Ego Will Versus Highest Will
Only after reading ‘Barefoot on Holy Ground’ by Gloria D. Karpinski do I realise I have a long way to go before finding my true self. How do I shed my personality? How do I differentiate between guidance from my Highest Self and chatter from my Ego Will?
To rationalise, fantasise, give excuse or ignore, are but avoidance tactics. The writer says we have to remove as many filters as possible, see things as they are, accept them as they are, no matter how unwelcome they may be. Only then will the way to proceed become clear.
Below are some differences between the Highest Will and Ego Will the writer mentioned. When I see so much of my Ego Will…I can only sigh. I have a lot of seed cultivating to do…can someone tell me, where do I begin?
Highest Will: Attentively relaxed. Allowing the river to flow.
Ego Will: Teeth-gritting willpower. Fighting upriver against the current.
Highest Will: Peace and inner stillness even in chaos.
Ego Will: Peaceful only when things are going as expected.
Highest Will: Inner sense of rightness. You cannot not do it.
Ego Will: Self-doubt and second-guessing. Feelings of uneasiness.
Highest Will: A healthy detachment from others’ opinions.
Ego Will: Insistent need for assurance and approval.
Highest Will: Quick energy renewal even when task is hard.
Ego Will: Tasks all feel uphill and exhausting.
Highest Will: A Zen-like absorption in whatever one is doing.
Ego Will: A hurry-up-and-get-it-over-with-and-on-to-the-next-project mentality.
Highest Will: A strong sense of purposefulness.
Ego Will: Pointlessness.
Highest Will: Support through dreams, intuition, guidance.
Ego Will: Reliance only on rational processes.
Highest Will: Rightness is often felt as a sober, quiet yes.
Ego Will: Trusts the momentary rush of excitement.
Highest Will: Synchronicities of all kinds increase.
Ego Will: Manipulations and personal control increase.
posted by yeelee @ 1:10 am
5 comments
5 Comments:
Wah!! So the ideal is that and I am at this point. There is a WIDE gap!
So do I want to narrow this gap?
If yes, am I willing to do something about it?
If no, exit.
If yes, goto function "How to proceed?" ;p
During class, we were given the question: "How do you eat an elephant?"
The answer: "One mouthful at a time."
I realised that the lecturer did not tell us which part of the elephant to eat first!!
yup! the gap is so wide
kind of depressing huh?
as to how to eat an elephant,
i think ZMSS would have said,
"Don't think! Just do it!"
my experience suggests that eventually the small chunks start to build momentum and the gaps are less noticeable or 'important' to a sense of personal well being and balance. I love that people are starting to talk and write more concerning this importance difference.
突然想到一個佛典故事，跟大家分享一下^_^
宋代文人蘇東坡，才華洋溢，堪稱文壇上的奇葩，他有一個相知甚篤的方外之交「佛印禪師」，平時二人在佛學、文學上總不忘相互切磋，但每次老是讓佛印禪師佔盡上風，
蘇東坡心裡總覺不是滋味，所以百般用心，想讓佛印下不了台。
一天，兩人相對坐禪，
蘇東坡一時心血來潮，問佛印禪師：
「你看我現在禪坐的姿勢像什麼？」
佛印禪師說：
「像一尊佛。」
蘇東坡聽了之後滿懷得意。
此時，佛印禪師反問蘇東坡：
「那你看我的坐姿像個甚麼？」
蘇東坡毫不考慮地回答：
「你看起來像一堆牛糞！」
佛印禪師微微一笑，雙手合十說聲：
「阿彌陀佛！」
蘇東坡回家後，很得意地向妹妹炫耀，說：
「今天總算佔了佛印禪師的上風。」
蘇小妹聽完原委，卻不以為然地說：
「哥哥！你今天輸得最慘！因為佛印禪師心中全是佛，所以看任何眾生皆是佛，而你心中全盡是污穢不淨，把六根清淨的佛印禪師，竟然看成牛糞，這不是輸得很慘嗎？」
蘇東坡手拈一拈鬍子，黯然地同意蘇小妹的看法。
事隔多時，蘇東坡修禪定日漸有了功夫，
一次出定後，喜孜孜地寫了一首詩：
「稽首天中天，毫光照大千，八風吹不動，端坐紫金蓮。」
立刻差書童過江，送給佛印禪師，讓他評一評自己的禪定功夫如何？
佛印禪師看過後，莞然一笑，
順手拈來一枝紅筆，即在蘇東坡的詩上寫了兩個斗大的字：
「放屁」
再交給書童帶回。
蘇東坡本料想佛印會給他諸多的讚美，
怎之一看回信中竟是斗大的兩個紅字「放屁」，
不由得火冒三丈，破口大罵：
「佛印實在欺人太甚，不讚美也就罷了，何必罵人呢？我非立刻過江與他理論不可！」
誰知佛印禪師早已大門深鎖，出遊去了，
只在門板上貼了一付對聯，上面寫著：
「八風吹不動，一屁打過江。」
蘇東坡看後深覺慚愧不已，自嘆修行不如佛印遠矣！
tacobee
thanks for sharing
i've read that story before in english
how about starting a zen blog too huh?
hehe!
Post a Comment
<< Home