The Relationship Between the Soul and the Ego | Ahmad Syed Yar Jaan Saifi
Understanding the Connection
What is the relationship between our soul and our ego? When the soul enters our body, what kind of connection does it have with the ego? Remember that God, in creating the human body, also created the ego, and by its very nature, except for the prophets and the elite of the saints, the ego is inherently corrupt. It is the one that commands wrongdoing. However, God desires that this very ego be reformed. To achieve this reformation of the human body and the ego, God sent the soul into the body.
The Soul’s Authority Over the Body
Now, since the ego is also a ruler of the human body, and the heart is also considered the ruler, what is the status of the soul? The soul, in fact, controls both of these rulers. When a person moves in the realm of God’s presence, that movement is not a physical movement; it is a spiritual movement. The soul’s movement is spiritual. And when the soul is in God’s presence, it is stable and settled, just as we say there are those who are settled and those who are restless.
The Soul Entering the Body
God sent the soul into the human body for its improvement and betterment. When the soul entered the body, it connected with the ego, which was already present. As Imam Al-Ghazali explains, this ego was like a worldly woman, full of charm and cunning, controlling the entire being with its influence.
How the Ego Overpowered the Soul
But when the soul arrived, it fell in love with the ego, and the ego, being the object of that love, became the ruler, while the soul became subdued. Thus, the soul forgot its purpose and became absorbed in the ego, blending with it. You may have noticed that even those who are disbelievers or wrongdoers have their own souls, and likewise, the righteous have theirs. But there is a difference: the souls of the righteous are further elevated and purified, while the souls of the wicked become more corrupt and darker.
Spiritual State Depends on the Ego
The reason is clear: when the ego is righteous, the soul remains righteous; and when the ego is corrupt, the soul also becomes tainted. In short, the soul’s condition is intimately linked to that of the ego, and that determines the overall spiritual state.
The Divine Call and Spiritual Ascent
When a caller, a spiritual guide, invites the soul with focused attention, and if the soul accepts that invitation, it achieves great success. But if the soul, overly engrossed in its ego, rejects the invitation, it falls into significant loss. Because the soul and the ego share a deep bond of love, when the soul returns to God’s presence, it remembers its purpose: to refine and elevate the body.
Purification Through Divine Light
However, if the soul has become tainted, it can be purified again through divine attention, and then it returns to the body filled with divine light. In this body, there are also other spiritual faculties, such as the heart, the secret, the subtle faculty, and the hidden faculty.
Awakening the Inner Faculties
When the soul returns from the divine presence with divine enlightenment, it can guide these faculties toward their original, pure state. This leads to a spiritual awakening, and those faculties that were once neglectful of God’s remembrance become attentive once more.
Transformation of the Ego
As a result, the soul, through its love and bond with the ego, now helps the ego become purified as well. The ego, once prone to wrongdoing, now becomes righteous, and that transformation brings divine approval. Thus, this relationship between the soul and the ego ensures that the entire being is elevated.
Final Insight
In essence, what was once a rebellious and corrupt ego can become a righteous and obedient one through the soul’s influence. This transformation is like the difference between a leader who once led people astray and one who now guides them toward goodness. Similarly, the ego, once corrupt, now becomes a leader of goodness under the soul’s guidance. This is the profound interplay between the soul and the ego, a dynamic that leads to spiritual transformation and divine approval.