Peeling the EGO Onion

The best way I know how to reach our inner self is by removing the layers of lies, false beliefs, incorrect values, propaganda, domestication and indoctrination from the ego's realm. It will always make incorrect decisions with faulty assumptions and judgment. The ego does not have will power. It only has WON'T power. The true self is the true will. It always feeds the right decision to the ego when one has to be made. That's when all human error kicks in. Ego thinks it's smart and overrules the truth.

If we do not agree that this artificial mind is the only faulty part of nature, we will not get far. The only way to tame it and make it an ally to our true self is to understand it. It is meant to be a tool, not the driver of our lives.

Ego craves for humanity
The true me wants divinity
It's bad enough to work and slave
Ego worries about the grave

It doesn't get Infinity
Has no clue of Eternity
Tries to create Identity
Please go to sleep Nonentity

If Truth be known, we are endless
Only Past dies, that's a promise
The future comes as we decide
So, come Ego, enjoy the ride

Copyright John Stachura - 2004

Underneath Ego's veneer, we are all perfect, just like the rest of natural life. Ego is very stubborn and very hard-coded with all the apps it has digested. The first thing that usually comes from ego's mouth is self-defense. On December 26. 1984, my fortieth birthday, the Arab News published the following letter.

"Sir,

When I was young, my mother told me that people who are defensive for no apparent reason or aggressive by nature usually are trying to tell others that they are fearful. She was no psychologist, but that advice certainly has been proven time and again in my encounters.

She said the best method to handle these characters was to ask them, "What are you afraid of?" That turned out to be a good way to get discussions back on even keel and many simply faded into the woodwork with embarrassment.

Defensive or aggressive behavior is caused by fear which, in turn, is caused by ignorance. We do not fear what we know, only what we do not know. We only fear death because we do not know death. If we didn't fear death, what could we possibly fear? Regardless of the answer, it can only relate to the frailty of human beings and their imperfections. Because of these flaws and the fear of doing something wrong, societal laws have been instituted to guide the population into set ways of behavior. Guidelines for civilization. The pontification of these laws by one segment of society to another serves mainly to break silence rather than convert someone to another way of thinking.

If someone has peace of mind, no fear can enter into his or her heart from what someone else says or does. It is not for people to criticize the life of others, but only to offer to communicate with a sincere heart. No one can choose my goals for me, but I welcome communication to give me choices of which I was ignorant. To learn from each other does not mean to accept all the lifestyles available, but it does mean knowledge. To remove ignorance with new understanding is to remove fear.

The most disturbing piece of knowledge is that which necessitates the removal of accepted beliefs. We all have a sense of self-worth which the sum total of all our belief and value systems. When that self-worth is threatened is when the defenses come up and aggressive behavior begins.

It is not for society to enforce, but to guide. Civilization simply means the mutual love and respect of its constituents. People who do not respect others' right to freedom, expression and the pursuit of happiness are branding themselves as insecure in their own lives. Nothing more, nothing less."

John P. Stachura
Riyadh

I wrote the letter because of the paranoia Muslim society can create for its members and us infidels.

It applies everywhere else in the world, of course. There is only one devil and its name is ignorance. Only Ego is ignorant. It is the only devil. Because the only reason it's ignorant is because it hides the truth, it can be enlightened by having it accept truth. The first reaction any ego reading this will have is: "What do you know about truth?" Quote from Edgar D. Mitchell, Apollo 14 astronaut:

"The simple secret of the Universe if that you create your own reality."

When we take responsibility for that reality, we can start changing it.

The best example I can think of to illustrate Cogitator in a human environment is the movie Groundhog Day. The previous chapters are intended to establish some credibility for the existence of the ego and the need for change. Groundhog Day is a gem to show how we can peel the Ego onion.

The main character, played by Bill Murray, is a weatherman assigned to cover Punxsutawney Phil on Groundhog Day. Every year on February 2, the groundhog predicts whether or not there will be another six weeks of winter - or so the legend goes. Bill is not happy because he feels this assignment is far beneath his station in life. He is nasty and crusty by nature and starts the movie obviously peeved.

