Lama Surya Das: Ego is not the real problem, but egotism is. At least from the Buddhist point of view, egotism is the root of all evil. I think it’s selfishness and egocentricity that causes us— and those around us— the most grief.
Egotism is based on the delusion that we are separate selves in competition with others and the rest of the world. Ego probably has no beginning nor end, but who can say? Some would say that ego ends in enlightenment, but that is overstating the case. Even an enlightened person, though they may be selfless and see through the illusion of separate selfhood, still— it seems to me— must have an individuated and autonomous adult ego, recognize the difference between oneself and others along with the commonalities, and take care of him or herself to function in the relative world that we live in.
We don’t have to slay the ego or crush or dissolve the ego. It’d be far better to see through our illusory egotistical separate selves, realize that we are not who we think we are, and recognize our true identity, in order to be happy, fulfilled and achieve ultimate well being. In such a way we naturally overcome overweaning selfishness, narcissism, and confusion, along with the pride, jealousy, attachment, and other obscuring emotions which stem from delusion and plague our world.
Submitted by @karmakees via Twitter on September 21, 2010.
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