Learning to Strike a Balance Between our Ego and Soul.

As a home schooling mom, I spend a lot of time with my children. Some days I am dealing with tyrannical egos, and some days, their beautiful, innocent, perky souls are leading the way.  I find it fascinating getting to know each side of them.  I think about the world they are inheriting and how challenging it will be.  They will need to master many life skills.  One of the most important (in my mind) is learning to strike a balance between their ego and soul. 

            As human beings, we continually fall victim to our egos and our soul often gets lost in the process.  While our egos protect us from perceived harm, if allowed to dominate, they cause unnecessary pain and suffering.  Swinging the pendulum too far towards the soul can leave us vulnerable to outside evils and result in a tendency to view life through rose colored glasses.   

Photo credit: Rose Colored Glasses 2 by Renonevada

            Even so, I know in my own life, the more I let my soul guide me, the more “at peace” I become.  It’s all about striking a balance between the two—a vital skill in my mind.  In fact, all human beings could benefit from understanding the delicate dynamic interplay between the ego and soul and learning to find their personal “center of balance.”

            Our ego often misguides us with its impish behavior, masquerading as our “protector” while acting as “the inner tyrant.”   Ego diminishes relationships with our selves and others through constant comparison.  It is the harsh critic that has us judge ourselves and others leaving us either with a sense of superiority or inferiority—but never equality.  This separation can lead to a sense of isolation or feeling as though we just don’t belong.  

Photo credit: DeVil by Avine

            Ego loves appearances, status and material things and tricks us into believing that happiness and fulfillment will result from their attainment.  It looks for the “proof in the pudding” from others, while rationalizing and justifying its behavior along the way.   When “victimized,” it fights back, resists and struggles for control with as much grace as a bull in a china shop. 

            The ego thrives in an environment of scarcity and fear.   It deceives us into thinking that our resources are in short supply and we don’t have what we need, internally or externally to survive and thrive.  Ego loves to blame and pass the buck and will “gather evidence” to support its limited point of view.    

            Living in a space that is dominated by our ego will cause loneliness, anger, despair, powerlessness, self-hatred, and unhappiness.  Some people compare the ego to “masculine energy.”  It can be the shadow rather than the illumination—the dark force in our life.

Photo Credit: Rising of the Devil by Utopic Man

  If the ego is the masculine energy, then our soul would be the feminine or the goddess energy.  The soul sees truth, innocence, equality and beauty and loves to nurture.   It seeks communion, belonging, connection, and love. 

Photo Credit: White Goddes by Widjita

            It is a direct portal to our internal guidance system and will provide clues to our purpose and our path.  When we operate from our soul, our internal eyes and ears are attuned to the small and subtle signs around us; symbolism, feeling, and the effect our choices and actions will have on others. 

            Decisions made from our soul often require great amounts of faith—for in real life, crystal balls don’t exist.   There is no “proof” available of the outcome when we step into the “unknown”.  Our soul allows us to trust that we will be supported and guided if we operate from our hearts which increases inspiration and creativity.   

Photo Credit: Crystal Ball by Rivendell Photostock

            When I think of my soul, I think of what happens when a child blows bubbles.  They dip a bubble stick into a solution and ever so gently provide a breath of air.   Eventually a bubble forms and floats peacefully away, surrendering completely to the invisible air currents.  The bubble rises and falls, accelerates and slows to a crawl, but continues forward until some external force (i.e. the ego) breaks its surface.  And the process repeats.

Photo Credit: I'm Forever Blowing Bubbles by Late Autumn

            How often in your life do you struggle between your “head” and your “heart?”  Humans go to great lengths learning logic and reasoning skills that will allow them to make “educated decisions”, but I believe that our most powerful and life altering decisions come when we surrender to our soul letting it take the lead. 

Photo Credit: Happiness by Floral Sky

            Have you ever observed young children?  They fascinate us so intensely because they are still guided primarily by their souls.  They are angelic and pure and open to receiving and giving.   It’s as though they have a direct line to our creator.  The temper tantrums that begin to develop during the “terrible twos” are our first experiences with our ego which becomes a powerful counterbalance to the pure essence of our soul.  For many of us, this is the time in which our soul falls asleep.  

Photo Credit: Baby by Snivel Princess

            Don’t get me wrong.  To maintain a sense of wholeness, we need masculine and feminine energy.  And it isn’t that one energy force is better than the other but they must be in balance.  The balancing point is different for everyone.  Striking a balance between the masculine and feminine energies of the soul and the ego is a never ending process and we must stay tuned for the clues that signal the scales tipping too much in one direction or the other. 

            Learn to recognize the signs.  Times of emotional numbness, lack of inspiration, illness or general down in the dumps-ness, loss of enthusiasm and drive, anger and impatience are signs that your ego may be dominating.  It’s time to do some soul searching.    

Photo Credit: Depression by Trixie Pixie

            There are many ways to do this and I could dedicate an entire post, maybe even a chapter in a book to this, but it begins by clearing and quieting the mind through meditation, prayer, and opening up to the sublte signs around you.  The feminine energy must be aroused slowly.  She will not attempt to dominate the ego through force.  Invite her energies to reveal themselves through exercise, play, a change in environment, time alone, volunteering, journaling, focusing on what you want to create in your life.  Soon you will find the scales tipping towards equilibrium. 

Photo Credit: Angel Meets Flower by Wild Rain of Ice and Fire

            Don’t settle for sleepwalking through life, lead by your ego.  Strike a balance between your ego and soul so you can create the life you have imagined. 

A big thanks goes out to the talented photographers who contributed photos for this post:

Please take a moment to visit their links to see more.

• Rose Colored Glasses by Rennovada
• DeVil by Avine
• Rising of the Devil by Utopic Man
• White Goddess by Widjita
• Crystal Ball by Rivendell Photostock
• I am Forever Blowing Bubbles by Late Autumn
• Happiness by Floral Sky
• Baby by Snivel Princess
• Depression by TrixyPixie
• Angel Meets Flower by Wild Rain of Ice and Fire

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