"The Ego Is Our Greatest Enemy Of All, You Are Your Own Worst Enemy'

Keep in mind fellas, this is my first hypothesis. I'm only writing this now so I can share it among every bright members of ATS. Last night my mind started a railway of thoughts that led to multiple of connections using logic,reasoning,and intuition; hense why I mentioned that this will be my first hypothesis. The thing is, I have ADD and I tend to jumble my thoughts and even in some cases, forget some important information. I'm going to do my best to explain this.

I believe our Ego is what truly blinds us from reality, thus giving us an entirely different reality which becomes the illusion. I'll admit there are other ways of being blinded from reality but I believe that Ego does most of the damage while corporations only make matters worse. Not only that, but I also believe that it's our Ego that pushes us to be who we are for however long it takes until people finally wake up from the illusion and realize that almost everything they considered in life relevant, is really irelevant.

Music Industry;

I don't know why but I believe music blinds people. How? I believe music affects our ego by over inflating it. I can't put the thoughts in my head into words in order to describe what I'm seeing in my mind but I'm going to do the best I can. I believe music strokes our ego, when people listen to music they listen to the lyrics and somehow try to incorperate the lyrics into their life and that's how people are hypotized with an illusion that they are somehow important in life, and that everything revolves around them. Why does the music industry intentionally does this to us? It sure does seem intentional because I see it happening to a lot of people, I feel their egotistcal energy when I'm around them. Maybe that's was Satan's plan this whole time? Keep in mind, I am an agonostic and that's the only reason why I believe in the Bible, is because of things like these in the world which makes me believe that the Bible must have some truth to it.

For exmaple;

Gangster music - These people tend to act like they really are gangster.

I've been thinking a lot about this topic in the last few days and been racking my brain trying to figure out how to put it into words to show to ATS so I can see what kind of opinions and feedback I get from it's fellow bright members.

Truth is, the Music Industry isn't the only Industry that affects us there are many.

In conclusion, are we better off with or without music? I believe without music, games, or any other cooperation that affects our ego, this world would surly be a better place because then, people just may actually know their place in this world and we could all come together to make it better. Till then, people are just going to be blinded by their own ego that was over inflated by many different cooperations and most importantly of all, they don't even know it's happening to them.

reply to post by TheProphetMark


What is the "ego"? If it is just qualities that we don't like, like being apathetically self-centered or greedy or whatever, then I see no need to create some abstract concept to lump all these things together in. I worry that establishing a ghost in the room will only confuse people more. So what is "ego"? From a psychological/neurological perspective there is no such thing. And from a philosophical perspective it is absolutely an unsustainable concept. It seems only pseudo-spiritualists claim such a thing exists, probably because they also claim they have the key to overcome it.

Don't get suckered into the hype.

reply to post by openlocks


I cannot explain what our ego is but I see it in our everyday life. It's there, and it's real. Ever play any roleplaying games before? Like WoW? Ever wonder why it's addicting? It was designed to be that way and do you want to know how? Because they designed it in a way, to play with your ego.

It's fine that you don't believe such thing exist, so there's really no point in my arguing with you.

Your ego is much more than you think.

It is your entire perception, it is you, but that is not to say it is all of you.

The ego is the voice inside your head that is built up of a self-sense of identification. Everything from "I am Dylan", "I am a photographer" to even "I am a human" strengthens your ego. It doesn't technically exist but these titles give it some sort of physicality to cling to. The only problem is that it separates you from everything and everyone and isolates yourself so that you exist only in a world of yourself.

Ego is neutral. It can be good, bad, or both at the same time.

I've noticed that ego likes to (and is very good at) connecting absolutely everything to itself. It's like an information magnet. Having another aspect (heart/soul) that critiques this process is important. I let ego continue to do what it does best, but I temper it heavily with the heart.

The ego needs food. You can fill it up with ether good food or bad food. You feed it with greed or pride and you find your ego controlling your every move. If you fill it with understanding or compassion your ego will allow you to see it and give you the chance to control it.

When some one downs your character you tend to get upset. This is because the ego has pride and feels like it is in danger and lashes out. If you understand that this is the ego talking, you can step away from your self and choose what emotion you would like.

Those that have been controlled by pride and greed in their ego, have a harder time taking back that control.

Don't feed the ego Mc, Donalds. Feed it garden greens

reply to post by TheProphetMark


Everything effects your reality... but understanding over rides what you see....

what you feel and how you act according to said feelings creates who you are...

but ask yourself this...

Who Am I

Wow excellent post....

Ya it's so true. I one time had the biggest ego on the planet. For the most part it's gone but it still shows up a bit from time to time. When I look back, I was totally dilusional. I was completely brainwashed. But thank God for a few reality checks that snapped me out of that MADNESS.

And people can sometimes get this thing called icarus syndrom. Basically a feeling of invincibility. The ego also seems to cause people to become work a holics somehow as well.

Depends a lot on how your raised though. I was basically a spoiled brat. My parents taught me very little about life so I didn't know much. I think the same happens with a lot of kids. I've seen the cases where they mimic the parents ego, or they somehow formulate there own (I think usually a form of rebellion).

