Two-in One or Three-in-One?

You are three-in-one. In fact, in a way, we all are -- at least in the beginning. 

Basically, there are only two persons inside you: one is your ego-self, and the other is your true-self, These two are living in the same physical or material world, while both are being influenced by the spirit, which is from a totally different dimension. There is continuous interaction between your ego-self and your true-self until one dominates over the other; and this control or domination originates from the spirit. The explanation is that if the true-self seeks the help of the spirit, which is the conscience deep inside all of us, then it may be instrumental in overcoming and letting go of the ego, and hence diminishing the impact of the ego-self on the true-self. Remember, the ego-self and the true-self co-exist, and neither one can get rid of the other completely.

Your ego-self tells you that you are separate from everyone else. Your ego-self wants more of everything not only to define who you are but also to distinguish you from others. Your ego-self is forever judgmental — not only self-evaluating, but also assessing others through constant comparison and contrast. As a result, your ego-self is always shifting and shuffling between the past and the future — focusing on how to better the old ego-self in the past, and visualize the new and improved ego-self in the future. 

Your true-self is basically who you were when you were created. Your spirit is the built-in conscience that often reminds your true-self who you really are and not who you wish you were or would like to become, as well as what is right and wrong for you.  

As a result of the constant conflict between the ego-self and the true-self, an individual may become confused and even at a loss regarding his or her true identity..

The classic illustration of the two-in-one is Robert Louis Stevenson‘s famous story of the dark side and the bright side of human nature — the duality of man. In his famous story of “The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde,” he presented Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde both as having a dark side within them, where evil is always lurking underneath to surface anytime. Both of them hide their evil away, pretending that it never exists. In the end, it turns out that Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde are actually one and the same person.

In a way, we all have Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde inside us because we are two-in-one. Our ego-self and true-self co-exist. Without the presence of the spirit, the ego-self dominates the true-self, and over the long haul, we become only two-in-one, instead of three-in-one. 

So, to maintain the three-in-one, we must have the wisdom of letting go -- letting go of all attachments that create the ego-self.

Stephen Lau

Copyright© by Stephen Lau