Are You the Architect of Your Life? A Simple Guide to Understanding Your Ego and Inner Thinker.

What gives rise to our sense of self, the “thinker” within us? Our minds are constantly buzzing with thoughts, inviting us to make sense of the world, reflect on our experiences, make good choices, and measure our personal growth. However, we often navigate this stream of thoughts without questioning its conditioning influence.

Understanding the Ego is like unraveling the layers of our core identity. It starts with questioning the very essence of what motivates this “thinker” within us.

The Space of Consciousness

The French philosopher Descartes proposed that “I think” equates to “I am,” suggesting that our self is the ‘I’ in his equation. However, the spirit-self operates more as a silent observer, a space of consciousness if you will, that resonates with the world around it. As an example, when practicing mindfulness, it allows us to become more aware and expand this mental space. It can be very surprising at first.

Release from Pressure

There are many situations in life that generate pressure. An exam, a job interview, our wedding, a relationship gone sour, a new job, etc. When we experience pressure, typically a bodily or physical phenomenon, it soon becomes a mental burden when the spirit identifies too closely with the streams of thoughts that the pressure invites. Focusing on thoughts can be imprisoning; it can create a mental abyss, similar to a writer trapped in a never-ending search for his next chapter. Recognizing the distinction between bodily pressure and spiritual consciousness is vital for breaking free from this mental imprisonment.

The Creation of the Ego

What truly matters is how thoughts captivate the spirit’s attention, often becoming traps that not only hinder personal growth but can become obsessive. The ego emerges through the constant identification with thought forms and their interpretations. You could almost say that ego does not truly exist outside of identification with a particular thought or perspective. For instance, a sense of loss or lack. A feeling of loneliness or inadequacy, judging we have to prove ourselves or being worried about our reputation. We cannot stop thinking but we can stop becoming our thoughts through “identification.” Without these identifications, the ego loses its power over us.

The Liberation Within Silence

In the moments between thoughts lies the essence of our spirit.

Contemplating this space allows us to observe hidden strengths and recognize that our attention is free. What we focus on is our own choice. Sometimes what hinders our awakening is forgetting that it is the focus and identification with a specific interpretation of ourselves that creates a sense of unease—a bad trip. By embracing the silence between these interpretations and being fully present in the current moment, we become free from the entanglements of thought. It just takes a bit of practice.

Beyond Ego’s Vanity

The ego, born out of constant self-reflection and attachment to thought forms, becomes preoccupied with reputation and vanity. Reflexive consciousness turns into a continuous stream of opinions, but it’s crucial to realize that we are not these thoughts—we identify with them. Pure awareness is being the observer, detached from the ego’s concerns about identity or what we call our self-image.

Intuition and Echo Chambers

Intuition also disrupts the ego’s grip, transforming thoughts into echoes that may distract us from the pure command of our attention. The ego seeks separation, identification, comparison, and judgment, thriving on validation and self-dramatization. In contrast, observe a baby — it does not offer you a reflection because it lacks one. A baby embodies pure consciousness, untouched by the reflexive mechanics that plagues most human beings.

Pure Awareness

In conclusion, the ego-self, born out of identification and inherently narcissistic, craves validation through an idealized self-image. Contrasting this with the purity of a baby’s consciousness underscores the healthy challenge of retaining our essence.

Pure awareness merely observes; there is no attachment to perceptions. Stimuli, whether thoughts or perspectives, become neutral. However, when we seek understanding and demand explanations, it gives rise to various projections, leading to confusion, distraction, and ultimately, mental fog.