false identity. To understand the tragic comedy of the ego, consider this insightful parable.
Parable of the Arrogant StoneA child once picked up a stone from a pile and threw it forcefully toward a palace window. As the stone flew through the air, it looked back at the pile of stones – its friends and relatives – and spoke with immense arrogance. “Your standard of living is so low that I can no longer associate with you,” it declared. “Therefore, I am going to the palace”. Its words were designed to make the other stones feel small, inciting jealousy and a sense of wretchedness in them, for they too wished to go to the palace but lacked the opportunity.
The stone, rising high in its conceit, collided with the glass window of the palace, shattering it. The glass broke due to the force of the throw and the hardness of the stone; there was no feat on the stone’s part. Yet, the stone boasted, “Did you see? Whoever stands in my way, I finish them in a snap! This is the fate of my enemies”.
After crashing through the window, the stone landed on a plush carpet. Even in its fallen state, the ego found a way to spin a narrative of success. “How great I must be,” the stone thought, “that a precious Kashmiri carpet is spread for my arrival. I have travelled a long journey and defeated my enemies; such a hero deserves this welcome”. It lay there out of helplessness, its momentum exhausted, yet it deceived itself into believing it was resting by choice.
Looking around the room at the paintings, chandeliers, and furniture, the stone was overwhelmed. “What hospitality! All this has been arranged just for me,” it believed. This is the way of the ego – it believes the sun and moon rise solely for its benefit, that it is the centre of the universe.
Suddenly, a palace servant entered, hearing the noise. He picked up the stone. The stone immediately thought, “The owner appreciates me; he is bestowing honour upon me”. But the servant, in anger, threw the stone back out of the window. It landed back on the original pile of stones. It returned not by choice, but by compulsion. Yet, to save face, it told the other stones, “I missed you all so much. The palace was beautiful, and I was treated with great honour, but I could not bear the separation, so I returned”. The other stones, thoroughly deceived, looked at it with awe. “You are so lucky and great,” they said. “You must write your autobiography so the new generation can learn from you”.
The stone is still writing that story. And is this not the story of every human being? We strive endlessly to nourish our ego. We measure our worth by honour and insult, gaining nothing but delusion.
Until the veil of ego is removed, one cannot become one with the true nature. One tries to live by separating from his real nature, but in doing so, he keeps breaking, keeps losing. Only the one who lives by becoming one with the true nature wins.
The Ego is Extremely PainfulWe often view the ego as a form of security, but in truth, it is the source of our greatest pain. The ego is like an open wound. When someone bumps into a wound, it hurts. We blame the person who stumbled into us, but the true cause of the pain is the wound itself.
If there were no wound, the collision would not hurt. Similarly, when someone speaks abusive words, we feel pain only because the ego exists within us to receive that insult. An egoless person feels no pain when insulted; instead, he feels compassion for the abuser.
The Only RemedyThe soul, separated from its true nature, writhes in agony in the fire of worldly existence; like a fish out of the water. The only remedy for infinite, undisturbed bliss is becoming established in the self.
There is, however, a difference between the fish and the soul. The fish physically leaves the water, but the soul never actually separates from the self; it only forgets it. Therefore, the path to peace is very simple. It is not a physical journey but a remembrance of the self, awareness of the self and attunement with the self. Living in accordance with the self brings bliss; living against it brings defilement and pain. When ‘self’ is misunderstood as ‘ego,’ freedom is corrupted into self-will. True spirituality is to uncover the self and remain steady within it.
Authored by: Pujya Gurudevshri Rakeshji
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