Perceived as truth but it was a illusion.

[pljames]

  ](*,)  It seems I have discovered the true me as a illusion of perception. I see and believe what I see but it is a illusion. I have been duped by my ego id what ever you call it. I thought I was a good person but come to find out it was a self induced lie. Now what do I do and believe? I swore this was me it was not. How could I have been persuaded to believe a lie? pljames  

[Enigma]

We've all been duped into believing a lie at some point or another.  Look at the world around us.  Politicians lie, our friends lie, our family lies, and we lie to ourselves.  If it was easy not to be persuaded into believing a lie than the world would be a much better place. 

So you've discovered an important yet unpleasant realization about yourself.  What do you do with this new info?  The first step is to confront what you've discovered head on and come to terms with it.  Don't think of this as a failure on your part, but rather as an important learning opportunity.  Learn from your mistakes and use your new found knowledge to make yourself a stronger, more stable person.  Be aware of the tricks your mind can play on you.  We are flawed as human beings, but we can manage our flaws by being vigilant.  Their is no such thing as failure, there is only feedback. 

[sakoz]

pljames;  congratulations on your 'discovery'.
" It seems I have discovered the true me as a illusion of perception. I see and believe what I see but it is a illusion. I have been duped by my ego."
Your first sentence is reversed.  "True you" recognizes that ego is the illusion; 'ego' is only a conceptually constructed artifact, 'masquerading' as "real you".
Look at your sentence;" I have been duped by my ego". It is SO CORRECT. Look at the "I" that's been duped it is not an 'it' because it's not perceivable, CONSCIOUSNESS witnesses. like sunlight illuminates.
Buddha tried to convey exactly the 'discovery' you made.  How old are you? The reason I ask is because more and more people are "waking up" to your 'discovery'. Many spend years meditating in the attempt to 'discover' what you did, not all 'discover/wake up".  ( You can now "operate" from two different 'frames of reference', you'll have compassion for those who only 'operate'from ego.)
You can 'authoritatively' tell people they are not their ego; but many will not comprehend what your talking about. I've been telling people to not believe some of their images are real. One of those many images is the one called 'ego'. That's the last thing they want to believe, that they are not 'their' ego, they assume not being ego is the end of them, like dying,etc.

[pljames]

Enigma,
Excellent posts both of them. Question. Can one enhance their thoughts and create a energy to feel better get rid of pain illuminate ones self and stuff like that with the mind thoughts? pljames

[sakoz]

pljames; Did I "read more" into your first post than you wrote? You did "discover/recognize" that you are NOT your ego? Most people NEVER recognize that fact.
Did you only briefly 'glimpse' being OUT of ego? and now are back IN?  The following could be a new thread, but is appropriate here:
          EXAMINED YOUR EGO LATELY?
"My ego" and "My wallet" , indicate 'ownership'. Examine the referents of both 'my' and 'ego' (or 'your' and 'ego'). What images come to mind? (word-image-referent).
Let me remind you , we have words-images WITHOUT actual/existential referents; examples: mermaid, unicorn, centaur, Santa Claus, boogyman, monster, leprechaun. You decide whether to add "ego" to that list. If you can't prove a actual referent, then 'ego' belongs on that list.  "Ego" refers to a 'conceptually constructed artifact'; theorized by Sigmund Freud.
If you BELIEVE it's real, you 'reifiy, the concept exactly like you did when you BELIEVED Santa and boogyman were real.
The 'ego' is a necessary and useful "conceptual artifact", we can't do without . It's a 'artifact', nothing more, that is "no-thing". If you believe your 'ego' is real, what does your concomitant image look like? Can you focus,that image as clear as you can see your image of 'mermaid'etc? How many other images do you believe are 'real'?
Does "believing" make it so?   In effect it does but not literally.

[pljames]

 :)sakoz,
I now understand my ego was in control of me and not vice versa. What I (felt and understood) was I was not the person I beieved I was but totally opposite. I am in shock! I am trying to understand my mind and that's hard for me. Most folks do not want to take any personal responsibility for any bad behavior but will for good behavior.

I was not the good person I thought I was. My ego id super ego was in control. It took my anger and used it against me to feed itself and claim my power and control for itself. Now that I know it exist how do I control it and not vice versa? I know it exist but where did it come from in the first place? I have theories but only theories. pljames

[sakoz]

pljames; You write; "I now understand my ego was in control of me and not vice versa."
Abide in and savour that insight/recognition/understanding.   Recognize how profound that understanding is. The deeper your understanding, you will not ask others for advice, especially from those 'operating' out of ego. Distance yourself from ego, but use it as needed. 'You' be in control, not vice versa like you already said.

