Ego is a state of mind which is nothing more
than a self-proclaimed or self-constructed pseudo identity. It's a mindset
which prevents a human's inner conscious to accept things in their natural
entity. It can also be termed as self-concept or “Ahankara” as enshrined in the
Indian Vedas of Ancient times which sometimes also disables the receptiveness
of thoughts and ideas from the other sources.
In terms of human relationship, ego debars an
individual to accept and pay regard to others individuality. Relationships are a two-way process and in
most of the cases, ego acts as a dead end on the road to a healthy
relationship. If communication can act as a catalyst in a relationship, ego
works all together in a different way. It acts as a slow poison and has venomous
effects on the nerves of any relation.
Ego and ethics are also very closely related.
The best example can be cited from our heritage Indian Epic of ‘The Ramayana'.
In my personal opinion, if there would have been no Ego, there would not have
been ‘The Ramayana’ or ‘The Mahabharata’.
When The Ravana, the most dedicated disciple
of Lord Shiva gained control over his ego he was blessed with divine powers
which were beyond the reach of a normal human being. But the same Ravana, when
was taken over by his own ego; his defeat at the hands of Lord Rama entered the
pages of Mythological History which will be enshrined in the minds of
generations to come till infinity.
However, even Ravana showed some signs of
‘controlled ego’ as he had a very strong conviction of not forcing himself onto
Sita until her own will. Such an exceptional control of seduction, lust and ego
probably go missing nowadays when women; can rightly be termed as the largest
minority of our country are subject to indecent and unexpected exploitation in
a country like India where idols of women are worshiped as Goddess.
Therefore, at some instances, inheriting ego
is also recommended. But where an individual has to get mild with his ego or
where a human being has to be stringent on his/her stand subject to
self-respect, understanding the correct timing of such switching is an art in
itself.
There also exists a very fine distinguishing
line between ego and self-esteem or self-realization and its interpretation
also depends on the perspective of the viewer. For example, Medieval Indian History is
observed as a dark age of bloodshed and ignorance which pushed India towards
slavery at the dawn of the modern era according to the viewpoint and
perspective of the British Historians.
However, the same age was glorified by the
Indian Historians which witnessed a sea of Hindus ruled by able Muslim Rulers
like Akbar. This era gave the human civilization hoards of world heritage sites
like the Qutub Minar of New Delhi to Taj Mahal of Agra.
As it is rightly said by the Prime Minister
of India Shri. Narendra Modi, “Mind is never a problem…Mindset it”, it’s the
mindset behind these two opposite interpretation and perspective of viewing the
same patch on the timeline. One engulfed with egoistic tendency of the Britons
and the other enlightening thoughts of self-realization and actualization by
the Indians.
With reference to the same context mentioned
above, the Britons have started lagging behind on the world forum as well on
many fronts just because of a conservative society and an egoistic tendency of
being racially superior. If we compare
it to its former colony, the United States of America, the US, because of their
liberal and progressive society have showcased tremendous progress within 300
years of their independence just because they weeded off the shrubs of
conservatism and egoism way before the world could even realize it. It clearly
shows that anything which embraces change at the earliest is far away from the
evil of ego.
The same seesaw of Ego and Self Esteem is
omnipresent when we talk about generation gap. Anyone tumbling off the balance
is witnessed by collapse of the whole fabric of the relationship model.
Like Happiness and sorrows, Love and hatred,
Anger and revenge; even Ego is a part of complex human mindset which is clearly
visible everyday around us in conflicts between individuals, for example, in
the case of institution of marriage and divorce which we study in sociology to
wars between Nations which forms the basis for contemporary International
Relations and alignment, For example, Iran-Iraq war.
As the ups and downs of a tide
self-realization and ego are indispensable. Therefore it is not at all possible
for us to completely eliminate this human tendency from our society but it is
always advisable “Letting Go of That Ego Before It Gets Hold of You"
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