Answer: All sentient beings are influenced by the ego, which is the sense of self. This feeling of self is an illusion, but it governs human psychology. The larger the ego, the more a person becomes immoral, greedy, arrogant, aggressive, selfish, jealous, ambitious, and competitive.
Most wise masters advise people to diminish their egos to develop morality. The smaller the ego, the less unwholesome tendencies a person will have, making it easier to develop moral qualities such as humility, compassion, generosity, charity, tolerance, kindness, gentleness and patience.
However, only the Buddha taught complete non-self through the Noble Eightfold Path, with meditation as the core practice to overcome ego-attachment. Non-self means the absolute absence of the ego and the attachment to the self, leaving only a unified, boundless existence of all beings. This is the ultimate goal of Buddhist practice.
If we stray from the goal of non-self, no matter how much we practice, we cannot achieve liberation, as the ego is the chain that binds us to the endless suffering in samsara. The ego is so subtle and deceptive that even when we reach deep meditative states, it can deceive us, leading to pride. Even when we live virtuously, frequently helping others, it can lead us to feel pride in our good qualities. Therefore, in daily life, one must be wise and intelligent to avoid being deceived by the ego’s hidden and insidious nature.
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