I want to see what this ' Egotism ' is.

When man can give up the thoughts of the past-future, when he is confined to the body — so he can give up carnal pride knowing the origin-perishable, then he attains a higher state. The body is not the soul, nor is the mind the soul, because they have a decrease. The soul of the past of the inanimate world can last forever. Body and mind are constantly changing — these are the changing events. Nominal; Every point of the river belongs to the ever-changing flow; Yet we see that it is the same river. Every atom in this body is ever-changing; No person's body remains the same for even a few moments. However, as a kind of reformation of the mind, we think of it as that one body. The same is true of the mind; It is happy at times, sad at times, strong at times, weak at times. Ever-changing vortex. So that too cannot be a soul, the soul is eternal. Change is possible only in finite objects. It is impossible for any change of eternity. That can never happen. As a body you and I can move from one place to another, every atom in the world is ever-changing; But if we take the world as a whole, it is impossible to move or change it. Speed ​​is relative everywhere. When you or I move from one place to another, it must be understood in comparison with another stationary object; Which atom in the world may change in comparison with another atom, but if the whole world were taken together, it would change in comparison with whom? There is nothing more than that sum. Therefore this eternal ‘Ekmevadvitiyam’ is immutable, immovable and complete, the same spiritual being is the true form of man. So the omnipresent is the eternal truth, the saint is not the finite truth. We are tiny limited beings — no matter how comfortable this idea may be, it is just an old delusion. If man is told, You are the omnipresent eternal man, he is afraid. You are working through everything, you are walking through everyone's feet, you are speaking through all your mouths, you are breathing through all your nostrils, you are afraid when you tell people this. He will ask you again and again, ‘Will I maintain this intimacy or not?’ I want to see what this ‘intimacy’ of man is.

A small child does not have a mustache, when he grows up he grows a mustache and a beard. If ‘egotism’ is physical, then the boy’s ‘egotism’ is lost. If ‘egotism’ is physical, then if I lose one eye or hand, ‘amity’ is also lost. The drunkard should not be without alcohol, otherwise his 'amiability' will go away. The thief should not be a saint, otherwise he will lose his 'egotism'! Therefore no one should give up his habit for fear of this. There is no ‘amity’ except infinity. Not only this eternity changes, but everything is constantly changing. ‘Egotism’ is not even in the memory. If ‘amity’ was in the memory, then if the past memory was lost due to a severe blow to the head, my ‘amity’ would be lost, I would disappear completely. I don't remember two or three years as a child; If my existence depends on memory, then I must say that I did not exist for two or three years. That is to say, the part of my life that I do not remember, I was not alive at that time, it must be said.

From Swami Vivekananda's 'Jnana Yoga'