What is an ego? Even for philosophers, this question is one of the most difficult. Many people think that our ego consists of memories, aspirations, and habits. In this article, we may break your ideas about this concept, or summarize all the knowledge about it.
Are we not unique? ..
Let's first find out what is meant by “ego”. The meaning of the word seems to be simple: from Latin it is translated as “I” and, according to the theory of a number of psychoanalysts, is one of the components of the personality structure. Simply put, this is a set of our thoughts, beliefs, our daily habits. We always turn to our own “collection” of thoughts in order to make this or that decision, evaluate something, make a choice, thereby turning life in a certain direction. Often we affirm, and we sacredly believe in it, that all thoughts are our own, while in fact most of them came to us from friends, family members, colleagues, acquaintances, and even strangers. In order for a really original idea to arise in your head, you need to engage in deep self-contemplation for a very long time. But in everyday life it is difficult for us to do this, so we just accept what is given to us. Agree, we are forced to keep up with the now popular fashion, religion, ideals. Those who are, as it were, fighting off the general mass, are looked upon as outcasts or eccentrics. Usually, we reinforce our positions with statements such as: “But everyone else thinks ...” or “What people think ...”. In fact, this brings us back to a position that in psychology is called the “herd feeling”.
Herd feeling and ego
Psychology implies the herd feeling of people's desire to accept certain types of behavior under the influence of others, to follow trends. This is clearly reflected in what goods we purchase, what films we watch, what clothes we wear. It is on the examples of fashion for accessories, clothes, cars, music, home decor items and even superstition and religion that we can say that people, in fact, lack exclusivity in terms of ego. A striking example of modernity is the wide distribution of all kinds of advertising. And now people no longer think about what exactly they want: the choice has long been made for us, it remains only to go and buy, express someone else's opinion, agree with the crowd ... Sociologists and psychologists study the relevant sections of group intelligence, the wisdom of the crowd and decentralized decision-making.
Have your opinion
In fact, having a so-called own ego is very difficult. It is perfectly normal to trust people - those whom we know well. But, as we have already found out, not all of our thoughts are our own. But this does not mean that they do not need to be trusted. Do not ignore them. As the samurai say: “Hug your enemy. Then he cannot get his sword. " This simple principle is quite applicable to our thoughts: “hug” any thought that comes to your mind. Ideas come and go. Remember the first rule of fitness? After training, wait one hour before eating, no matter how you like it. So the thought must be processed. Wait, see what happens in the first few moments before saying a word, lecturing to a colleague or expressing a harsh opinion about something.
How to deal with speed of thought
What is ego in terms of “speed of thought”? In a stressful situation, it is sometimes very difficult to pack up and properly respond to the situation. Probably, each of us noticed what a series of thoughts visited our head during critical periods. Someone says something, we are forced to respond quickly, merging phrases into a stream, although we could respond more calmly, pondering each word. It is at such moments that it is important that you express those thoughts that are close to you, and not imposed by someone. Remember the famous phrase: everything that you said can be used against you? Often we become hostages of other people's ideas, another's ego, and ours simply turns into a false ego.
hint
So, what should be done so that a quick thought of others does not take hold in your head and does not affect the formation of a point of view on a particular fact? After all, the next time you look at a person with whom a conflict or an unpleasant conversation has taken place, that first, crazy, thought and those phrases that follow it will first pop up in your brain. In such a situation, in order not to break firewood, it is only necessary to stop for a moment, inhale deeply three times and ... look for other options for an answer. You will notice that this is not as difficult as it seems, and the dialogue will be structured, calm and effective. Calmness and concentration - this is what can distinguish you from the crowd and raise your ego a notch. So what is ego in terms of our thoughts? These are inseparable concepts, but among the whole mass of thoughts that visit our head every second, you should isolate the basic ones that are close in spirit only to you.
Conclusion
Obviously, most of us would like to have original ideas and views, thus creating our own reality. In this case, it is recommended to follow a few tips:
- Every day, chant the mantra from one word to yourself for at least thirty minutes. Choose a word that is positive in color and that you can easily remember. This will help calm the inner monologue.
- Meditation is a key factor in ego formation. Psychology welcomes this method: after all, everyone needs to spend some time daily in silence. Silence renews the soul and purifies the mind.
- “Disable” the influence from the outside. Think well before turning on the TV or radio, even in the background, be prepared for the fact that someone else’s thoughts submitted in this way can be mistaken for you at some point.
If you follow these three rules every day, then after a while you will notice that new and original ideas are born in your head. They seem to accidentally arise in your brain. Yes, some of them may well seem strange, extravagant and even a little crazy, but often they are exactly what you need. And then the answer to the question “what is the ego” will become obvious to you: the ego is my personal sense of peace, it is I.