[pljames]

What is this ego thing? Where did it come from? And how and why does it want to control me? What happen to the (true) me (so to speak)? pljames

[sakoz]

pljames'"What is this ego thing?" Reread my #4 above. I said "NO-THING", yet you ask "What is this ego thing?" .  I said ego is a conceptually constructed artifact. Concepts are language, so there is no ego before language is learned. Then 'with' and 'out of' language you 'construct' a ego, but not alone, your parents, siblings, friends, teachers tell you opinions/judgements, etc, and you incorporate some of their ideas and  believe them.
Parasites live on hosts like fleas do. When you (as a child) accept/believe someone else's thoughts/judgements/ opinions and 'adopt' them as your own, inside you, they become part of your ego. They are actually "foreign" parts in your ego. We wonder how we dupe ourselves into believing they ARE us. Language connects us all like a invisible 'spiders web". And we 'weave" thoughts to fowl our selves and behavior further. Artificial hearts are relatively new, but artificial egos been around since the advent of language.


SWM, what happened to print out topics?

[pljames]

So you believe them and create another you. I understand. Thank you. pljames

[sakoz]

 "So you believe them and create another you."  Yes, a ego/identity is constructed/fabricated from/of concepts; but MISTAKENLY BELIEVED to be 'more' than a 'social artifact."
Such 'social artifacts' are as necessary as bodies. IDENTIFYING  with it as if it were the real  'you' is the error.
A artificial 'self' is created, but it pales in comparison to "real Self".
Electricity 'manifests' THROUGH a light-bulb. Consciousness manifests through a body and ego  combo.
I salute you for RECOGNIZING  that ego is not who you 'really' are.

[pljames]

I am still reeling from finding out I was being programmed by my ego thinking I was in charge. I am now tinkering with the thought (the law of attraction) or mind over matter theory. I am also tinkering about reprogramming my ego from my conciousness to my ego with postive feedback. Thoughts please? pljames

[sakoz]

Your still reeling from the realization that your NOT your ego. Most people have a cursory understanding that they are not their ego. 'Ego' as persona/mask, 'self-concept', a conceptual structured artifact/utensil; taken for granted bit of info. But the experiential/existential realization eludes them. I have an analogy, but that is only more info ABOUT the realization, but may be helpful.
AUTOSTEREOGRAM: a 3D image is hidden in a single 2D image, (can you or someone else post one here? It would be very helpful). Analogies have limits.
Think of your 'ego' as the 2D image, and HIDDEN in it is the 3D image, here the analogy fails, but in the 'ego' example, the 'real' self detaches from the ego and witnesses it, etc. In the example of the autostereogram, the two images are intertwined, but can 'perceptually' be separated, seen as two images combined into one, but can be "teased" apart and seen separately. It's an amazing experience to see that occur,(don't take my word for it, experience it yourself.)
I have been writing in many posts about "believing some of our images are real", my point was, that mental images 'not' believed are like the 2D images,and 'believing' some images as real, has the effect of seemingly making our images as 3D, thereby making them 'legitimate' stimuli for our involuntary to react to, causing undesirable reactions when our '3D' images are false.

[pljames]

  S ;Steve you have my total attention. The rubic cube the square and the two people/picture tells me everything. Question my friend. Can I use myy thoughts as words with value purpose and energy to get what I want like happiness and understanding? pljames

[SWM]

SWM, what happened to print out topics?

Disabled as it was being indexed by search engines more than the actual forum. Did you use the print topic function?

[pljames]

No I do not have a printer I saw this on my computer. pljames

[sakoz]

SWM, I print out some of the threads. I no longer see the 'print' icon. I can still print out using the very top print tab, but the text is printed smaller.

[sakoz]

pljames; Your well on your way,(unfolding/evolving occurs from 'within').  Please search the internet for AUTOSTEREOGRAM and EXPERIENCE going from 2D to 3D.
We miss much because we use thoughts/images as filter. Often reacting to  our images rather than to 'facts'.

[SWM]

SWM, I print out some of the threads. I no longer see the 'print' icon. I can still print out using the very top print tab, but the text is printed smaller.

Print permission is back for registered members.

[sakoz]

No one willing to post a autostereogram here? ( I can't, not computer savvy enough ). I made a 'discovery'.I have been looking at the same autostereogram often for about three days.
I enjoy experiencing the "shift" from 2D to 3D. Logic would tell you that the more often I did that, the easier it would be to 'shift' from 2D to 3D; that is not the case with me. The last two times,the shift did not occur. I figured out why. The 'shift' is the same as in the Rorschach Projection Phenomenon, granted it's much more sophisticated version; the simplist verson is when you look at a rope but see a snake; that is your projected image of a snake, your image overrides the fact of the rope and you react to your image as if it was 'real'.
When I look at the autostereogram, I see a two dimensional digagram on a flat piece of paper, I do not see 'depth' were there is no depth. I have been trying to convey that message for months. It occurs so 'automatically' that it's taken for granted. When you "believe" some of your images are real, you react to it no matter what. Your involuntary nervous system "takes over" the reacting part. Alas, this post too is a waste of time, you will continue to react to your "believed" images as you been 'conditioned' to do. Language use 'demands' "obedience" to it's structure; you use it , you do it.
The polygraph proves my point of physiological/visceral reactions to THOUGHT-IMAGES. (So when your images 'believed' are false, you get reactions to match).
We're 'conditioned' to and by language; so by using language we continue to condition ourselves over and over and don't recognize doing so.