[pumpineemob]

i don't see anything wrong with trying to"copy"those things we admire about another person.

for example,i have some friends who i admire for their paitence,and in some cases wisdom.

I hope you didn't misunderstand me. I agree with what you said. It is just that I think it is not fair to ourself to compare ourself with others. Others have different capacities and capabilities than we do. To try to be something we are not will only cause inner confusion and will likely cause us to have a negative attitude about ourself.

[zlopikanikanz]

i may have.your right tho.we can only be who we are.

[Babposa]

i may have.your right tho.we can only be who we are.

Hehehe. I'm glad that's settled. I make enough mistakes on my own, I don't need anyone misunderstanding me.

[Grewlybreekly]

The Tibetan teacher, Chogyam Trungpa, warned of the trap of spiritual materialism. He says we must be ever diligent to spot the egos use of the spiritual journey to further its own ends.

We may think its spiritual to yearn for divine connection. And yet, if the longing is to fill an emptiness inside, just how does this differ from the one who yearns for money or possessions to fill the inner void? Do we look to our spiritual practices as proof of our evolved consciousness or as protection against fears?

Any time we use spiritual disciplines to maintain our identity and security, we are not yet on the path of genuine spiritual development.

"Enlightenment is egos ultimate disappointment."

-- Chgyam Trungpa In my own experience, which is the only experience I can speak for, I've searched for spirituality for many different reasons. I'm sure Chogyam Trungpa would not say that one should not search for spirituality as a way to ease the ego's suffering, in fact that's one of the goals within Buddhism, but rather that at some point one should be aware of their ultimate reason for seeking spirituality.

There is also a difference between religiosity and spirituality. The first is the practice of a belief out of duty, the second is a practice of belief out of necessity. Many may come to religion or spirituality out of the duty, but in practicing come to understand the necessity.

It's also important to understand why you begin your journey, is it out of guilt, a way to make amends or lessen your guilt over something you've done in the past? Is it out of a desire for fulfillment, because you feel something is lacking in your life, which is what Chogyam Trungpa was alluding to, or is it out of a sincere desire to do what is right as you know it? In the end the reasons may be different, but ultimately lead to the same source. So, in my opinion, one should not be as concerned about why they chose to seek a spiritual tradition, but rather they should be certain that they are receiving something worthwhile from that tradition. If you become spiritual to alleviate your guilt, yet you feel even more guilty, then are you any better off than you were before?

Anyways, just some things I was thinking about.

Aaron

[Blotassefesek]

Always remember that no matter how much you know there's always someone who knows more. That even masters are students. But maybe the best way to avoid a spiritual ego, is to stop the longing for more. Knowledge is good, but perhaps it is best to not try to learn everything. The more you know, the more confident you are, the greater your chances of developing an ego.

~ Well, you could give up the ego completely & just die.
Or you could realize that the

ego is here to learn what it couldn't without physicality.....

Ego.... I feel holds many meanings,confidence in self, vanity, arrogance, m

anipulation of sorts...The only association I would attempt to make between ego and spirituality would be confidence in ones path but not egoistical enough to know one needs to follow ones heart/path...

...I do it by continuously being aware of what I am doing. By paying attention to what I am doing. Examining what is at the core of what I do now. By Doing what I am doing. By questioning..by doubting...by keeping my mind open and not falling into definitions or fixed belief systems.

I like the idea of viewing others as enlightened. It eliminates the immediate judgment to whether what they do is evil or good.

It creates a humility that enables me to watch and watch only. ...

....I think that ego and spirituality are two opposing concepts.

Ego allows us to define ourselves as an individual entity whereas spirituality allows us to become one (undifferentiated)with all else.....My ego deals with physical reality, my spirituality deals with my inner essence. Peace & Love!

...teacher Thich Nhat Hanh has Buddha saying, "A person in the path must keep a humble, open heart, acknowledging that his understanding is incomplete." ...."Imagine that

every person in the world is enlightened but you. They are all your teachers, each doing just the right thing to help you learn perfect patience, perferct wisdom, perfect compassion."....

The best way I know is to have compassion. Mother Theresa is an excellent example. The ego wants. Compassion serves.

These are but a few wonderful, enlightening words I've read in this thread that I think we should all take to heart. Thought provoking ideals.

In my half century of walking this planet, I know one of my worst attributes was my ego. It was not until the last ten years or so I realized it, actually saw it in myself and did something to correct the manner in which my inflated ego was hurting, rather than helping enlighten my Self.

We all Spiritually stumble, fall and "skin our knees" so to speak...that is an inevitable part of Life. Our ego tries to find blame or fault for what it was that caused us to stumble. Our ego senses our falling and foolishly attempts to stop it. Our ego cries not for the pain and blood of scraping our knee, but for the vanity of how we looked stumbling, falling and scraping our knee.

Free of ego, we can clearly see the many lessons surrounding our stumble, the wonderful exhilaration of the falling sensation and the beauty of our newly acquired "knee skin".

Blessings of Peace,

[tuszit]

Our ego cries not for the pain and blood of scraping our knee, but for the vanity of how we looked stumbling, falling and scraping our knee.

My sister-in-law went to sit on a kitchen chair on rollers in our kitchen. She let the chair slip away and took a spill. She was overly embarrassed. I remember thinking thankfully she wasn't hurt and about how embarrassed she had been.

LOL! I did the same thing as her...let the chair slip and took a spill. And you know what? My ego was also embarrassed! SO..I had a hardly laugh at myself.

[bF8CCmmr]

SO..I had a hardly laugh at myself.

I think as long as we can still laugh at our own mistakes we aren't in too bad a shape.