Why Dissolve?

Lately, I've been in a rut of content, and comfort with identification. What I view as my own personal Ego, doesn't really strike me as that much of an evil guy at all. This entire post however, is coming from an individual who is in the midst of re-identification phase, so please take this with a grain of salt I suppose.

My question is, if I naturally already exihibit all the qualities that people deem desirable, and that people think are gained virtues that come with the taming of the ego, then why should I not identify or work towards "enlightenment" at all?

It seems that I have everything I need, right now. What more could I ask for? This is the attitude I have adopted as of late, and as you can see, it is one of content. Whenever I try to walk down the former path of realization, I'm confronted with so much fear and anxiety. When I realize, that I'm really not that bad of a character to begin with, what need is there for me to walk towards the unknown and overcome countless hindrances and obstacles, when I can just be, and be a pretty decent guy as I am?

 

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Thank you for the insight.

I was hoping to get some advice/guidance, but I suppose that just wont be viable.

 

Sorry homie, a lot of this school of thought isn't able to be explained, you just kind of have to know.

I quoted something from your OP, though; why would that line be somewhat important?

 

I saw you posted in the "Why is the ego bad?" thread:

this is essentially my understanding as well. so even though your ego has all the traits of a wonderful person, it could still be a source of suffering, especially long term. I think LanSLIde was trying to point out that there is still fear in you, and I think that if your former path of realization allowed you to confront and potentially understand your fears, it could be a good idea to finish down that path.

 

Two things here - first, is the path just meant to make you a more moral being than you are now, or is some much deeper transformation the goal? I'd say that even the totally atheistic humanist can be a very good moral person, but hardly enlightened with true spiritual knowledge.

Second - you may well be ok right now. But what if???? I mean, a million things could go wrong. You could for instance get some nasty disease which would destroy your present happiness (God forbid that should happen, but it is a possibility).

Also, the fact that walking the 'path' led you to perceive negative stuff might indicate that despite appearances, in the unconscious there could well be un-resolved issues you need to deal with.

Just a few thoughts there. Please don't take this the wrong way, but many 'pretty decent guys' are not so decent once you start to scratch beneath the surface a little bit.

Better add - I'm not at all sure 'disolving' is the real goal. More like transformation, which may include dissolving as one stage, but goes far beyond that.

 

well I think my main problem is that I have pretty bad anxiety. What I bolded is what fits. ^

But with anxiety, any time I feel that I am not in control, or that there is the unknown, fear takes over. I guess that might be a fairly commonplace reaction from the ego found in many people, but with me, I dont see any need to push past that fear. That's why with this anxiety, feelings of me being content with what I am here and now come out, and I no longer see any reason to try to be anything else.

It's really hard to describe, I dunno.

 

Hey man, it's harder to down drugs that dont dissolve in liquids.
Nature's laws are reflection of spiritual laws, so it only makes sense!

 

OK -perhaps I'm being dense, but could you explain more what you mean - about the part you bolded. Do you mean that the prospect of transformation or change makes you anxious?

I think that anxiety when faced with the unkown is quite a common thing. The trouble is that if you then give in to anxiety, then in the future whenever you wonder about the unkown, you'll have to tell yourself that you gave up the path through anxiety, or fear.

Sometimes one simply has to keep going in the face of fear and anxiety. Generally, that's whats behind stories of heroic quests etc in mythology.

Also, anxiety is something I have some experience with, both personally, and in my small practice of spiritual healing. Often, it can come from hidden sources, and it can be removed if dealt with.
In effect there are 2 kinds of anxiety - the first is a natural response to threats on the level of bio survival. That's part of the mechanism of being a human being, and without it we'd get nowhere.
But there is also anxiety which arises in us due to our life experiences, traumas etc. This easily gets buried in hidden levels of our mind and being, from where it can act as a slow poison on other parts of the person, in areas which are quite unrelated to its original cause.
When I say it can be dealt with, I mean it has to be uncovered - hidden fears brought into the light of a calm conscious awareness.
It could even be that the fact you have experienced these fears means that you've already begun some process of this kind.

With the spiritual path, it is something that is quite varied. Some teachings for example teach faith in a loving and compassionate God or supreme being as a way to counter fear of the unknown.

 

A few things that I'd like to share...

The decent & content guy called "neodude" or whatever the offline name is, is just a character in the dream. It's not *You*. Some characters are "good guys", others are "bad guys" and still others are "somewhere-in-between guys". The thing to realize is that they all have something in common: they're all characters in the dream. The ego is the total identification with this character self.

Everything in the world of form is subject to duality. What goes up must come down, the good luck is followed by bad luck is followed by good luck is followed by bad luck and so on and so forth. What we judge as favorable or unfavorable is simply a matter of perspective, and how it relates to "me" and "mine". And ultimately, nothing lasts.

Where is the anxiety and fear coming from? Is it "yours", really? Could it be that the ego is the one with anxiety and fear, and your identification with it makes it seem as if "you" are?

The ego fears going deeper because on some level it recognizes that in the light of truth it will dissolve. And in this it is right. But YOU won't dissolve. In fact, going deeper will liberate you from the chains of what has made you suffer.

The thing to notice is the identification. What are you identified with right now, that brings about fear and anxiety or content and comfort with identification? Is this PEACE and JOY? If not, look again.

 

His name is Joshua, and between me and you, he's one of the bad guys

 

true story

 

You need to learn to let go, there is no such thing as control.

The greater goal of the soul is to constantly transform, evolve. A worldwide ascension process is occuring right now on earth, and many, many people are going through what you are. I notice you are taking steps to ascend, it can get rough and scary at times, but know that in the end you'll be much better off.

I used to have an issue with control, and I've learned the hardway that it's detrimental in the long run. Have control over yourself and you control the situation. Let things naturally take place, don't force or avoid the path, roll with it. It'll be much smoother.

 

I'm glad you mentioned self-control there, as saying there is no such thing as control is simply not true. One has to control oneself. Most paths of self-realization depend upon this axiomatic truth.

 

Which is why I said "Have control over yourself, and you control the situation", that was my way of saying control oneself. I should have made myself clear.

 

Good man Jimmy P

 

Do whatever the hell you feel is good. If you feel that not going past the fear and anxiety is good, then don't do it. There isn't a reason to. If you feel that the good and right thing to do is to go past it, then do it. But, it is important that you feel it is the right thing to do. Don't do something because other people tell you it is the right thing to do. What works for them may not work for you. It isn't a deal of you and your ego pulling in different directions, it is a deal of you deciding what to do, and your ego (if it even exists) following your decision. Do what feels right, it'll work out.

The Mushroom Man

 

Ego is simply another way of saying identification is happening. What follows identification is identity (a sense of self), attachment, ownership, being 'somebody'. It's not good or bad, it's just what it is.

 

I understand that my ego does in fact exist, and that the only reason I encounter fear and anxiety in the first place is because of it. That being said, while yes I am content with just being "me" so to speak, at the same time I know that there is a reason for that fear, and that there is probably a good reason to move past it. But that isn't exactly something that I know how to do.

 

The recognition of it is enough. There really isn't anything to do about it. Whenever you sense fear or discontent or reaction of some sort, simply recognize that "oh yeah there's the ego asserting itself" and see that you've identified yourself with some idea. Just the seeing is all that's needed to break the link, so to speak. Don't worry about analyzing it either, whether it's "completely" broken or broken "for good", etc. Because that's just more mind stuff and a way back to identification. Just know... "this isn't me", and then don't try to define "me".