None of These Negative Selves Is Me: They Are Karmic Obstructions, They Are the Enemy

Every negative self, every self that is not luminous—self-attack, self-blame, inferiority–conceit–self-hatred, the ego, the superego—is a karmic obstruction, an enemy, and none of it is “me.”
The true self is luminous. Everything outside that luminosity is a karmic obstruction, not the true self.
Distinguish between self and enemy: mistaking karmic obstructions (the superego, the ego) for oneself, and mistaking oneself (being in a low state, procrastinating) for the enemy. This is a failure to distinguish between self and enemy. Let what belongs to the true self belong to the true self; do not identify with what is not the true self. Whatever is not the true self and also harms me is the enemy.
People have stayed in the basement for too long. They are not afraid of the darkness; they are afraid of the light. The true self is who we really are. Who suppresses the true self? Who fears its emergence? Who fears being destroyed by it? The ego and its karmic obstructions.
What is the significance, for psychology, of invoking a “communist society”? It bears witness to humanism. All problems that will disappear in a communist society, especially internal problems, are not problems inherent to human beings or individuals. They are historical problems, problems of noncommunist societies. Like idealized assumptions in physics, such as the assumption of no friction, this helps us see the actual underlying laws clearly.
Case study
For example, inferiority is a feeling, conceit is a defense, and inferiority–conceit–self-hatred form a single whole: they are all states of the self. Ultimately, however, they are temporary states caused by external factors. Some components, such as defense mechanisms, belong to the self, but ultimately they are not the source of the true self.
The ego-identification and patterns of thought and consciousness arising from inferiority–conceit–self-hatred, such as those “ordinary yet overconfident men” and “domineering CEOs,” are even more obviously karmic obstructions and enemies.
The root of being in a low state is the negative self.
Innate wholeness has the power to heal and restore. What obstructs a person’s recovery? The negative self. The negative self puts a person into a low state, while simultaneously hating that low state, hating oneself, treating oneself harshly, and obstructing recovery. This is treating oneself as an enemy and destroying oneself—the opposite of loving oneself and being oneself.
Becoming like Zhang Xuefeng is the clearest example: working excessively hard, emotional instability, staying up late and getting up early, and poor sleep. Food heavy in oil and salt, compulsive exercise. Any onlooker can see clearly that the only thing he needs to do is rest. But why does he not rest?
How terrifying karmic obstructions are. Is this thing inside that wants to kill you really you? No, it is the internalization of the external big Other, of karmic obstructions.
Being in a low state calls for self-care. But if someone remains in a low state for a long time, this indicates that they lack the capacity to love themselves. Someone who cannot love themselves cannot love others or society.
The negative self puts a person into a low state in order to maintain itself and avoid reality.
Two common examples:
Many children, young people, and adults in their prime put themselves into a low state, diminish their cognitive abilities, and avoid reality in order to evade the fact that their parents do not love them. In psychological terms, to avoid attacking their parents, they direct the attack at themselves.
For many people, procrastination is underpinned by fantasies of superiority. They need procrastination to avoid the reality of being ordinary and having limits.
There is also the vicious cycle of projection: “A Brief Account of Projection and Its Types.”
Restraint is not self-discipline, self-attack, or self-belittlement. It means seeing that one’s own heart does not actually want something; only the karmic obstructions want it. Restraint comes from meditative stability, wisdom, and compassion, rather than harshness and narrow-mindedness.
“Personal Problems Are All Social Problems”
From our student days onward, we are taught that every problem, even our emotions, is our own individual problem.
What is the significance, for psychology, of invoking a “communist society”? It bears witness to humanism. All problems that will disappear in a communist society, especially internal problems, are not problems inherent to human beings or individuals. They are historical problems, problems of noncommunist societies. Like idealized assumptions in physics, such as the assumption of no friction, this helps us see the actual underlying laws clearly.