Loss of Ego: Loss of Creativity?

Hey, so I was listening to the first episode of Mythos 1 with Joseph Campbell, and I heard something that kind of freaked me out. I hope I misunderstood: The loss of ego is connected with the loss of "critical" and creativity. If that is true, perhaps I should not seek enlightenment. I am going into nursing and I need to be able to critically think and evaluate research as well as come up with creative solutions when needed. I can't lose those abilities. If someone could shed some light on what Joseph Campbell was saying here, I would really appreciate it.

'Ego death' is common in mythology and the rest of human culture. I doubt it affects creativity.

Joseph Campbell is not my specialty but what he is talking about sort of interests me, and..... I wouldn't worry too much, as I think it redefines the concepts (as he presents them) rather then destroys them. But the IP is not meant to be something you necessarily agree with anyway, rather just a chance to explore concepts and share your thoughts, learnings and experiences etc.

But seen as a process altering the mechanisms of perception, I reckon enlightenment is a process of transformation. And it might be said that it involves both an experiential understanding of the concepts of impermanence and also contradiction - such that ego death could be said to be less critical because it no longer relies on life experience (or life requirement) frames of reference to assert value.

Reflection versus refraction, as an analogy. It becomes more an ongoing relational process of interaction. As a result, inherently more open yet connected, and therefore consequently more diverse. Not less accurate, just less restricted in definition. And no longer is the frame of reference for creativity its value to self (whether that is experienced directly as desire or indirectly as novelty), instead it is not chained down to function and just becomes part of a greater interconnected dynamism.

Practical import for me is that 'process' becomes cleaner and therefore faster and more accurate, and conceptualization is freed from defining the self to instead defining the interaction with space. Dunno if any of that makes any sense

I am a fellow Nurse by profession. I'm sure you can see that there are (will be) many times when you will have to set your Ego aside in the face of a patient's (or their family/friend/significant other's) complaints. We have to remove our personal pride from the situation and respond in a way that the patient will understand. Many times our only response can be silently absorbing the abuse hurled at us while they vent about something that they are upset about because of their own misunderstanding. Sometimes the amount of education needed to explain the situation is just too much. Joseph Campbell is talking about a much higher level of thinking. His ideas won't apply to your daily work literally, but they can work a change in us on the level of our understanding and inner growth. This will effect our approach to those in our care through us, even if we can't communicate them directly. Keep your Critical thinking Skills. I use mine Every Day. Be as Creative as you can be to find innovative ways to reach those people who are particularly hard to get through to. Trust that he was seeking a deeper meaning, a better understanding, a Myth that speaks to us in a way we can feel & relate to , even when it defies our ability to put it into words.

Personal experience of IP so far is: Compassion, Creativity and Critical Thinking are on the up, while Criticism of People is on the down. Why? Not sure but my reasoning goes something like this: Because in feeling accepted and acceptable somewhere, it's okay for me to let my light shine a bit for the pleasure of others; and because I'm accepted and acceptable, people are friends, not threats. With people as friends, I am more free to be creative; and I spend less mental time feeling threatened, so I can listen to those pieces of information that conflict, and I can reason with them; understand them; feel compassion for them. So this "Letting go of Ego" process is part of "getting me back". I hand it over, and it comes back. But somehow it's kinda better than before. I'm seeing it like an ongoing amnesty between the Force and me at the moment. I hand over the angry, it gives me a nice receipt I can stick in my wallet, look at, and feel relieved about. So far, all good.

I can 100% understand why you're feeling freaked out. IP makes me freak out regularly because of what it's asking for. And there is no good reason I can think of for trusting "the system" here - I decided trust was a choice though and what did I have to loose anyway? (I am nothing so useful as a nurse. I am an unemployed immigrant with healthcare issues). I'd say use your wise judgement as to whether it's right for you. What Campbell is saying really nests into a lot of other stuff... I've personally not been disappointed.

If you fancy bringing this kind of question to a "wise" person, I've found informal chats with knights useful; you can hit the "Contact Clergy" button top right, and you can meet a few at the IP Study Hall on the unofficial discord . The chat allows for more back-and-forth discussion than these forums allow for.