By ego, it means simply, our identity of “self “. It is neither negative nor positive. As a human being to live and survive, we need a strong sense of identity to develop relationships, to thrive, to make a living, to succeed. So, there is nothing wrong with it. Chasing your dream, wanting to own a big house, an expensive car, going for adventure is not at all bad.
But, when ego turns into pride, we become over conscious of our identity, when “self” rules life and when fear craves to overprotect our self-identity, then, ego can be disastrous to both us and the people around with whom we live.
So, religious practices like Buddhism preaches to conquer the ego and lead a life of our true self. Because the ego is often identified as our false self, materialistic state, social status, the success which can never lead to happiness.
So, how do we control our ego? Monks and yogis practised meditation for years to get into their true self and tarnished their ego. But, neither you and I have that much time or patience to practise let go of our ego.
1.So, the easy way to control our ego is being aware of our existence, the limited time we live in this world.
2. Staying grounded,
3.Realising the present moment, being grateful for it.
4. Being aware and avoiding our egoic pattern of thinking and reactions. (e.g. I am superior, I am better than others, No one can compete with me ….. so on )
All these steps help us to be close to our true self and help us keep our ego simply as a self-identity tool, just a survival trait.