THE OTHER DEADLY KARMIC SINS

EGO &

JUDGMENT 
(which will be discussed later)

EGO    

“The light the Creator brought forth at the instant of creation shines into time and timelessness and space and space-lessness. This light is beheld by the soul and compels full knowledge of itself but is usually hidden behind the glitter of what attracts ego.”               The Ancestors

"In the samadhi that comes at the end of reasoning and discrimination no such thing as “I” exists but it is extremely difficult to attain as “I” consciousness lingers so persistently. This is why man is born again and again.” Sri Rama Krishna

“If a man be crossing a river and an empty boat collides with his own skiff, even though he be a bad-tempered man, he will not become very angry. But if he sees a man in the boat he will shout at him to steer clear. If the shout is not heard he will shout again and yet again and begin cursing. And all because there is someone in the boat. Yet if the boat were empty he would not be shouting or be angry. If you can empty your boat (be free of ego) crossing the river of the world no one will oppose you, no one will seek to harm you." Lao Tzu

To the Ancestors, Narrow or Finite Mind is the same as Monkey Mind where our desires, habits, compulsions, addictions, fears and raw emotions reside. Spacious Mind is equivalent to Buddha or Christ consciousness or what Patanjali called the Intellectual or Discrimination Sheath in his "Sheaths of Consciousness." Our goals, aspirations, discernments, notions and higher ideas and ideals reside in Spacious Mind as do our feelings. Feelings need to be expressed, emotions need to be controlled. 

Ego, Narrow and Spacious Mind form a triad which is always in flux, the result depending on which one dominates. Creativity arises out of Spacious Mind. Very little creative happens in Narrow Mind which is part of our survival response and linked to our sympathetic flight or fight reaction. Spacious Mind engenders more of a relaxation, parasympathetic response. Functional M.R.I. studies show that Narrow or Monkey Mind is active in the more primitive areas of the brain whereas Spacious Mind lights up the prefrontal cortex. Devoted meditators seem to have more neuronal density here than non-meditators and default easily to this area as they quickly recover from stress. Most of us and especially those with O.C.D., P.T.S.D., anxiety or depressive disorders tend to get stuck in Narrow Mind whose default is the primitive mid-zone of the brain. The different qualities of the two are listed below. Meditative techniques allow us to subordinate Narrow to Spacious Mind and control Ego. 

NARROW OR FINITE MIND (MONKEY MIND)

Narrow Mind arises out of our thoughts which determine our words which in turn control our behavior, habits and actions.

“You talk when you cease to be at peace with your thoughts; and when you can no longer dwell in the solitude of your heart you live in your lips; and sound is a diversion and a pastime. And in much of the talking, thinking is half murdered. For thought is a bird of space that in a cage of words may indeed unfold its wings but cannot fly." K. Gibran

"The things you do not have to say, make you rich. Saying things you do not have to say weakens your talk. Hearing the things you do not need to hear dulls your hearing. And things you know before you hear them those are you. Those are why you are in the world.” W. Stafford.

Qualities of Narrow Mind

•      Comfortable with what is known

•      Needs to understand

•      Reflects to scarcity

•      Clings and controls

•      Doubts and questions

•      Seeks love

•      Wants to convince others

•      Defends and insists

It is necessary to distinguish between Narrow or Monkey Mind and the Ego. They differ but the one supports the other.

EGO

…“I” consciousness lingers so persistently. This is why man is born again and again.” Sri Rama Krishna

The yogis tell us that any action bound to an ego motive can buy us another life time.

                        SPACIOUS OR INFINITE MIND

Qualities of Spacious Mind

•      Is comfortable with the unknown

•      Believe, surrenders and trusts

•      Acknowledges that abundance does not mean wanting more

•      Explores and expands

•      Embraces

•      Loves others

•      Learns from others

•      Offers and allows

“Spacious mind embraces narrow mind using it to its truest purposes as with a tamed ego.

Spacious mind does not deny, reject or ignore their clamorings for they serve an essential need.
Spacious mind allows narrow mind and ego their rightful place but does not let them reign.” The Ancestors

Ego is deceptive and like a chameleon is always changing colors to disguise and protect itself. The sages teach that the higher one gets up the vibrational and energy hierarchy the trickier ego gets. The solution – intensify one’s spiritual learnings and inner practice. Another warning about ego's duality ...

"Friend please tell me what I can do about this world I hold to and keep spinning out
I gave up sewn clothes and wore a robe but I noticed one day the cloth was well woven
So I bought some burlap but I still throw it elegantly over my left shoulder
I pulled back my sexual longings and now I discover I am angry a lot
I gave up rage and I notice I am greedy all day
I worked hard at dissolving the greed and now I am proud of myself
When the mind wants to break its link with the world it still holds onto one thing
Kabir says “Listen friend, there are very few who find the path”

“God’s breath is heard in quietness and felt in stillness.
Beware the noises and clamor of ego which drown out the Divine whisper.”

“This is what God asks of you, only this, to act justly, to love tenderly and to walk humbly with your God.” Micah

We can endeavor to strive for Unity Consciousness or the Oneness Experience rather than duality.

“Behind my work was ambition, behind my love was personality, behind my purity was fear, behind my guidance the thirst for power. Now they are vanishing and I drift. I come Mother I come, in your warm bosom – floating wherever you take me – in the voiceless, in the strange, in the wonderland. I come a spectator, No more an actor.” Swami Vivekananda

In yoga and Buddhist philosophy, it is possible to transcend ego and attain samadhi or the Oneness Experience. Jung, however, suggested that this might only be a fleeting phenomenon especially for the Western mind which tends to live in duality but may have momentary episodes of Unity Consciousness. Maslow called this the Peak Experience and the yogis defines it as being when;

 the Knower, the Known and the Process of Knowing 

all fuse into One. For example - where the Knower observing or Knowing a sunset becomes the sunset for a blissful but short period of time. The Ancestors seem to agree with Jung, that this is hard to sustain. 

The Eastern concept of the Oneness Experience may be the province of the enlightened few. One could question if even these Self-realized beings are able to live constantly without duality creeping in. Having had the experience, however, one is rarely the same again. Some experience this blissful and overwhelming oneness and love during a Near Death Experience.

“The challenge is relief from ego, how to be free from its tyranny.
The way is relief from ego, surrendering and releasing one’s instinct for protection and cultural conditioning; subduing its tyranny but with respectful and grateful acknowledgement for its appropriate worth.
The "prize" - the place of arrival - is relief from ego and a true sense of the pleasure of its place.”  The Ancestors

“About humility we speak with an analogy: When the branches are full of fruit, they just bow down.” Maharishi Mahesh Yogi

“All must be done for its own sake, not for reason of an outcome.
All is a journey not a destination and it is a continual arriving.”

“Do you listen with your heart or are you hearing with your ego.
The possible peril is not a punishment, it is a consequence.
…” The Ancestors

  Doing things for their own sake and without any personal agenda is the crux of ego subordination. Our deeds must be done for the greater good without consideration of any reward or pay back. Yoga teaches that any action bound to an ego motive will buy us another life time.

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08_Karma.mp3