What is Ego?

Ego is simply how we see ourselves. How we were raised, what we were taught, what our ideals are and so on. Ego is what we own, and what we have accumulated. It is based in the past and on the future. Ego has nothing to do with the present. Our Ego is also how we think others see us. Ego can be a confusing concept because sometimes, the way we use it is to pin it on people. "He has a Big ego"-which often means, he equates his body or his possessions or his morality to his importance. But the truth is we all do that. We all possess an ego. We do it in different ways. We see ourselves as Barbers, and Mothers, as writers, as musicians, and so on. We see ourselves as our qualities--The tree-Hugger-ness, the Idealist, the Artist, the feminist, and so on.
Nothing external is who we are. In fact most of what is internal is also not who we are because we equate our thoughts with who we are as well. What we are, then, is in fact, just essence, which is shared by every one and every thing. Shared by the leaf and the flower, and the bee and the bum, and Bill Gates. So it all comes back to essence, which is Life Force energy. That which animates us? Not even that. Because the animated "us" is dictated by how we see ourselves, which is dictated by ego.

So, I think the easiest way to understand Who we really are is to go back to stillness. Stopping for a moment and feeling the presence of your hand-that is, the energy movement in your hand. I first felt this after practicing Yoga,-- after the practice of flowing through the poses and finally when we experienced Shivasana, or Corpse pose (relaxation Pose.) When fully still and just breathing, I was able to feel the energy in my hands, and not only that, it felt like a swirling vortex. I was amazed. The more that I separated myself from the room, by focusing on the sensations of my Body, the more I sensed that I was an energetic being. We all are energetic beings. And when we are outdoors it becomes even more apparent that we are part of the larger energetic being. Ok, now it should become apparent that if we are part of the larger energetic being, (like the cells of the body itself) then we can see how our actions, effect every other individual energetic being, and not only that, what we "do" to others is actually done to ourselves. Which means that everything we do matters. It may then, become easier for us to yield. Not to take things personally when we know that the Ego is a separate entity which has its own agenda.

"The strength of a Tree lies in its Ability to bend"

So we Bend, and we can keep our ego from seeing our ability to bend, as making us superior, by realizing that everyone has the potential to Bend. If we all have the ability to bend, then we all have the ability, so to speak, to release the hold of our own ego and the ego of others. This should put us back to the same playing field.

This means that the things we own, and our physical bodies, whatever they may be, don't matter. Except that, we must care for the body because it carries our essence around, which is our most precious possession. So letting go of possessions--where that comes in is here. Possessions clutter our homes and they clutter our thoughts. Letting go of possessions is just an exercise in realizing that we are not our possessions. It is an exercise in realizing that if we let go of some of our possessions we can live with out them, and we will still have the same essence without them. Let me correct that. Not have. Be. We will be the same Essence. It is freeing. It helps us to be as Jesus said,"poor in spirit," meaning that our spirit is light and unencumbered by the burdens which a multitude of possessions bring. And it brings us to a closer realization of what the kingdom of heaven is, which is , I think Oneness. I think we can experience Oneness when we accept the fact that we all have the same essence, which is the Spirit of God.