Psychologists have told me that it would be impossible to live without an ego. So why is the spiritual path aimed at getting rid of the ego?
—Brock, USA
Dear Friend,
Yours is an excellent question. Even Masters need an ego to function in the body. Paramhansa Yogananda taught that the ego has no ultimate reality but is the soul mistakenly identified with the body (and personality).
At the same time he stated that in God we have been and are unique from eternity. Think of it this way: rather than destroying the ego let’s expand its identity, awareness and sympathy progressively until we are Infinite. Nothing is lost and everything is gained.
Transcending ego is a process of releasing attachments, likes and dislikes while our heart’s love soars toward God in whatever form we hold dear.
Blessings,
Hriman
