○Ego [17]

     By observing the world, certain tendencies become apparent. For instance, if one acts with the welfare of others in mind, that person will be appreciated and thanked by someone. Conversely, if one acts out of self-centered thinking, they will be disliked by others. If you give a gift to someone, you might receive something in return. If you hit someone, you may be hit back or even arrested. Therefore, whether the thought is forward-thinking or backward-thinking determines the subsequent phenomenon that will return to you.

    If you use your thoughts for good, good results will come back to you. If you use them for ill, ill will come back to you.

    When you are tired or irritable, problems tend to occur. Negative thoughts create negative events.

    From the perspective of the ego, it's "my" life. But from the perspective of being conscious, there is neither "me" nor "my life." The one and only consciousness exists before "I" was born, after "I" was born, and after "I" die. When existing as consciousness, it transcends life and death.

    As long as there is ego, problems and suffering will occur. That suffering is not an enemy, but a cue to realize the ego. Emotions like attack, jealousy, resentment, inferiority complex, and obsession create suffering, but those events are cues to realize the ego. If there are emotions that you have not overcome in the past, events will occur to overcome them.

    When you realize that you were captured by the ego, you can see that human history has been a history of being captured by the ego.