Ego, The Thin Line
Ahamkara or Ego — is the most difficult emotion to conquer, for the reason that there is a thin line between ego and reason. Only the individual can know where this thin line is. Usually, a deep insecurity triggers the ego and prevents the individual from revealing their true self or achieving humility. Since it is the ego that registers hurt, it can lead to anger. The ego often hides behind false self-identification like “I am powerful as I am a politician”, or “I am beyond this because I am rich”.
The difficulty in qualifying Ahamkara also comes from the person being unable to accept their reality, as a consequence of Moha (Delusion). If you ask someone “do you cheat?”, the answer may often be “No”. In the same way, asking someone if they have an ego always elicits a “No” as an answer. Ahamkara affects all of us at some level.
Suppose your child gets the first rank in exams or you get a promotion. Do you distribute sweets to all out of happiness or out of a sense of showing off, which is Ahamkara? It’s a thin line and no one apart from you may ever know the truth of it. All religions allude to the ego as the single greatest hurdle and the toughest to get rid of.
Once you establish a connection to your conscience, the ego vanishes. History shows that hubris, or arrogance is almost always the reason for the downfall of powerful empires and kings. Hubris is nothing but ego.
