Identifying the Ego
One of the greatest blocks to our connection with divine inspiration is the placing of the Ego as Lord and Master in our life. Society, and indeed our American culture, teaches us that great innovators, artists and musicians had the drive to create masterpieces through intellect. Sure, inspiration was always a part, but Americans have always admired those who are independent self-starters and are "self-made" successes. For example, we were taught in school that Thomas Edison worked tirelessly and had the drive to sleep only four hours each night on his way to researching and developing electronic wonders. Henry Ford, a great friend and confidante of Edison's, earned his place in the pantheon of American commerce with his own contributions and business savvy. It was Ford who said, "Whether you think you can, or you think you can't, you are right!" It seemed that great honor was given those who could do miracles, seemingly independent of the help of others.
When I was younger, I read with great interest the biographies of the great masters, trying to glean insights on how to make myself like them. I was taught that success was achieved only through struggle and hard work. This was instilled in me by my parents' generation, partly due to their having survived the Great Depression of the 1930s. I carried this mentality well into the second decade of my personal work life, often burning the midnight oil in order to achieve higher and higher notoriety as a "hard worker". Success did come into my life, but it was cut short by the recession of the 1980s. I retooled myself, going back to college to get my English degree, and got back on my horse and forged ahead using the same Egocentric mentality of hard work, deprivation and sacrifice. I became part of an unhealthy mechanism that demanded an increasingly greater share of my time and energy.
I knew deep within myself that this pattern had to change. There seemed to be no inspiration other than the overpowering dictates of my Ego to continue the struggle for ever greater honors and promotions. My Ego was in control of my life and there was no joy or logic to the long hours and single-minded obsession to prove my worth. My family life suffered and finally ended, as I often worked seven days a week in my struggle for identity. Finally, there was a breakthrough, as I had to admit that my life had no meaning other than working non-stop to succeed. One day, as I was in my local bookstore, I had an epiphany. The store had recently changed the locations of the various sections of books and instead of heading for my usual Business topics, I found myself in the "Spirituality" section. The still, small voice inside my head told me to "stop and look around". I glanced at the traditional "Power of Positive Thinking", the books of Robert Schuller, the works of the great mystics, before finally reading the dust cover of the "Bhagavad Gita, As It Is" written by Swami Prabhupada.
I was brought up a Christian and was exposed to the foundational works to be found in that religious discipline. But, after reading the Bhagavad Gita, I discovered the lessons of Krishna,
which were compatible with those of Jesus and the great mystics throughout history. I read the Gita in a relatively short period of time, and was motivated to read other seminal works by authors from all traditions. Another great breakthrough was my discovery of the bestselling work of Marianne Williamson in "A Return to Love", which made me identify the ruinous work of the Ego in our life. I was finally on the road to spiritual recovery!
Bypassing the Ego
I guess you could say that my present vocation began when I finished reading the works mentioned previously, as well as the foundational works of other authors. Joseph Campbell's interviews with Bill Moyers, combined into the series "The Power of Myth", gave me practical insights into the archetypes I read about in the works of Carl Jung. As I became more aware of the destructive power of the Ego, I also discovered that I could retake control of my life and find meaning beyond my expectations. The spiritual teachings included in the Bhagavad Gita describe the six branches of Yoga. It seemed that my best intelligence and logic, under the control of the Ego, was misguided. Instead of asking for divine guidance, as even Jesus had taught, I was relying on my own intelligence and eschewing outside inspiration. Because I had spent so much of my time and labor existing in what Krishna consciousness calls the life of the "conditioned soul", it made me think that I simply had to struggle and work harder for success.
A major breakthrough occurred when I discovered Karma Yoga, and realized that I had to make a discipline of bypassing the Ego. When the Ego is in control, there can be no freedom in your life. The limited power provided by the Ego will sometimes work, but, as Jesus said, "What does it profit a man to gain the world and lose one's soul". The "conditioned soul" will cry foul when we try and suppress the Ego, because the Ego is the only master it has known. The Ego tries its best to convince us that we are nothing without its influence. The soul is fearful of losing itself and the effort to break this habit is difficult in the beginning, when we think we are alone in the world and without any outside help. Through constant practice of Karma Yoga, we give all credit and honor, not to the Ego, but to our higher power, God. The main thing is to be faithful to the practice and use meditation as a means to reconnect with universal intelligence. This is a reconnection, because we were originally created and sent into the world with a spiritual connection to divine intelligence. We have forgotten this connection and so think we are separate from the source of creation.
By giving all credit for our work (either success or failure) to God, we don't take ownership of the results of our labors. If we become, as Jesus said, "reborn again, as a little child", we put all of our faith in the guidance and inspiration of divine intelligence. We become, as Mother Teresa said, "vessels of God's unlimited power"; always remembering that it is not our own power that is at work, but it is only after we connect with divine intelligence that we perform miracles. All of the great world spiritual traditions teach the practice of Karma Yoga. It is up to the individual to have the discipline to reconnect with this universal intelligence and energy.
We are sent into the world with our own unique talents. There is no person in existence that has the same exact talents to offer the world. The Ego wants to control these talents and claim them for its own. The practice of Karma Yoga and Meditation will liberate us from the control of the Ego and give us the inspiration and energy to perform at the peak of our potential as unique individuals. "Let your light so shine before men, that they might see your good works and give the glory to God." We are truly successful individuals when we realize the true source of our individual inspiration, and are grateful for our connection with God.
Blessings, Alfred
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