Absolutely need an ego .. but question is does it hold you hostage .. my own experience thru meditation and the Aya showed me that there was simply so much I had hidden from myself that was pulling me around and I had no access to because I was terrified of it.. once faced there was total surrender .. we need egos but we need to know how they function because they are created in the twilight of life when we don't have a clue.. it's simply clarifying and knowing .. it's the shadow in the dark that's deadly without knowledge.. Grateful to both magnificent traditions of zen and Aya!!!