One way to think of the evolution of ego consciousness is to think of the evolution of games. Perhaps, in the beginning, there was a simple game of marbles, played with small stones. I would try to hit your stone; you would try to hit mine. Then think of the process of that evolving into something as complex as Chess. There was a natural movement for the game to evolve in complexity. Marbles (stones) was fun when it was new. After a few weeks or months or years, though, it got a little old. Something with a new twist was needed—perhaps different colored marbles with each color having particular properties—perhaps only yellow marbles could ‘take’ red ones, etc. The development of the ego is like that—it raises the cosmic game to a new level. Hey—now we can play with egos, not just mental constructs!
Or imagine 3 divine beings hanging around (outside of space and time, of course) and they are playing what all divine beings play when they are just hanging around—Poker! Except that everyone knows everyone else’s hand, and because of absolute Oneness, no one ever wins or loses. It’s just all One. And then one of the beings of the One expresses what the One has thought: What would it be like if no one could know what cards the other beings were holding? That would be cool. What would it be like to win? What would it be like to lose? Think of all the amazing games that could be played if you didn’t know the whole picture!
And so the was ego developed to play these games. The divine has become ego to explore and experience itself in a forever evolving game that requires separation for the game to go deeper. It’s like getting your first passport and coming into a small inheritance—suddenly the whole world has opened up with possibilities.
The problem is that within the game, the beauty and joy of the game gets lost because of the suffering of the ego. (With great excitement, you took your new passport, went to France, fell in love, but then got your heart broken.) The ego becomes lost in the game and it is now being played from survival rather than joy. Of course, that’s also part of the development of the game—let’s play survival! The irony is that one has to get outside the game to appreciate the beauty of it. And from outside the game, the process looks beautiful. So beautiful it can bring tears to your eyes. And the creation of the ego looks like your greatest accomplishment, enabling you to play the most ultimate and bizarre games—birth & death, attachment & loss, success & failure, acceptance & rejection, good & evil, relationship (with & without sex, with & without intimacy), work & vacation, ecstasy & despair. Without the ego, You could not have had the experience you have had. None of it would have been possible. All that beauty and richness of life-experience never would have been.