Put Apart The I: The Path To Enlightenment, Initiation 5 of 9

We have all used the word Ego, but how many of us really know what the ego actually is!? Understanding who we really are, and what influences act upon us is the next step on our path to enlightenment. When we speak of our Ego, who or what are we talking about? Just what the ego is depends on your perspective, and to really understand it we need to look from a spiritual perspective. The Ego is born as we learn to identify with ourselves as separate from other people and life. The Ego is born at around the time that we learn to understand our own name or recognise ourselves in the mirror. We are unable to remember much if anything before we developed our ego, and that is a part of the divine plan. We cannot remember our total unity and connectedness because our ego made it that way.

Our Ego is our illusionary identity. Our ego believes we are separate and will die when our body dies. It is mortal and it will do whatever it can to stay alive. The ego is very busy at all times 'helping' us to be mindful of the things it thinks we need to know, and is equally busy hiding, ignoring and denying things that it things may be a threat to it's existence. The Ego is in a way the great deceiver that tests us in each and every moment to question it, and ourselves. In order to be able to see the Ego for what it is, we have to somehow rise above it. Most of the people of the world are simply playing out the Ego Mind like a predictable story book. They see, they react, and the cycle of Ego Mind continues in all their actions, reactions and interactions. Learning to recognise this Ego Mind is the start of real progress on the Path to Enlightenment. If we are not in control of our choices, and we are manipulated and controlled by an invisible hand, then it is very important to be able to recognise it so that you can then question it.

There are many ways to be able to take a step back so that you are removed from your normal state of mind and are able to see Ego in a way that you had not before. I would like to share with you two of the most powerful things that you can do, and I encourage you to try one that appeals most to you. This is the 5th Initiation, and if done every day can start you on a path that will ultimately lead to the subduing of Ego so that you can hear, feel and discover the real you that lives inside. Once you discover the real you for the first time, you will never be quite the same again!

The idea here is not to remove the ego, or try to fight it, but instead to identify its voice and learn to separate it from your own voice. You will get better at this after you have tried one of the following Initiations regularly for a period of time. Once you learn to identify your own authentic voice, you will be one step closer to finding out who you really are! Bhajans and Chanting work very well because they occupy the mind and at the same time nourishes the heart and soul. This pacifies the Ego like a candy bar, and gives you space to experience yourself without ego in total control.

Mantra / Chanting

The Vedic scriptures state that there is only one way to find salvation in these dark times, and that is by chanting or devotional singing. Chanting is something that I have done for many years for around 45 minutes each morning. There are many different things you can chant, and to some extent it doesn't matter what it is. Having said that, there are some chants that are sacred and do have a special quality to them. You can tell because of how if affects you after you sing them. When I chant certain Mantras I can feel an incredible difference throughout the whole day. I feel more joyful, peaceful, light, and full of love, my heart is wide open after I chant. It doesn't feel like it whilst you are chanting, but once you stop you realise how your consciousness has changed. SO, if you have never chanted before, PLEASE do try this out. I am inserting a youtube movie here of one that I like, but you could also find your own, there are 1000's to choose from.