The way the ego sees spiritual realization gives shape and flavor to the experience of seeking, which is different for different people.

So, what is the purpose of enlightenment or spiritual realization for our own ego? That is, what is the ego’s idea of spiritual realization?

Is it control? If only Enlightenment happens or the sense of separation dies, I will finally have total control over my state of mind. That means I will choose only nice, wise, and loving ones, of course. Why not throw in some telepathic powers, too? Many yogis, saints, and dervishes fall into that ego category.

Or is it adequacy? If only self-realization happens, I will finally behave in a way that will please everybody, and why not god too? But really, most likely, it is simply to please Mom or Dad. They were sure to help program the ego that way so you still unconsciously feel you owe them the degree of adequacy or perfection they, in their own folly, demanded. Now it is expressed to the people around you in your life.

That is, the ego is waiting for you to feel adequate in order to assert: “I am Self-realized.” Well, good news, that is fantasy. It is the ego operating unconsciously and impinging on your spiritual approach.

There are seven patterns, and I have mentioned two of them.

Each ego color has many little tricks; we address each one one by one, according to our specific pattern, consciously. Until the last trick is seen through. When that happens, we call it Self-Realization or, as I prefer, Spiritual Realization because there is no self that has any relevance at that point.

Sounds like a good plan or recipe? I am not joking. That is what can happen. Now, whether the universe will align for that to happen, I do not know. It is a gamble. You play your hand as best you can.

There is no mystery to the process. A bunch of misunderstandings are eliminated, and what is left is Truth or Things As They Are, which you as a person are a part of.

The term Natural State is pithy. It is Natural, not special. Spiritual Realization is the normal condition of a human being. The sense of separation and its fear is the artifice. A superego is not Spiritual Realization. The ego does not die or vanish, but the artifice can die.