Quote:
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Originally Posted by sky123
Buddhism views a healthy/flexible ego as necessary to interact with the World in skilful ways.
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It would be more accurate to say some person {and yourself obviously) who believes themselves in someway a "Buddhist" or teacher or self appointed authority of "Buddhism" teaches that. You posted the web site where you got that belief from once and I went there and read it. I was actually amazed someone would teach such a thing. But there it was! Word for word what you believe and frequently post about as some kind of Buddhist teaching.
It's obviously not "Buddhism" as a whole that teaches that, it's some individual and some others who are into a teaching or interpretation like that. There have been many threads about ego and people are pretty entrenched and attached to their beliefs so seems to me such discussions are pointless.
People believe they are right and others wrong and that's that. No one can agree on what the ego is either. Basically, the above belief is based on defining "ego" as our personality or self which is fine if one likes using the word ego in that way.
I myself find such a definition of "ego" limiting. To me, ego is something created by a particular relationship we have with our content, our mechanical thoughts and conditioning etc. The thing that makes one person believe they are Christian and another believe they are Buddhist and another believe they are somehow neither but "above" both. All this judgement. Judging others by what they believe or "think" or by what they believe themselves to "be. It's back to the I am right and they are wrong ego thing. Back to creating differences. Ego is identification with our content and conditioning. To me that is what it is. To others no, ego is who they are. Their personality like I said or some variation of that.
But people know what they know. They believe what they believe. Nothing anyone says will change that. They believe themselves right and others wrong. That's life. Human life. A spiritual life, well judgement stops. One sees things how they are. I see people attached to beliefs. Attached to their thoughts and opinions. There is only this current moment. It "becomes" an assertion of ideas usually. Asserting ideas gives us individuality. It creates an "ego."
It's ironic as one can say I am doing that. Asserting ideas, assenting ego. Asserting opinion and belief and thoughts. I am communicating my understanding. It's how I understand what I am. Truth is truth. If I see a dog biting another and I say, "look that dog is biting that other one" this is simply a description of a truth. One can claim it is an opinion or belief or ego but it is not. It's a description of truth. An observation of truth.
This post is what I observe to be true. Is it true? To me yes. To others maybe yes and maybe no. We can believe anything we want. To one is it truths, another ego.
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