DailyOM: What was your inspiration for creating this course for DailyOM?
Sadhvi: I've lived in India now for the last 27 years, immersing myself in the ancient wisdom, and I've seen in my travels around the world and also in all of the people who come to Rishikesh from all over the world how much people are suffering. Their suffering stems from being caught in the trap of the ego, the trap of our own stories, the trap of our drama, the trap of our history, the trap of our mind and thought patterns.
As I have been so incredibly blessed to find healing, transformation, and freedom from all of the ways I was suffering, I feel deeply driven to share that with others. The way out is quite simple. That doesn't mean it's easy. But it's simple. And I feel deeply that to share this is my dharma. I've wanted for quite some time to offer a course for people to navigate their way out of the clutches of the patterns of thinking and living which cause such suffering, and I'm so excited to be able to share this course with the DailyOM community.
DailyOM: What does "ego death" mean? Are we actually trying to get rid of our ego?
Sadhvi: Ego death is not a violent, conflict-ridden annihilation of something within ourselves. A lot of people misunderstand that. It's actually a very love filled removal of that which keeps us stuck and holds us back. It is a pathway to discovering and living in the very truth of ourselves. It gets sticky, of course, as we so frequently identify those egoic patterns as our true self. So the path of extricating oneself from one's ego is not always easy. But I have seen in my own life that not only can it be done, but also that the joy, peace, meaning, fulfillment, freedom, and divine connection we experience when we are no longer chained to false ways of thinking is extraordinary and the greatest gift in the world!
The ego is that which we have built up subconsciously and unconsciously throughout our lives, but mostly in our early childhood. It tends to be made of things we learned directly or indirectly from our family of origin, culture of origin, and early childhood experiences. The ego is what tells us we are our physical bodies — their size, their shape, their color, their success level, their wealth, their popularity, their skills and abilities.
It's the ego that tells us that we are somehow not enough, that we are in need of something more or something different, in order to be worthy enough or good enough. It is the ego that tells us who we are based on the way that other people have spoken to us or about us or around us. As long as we identify in that way we can never know the true whole, complete, perfect divine self. So ego-death is actually freedom. It's a glorious stepping into the light of the true self.
DailyOM: How do we know if we're suffering from egoic patterns of self-sabotage?
Sadhvi: If you find that you are not achieving or manifesting or living in the fullness, beauty, joy, peace, and freedom that you know you should be, chances are you are self sabotaging. If you notice that others around you seem to be succeeding, thriving, achieving so much more than you in areas where you have equal or even better skills, talents, and abilities, it's very likely you are suffering from self-sabotage.
But don't feel bad about it. It's very natural. Until and unless we deeply know that we deserve happiness, peace, and fulfillment, we will keep ensuring that it never comes. We continue to simply fulfill a false and negative belief about the self. If you believe that you are unworthy of love, subconsciously, you will make sure to act in ways such that no one loves you. If you believe that you are unworthy of abundance, you will ensure that you act in ways such that you always live in scarcity. If you believe that you are not good enough, you will ensure that whatever you do ends in failure. This is why changing belief patterns and freeing ourselves of that ego is so important.
DailyOM: Tell us what students can expect to learn and the benefits they will gain from this course.
Sadhvi: I think it's going to be so much fun. Students will learn all of the very powerful ways that their own ego patterns are causing them to suffer. So frequently we blame our suffering on the outside world. We think if people would just act differently, speak differently, treat us differently, then we would be happy. But when we dive deep, as we will be in this course, we realize that actually our own belief patterns, thought patterns, and our own ego are actually the source of so much of what we manifest, create, and experience in our lives.
So, first, students will learn to identify the patterns. Then, students will learn how to free themselves of those patterns. They will learn how to embrace and embody the very truth of who they are. They will learn how to discover and unleash their highest, truest, deepest authentic self. They will learn how to live in that self and share that with the world.
They'll find that their relationships get so much deeper and more meaningful, closer and more authentic, as they acknowledge who they really are and have the courage to share that with others. They'll notice that they take more ownership for co-creating their own lives and they stop feeling like victims of circumstances. They'll find that while their past history has certainly shaped who they are, it no longer dictates or controls their life, their choices, or their relationships. They'll have not only an intellectual understanding of who their true self is, but they actually will experience the unbounded, expansive, infinite self.
DailyOM: What an amazing gift, to free ourselves from the false stories that we've been told — and told ourselves. Thank you, Sadhviji, for sharing these profound ideas covered in this poignant and important course. Until next time, be well.
No comments:
Post a Comment