Egoism- one of the five obstacles

There are five obstacles that we must master in order to be able to master our lives. The first is ignorance. This means awareness. The second is egoism. The ego is a reflection of your state of mind. It is not your true self, but a reflection. The true self is always falsely represented by the ego until ignorance is removed. The ego is the great evaluator. It takes what it experiences through the senses and makes judgement. The true self which is your soul observes. It does not judge. The goal of yoga is to bring balanced energy to the body and the mind so we quiet the ego and connect with our soul. We are not trying to annihilate the ego, but learn to control it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The ego is the part of you that is prideful, feels self-importance and is righteous.  The soul is humble and values the importance in all of life. The ego is the tool of the soul. We need the ego to right a wrong and to protect us from being abused and mistreated. But like any tool we need to learn how to use it or we will risk getting hurt.

Let’s say you are in a relationship or in job situation that is killing your soul. If you are aware (removing ignorance) you realize that this is not good for your health and will not serve the mission of your soul so you use the ego to give you the self-confidence to stand up, leave and move on. In this way you have used the ego to assist the soul.

 Here is the tool -Ego transcending mudra – a mudra is a gesture. We use gestures all the time to express ourselves. In this mudra we bend the index finger which is symbolic of the ego and place the tip of the thumb into the middle of the underside of the index finger. This is different than the wisdom mudra. In this mudra the ego subsides and wisdom is manifested. You stop take a moment and remind yourself to use the ego wisely. You are not your ego, but your ego is a tool that may be used by the soul for its evolution. Use it wisely.

 

 

Your life is like a flowing river. It knows where it is going and it is best if we just let it flow. But sometimes things get in the way and the ego will surface. Stop take a moment and bend your ego, and then touch it with wisdom. We are not here to win or to lose, but simply to evolve and the best way to evolve is to be aware of the power of your ego and then use it wisely towards the evolution of your soul. Life will present you with many opportunities to successfully complete this mission.  Be aware and stay humble.

Doctor Lynn