Good day, fellow Alchemists:
The ego is a confusing thing. During our time in the physical world, we need our ego intact and functioning in order to interact with everything we're involved in. Desires of the ego make up the motivation for every action we take. It even helps us establish boundaries between ourselves and other people. While the ego is helpful in navigating the third-dimension, it becomes a trap we must avoid falling into.
The bread and butter of the ego is identification.
We consciously begin to identify with certain aspects of our life, like our job, race, gender, religion, or even our taste in music. Without this identity, we tend to feel lost and misunderstood by the world around us, which is filled with people who know who they are and what their role is in society.
Identification is a long process that begins during early childhood and continues on into our adult life. We begin with simple identifiers, like our name or gender, and then gradually move on to titles like lawyer, student, husband or wife, homeowner, or hockey enthusiast. Whatever the identity may be, they all have one thing in common:
They make us suffer.
If you identify as a lawyer, then you must be good at your job because not doing so would hurt your self-image. In order to maintain the identity of a lawyer, you must never deviate from what you imagine a lawyer should be and commit fully to the role. This eventually begins to chip away at your sense of self-worth since no one can maintain perfect adherence to any one particular role. That is why we must let go of as many identifiers as we can, in order to free ourselves from the prison of roles.
It may seem difficult at first, but you can slowly begin to disengage with thoughts about how you should or shouldn't be and live a life that is more fully immersed in spirit, rather than in roles.
And remember:
“You can be deeply involved with everything, but still not be identified with it anymore.” - Sadhguru
With love and sincerity,
The Alchemy by LA Counsel
