Italiano: Istanze psichiche umane: Ego, Es, Su...

The Invisible Hand strikes again. No, not Adam Smith’s. This is the hand of intuition. It’s the hand that leads you to find what you’re looking for. This time, it sent me to the bookshelf. I didn’t realize why.

You may recall from last week’s blog episode, Leggo My Ego, I looked for a cogent definition of the ego, and was unable to find one that satisfied me.

Still pondering that which is ego, but not actively looking, I decided to read Siddhartha, by Hermann Hesse. I read it a lifetime ago, as required reading in high school. At the time, I was unimpressed. At the time, I simply had no way of understanding. It has examples of ego dissolving into divine. I thought that was interesting

Next, I moved onto a copy of “Love Here Now,” Ram Dass‘ newest book, written with Rameshwar Das. Although I have heard of Ram Dass, I’ve never actually read any of his work. I’ve just cracked the beginning – and am blown away. It’s brilliant. It also contains the best definition of ego I have encountered:

“The heart-mind is not the ego. Our ego is a constantly changing bundle of thoughts about who we think we are. We build an edifice of thought forms and feelings that we identify with. It’s like a concept of self overlaid on a group of thoughts and emotions that we take as real. There’s nothing bad about having an ego. These thoughts and feelings are necessary for a healthy personality. But if you identify so strongly with the ego that you think that’s all there is, that limited view can keep you from your deeper self.”

Thank you, Invisible Hand, and thank you, Ram Dass.

The Invisible Hand of Intuition

So, if you think you don’t have intuition, think again. Look for the times it invisibly nudges you into interesting and wondrous places.

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