Abgesehen von Politik, Weltgeschehen & Terrorismus, beschäftigt uns hier bei Gruppe42 die individuelle Entwicklung von Menschen. Die Psychologie ist essentiell dafür, um zu verstehen, wieso die Welt so ist, wie sie ist. Wieso entwickeln sich Menschen zu systemtreuen, blinden Schlafschafen? Unter anderem da sie Angst haben. Angst vor der Zukunft, zum Beispiel. Es könnte einem ja Negatives zustoßen, wenn man angst- und sorgenbefreit lebt und selbstständig denkt. Viele sind von ihrem eigenen Ego, dass einem einredet einen „Plan B“ haben zu müssen und ja nicht gesellschaftlich aufzufallen, also immer ein unsichtbarer Teil der Herde zu bleiben und nicht als schwarzes Schaf herauszustechen, so geblendet, dass sie gar nicht bemerken, was wirklich um sie herum geschieht.
Wir haben, um diesen Sachverhalt verständlicher und detaillierter den Menschen mitzuteilen, einen sehr interessanten Menschen zu uns nach Wien eingeladen um hier einen Vortrag bzw. Workshop zu diesem Thema abzuhalten. Gregor Reti lebt in Los Angeles, wenn er nicht gerade die Welt bereist um Erfahrungen zu sammeln und nicht zuletzt auch Vorträge zu halten. Er spricht u.a. bei Festivals mit mehr als 65.000 Besuchern. Der Vortrag für die Gruppe42 findet im privaten Rahmen statt, wird dann aber auf YouTube veröffentlicht. Dieses Interview (unten) sowie der Vortrag finden in der englischen Sprache statt. Der Vortrag wird auf Video aufgezeichnet und auf deutsch untertitelt.
Wir haben Gregor 4+2 Fragen gestellt. Gute Überhaltung!
Gregor, thanks for beeing with us. We’re pretty sure, that many of our followers have never heard anything about the „ego“, especially the „ego death“. Tell us, what is the ego, how do you define it personally and why is it destructive for the journey of self development?
I define the ego buddhistically, which is simply the negative polarization of our being that utilizes fear. I am not using the Freudian differentiation of Super Ego, Ego and Id. The positive polarization of our being is our Soul using love. “Ego Death” stands for silencing our Fears. The first step towards silencing them is to become aware of them and using consciousness each time we react to others.
When and because of what was your „spiritual awakening“? How is it possible that other humans can experience their „ego death“?
My spiritual awakening happened when I was 13 years old and died in a drug related accident. I traveled for 20 minutes until I arrived in a wonderful place where an authority asked me to decide if I want to stay there or return to my young body. It gave me the complete freedom to decide and after my return I lost all death related fears and many of other fears were reduced substantially. All of us can find valuable information in books, documentaries and workshops that provide us with the necessary sparks of truth that will ignite and further our developments.
I know, this question isn’t that original, but we’d like to hear your thoughts on this: What is the purpose and meaning of life?
I love this question. I believe we exist, so that consciousness can be placed in a physical body in order for the soul to express creativity in the material world. Matrix, God, awareness are fantastic energies, but energy in itself cannot interact with atoms and molecules without having the polarity of atoms. That’s why we have a materialized body to express creativity and infuse awareness into every conscious moment; into our actions and reactions. And most importantly, we need to become aware that we carry the same polarization inside our heads: negativity (Ego & Fear) and positivity (Soul & Love), in our thinking process. Everybody has these inner battles, however it is up to us not to identify with any of our Fears. Step back and become the observer of your own thoughts. I always say “Just because I think it, does not mean it is really me”.
In one chapter of your book „Sex & Ego Death“ you’re describing doubts as one of the most limiting thoughts, same goes with fear. But isn’t it „natural“ that people have fear and doubts of what life will bring?
What you are asking is exactly at the root of all human suffering. Doubts and self-doubts are one of the strongest sub-chapters of fear. It drove many geniuses into suicide. Doubting yourself means that you FEAR that you are not good at something, that you don’t know the reason of your existence, that you can’t get to a place where you want to be… These types of thoughts, not only create obstacles for you, but are down right destructive, in this case self-destructive. They create misery for you and for the people around you. Success is further away. And no, it is not natural to have fear, although the majority of those people who are unaware carry plenty of fears, which makes them unpopular or even neurotic. Positive outcomes are harder to reach. Remember, 90% of everything we fear and worry about in life will never happen. Isn’t worrying a waste of energy?
Gregor Reti
So, in what way do „Sex“ and „Ego Death“ belong together? Why have you decided to write a book on these two topics or do they in reality belong together?
Funny, because I’ve been asked about this many times before: We covered “Ego Death” by equating it to “Death of Fear/Silencing Fear”. „Sex” on the other hand is the area in which most of our social fears and self doubts all come together. Just think how much lying and cheating is going on around Sex in our society. If we work on ourselves and overcome these negativities in the arena of Sex, we can overcome them everywhere else in life. We learn to do so by communicating with full and raw honesty and that includes sharing all the truth, on both sides. Of course that takes courage, but the rewards are fantastic in life – it is true liberation. Try it out!
If you could give our followers one last „smoking gun“ evidence, like „the most important“ information about this topic, as if why an ego freed mind is so important for each and every one of us, what would you say to them?
Pause for a moment and provoke your ego and ask: „What on earth are negative thoughts good for?“ This is the moment your ego jumps out, exposing itself with its „job justification“ logic: „The future may not be bright, or safe“; „Need a Plan B when things fail“ and „You need a healthy dose of self-criticism“ and so on and on. It is interesting and fun to become the observer of this Monkey Circus inside of our own heads and it’s a great victory to overcome these anxieties the first times. Otherwise ego’s fears, anxieties and tensions become very destructive to our self acceptance and happiness. Interestingly these negative tensions arise from the difference of what we truly are and how we want to be seen by others. And the ego will always feed these tensions. And remember that Ego and Fear will always try to separate us from each other and from our self-belief. Love will try to unite us and create life, projects and good things. I like to say, “In separation we fall – In unification we thrive”. Let me finish up with a Cherokee Native Indians quote:
„There is a battle of two wolves inside us. One is evil. It is anger, jealousy, greed, resentment, lies, inferiority and ego. The other is good. It is joy, peace, love, hope, humility, kindness, empathy and truth. The wolf that wins is the one you feed.“
This interview was held by David Kyrill from Gruppe42.
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