Evolution of Consciusness (38)- Ego vs Soul

Ego vs. Soul.

According to religions, Mystics and Seers,

The true identity of human consciousness is Soul and the Soul is said to be

Eternal, Blissful and Wise (Ultimate Intelligence & knowledge).

But, normal state of identification is that of personal Body, Mind and Intellect.

Which constitute the persona - individual’s personality/ego.                                          

This identity being personal is limited and finite due to finite nature of the Body

and limited knowledge of the Personal Mind.

However developed and refined, the body has physical limitation and the

personal mind has limited knowledge due to additive nature of knowledge.

So, the world view and the experience would also remain limited.

But, if we look at the fundamental pursuits of Ego-Self,

They are similar to the attributes of the Soul in their essence, as below.

 

Pursuits of Ego-Self                Nature of the Soul  

Immortality                                      Eternal

Perpetual Pleasure                       Bliss 

Complete knowledge                   Wisdom 

 

Failure in realizing the goals is due to finite nature of Individual Body and Mind.

But goals are pursued since the days of civilization and continues with the help of

Science and Technology. 

For example,

 

Ego Aspirations               Science & Technology   

Immortality                       - Cryonics – Body preservation at low temperatures  

Perpetual Pleasure        -Research on Psychedelic substances

Complete Knowledge    -ToE - ‘Theory of Everything’, String Theory etc.

 

Science and Technology may succeed.

Even if it succeeds, according to Jean Paul Sartre view –

 

Even if Man is immortal, Life is made finite by the choices one makes.                 

That is,

Even for an immortal man, intrinsic limitation of Egoistic knowledge(Psychological) will create a boundary, beyond which there will be conflicts.     

So, the peace, happiness and repose one seeks in life may remain elusive.

Immortalizing the ‘Me’ and the ‘Body’ may not quench this thirst.

Considering these limitations of the individual Ego-Self,

It appears that Ego-Self is a poor imitation of True-Self or Soul.

That is,

Ego-Self is imitating the attributes of True-Self or Soul, and also giving hope by

becoming better over time, like a fake product becoming better through refinement.

And, possibly we are refining a fake product to make it original.              

But, fake can never be the original.

This comparison reveals two main aspects,

Firstly,

Deficiency of a fake product can be experienced as such only in relation to the original.

And secondly and most importantly

Fake product has no foundation without the existence of the original.

If we apply this thinking to the ego-self,

The sense of inadequacy we feel towards Ego-Self could mean that it is not the original.

And,

Sense of lack of repose in Ego-Self could mean that it has no foundation either.

So, by this coarse logic, we can say that Ego-Self is not genuine and another true identity of 

the self has to exist 

But,

In the case of external fake and original objects, it is self evident and straight.

We don’t have such liberty in the case ‘Self’, because it is internal and we are conscious of 

only one self  that is  ‘I’ or ‘Me’.        

So, existence of True-Self or Soul is based on logic (Coarse/ Superfine) or Faith.

It is not an empirical fact.

Now,

Is it possible to gain some certitude regarding its existence beyond logic or faith?

It is possible because,

There are episodes of experiences where Consciousness do not require the Ego for its 

sustenance.

For instance,

During the sensations like Fascination, Wonder and Awe etc, one can notice the absence of 

Ego, but still one is perfectly conscious.

Absence of Ego doesn’t make the consciousness as impersonal, it is still personal without Ego

 playing the role of arbiter.

These episodes of experiences also show that Ego is not indispensable as sole arbiter but can

 simply remain as repository of practical knowledge.     

So,                        

By becoming aware or remembering one self during such episodes, one can not only gain

 certitude but also 'feel' a  self which is not anchored in Ego.

And to move any further,

One has remember one self in day to day situations, thereby stopping the mechanical 

response and weakening the role of Ego-Self as sole arbiter.

Less domination of Ego-Self as a consequence allows the True-Self to flower.

Many mystics or seers uses the word ‘Flowering’ or similar word to indicate that one can not

arrive at True-Self or Soul through deliberate Ego centric act.

Since, any outcome through such act will be within the ambit Ego-Self.

It is like, any deliberate act to over come inferiority complex will end up as measure of one's 

inferiority than anything else. 

So, True-Self or Soul will start to ‘flower’ on its own when domination of Ego-Self diminishes.