Ramana Maharshi says complete eradication of the ego is indeed very hard

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He who has destroyed the ego is alone the true Sannyasin and the true Brahmin; but, hard indeed is the complete destruction of the heavy burden of the ego borne by those Sannyasins who feel “I belong to the highest ashrama” and by those brahmins who feel “I belong to the highest caste”.

Sadhu Om: The true Sannyasa is the renunciation of the ego and the true Brahminhood is the realization of Brahman [i.e., the Self],and thus both the words Sannyasin and Brahmin mean one who has destroyed the ego. But as ashramas [orders of life] and varnas [castes] pertain only to the body, only those who identify themselves with their bodies can feel that they belong to the highest ashrama [known as Sannyasa] or to the highest varna [known as Brahminhood]. Such feelings naturally create pride and strengthen the ego, and therefore the higher the ashrama or varna, the heavier the burden of the ego, and the harder its eradication.

One who sees otherness and multiplicity cannot become a Parppan merely because he has learnt the four Vedas. But one who sees his own [ego’s] death is the true Parppan; the other one [i.e. the caste Brahmin] is inwardly shamed, being despised by the Wise.

Michael James: Parppan literally means ‘a seer’, that is, one who knows the truth, but it is commonly used to mean a caste brahmin.The complete eradication of the ego is indeed very hard when even in the case of Kannappa, whose love for Lord Shiva was so great that he plucked out his own eyes and planted them on the Lord’s face, there remained [until that moment] a trace of body attachment [i.e. ego] in the form of his pride concerning his beautiful bright eyes.

Sadhu Om: At times Sri Bhagavan used to reveal some information which was not given by the scriptures and Puranas such as:a) how, in the Bhagavad Gita, Sri Krishna began His teachings with the doctrines of Ajata and Advaita, but then condescendingly came down to various stages of Dwaita, and how He carefully used words which, though suited to Arjuna’s limited grasping power, also gives room for well-ripened aspirants to discover, even now, the motive behind those words.

b) how at first, Sri Dakshinamurti answered His disciples’ doubts with wise and convincing replies before he took to his method of teaching through Silence.c) the following variation on the story of Kannappa: Kannappa was proud of his eyes, which were very beautiful, so, according to the divine saying, “I will forcibly deprive my true devotee of all his possessions so that his mind may always cling to me”,

Lord Shiva tested Kannappa by making him offer even his treasured and enviable eyes to the Lord. Thus even his slight attachment to his body was removed and he was absorbed in Shiva. As this information about Kannappa’s attachment to his beautiful eyes was not revealed by the Puranas, but only by Sri Bhagavan Ramana, we can infer that He is none other than Shiva, who faced Kannappa at that time.

Source: GURU VACHAKA KOVAI The Light of Supreme Truth or THE COLLECTION OF GURU’S SAYINGS translated from original Tamil By Sadhu Om and Michael James Guru Vachaka Kovai is the biggest collection of Bhagavan’s spoken teachings that was thoroughly checked and revised by him during his lifetime. As such it has a unique place in the Ramana literature.

-- Om namo Bhagavate Sri Ramanaya

Prasanth Jalasutram

-- Om namo Bhagavate Sri RamanayaPrasanth Jalasutram