Thoughts on Love & Ego

Where there is love, there is only light.

Love is only real in meditation.

Love is pure.

Where there is jealousy,

Where there is anger, confusion, wanting, or craving,

There is no love.

There is only ego.

We confuse craving… passionate desire… with love.

We think that our lust is love.

We think that our wanting is love.

This is only primitive urge.

This is nothing but biology.

Love is much more than that.

We seek security in love

Because we want it to last forever.

Nothing lasts forever… or so I have been told.

Though, I have not lived long enough to see that for myself.

While I believe that love can last,

That with commitment and some sacrifice,

We can be with the one we choose for a lifetime,

I have also come to know that security cannot be found in love.

And that love is a state of being.

It ebs and flows.

It is eternal in nature

But it is in flux in the mind.

Love is not secure, it is enthusiastically insecure.

In love, there is openness, a willing vulnerability

And this willingness to be vulnerable also reveals our strength.

In this way and many more

Love is whole.

Love shines on the enlightened man.

Not a man and a woman

But a singular, enlightened one.

We must feel love in ourselves before we feel it in others.

The man or woman who does not love themselves

Will doubt the love of another when they hear them say “I love you”.

They will say “How could they love me? I am so angry, confused, lacking…”

Even if the love is true.

The man or woman who does not love themselves

Will say, “I love you”,

Not because they are so full of love for themselves,

they have more to give to another,

But because they are seeking security.

They want to fulfill their desires, their lust,

And they are trying to inflate the ego.

The other may accept their love

Even if it is false.

Two non-lovers together

May create a co-dependent whole.

It too may last for some time.

But in it, you will not find true love.

But a man who knows the state of love, alone,

And a woman who knows the state of love, alone,

When together

Create a light so bright

That it illuminates all shadows.

Love destroys ego.

Though who are we? Who am I?

I am no Buddha.

I am just a man.

I have flaws.

I have imperfections. I have ego.

And because I love myself, I accept those imperfections.

I believe that with right-effort, patience, and mindful attention

Those imperfections may lighten.

I also recognize that ego, when conscious and disciplined,

Can help a man achieve great things.

Perhaps someday, in some lifetime,

I will become a Buddha

But likely... I will be a man… just a man

Until my last breath.

And I am grateful for each breath I take.

That is the beginning of love.

So I accept that true love comes and goes.

It is a state, after all…

And nothing is permanent.

I enjoy love when I feel it strong.

When it overflows, I share it with another.

Another who I admire.

Another who is deserving, elegant, delicate, yet strong…

A woman who knows love as I do;

A willingness to be vulnerable

A state of being

The brightest light.

In each other, we see reflections of ourselves.

On days I do not meditate

On days I seek only to fulfill my desires or to feel secure…

I see the shadow of my ego in her.

But on days when I am full of love’s light

When I am clear-minded and joyful and pure

I see that light reflected right back at me.

When she meditates

When she is full of love

It reflects from me

& shines right back on her.

True love destroys ego

Because it shows us how connected we are.

It shows us that the distinction between “you” and “I”

Are only words.

That the boundary between this body and that body

Is only what meets the eye.

It shows us that we are not two…

That we are one.

We may feel this alone.

We must feel this alone.

Then we may feel it with another.

Love is light.

When we seek perfection,

When we seek to inflate the ego,

It flickers and waivers

But it will never die.

As long as we are accepting of ourselves,

Imperfections and all,

As long as we treat ourselves with care

And find space to still the mind

We may be in the state of love

And if it is bright

We may shine it on another.

—

This year has had many dark days.

It has been imperfect to say the least,

But I accept it for all that it is.

I take the good with the bad.

For this year has taught me many things…

It has taught me what it is to feel true love,

It has brought me another who is more than deserving of love

Another who is kind, caring, driven, and bright…

Another who, in their reflection of me

I have learned deeper insights into myself than I could have ever imagined,

Another who has taught me how to love myself better,

Another who I would do anything for…

Because I am in love.

For that, I am eternally grateful.

—

Thanks for reading. Wishing you well.

Jared