Is the Dark Night of The Soul the same as Ego Death?

[VictorB02]

I am reading Mastering the Core Teachings of the Buddha by Daniel Ingram.

I am at the part where he is describing The Dark Night of The Soul and I’m wondering if anyone on the forum could confirm if this is the same thing as Ego Death or not?

Any responses are appreciated. Thanks!

[Toby]

There is no consensus or anything how words like "Dark Night of the Soul" or "Ego Death" are defined. If in Daniel's map it is the same then it probably makes sense. If in another framework it isn't, it probably also makes sense.

[Pure Imagination]

I think that a Dark Night of the Soul can be a potential symptom of ego death. I do not believe they are the same. The Dark Night is essentially an ego backlash to an awakening experience. The ego starts to tell itself that everything is meaningless; this is typically accompanied by a depression and thoughts that say everything is meaningless.

It’s important to remember that the Dark Night will not last forever, despite what the ego may tell you. You are safe

[Leo Gura]

@VictorB02 No, Dark Night Of The Soul is the ego's backlash & resistance to ego-death. It is the ego going through its final death throes. The ego can still bounce back with a vengeance and not complete the ego death.

[kev014]

@Leo Gura If the ego does bounce back and does not fully die, can/will it be reconstructed again so that someone has to go through the same process over again? My question is basically if you are progressively surrendering your ego, your emotions and the idea that you ever existed more and more but do not fully surrender/die, will you have to 'start over' in this die off process or is it just the final surrender you have to endure?

[VictorB02]

@Pure Imagination thank you

@Leo Gura okay, that makes sense. Thanks

 

[Leo Gura]

15 hours ago, kev014 said:

@Leo Gura If the ego does bounce back and does not fully die, can/will it be reconstructed again so that someone has to go through the same process over again? My question is basically if you are progressively surrendering your ego, your emotions and the idea that you ever existed more and more but do not fully surrender/die, will you have to 'start over' in this die off process or is it just the final surrender you have to endure?

The ego is relentless.

It's sort of like reeling in a giant fish. You reel it in a few feet, then it runs out a few feet of line. A long tug of war ensues. If the fish is big enough it might even break the line and escape. You must slowly wear it down and the deliver the final blow.

Any course of spirituality or development can become pathological.

But it is also possible to land the fish. You must become a good fisherman.

[Girzo]

I have to finally read Jed McKenna's non-dual Moby Dick interpretation to equip myself with some cool fishing metaphors. 

[Leo Gura]

@Girzo You should also read the encyclopedia to learn that whales are not fish