Can we exist without an ego? Why is it that so many people do not understand the meaning of the word 'ego'? Do you know what the word 'ego' means?
ego is a hard concept to define. as far as i understand, ego is the group of ideas we have about our selves, sort of who we think we are. i'm still not sure if we would be able to function daily without an ego, at least not in any sense that would allow us to lead normal lives. but after my last mushroom trip, i do believe that we can transcend the importance of the ego and fall into a state that is more about direct experience and doesn't rely on the ego. sorry if this doesn't make much sense, it's hard for me to put the experience into words- but i was experiencing the passing of life as movement instead of from a vantage point in some far off idea. i believe this was the closest to what i perceive as "ego-less" as i have been, and while i may not have been able to function "normally", i wasn't totally useless.
I don't think we can exist without the ego, because we wouldn't be aware of our concious. Well maybe its possible, I doubt some insects have egos. But , in this human world, no we wouldn't be able to function and exist normally.
one can exist without ego in one of two ways, either in subconsciousness, as in the paleo-humans not fully embodied in ego-consciousness, as well as the collective consciousness of the plant, animal kingdoms. the other way is by transcending ego existence into superconsciousness. the difference is the same as between dreaming and lucid dreaming. in one you are aware of your existence but have little conscious influence upon it, the other you are aware of your existence but have full mental control over it. we are currently somewhere inbetween as a species, and superconsciousness may be an ultimate goal for us. an ego existence is necessary the same way it's necessary for a kid to leave his parents house, to discover his nature, discover what he wants, to face his mortal fears. it's one big refining process.
The ego resembles the idea of a "false self". The mind-made fiction of "who you are", which may include images, concepts, labels, interpretations, and other judgements you may have learned about yourself and the life you see around you. No more than beliefs, most of which are lies. Basically put, the noise in your head. As they say, consciousness does not need thinking, but thinking needs consciousness. The egoless state I would say is just consciousness, or just being. You can see what it's about by just listening to silence and focusing on whatever the present moment contains instead of your head. Things seem to be a lot more clear this way, imo. Later
Do you mean ego as in personhood, selfhood, or ego as in "I think I am a messiah and am never wrong"? Because while everyone has the former, the latter is found in varying degrees throughout the population. If this is about your previous thread, then lol.
Of course you can exist without an ego. The ego only exists if it is acknowledged and perceived to be real. Understanding ego is understanding that it is an illusion. Ego is the attachment of the ideas of your consciousness to your perceived body(machine) that we(most people) believe through our sensory perception to be the only true reality. Ego is strengthened through time because the consciousness (being tricked by time and body) believes that "this" happened to me(ego) then and "that" may happen to me(ego) in the future. But please, what do I know? Ego is whatever you want it to be.
If you guys are really interested, and I mean really, in learning more about this mysterious "I" that you claim to be, then read The Mind's I. Your local library should have it. For a more mystical leaning on what the ego is, take out any serious book about Zen.
I believe there is great benefit to experiencing ego loss at many different times throughout one's life but I also believe that the ego is a necessary part of human existence. Although it is possible for someone to have a false sense of who they are the ego is not always fake. It is very possible for someone to be aware of their real and true role and/or purpose in life. Some people view themselves as more than what they really are in order to feel better about themselves and this would be referred to as an inflated ego. How can you be without knowing who you are?
funnny, i just had a trip about ego last night. i transcended my ego and then eventually rediscovered myself: ego is a cumulation of our lessons we have learned from our life experiences. our life lessons combined form ourselves, our personality, our ego. "The soul being likened unto a spirit that has recorded upon it all of the past relationships, experiences and memories of the entity. Whereas the spirit may be likened unto a clean tape that has no recording upon it. ...the tape of the moment, present, and consciousness as it exists in each moment coming into being is that which may be called spirit. Once there is a recording of an experience placed upon this tape, and this tape then is run into the storage bank known as the memory, this may be called the soul." without an ego we would exist ourselves as just a spirit. our ego gives way to our soul. being that our ego is a cumulation of the lessons learned, not of the actual experiences, the only real thing, the only permenant thing, is the lessons we learned that form our ego, our soul. in this sense the only real thing is our soul and ego, not the experiences or reality. ego does however give way to conflict, and without ego we would all live in a perfectly peaceful existance. however because ego is the only real thing, it also permeates existence. so no, we can't live without ego. just my two cents
