The Ego Or The Soul? Which One Do You Operate From and Do You Know the Difference?

The Ego or the Soul? Which one do you operate from? And do you know the difference?

Before I start here, I am going to give you my introduction to this topic.  It has fascinated me for over 20 years.  My first introduction to the concept of the Ego was during my Kundalini Yoga teacher training in 2001.  Yogi Bhajan introduced Kundalini Yoga to the States in the 1970’s.  Prior to these teachings from him, the information shared in the yoga teacher trainings was limited to students in Ashrams in India.  Much of the information in these teachings were considered both sacred and secret before then.  

The concept of the Ego though is not limited to Eastern teaching however.  The word itself “Ego” originating from Latin where it means “I”. It was first mentioned in metaphysical writings in 1707 – “the self; that which feels, acts, or thinks.”  Kant, Dewey and Freud all made references to it in their works, with the latter becoming most well know for his writing on it, and Kant and Dewey preceding him in their references to it.

Just as discoveries in science are often preceded by knowings in eastern tradition, concepts in eastern traditions often precede the western understanding of the same concept.  One good example of that is Meditation and the now well understood and researched fact that meditation/ mindfulness can reduce stress levels and benefit the mind.  This has been known and understood in Eastern traditions for a long time and only recently has science proven it. 

My understand about the Ego is aligned from the Eastern/Yogic understanding of it. It is that understanding I will present here. Freuds writings on the subject just do not resonate as accurate with me, they feel limited in perspective and understanding. 

Ok, now we can start.

From a yogic and spiritual perspective, we are a soul that has a body and not a body that has a soul.  It is the soul that comes into this earth and takes occupancy in the body. Originally, the Ego was given to the soul as a companion tool that was to allow the personality of the soul to express itself.  The soul is individual expression itself and the Ego had the role of managing/stating preferences, expressing the personality.  When the soul dies, the ego does not travel with it, as it is a construct for operating in this world.  So the Ego does have a role, however it is meant to be the passenger in the car and not the driver.  

What happened?  Over time, our passage on this earth became altered and impacted by fear, this fear greatly impacted our Ego and it developed into our “Altered Ego.” The Ego, went from being the passenger in the car to the driver of the car.  In this role, the Ego strives to keep us alive, to keep us safe and to keep things in status quo – as in not changing.  Our soul is very easygoing and agreeable, it sits back and observes and it takes a more laissez faire approach to life seeing where things take us.   

Our experience here is somewhat akin to a computer and operating systems.  Usually you will have one system operating at the time.  If you can imagine in any given moment you are either going to be operating from your Ego or your Soul – one or the other but usually not both at the same time.  Our conscious mind is meant to assist us in this process, by keen focus and awareness.  Usually though, we allow our conscious mind to get distracted and when that happens, our Ego takes the wheel.  The soul operates from love and the Altered Ego is motivated by fear.  The Ego is very concerned with the outward appearance of things and things in the outer world.  The Soul is that low volume voice that chimes in from time to time with suggestions that we wish we had listened to but didn’t as ‘we didn’t think they were important at the time. I can’t tell you how many times I will think back at some small nudge or inner voice prompt I have heard but didn’t listen to, only to regret it later.  

This next photo is from Savannah, GA and Jones Street is where the expression “Keeping up With the Joneses” came from, generally referring to the comparison to one’s neighbor as a benchmark for social class or the accumulation of material goods.  That is Ego territory.

What does this mean for day to day living?   When I first started looking at this topic I had not realized any of the information above.  I was very unaware of this in general. As an observer, I would notice my actions and approach and results changing sometimes dramatically from situation to situation.  I might be completely myself with a close friend and turn into someone that I thought people would expect to see in a different scenario.  If I met a celebrity and I got into my head about it, I would act in a way that I thought I should act around them, v’s being myself, I would play different music, I would dress differently and put this false self out there v’s a more legitimate or true to myself version of myself. 

I did not know that the soul loves expansion and loves new experiences and opportunities or that the Ego loves things to be the same, unchanging and predictable.  I did not know that communication from my heart was far more impactful and richer in understanding than the spewing from my head.  Nor did I know that the Ego can take us down the rabbit hole of fear and mundaneness and would gladly keep us there to protect itself from its greatest fear – death of itself.  You see, the soul never dies, it realizes that it is an expression of Divinity itself and in that knowing it wishes to experience the fulness of life, conversation, love and emotions. 

The Ego is somewhat like the reflection in the hall of mirrors.  The soul and our emotions are what is real, The Ego and its fleeting feelings, impulses and distractions are not really real.  I say not really, as The Ego itself does actually have a purpose with us here on earth, it is designed to travel with us in its original role as our personality self and preferences. What has happened however is that we have just given ourselves over the illusion versus the knowing and truth of who we are, which is our soul.

This world is built in a manner that keeps us trapped in Illusion, it keeps us triggered by fear and it keeps us looking outside ourselves for validation, approval and understanding.  It keeps our egos engaged because if we really understood our true power, we would be forces to be reckoned with and we would not fear death.  This world as we are currently interacting with it, keeps us distracted, keeps us riled up, under pressure and everything else.  In doing so it keeps us out of the present moment, keeps us anchored in our Ego and distracted from our true higher self our soul.  Our Soul is out connection to God, Divinity, the All.  Our answers are inside of us, not outside.  Our joy, contentment is inside and not outside.  Start listening to your soul, your inner child.  It has the connection you are seeking.

Sign up to learn about my upcoming class – Move Differently.  It is a 6-week/42 Day process. During this 6 weeks I will work with you to bring you greater clarity on who you are and how to move differently in this world and get different results.  We will do exercises, lectures and games to giver you greater inner connection and understanding.  and I will share information to help you become really grounded in who you truly are.  Once you understand this, you will be able to move through life differently, feeling connected and expanded, you will feel better and you will start to experience dramatic changes in your life.  Click here to find out more: Move Differently