Understanding Ego

 

I wish to summarize my understanding of “sorrow” based on a talk given by Swami Sarvapriyananda ji.

Causes of Sorrow

The cause of sorrow can be traced to three levels: physical, mental, and ego.

Physical: There are 3 sources from where sorrow at physical level may be caused:

Nature: Examples: extreme weather (heat/cold/dust/rain/snow); extreme events (earthquakes/tsunami/epidemics/storms/thunder & lightning).

Other Beings/things: Examples: People assaulting, abusing, insulting, deceiving, OR Stock market crash, insects/animal attack, property loss.

Within own body: Examples: sickness, accidents, ageing.

Mental: Any sorrow is experienced in the mind alone. Therefore, a thought of suffering or pain must arise in the mind for experiencing the sorrow. Under the effect of anesthesia or coma, no sorrow is experienced because the mind doesn’t receive any signal to trigger the thought of pain or suffering. If someone abuses you in a language that you don’t know, no thought of hurt will arise in the mind.

Ego: At the deepest level, we experience sorrow only when we identify with the thought of pain or suffering in the mind. Although it is my mind that experiences pain, my ego identifying with my mind tends to say “I am in pain”.

In conclusion, anything happening in the outside world or even in my own body must give rise to a thought of uneasiness or anxiety in the mind, and I must identify myself with this thought to become sorrowful. In reality, I can’t be what I experience. I am witness of an experience in my mind. No one can make me unhappy without my permission.

What is Sorrow?

Sorrow can be defined as:

Sorrow is modification in nature: Nature is made up of Sattwa, Rajas and Tamas which are constantly in dynamic motion. Predominance of Rajas is designed to give both pleasure and pain. Thus sorrow is an inherent aspect of nature.

Sorrow is appearance in Brahman (Maya): In dream we experience sorrow. While in the dream-world the sorrow is real but on waking up we dismiss it as an illusionary appearance in the mind. Similarly, when one transcends the waking-world it is realized that whatever is experienced in the waking also is an appearance in the Consciousness. You appear to yourself as sorrow.

Sorrow is Brahman: Everything in the universe is nothing apart from Brahman. Brahman or God manifests in a variety of ways, including sorrow.

Ways to overcome Sorrow (Spiritual Practices)

Devotee: Sorrow is grace of God. It brings me closer to God (Kunti asking Krisna for the boon of sorrow).

Karma yogi: Sorrow is erasing my bad karma of the past. I am becoming free of my bad karma.

Yogi: Shuts down (transcends) the mind and senses through meditation.

Gyani: It is an offence to complain about sorrow if I have realized the truth. If Brahman alone is, where is any place for sorrow?

Everyone can be a Hero

I wish to share my reflections and the essence of a beautiful talk I recently watched.

Through long research in the field of Psychology based on a 1949 published book “The Hero with a Thousand Faces” by Joseph Campbell, researchers have concluded that there are seven elements of a Hero. These seven elements are briefly described below:

1.     Protagonist

You are the protagonist of your own life story. It is up to you how you write it. What you identify with as your main identity will influence all the other elements. Don’t confuse your identity with your ever-changing roles. Your identity is you – never changing. How about being a ‘seeker of truth’?

2.     Shift in Circumstances

You should move out of your comfort zone and be open to changes in circumstances. Life will test you by putting you in different circumstances as soon as you feel comfortable in a situation. You should embrace the change without resistance, as it will open the door to new possibilities.

3.     Quest

Your identity will drive your quest or purpose in life. Try to make your quest beyond your selfish interests. The higher the quest/purpose, the greater is the fulfilment in life. You truly start living the life of a human being when your quest is beyond your physical survival.

4.     Allies/Mentors

In the pursuit of your purpose/quest, you must make alliances with like-minded people to keep you motivated and find mentors to guide you on the chosen path. Without this support/guidance, you may get frustrated or get lost under the heavy weight of your quest. No one has ever won any war without allies.

5.     Challenges

The higher the quest, the greater will be the challenge. Life presents each challenge to test one’s competence/worthiness for claiming the reward of one’s quest. Giving up in the face of a challenge is giving up this reward. Your current weaknesses or bad habits are your greatest challenges. Address one challenge at a time. Take a resolve to win over this challenge sincerely.

6.     Transformation

In finding ways to win over a challenge, one grows in competence/worthiness. You go through a transformation, however slow it may be. You don’t build a strong physique overnight. Your competition is with yourself. “Am I a better version of myself today?”, should be your daily enquiry. Learning should never stop while pursuing your quest.

7.     Legacy

Did anyone else benefit from your life’s journey? Did your life inspire someone else? Are you leaving behind any legacy for others on a similar journey? A true hero always leaves behind a rich legacy that survives much after he/she is gone.

Further research has shown that those who inculcated all the above seven elements in their life find their life most meaningful, fulfilled, and happy. A very useful way of finding this out is to write your own life story to date and check how much of these seven elements are already involved in it and work on improving them in the future. Thus, everyone can become a hero of his/her own life story and enjoy complete fulfilment.