A major source of the ego's off-balanced state is its lack of [[discrimination]] between the [[body]] and the [[thoughts of God]]. Thoughts of God are unacceptable to the [[ego]], because they clearly point to the nonexistence of the ego itself. The ego therefore either [[distorts]] them or refuses to [[accept]] them. It cannot, however, make them cease to be. It therefore tries to conceal not only "unacceptable" [[body]] [[impulses]], but also the [[thoughts of God]], because both are threatening to it. Being concerned primarily with its own [[preservation]] in the face of threat, the ego [[perceives]] them as the same. By perceiving them as the same, the ego attempts to save itself from being swept away, as it would surely be in the [[presence]] of [[knowledge]]. | A major source of the ego's off-balanced state is its lack of [[discrimination]] between the [[body]] and the [[thoughts of God]]. Thoughts of God are unacceptable to the [[ego]], because they clearly point to the nonexistence of the ego itself. The ego therefore either [[distorts]] them or refuses to [[accept]] them. It cannot, however, make them cease to be. It therefore tries to conceal not only "unacceptable" [[body]] [[impulses]], but also the [[thoughts of God]], because both are threatening to it. Being concerned primarily with its own [[preservation]] in the face of threat, the ego [[perceives]] them as the same. By perceiving them as the same, the ego attempts to save itself from being swept away, as it would surely be in the [[presence]] of [[knowledge]]. |