There is a difference between ego, self esteem and self worth. Ego can be good to a degree but in the end we humans tend to not know how to use it properly. When we elevate our self esteem we gain a sense of self worth that is not inflated by the erroneous ego.
Ego can be over inflated.
Ego can be under inflated.
Both are equally flawed.
Ego needs to be just right, like Goldilock's porridge.
Every moment of a life is a horrible tragedy, a slapstick comedy, dark nihilism, golden illumination, or nothing at all; depending on how we write the story we tell ourselves.
Sorry about the mess which is this thread. It will be cleaned. The topic is as per title.
I want to discuss this further because there can be confusion around what Ego is because of lack of understanding and the Ego being viewed through different world views.Originally Posted by B. de Corbin
Ego is a term coined by Freud who was the father of psychoanalysis. Throughout his career, he developed a series of models to effectively understand and treat issues in personality. The final model he developed was the Structural Model which outlined the function of Id, Ego and Superego.
Ego acts as the mediator between the impulses of the Id and the conscience voice (NB NOT conscious but conscience as in ideals) of the Superego while considering the external world. "The Ego brings pleasure-seeking impulses in line with the real world (Burton, et. al, 2006 [2009] p. 422).
It is my belief that the Ego has become an unfavourable word in some Eastern traditions because of its reliance on perception of the real world. This is especially true in religions that are achieving to understand the Ultimate Reality or True Nature. In these world views, the ego is at fault for giving wrong direction or false sense of reality. When a student can adjust their understanding of the True Nature, their ego will also adjust.
One of the ways ego is adjusted is through meditation. I'll share with you a podcast I found that briefly outlines methods of reality adjustment.
I'll share soon. I will have to listen to it again, find the spot and summarise.
We need to work on your definition of mess. This was a minor spill. It took longer to figure out what you did than to fix it. "Mess" is for things like accidentally pruning the rules thread (rejoice, unlike GMs who shall remain nameless, you can't do this), merging 20 different posts or threads together that shouldn't be merged (don't do this, I'll make you fix it while I munch popcorn), or accidentally spam-o-maticing Medusa (actually this might fall under the initiation of Armageddon rather than a mere mess).
"It is not simply enough to know the light…a Jedi must feel the tension between the two sides of the Force…in himself and in the universe."
―Thon
"When to the Force you truly give yourself, all you do expresses the truth of who you are,"
Yoda
Yoda told stories, and ate, and cried, and laughed: and the Padawans saw that life itself was a lightsaber in his hands; even in the face of treachery and death and hopes gone cold, he burned like a candle in the darkness. Like a star shining in the black eternity of space.
Yoda: Dark Rendezvous
"But those men who know anything at all about the Light also know that there is a fierceness to its power, like the bare sword of the law, or the white burning of the sun." Suddenly his voice sounded to Will very strong, and very Welsh. "At the very heart, that is. Other things, like humanity, and mercy, and charity, that most good men hold more precious than all else, they do not come first for the Light. Oh, sometimes they are there; often, indeed. But in the very long run the concern of you people is with the absolute good, ahead of all else..."
John Rowlands, The Grey King by Susan Cooper
"You come from the Lord Adam and the Lady Eve", said Aslan. "And that is both honour enough to erect the head of the poorest beggar, and shame enough to bow the shoulders of the greatest emperor on earth; be content."
Aslan, Prince Caspian by CS Lewis
Ego: Latin for "I."
(Insert Azvanna's Frued reference)
In current usage it can mean different things, depending on context. Most commonly it is used in a negative way, to refer to a person who is full of him/her self, concieted, overly proud of his/her accomplishments while diminishing the accomplishments of other, or not acknowledging the roll others played in achieving goals. Ego trip, egotistical, etc. (see also Donald Trump).
"Ego" is also the word used to refer to the sense and awareness of personal existance. In contempory psychology, ego = conciousnes. Freud's Id (it) - Ego (I) - Super Ego (the good angel) complex is now subconcious - concious, id and some super ego are components of the unconcious, ego and some super ego are components of the concious (note: these "components" are conceptual models, not physical features).
I gotta run - I'll be back later with some thoughts on too much ego, and too little ego.
Every moment of a life is a horrible tragedy, a slapstick comedy, dark nihilism, golden illumination, or nothing at all; depending on how we write the story we tell ourselves.
People are very poor judges of pretty much everything from their expertise (there have been a number of other studies since this review that have similar results) to their ability to judge others' motivations (which mostly seems to be a reflection of one's self). In a discussion of Ego, I think out empirically derived failings as a group are important to consider...
“You have never answered but you did not need to. If I stand at the ocean I can hear you with your thousand voices. Sometimes you shout, hilarious laughter that taunts all questions. Other nights you are silent as death, a mirror in which the stars show themselves. Then I think you want to tell me something, but you never do. Of course I know I have written letters to no-one. But what if I find a trident tomorrow?" ~~Letters to Poseidon, Cees Nooteboom
“We still carry this primal relationship to the Earth within our consciousness, even if we have long forgotten it. It is a primal recognition of the wonder, beauty, and divine nature of the Earth. It is a felt reverence for all that exists. Once we bring this foundational quality into our consciousness, we will be able to respond to our present man-made crisis from a place of balance, in which our actions will be grounded in an attitude of respect for all of life. This is the nature of real sustainability.”
~~Llewellyn Vaughan-Lee
"We are the offspring of history, and must establish our own paths in this most diverse and interesting of conceivable universes--one indifferent to our suffering, and therefore offering us maximal freedom to thrive, or to fail, in our own chosen way."
~~Stephen Jay Gould, Wonderful Life: The Burgess Shale and the Nature of History
"Humans are not rational creatures. Now, logic and rationality are very helpful tools, but there’s also a place for embracing our subjectivity and thinking symbolically. Sometimes what our so-called higher thinking can’t or won’t see, our older, more primitive intuition will." John Beckett
Pagan Devotionals, because the wind and the rain is our Bible
I respect Freud, but I prefer Plato's tripartite theory when it comes to spirituality.
When the word ego is used in a negative sense, I believe what is intended is closer to Plato's "sprited" part of the soul. Not sure if I am allowed to post links yet by now ... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plato%...theory_of_soul
My use of the term ego was not from the psychoanalytical view but more from the egotistical view point. Perhaps hubris would be a better term to use here. Hubris or extreme arrogance and pride gets in the way of all the things I can accomplish. It is this that must be dealt with in order to progress.
I liked this. It highlights the difference between self-worth as a person and self-importance which tends to put people on a ladder.
I understand. I should have clarified: I understand people generally don't use the word ego according to Freud's definition. I felt his definition had a lot to offer to the discussion, so wanted it acknowledged.
I confess I have been watching too much Battlestar Galactica, playing too much Cities: Skylines and not listening to podcasts!
Posting Permissions
Bookmarks