Like I'd say a good portion of society is so caught up in this. If it wasn't true you wouldn't see so many people trying to show off, either there clothes, their looks, there cars, in the way they talk, there bodies, there houses, the neighborhoods they live in, bragging about this or that, and everything else mimicing hollywood brainwashing you can possibly think of.

But there's so much brainwashing out there. It's almost hard for people to snap out of that hypnosis unless they get some reality checks in life.

Anyway to end this here's a few videos...

Don't watch these for entertainment, you've done that 1000s of times. Really analyse them for the hypnotic message there really saying.... That's what penetrating the subconcious and also cultivating the egoic mind....


















and of course:

our greatest enemy is not the ego but ignorance in all its forms. Ignorance can infect absolutely anything and do damage to anything.

"Without music, life would be a mistake."
Friedrich Nietzsche

reply to post by TheProphetMark


I agree only partly with what you have written. Sure - music can inflate the ego. But it is just one tool of many that exists on this planet which can be wielded in this manner. And I am not convinced that ego in itself is the source of all evil - it is just the manner and direction in which some people express and develop the 'ego' that may make it seem this way.

Some music does the complete opposite - it can generate a great feeling of being insignificant, it can raise awareness of 'something bigger than our puny selves'. Some music inspires me to look within. Some music can make me feel completely disconnected from what others would call 'the self' or 'the ego'.

It is the vibration or intent behind music that brings about a certain experience - and that is the very nature of music. It can have great impact, it can inspire, it can bring about great evolution. In the same manner it can be used to corrupt; it can even make you go all 'gangsta' . My point is that to outlaw music simply due to the effect of 'some genres' would make this world a very sad world indeed, and would eventually (I believe) reduce some people into emotionless / directionless automatons.

Do you feel that the music performed by the like of, say, Sheila Chandra, is music that inflates your ego? For me it certainly does the opposite.

reply to post by shimmeringsilver73


Music can inflate ego and also do the excat opposite of what you are saying;

Some music does the complete opposite - it can generate a great feeling of being insignificant, it can raise awareness of 'something bigger than our puny selves'. Some music inspires me to look within. Some music can make me feel completely disconnected from what others would call 'the self' or 'the ego'.

And you're right. And it would take a very spirtual not so ignorant person to actually control which way the ego goes. I completely agree with what you're saying but I also agree that music as well as millions of other things in this world can affect our ego. Ego = Ignorance and among other things. Ego can't be explained with just want one, or at least I havne't found one yet.

Do you feel that the music performed by the like of, say, Sheila Chandra, is music that inflates your ego? For me it certainly does the opposite.

I believe there are two types of music .There is music that have a better chance of over inflating your ego and there's the other type that does the complete opposite. I suppose it depends on the person that listens to it, like I said it's all about control, I believe music just opens up the door way by making us blind and to lead us towards the ego self and by that point we make the decisions to be the person we want to be.

Originally posted by Akragon
reply to post by TheProphetMark

 

Everything effects your reality... but understanding over rides what you see....

what you feel and how you act according to said feelings creates who you are...

but ask yourself this...

Who Am I

I completely agree with what you said. There are millions of things that affect our reality and yes; understanding them will really allow you to overide what you see. I understand.

And I don't have to ask myself who I am, I know who I am

reply to post by TheProphetMark


The song "Sad but true " from Metallica comes to mind.

Originally posted by Taino
reply to post by TheProphetMark

 

The song "Sad but true " from Metallica comes to mind.

Only 880,000 views on Youtube? I guess people just don't get it. A song like that should have more hits then a song like Baby by Justin Beiber.

Like seriously..

reply to post by TheProphetMark


One of my favorite songs. Describes the invisible war we all have goin on inside.
Who survives? Depends on who you decide to feed.
"Im inside. Open your eyes. Im you! Sad but tru. "

[align=center]..oO([-:WAGE WAR ON YOUR SINS:-])Oo..[/align]

Maybe because I'm young and not well developed, but I have a differing theory on the popular "dissolve the ego" take on enlightenment...

I think it would be superior to be able to access both a unified egoless mindstate as well as an assertive and selfish dominant will power. Different situations call for different thought patterns and cultivating both of these may be the best approach. Providing the mind with flexability. Allow for capacity in both direction and trust yourself when to use each.

It's nice to be able to meditate and access all kinds of stuff in the deep subconscious and beyond...

But when your jumped walking down the sidewalk, it helps to be able to call on that ME power and defend yourself.

A spiritual lesson can be learned from just about anything, and there is a long history in the mysticm of violence. See: human sacrifice. Not promoting violence, but there have been many a man who experiments with rule breaking in the name of spiritual understanding and philoosophical refinement.

Maybe just because I haven't been successful at it, but I see attempting to dissolve the ego completely as futile, not to mention unbalanced. Why not allow yourself to prosper from a competitive drive?

And anyone who has the audacity to outright tell me I'm wrong is making the habit of overstating their own "enlightenment."


I am not a bit tamed, I too am untranslatable
I sound my barbaric YAWP over the roofs of the world

-Walt Whitman, made famous by Robin Williams in Dead Poets Society