EGO DEATH & Enlightenment – According to Advaita Vedanta

The ego can be temporarily extinguished by deep meditation or even certain hallucinogenic drugs, transporting you to a blissful, transcendent state of infinite vastness. Since this temporary state is so blissful, is permanent ego death even better? Is that state of egolessness identical to the transcendent state of enlightenment?

0:00 Intro
0:18 Egoless Bliss
4:15 Ego & Self
10:55 Freedom from Suffering
18:10 Enlightened Ego

Losing your ego in meditation or while absorbed in music is a wonderful music. If temporary loss of your ego is so wonderful, then is its long-term loss or permanent destruction even better? Permanent loss of the ego is sometimes described as ego death. Some spiritual teachers say you can achieve ego death through intense spiritual practice. They call it, ahankara nasha, destruction of the ego. It's not discussed in traditional texts on Advaita Vedanta, but in the Yoga Vasishtha and in other scriptures, ahankara nasha is widely praised, and it's often associated with mano nasha, destruction of the mind. These teachings can easily be misunderstood, especially when they're taken out of context. So, in this video, we'll explore the topic of ego death thoroughly, from the perspective of Advaita Vedanta.

Obviously, we are discussing ego here, not with the meaning of excessive pride or an exaggerated sense of self-importance, but rather, in a much more fundamental way. As you might know, the word ego comes from the Latin pronoun, I. In Sanskrit, the pronoun I is aham, and the word for ego is aham-kara, which literally means the maker of I. That I is not true self, atma. It's the feeling of I-ness, the feeling or sense of individuality. And like all feelings, it arises in your mind. For this reason, ahankara is also called the I-thought.

[psirotta]

I experience the same egoless state by becoming totally present in the moment, when thinking ceases and inner stillness arises. No chemicals necessary.

[anjaligangoli]

Thank you Swamiji for such an excellent presentation. It brings instant clarity to an otherwise complex subject. Forever in gratitude to you 🙏

[theera]

This is so good, thanks for sharing I liked this one a lot and how you bring all of the different ideas together you're truly inspirational and a caring teacher.

[nancyswanson]

Great "The Enlightened Ego." Thank U for clear and concise teachings. Namaste, 🙏

[TheBeardedMysticPodcast]

Swami ji - thank you so much for this beautiful video! Love you!

[kmanoham]

Another Masterpiece from Swami Tadatmananda. Thankyou Swamiji.

[joaopossa]

Thank you Swamiji, you made this topic very clear.
Namaskaram

[tmasaitis]

Namaste!!! Mr. Mark, love your videos and explanations, you have a wonderful gift to explain in details in very comprehensible way, this is definitely gift from a God!!! Thank you very much for ALL your work!!!

[dipalibiswas]

Beautifully expressed. Infinite Thanks and Pranam to You Swamiji. 🙏🙏🙏

[TTFX-lb]

This video to understand it better one must have done a lot of sravana and manana practice. It's really really packed with lots of information to be absorbed in one take. Infact this video is a complete book of more than 300 pages about Ego. Thank you swami Tadatmananda ❤❤❤❤❤

[jomtonjung]

This video really answer my remaining doubt spectacularly. With tearful eyes, thank you so much Swamiji. ❤

[Jmistiquespace]

Consciousness and I explained by Swami ji gives perfect clarity to anybody searching to understand the difference..

❤❤❤❤

[juanromero]

This explains the blissful state experienced by some people in near death experiences. Thank you for your commitment.

[alesantsipenka]

Generally speaking suffering is the result of limitations imposed on ourselves by ourselves. The problem is that limitations are as a rule not being aware of. And that makes suffering a kind of endless and hopeless process which seems to be impossible to stop at all.
Thanks Swamiji for your suggestive talk!

[nageshkini]

So beautifully & clearly explained by swamiji, Like most of your videos. Pranaam with reverence & gratitude. 🙏🙏

[dangem]

Incredibly useful Swamiji 🙏I feel happy because I know this will help a lot of spiritual seekers 😃

[satyajitroy]

Thank you Swamiji, this is an excellent analysis, of Ego, the most misunderstood thought of our mind.
Pranam !!!❤

[anthonysum]

This is perfect I was waiting for this video and now it’s arrived. Thank you so much 🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻

[FamilyRani-eebu]

Unregulated yes as of today… I agree it’s not a replacement for meditation… but you have to understand not everyone can meditate for hours and have that self control…

[ravish]

Thank you Swamiji for yet another beautiful and profound video.