The 'I'

Among the subtlest yet unshakable vices dwelling in human beings, none is more stubborn than egotism. The 'I' and 'ME' we so closely advocate as means of justifying our attitudes, behaviors, personalities and point of views. A very thin yet gross, almost impenetrable wall that stands between a soul and the ultimate Wisdom; denying possessing ego is egotism itself.

Let's all wind down and move to a more graspable deduction. As far as my brains have allowed my mental-arithmetic to work, ego is more or less the product of the thought that stems from the 'I'. A single alphabet-syllable word with seemingly infinite amounts of inferences. I think, I want, I wish...

To reduce the 'I' and include everything else in this age and time is overpowered by the notion of self-protection. Bordering frailly over the preservation of one's self is the act of giving in; an exercise that could have saved many lives, healed many souls, harmonised many tumults. Peace cannot live where the 'I' reigns. Raging selfishness tends to destroy the need for reasoning. And with that the urge to (avoidably) fight.

I got to thinking about egotism when I stumbled upon an invite to dine with Gj Kind Boy and a junior of his. Previously having noticed the latter's self-absorbed point of views, I donned my shield to protect myself from bigotry; utter indifference! Of course our aforementioned friend did not fail to deliver; everything GJ Kind Boy said had either a rebuttal or a reenactment of something better. Sometimes I couldn't help but to form an opposing opinion which I, fortunately, did not verbalise.

The 'I' reigns like a burning fire within us that we should learn to acknowledge and fight. Besides, what's the fun in being right all the time?

"Man's ego itself is maya. It is the veil that shuts the light."
-Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa.