Shifting from an Ego Based Society

When someone says the word ego we tend to think of someone with a big head.  Maybe someone that is conceited or seems to be stuck on themselves.  Ego defined in spirituality terms is defined as  the "self-concept", "false self", "conceptual identity", or identification with individual existence.  Some even say the ego itself stands for "edging God out".

We've stated here before that what happens on an individual level also happens on a collective and planetary level.  So when our ego is engaged in the power struggles and the need to feel important, the need to identify with the outer world, so is our world collectively. Looking at it this way makes it easy to see why real change needs to start at the individual. 

Recent news reports have included disturbing information about individuals shooting others, some have shot themselves, some have even felt justified.  At an individual level, it is the ego or self identification with the stories these individuals are repeating in their heads that make them act the way they do.  We have simply created a society that has supported the ego.  

When the white man came to America the Native American's noticed this ego based thinking. To them they termed it as such that it was called a mental illness.  Most white men where thought then to be regarded as "one who eats the life of another" because our base for beliefs in a society are that which promote self, ego, individualism, and competition.

On a global scale currently it is the same.  Countries compete for goods to bring money, control over land, and the list goes on and on.  

When the news recently hit about some children killing other children and gun men killing numerous people in public places, I couldn't help to become reflective of our "mental illness". The President here in the United States even made statements attesting to the fact that "he would ensure the safety of the people."  While I think it is very grand for someone to stand up and make a gesture like this, the problem I had is how exactly was "he" going to do it?
Was "he" going to be in the places these people showed up and protect us all?

When you think about it like this I'm sure you can see the problem.  "He" is ego based.  Our society is dictating and reinforcing the fact that someone else is going to take care of our problems.  The president coming out and saying something like this simply says to me that we are lulling our humanity back to sleep with the belief that someone else is going to take care of it and we can go back to being zombies going through the motions of our lives.

If we think realistically, however, do we really think that the president or any one person is going to take care of society's problems?  World problems, or even the problems in our own families that we like to smooth over because we just don't want to recognize them because then we might actually feel like we'll have to do something about it.

Shifting our society to a more conscious humanity would most likely embrace a leader that was more conscious of the oneness of all to begin with.  For how can true change occur without the cooperation of the all?  Perhaps it would be better to ask how can we all fix this, than it would to say "I will protect you from this happening again".  The strength in this is to empower the people and that is what this country was supposed to be founded on - the idea of democracy stems from the freedom and choice of all the people.  With that comes responsibility for all the people.  And, just like a child you can't dole out responsibility until that child proves that he or she is responsible for themselves.  

This is why The Man in the Mirror Project is so important.  It's with us and only us that we can take these small steps that will one day make a huge difference in changing the world.  This weekend may you begin to shift your thinking into "what can I do to change what I don't like in my life" instead of "what do I think other people should do in order for me to be happy".  The first step is to start to become responsible for ourselves.  The task then is to release old memories that  replay past problems that block you from your true self, remembering that you and only you are responsible for what you think and therefore the creator of your own reality.