Easing the transition as consciousness expands

The ego can be thought of as the crust, shell, or membrane that forms around the part of ourselves we are currently aware of. We are much more, and have access to much more, than what is contained within that ego’s shell. But the ego contains that aspect of ourselves that we are currently aware of or can accept.

The consciousness contained within the ego is what we have allowed ourselves to accept as “who I am”, “what is true”, “what is okay to believe”. The more the ego is constructed with fear-based beliefs, the more rigid and inflexible it becomes. The more fear there is in the ego structure, the more frightened we become at the prospect of an expansion of consciousness that will extend beyond the ego’s borders.

The real purpose of the ego is to keep us alive and able to function in the 3-D world. This is a really honorable job. But the ego often goes beyond its job description and misinterprets change as dangerous. The more rigid the ego is, the more it really believes that it contains everything that is safe and possible for us.  The ego believes that anything outside of its borders is dangerous and false.

As we begin to let in more information and realization of what else is possible, the energy within the ego structure expands. As the energy of consciousness expands, it presses against the walls of the ego structure causing feelings of tension that are often experienced as anxiety, or panic, or worse.

The rigid ego senses an expansion that, if allowed to continue, will force the ego to break open. The ego interprets the impending expansion as death. In a way, it is a death - but only for that limited ego structure.

The prime directive of the ego is to keep you alive. Because it has misinterpreted the consciousness expansion as a literal death, it goes into overdrive to stop the expansion from happening. It will use a variety of methods to stop the expansion, especially reminding you of all your fears, doubts, and perceived inadequacies. If the ego can get you wallowing in fear and self-doubt it can prevent, or at least postpone, your expansion of awareness.

You are so much more than what is contained within the confines of your ego. Nevertheless, your ego will try to keep you “safe” within those confines.

The ego has a useful purpose. It is not to be eradicated. In fact, the more we fight and resist it, the more determined it becomes to “do its job” and prevent us from changing.

As consciousness begins to expand beyond the parameters of the ego structure, the hard crust of the ego must crack open. The ego experiences this as a death. The ego assumes that what is contained within its parameters is all of you and that you will die if your consciousness expands beyond its boundaries.

Resistance to the expansion of consciousness is what intensifies the feeling of crisis that so often accompanies significant change.

The ego is not our enemy. It is a useful aspect of human consciousness. But its not intended to have ultimate jurisdiction over our journey. It’s not equipped to be in charge. However, it provides a level of stability in consciousness that assists us between shifts.

When people experience what they refer to as “the dark night of the soul” they are referring to the experience of living through an intensely resisted ego death. It is not necessary to resist these transitions. They need not be much worse than uncomfortable. It is terrifying or traumatic only if we get caught up in the ego’s illusions.

As we pass through the membranous crust of the ego on our way out into expanded awareness, we pass through the limited belief structure that had formed around that piece of consciousness. 

We pass through the ego that consists of all we had heretofore accepted as possible or true for us. The limited beliefs contained within the ego structure represent the absolute outermost reaches of what we had been willing to accept as possible: as if the ego boundary represented the end of civilization, beyond which there is nothing but wasteland, sea monsters, and death.

Because this illusion of danger can feel so real to us as we pass through that old ego structure, we may experience what some call the “dark night of the soul” or an “existential crisis”.

It is not necessary to experience this as a traumatic crisis. Our resistance to the consciousness shift is what makes it feel like a crisis.

You can ease the transition. It doesn’t have to feel like literal death.  Once you have settled into a sense of this larger self, a new ego structure forms; but this new ego will be able to accommodate the new material it contains.

Your greater potential is actually already part of who you are. It is not outside of you. It is merely outside of who you think you are. When your consciousness expands, you are not connecting with something outside yourself. You are connecting with aspects of who you are that you have not yet allowed yourself to recognize as your larger self.