He is sent there with a cameraman and a beautiful producer played by Andie McDowell. They check into their hotel the night before and go to sleep. In the morning, Bill is awakened by the radio next to the bed with: "Good morning! It's Groundhog Day! The weather for today is...." He irritably smacks the radio to end the noise and prepares for the day. He does his morning routine, gets dressed and heads for the lobby. The bellman greets him and Bill brushes him off. Along the way, he has several other chance encounters with townspeople and displays the same grumpy attitude.

When he gets to the site of the ceremony, he disgustingly watches the goings-on and gives a lackluster report on the event. Afterwards, he approaches Andie and makes a somewhat crude pass. She rebuffs him and walks away shaking her head. They pass the evening and retire to get ready for the next morning's flight home.

The next morning, Bill is awakened by the radio next to the bed with: "Good morning! It's Groundhog Day! The weather for today is...." At first, he has to collect his thoughts to see if he is dreaming and although he finds it odd, packs his suitcase and goes downstairs for breakfast. As he passes the bellman, he gets the exact same greeting as the day before. He asks what day it is and the bellman tells him its Groundhog Day. His associates are nowhere to be seen, so he ventures outside to see if they are around. No such luck, so he heads for the site of the shoot and again encounters the same people as before, saying the exact same things. His behavior the rest of the day changes ever so slightly and, puzzled, goes back to the hotel. The following morning, it's Groundhog Day again. He has no idea what is going on.

He decides to try something different. Since he knows the people he will meet from previous encounters as well as what they will say, he begins changing his behavior to see what results that will bring in comparison. Because he has been repeatedly rebuffed by Andie, he tries to be nicer and brings doughnuts and coffee to her and the cameraman one day. They are stunned and thank him for his nice gesture. He is not used to being appreciated and thanked and rather likes it. After the shoot, he again tries an awkward pass with Andie and she disappointedly refuses his advance.

The scenes depict countless Groundhog days that drive Bill bananas. He tries to break out of the day by committing suicide - jumping off buildings, stepping in front of a speeding train, etc. and still wakes up to Groundhog Day. He finally says to himself, "if I'm going to be stuck in this day forever, I may as well make it as pleasant as possible." His attitude changes. Since it appears that Andie likes him when he is nice, he will do whatever he can to get her to bed. That would be a good day.

Now, each day he rises, he pays close attention to what he says and does. He starts with the doughnuts, does a very nice report and lingers after the shoot to ask Andie if she would like to have lunch with him. She is quite surprised but accepts. They have a pleasant time until his old irascible behavior returns and she leaves him behind.

The next day, he remembers where he left off with her and adjusts his manner to get through lunch successfully and they go for a walk. Again, he screws up and she angrily goes back to the hotel. Every day he gets further and further through the day until his selfish interest interferes. The movie ends when he finally is a perfect gentleman all day and they fall in love. The next morning is no longer Groundhog Day. Moral: Love is the answer.

What this film shows is how to debug a human being. To get the mistakes and false values out of the ego mind, we have to give it an "attitude check." We only get one day of life, today and forever. It is up to us to make it as pleasant and productive as we possibly can. Ego needs to wake up.

All computer programs and systems are comprised of routines. So are we. We call them habits, too. If we are not awake when these habits activate, we cannot change them. It's just the same as clicking on an icon on your screen. Once the app starts, it's hard to stop.

It's all about prioritization. We must take inventory of what we do and why we do it and prioritize our goals in terms of importance. If all we want in life is some creature comforts and live without participating in the big picture, we may as well not live at all. The Seven Deadly Sins are the realm of ego and it keeps them uppermost on its goal list. That is the wrong sequence if we want to gain control.

Every goal we have is either something we want and don't have or something we have and don't want. If we accept a goal, it automatically throws us out of balance. We must activate a sequence of events with our imagination and act upon that sequence to achieve it. For example, let's say we want to take a shower in the morning. We imagine ourselves getting clean underwear, wending out way to the bathroom, turning on the water, stepping into the shower, soaping and rinsing, turning the water off, stepping out and drying ourselves and so on. Later, we imagine going to work by imagining getting dressed, grabbing our car keys and materials, getting into the car, negotiating traffic and landing at our place of employment. Every single goal is achieved in the same manner.

Society sets a lot of goals for us to muddle our mind. Those goals usually have little to do with anything else but serving the goals of others. More on this later.