Yes, but there is still new skin underneath. The fallacy of “shedding the ego” is that the ego, or our awareness of self, is not something we should try to rid ourselves of. It is just a normal feature of our brain. The problem is not the presence of our ego, but rather the inflation of our ego and our sense of self importance. Crucially, the mixture of our sense of self importance with our legacy of emotional injuries creates a toxic brew in which we cultivate a “me against the world” mindset. It’s me and “other”, the opposite of feeling connected and together. Importantly, the ego can be used to create a sense of connectedness. The ego is not our enemy. It can be a valuable ally. The Jungian analyst Robert Johnson explained well how the ego can be used to bring into consciousness the emotional detritus that we have buried in our unconscious, where it wreaks havoc on a daily basis. I believe that we need to reconcile our past emotional wounds before we can embark on a meaningful spiritual journey. The latter is not a substitute for the former.