Watching a Netflix piece about Steve Aoki the EDM superstar and something he said really struck a chord with me. His best friend died and Aoki remembers something his friend always use to say. "Starve the ego. Feed the soul." This might be one of the most powerful statements I have ever heard. We live in an increasingly egotistical society. It's a dog eat dog reality everybody vicious in the animal kingdom. Humanity is crazy for fame and power and we crush each other in the dirt to get to the top of the pyramid. Meanwhile soul shrivels away while ego rides higher.
Is not all roses on the top of the mountain though. Get's real lonely on the summit because ego can't stop feeding. You want 100% attention and affection in your world of sycophants. But it's never enough. Ego is a leech. It won't stop sucking until it destroys you or you find the strength to starve it to oblivion. Takes lots of soul searching moments to really see what you have become.
There's been quite some confusion on what the Ego is with a lot of new age movement references. The Ego is Self. Ego is I, the True I. Without I there is no Us. Without Us there is no They. Ego is necessary for the soul to experience reality cognitively. The False Ego is the character sets that we accumulate through nurture and interacting with your environment at a false level of consciousness. These false egos can accumulate overtime as we wear different masks for different occasions.
I wouldnt say to starve the false ego, but rather to become aware of its existence and how it affects your consciousness. Starving it will only make it hungry and scream for food. Shine the light upon the darkness and the darkness is revealed wholly as being full of light.
Awesome response. "False level of consciousness" indeed