Self & Ego: Integration & Compassion

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“Your ego is your conscious mind, the part of your identity that you consider your "self."” — Vocabulary.com

The ego is not “an enemy”. To demonize the ego is to basically demonize a part of a person and their expression in and experience of this life, whether intentionally or unintentionally. We are here to experience life, we each have our own manifestation of “self” in this life, and the ego is a natural part of that. What if you tried integrating your ego expression of (your)self with your “beingness”, much like shadow integration in “shadow work”? Recognizing your beingness, recognizing that you are  the I” (the self) in the statement of “I am[…]”, does not then mean to neglect the person that you live as. To embrace the ego does not then necessarily mean no longer to practice empathy, compassion, or kindness. Rather, encouraging compassion for the ego — or individual — expression of self/beingness could likewise encourage compassion for “others”.