Ambivalence toward the sacred object: "You are nothing, Germany is everything."
"You are nothing, Allah is everything."
"You are nothing, the Emperor is everything."
"You are nothing, your mother is everything."
When one identifies with an object conceived as omnipotent, ambivalence is inevitable and inescapable. The same mechanism enhancing the sense of self cripples or paralyzes the self. The mechanism allowing the individual to feel that he or she is everything requires that one become nothing.