[Moonglow]

Originally Posted by Greenslade

Namaste Moonglow

You're very welcome.

Right, now I see where you're going with this.

What people often don't do is look at individual pieces of the clockwork and how they operate together, they look at the parts they like and ignore the rest. Like Spirituality does, which is why all this whole discussion of ego of so sideways - because we're looking at two very different definitions of ego here. Everybody wants to be the epitome of Spirituality, nobody wants to remember the human parts that are the reasons and foundations of their Spirituality.

So, to clarify; Spirituality good, anything else ignore. So, of parts of that conscious mind don't have anything to do with Spirituality, ignore them.

Yes, it is all of the conscious but the secrets of conscious lie in the questions and not the answers. "What am I conscious of?" To Spirituality the only consciousness that means anything is consciousness of Spirituality - whatever that means and any other consciousness doesn't exist. To the Soul any consciousness is consciousness just the same and neither good nor bad.

If you didn't have an ego you wouldn't have a personality and you'd find it difficult to relate to anyone, or rather they're find it difficult to relate to you. Nobody particularly wants a friend who doesn't have a personality, and being alone would mean your Spirituality takes a serious hit. You'd be discussing the Spirituality of nobody Loves me.

The confusing thing is that there are two definitions of ego and that's what we're dealing with here - that's where the confusion lies. There's the psychological ego which is essentially "A sense of I am" as Jung put it, and there's the Spiritual ego which is the root of all evil. Very Victorian but let's not mention that bit. It's the Spiritual ego that's discussed in here and not the psychological one, and the Spiritual ego is an ideology. Ideologically speaking we should be the epitome of all that is good and kind and Spiritual. Ego death doesn't 'kill' the ego, it's merely a lack of judgement but we're hardwired for judgement anyway so it never really goes away. Ironically being the epitome of Spirituality is judgement.

You can't 'kill' the psychological ego because it's a sense of "I am" - I am Spiritual, I have these beliefs and I don't like you challenging them. If we didn't have en ego we wouldn't be able to function in the real world, we'd be gone completely gaga.

One trick I suppose is not to get caught up in it, another trick is to forget the whole idea and get on with your Life in any way you see fit. If that means you have an ego and a personality, so much the better because it adds another 'layer' to consciousness. If it means you express yourself by playing in the puddles with the kids, being free from the self-imposed should-be raises your vibrations.

Ego IS Spiritual growth because without ego we'd be medicated up to the eyeballs in a psyche ward. For all that Spirituality goes on about consciousness and awareness, it's not conscious nor aware of what it's talking about sometimes.

As we have aspects of ourselves - the Spiritual, ego, mind, body, Soul..... that combines into one 'unit'. Each single past Life is another 'unit' and each is an aspect of your Higher Self or whatever else you call whatever is 'up there'. The curious thing that there is no time and both Spirituality and science agree, only science has the better visualisations of how it works. If that's the case, what does that say about 'past' Lives if there is no past? Because while you're asking about what else you are, there's still even more to come.

Namaste Greenslade,

Yes, it can get confusing when it is not understood or made clear as to the context in which "ego" is being talked about.

I tend to relate that everything has a spirituality to it. Nature can show and does show the interactions and connections. Can be observed and felt if one cares to do so. Even if not its influences are felt.

Yes, there are some that choose sides, that pick and choose the parts he/she likes and ignores or find fault with the parts that may not conform to his/her set ways of looking at it.

What I have come across though, this is not the case for all teachings, philosophies, theologies, or realizations. Some look at delving into thoughts and how thoughts may construct what one thinks is real or all there is. Thoughts are just thoughts, until manifested into patterns, habits, actions.

In this way feel psychology and spirituality are not so far apart.

Psychology also has its concepts, labels, theories, and observations. Categorizing the self so that aspects may be examined and explored as to how they fit/influence each other.

This is how I am viewing it at present. The way my mind works is that it views both sides and evaluates what makes sense or can relate and what doesn't.

I can kind of get the whole no "ego" thing if one views oneself as not being parts, but the whole being. For me, this is true in essence, but working through aspects of myself and the interactions that happen in life find this not very practical.

Yes, unless one is completely detached from the world and people ego plays into it all. How it is identified, self image created, world image created in the mind, all seem to play into it.

Some may even say with in the mind it is all a construct, for what is thought to be is not all it is. Which if one desires control, suppose can be quite disturbing.
For another,may just be living as it comes and going on from there, without a care about any of this.

Spirituality can and does get bogged down, in some ways in what gets created from holding too tight to the words and not fully understanding what is actually being pointed at or symbolized.

It, at times, comes across to me like taking a chapter out a book, then saying that is what the book is about.

"Ego" is just one aspect. As you point out there is much more. Can be found through studying psychology on one level. Practicing a spiritual way on another, or just paying attention to what is happening.

We are all of Spirit and therefore spiritual on some level. Some talk about it and others just live it. It is noticed by another. Most of the time not so much one trying to be this or that, but just by the person is being. The presence of another is felt and the energy he/she carries is felt. Ego (self/personality)and all the other parts blending into the mix

Am not all sure where to go with the no time thing. As far as I can gather it all seems to intertwine. What I am experiencing is the present moment, created by what has occurred, creating what will be. All in a continuing movement and intertwined.