Upon reading the many nefer postings with so many relative and valid points, I come back to the point about purification of the ego because this is what it all boils down to. In the posting by Andrew Garrow he states “It has been said that we must learn to trick the ego at times to bend it to our will.” While I would agree with that statement to a certain degree, as aspirants it is important to proceed with caution, understanding that the ego has many more tricks of its own. In the Asarian Resurrection myth Set takes the form of a scorpion to strike and kill Heru. He could have taken the form of a snake, but chose the form of the very thing sent to protect Heru–a scorpion.
How many times have those with good intentions, who seem to have controlled the ego, become self righteous and get stung by their own egos? The answer is too often, because the ego is formidable as Heru found out. I have also heard it said “act as if,” meaning act the part you aspire to. This requires having a true understanding of the aspired personality, through study of authentic teachings as presented by authentic Spiritual Preceptors, as pointed out by Shems Baket in her posting. The cleverness required to trick the ego into submission requires the intuitional Wisdom of Aset, whom we learn to act like until we are acting no more, but actually become realized in Aset. Then we can be purified in our ego perennially. This is what I have gained from Seba Dja,s comment, “The purified ego is therefore, the foundation that leads to the dawning of Nehast, and also the state of mind out of which an enlightened sage operates in time and space.”
Htp, Shems Heryt
