As I wrote yesterday, the ego has no real substance. It is an empty shadow with no internal wisdom or love. The ego is a parasite of sorts. As such, it always needs a horse to ride: a fixed identity to give it the illusion of being real, a splash of drama to make it feel alive, a desire to chase, an ideology to stand on, or an object of desire to satisfy its unquenchable thirst. For this reason, meditation is not ultimately about fantastic experiences, which often end up offering the egoic trap of thinking we are spiritually special. Meditation is about entering into the silence, because in the silence the ego has nothing to bolster its lies or feed its insatiable hunger. Silence can be very unnerving and downright painful, which is why we live in a culture that is afraid of silence and solitude. However, if our inward gaze is steadily directed toward God, the Guru, or the heavens, grace will either descend upon us or unfold from within us, loosening the ego’s grip on our minds and hearts. In those blessed moments, we will taste the spaciousness of true freedom.
Beloved God,
You wait in the silence
To bring me the fullness of
Complete freedom.
