Good and evil....

[BruceDLimber]

Greetings!

>What are your views on good and evil?

In the Baha'i view all was created good, and evil is simply the relative absence of good, just as darkness isn't a physical "thing" but the relative absence of good--which can be proven by the fact that you can bring light into a dark room, but not dark into a light room!

In the Baha'i scriptures, it's explained like this:

Chapter 74: THE NONEXISTENCE OF EVIL​

“The true explanation of this subject is very difficult. Know that beings are of two kinds: material and spiritual, those perceptible to the senses and those intellectual.
“Things which are sensible are those which are perceived by the five exterior senses; thus those outward existences which the eyes see are called sensible. Intellectual things are those which have no outward existence but are conceptions of the mind. For example, mind itself is an intellectual thing which has no outward existence. All man’s characteristics and qualities form an intellectual existence and are not sensible.
“Briefly, the intellectual realities, such as all the qualities and admirable perfections of man, are purely good, and exist. Evil is simply their nonexistence. So ignorance is the want of knowledge; error is the want of guidance; forgetfulness is the want of memory; stupidity is the want of good sense. All these things have no real existence.
“In the same way, the sensible realities are absolutely good, and evil is due to their nonexistence—that is to say, blindness is the want of sight, deafness is the want of hearing, poverty is the want of wealth, illness is the want of health, death is the want of life, and weakness is the want of strength.
“Nevertheless a doubt occurs to the mind—that is, scorpions and serpents are poisonous. Are they good or evil, for they are existing beings? Yes, a scorpion is evil in relation to man; a serpent is evil in relation to man; but in relation to themselves they are not evil, for their poison is their weapon, and by their sting they defend themselves. But as the elements of their poison do not agree with our elements—that is to say, as there is antagonism between these different elements, therefore, this antagonism is evil; but in reality as regards themselves they are good.
“The epitome of this discourse is that it is possible that one thing in relation to another may be evil, and at the same time within the limits of its proper being it may not be evil. Then it is proved that there is no evil in existence; all that God created He created good. This evil is nothingness; so death is the absence of life. When man no longer receives life, he dies. Darkness is the absence of light: when there is no light, there is darkness. Light is an existing thing, but darkness is nonexistent. Wealth is an existing thing, but poverty is nonexisting.
“Then it is evident that all evils return to nonexistence. Good exists; evil is nonexistent.”


-- Some Answered Questions, pp. 282-284


Best!

Bruce

 

[Atheist007]

Evil is what evil does,but enough with the forrest gumping, anytime you don`t strive for good,the common good of everything living,that`s evil,every time you think "i want",that`s the purest evil. Evil begins with a narrow, selfcentered acts, the smallest of acts,i want this piece of gum for example,then you steal it from your friend,cause,it`s not a big deal in your head( any act of ignorance is evil),you get happy,you got what you wanted,but due to the lack of work your getting a feeling that you should just get,that is the worst form of evil,claiming rewards from something you haven`t done,you should n`t get anything from anybody,unless they give it to you,and then,by the rules of goodness,you have to reply with kindness... kindness is a blessing to the giver,that`S the way of good. Whenever someone loses something(like the friend with the bubblegum,who might meet the love of his life,and not have that one gum you stole,and therefore can`t talk to her cause his breath smells,ruined his day,he will ruin yours) it has cosmic effects,evil generates evil,stealing makes the victims more likely to have to become thieves....and in the end a sinner will get victimized by a former victim,for every bad guy,there is a bad set of circumstances,and unless we all act in unity for mutual good,we are commiting evil! I`m a communist,don`t need dogmas to be good,i believe life is a struggle for the balance your children will experience,everything has to be pure. the battle of good versus evil is just the direction of life,and i feel I`m on the side of good

 

[Atheist007]

or in short,evil is the lack of compassion

 

[Atheist007]

how does your upbringing change anything,do you believe in a people predestined to fight each other? Your statement is so historyless............. throughout history humans have toppled great empires in order to get closer and embrace our differences and equalities,it does n`t lead to conflict unless some evil person tries to capitalize on it,capitalization is evil...... getting everyones elses work to profit you,pure evil......human good is human good,we`re all in the same boat,most of us are relatively poor.... and we by large function great together so when is something good for 1 not for the other without it being evil? By any account letting another man pay for your sins evil(this is half a joke, the reason why i`m not a christian) ......

 

[morning-star]

how does your upbringing change anything,do you believe in a people predestined to fight each other?

Isn’t clear how your upbringing can affect your views? A Christian family will raise there child on Christian views. A Muslim their views. Every one will pick their own way of life in the end, but not by some influence from family and friends. No view is original nowadays, most opinions are formed from experience and other people’s opinions or knowledge that you have learnt. Somewhere along the line your values of what is right and wrong has been influenced by someone you know etc.

 

[OneStraw Revolutionary]

In cultures past, "evil" was never as final and absolute as it has become in our imperialist culture. When something was called evil, it was more akin to "bad" or "wrong", but now we have the mistaken connotation that when something is evil, it is beyond any goodness. But changing the meaning of the word was a way for the monotheists in power to gain that power and spread the imperialist culture across the globe. It is still used politically in much the same way today, every time a religious figure sites "evil" as the reason homosexuality is wrong, every time an activist justifies a terroristic act, every time a radiation-laced shell gives death to civilians in Iraq.

Evil and Good as opposing forces are a human invention, and lo, in those societies that hold to that concept there are rapes and mass murders and genocides and wars that treat civilians like soldiers. I would like to point out that in tribal cultures where "evil" wasn't transformed for political purposes, depression, suicide, homicide, rape is a rarity to the point of an understatement. Living in a way that is close to the earth, like we as humans have for many thousands of years before our modern culture, you find no "Good vs. Evil", but "Good and Bad".

 

[morning-star]

I was just thinking 'evil' is 'live' backwards......hummmm....(a litlle of topic that... sorry)

 

[Atheist007]

stop that,evil is universal,you can`t call something good if it just profits you,your religion,that`s the root of every conflict,in my culture (norwegian atheist born,and raised),and evil,death,conflict those are in my eyes just different sides of the same thing...... your views is in my view typically american in that they are based on the notion that your supposed to value your own higher,and be unacceppting of anything else...... if you want to know if the christian or the muslim is wrong ask a atheist(we think you both are),or a hindu(oh,i guess you don`t respect his opinion,christans as a whole,not you in particular,since they are not monotheistical),if you wanna do good,follow your heart,and think before you act,never take the easy way,cause shortcuts allways means you will not help those who need help on your way,help on your conditions, for me evil and good is very unlike the language of the bible, for me it is universal

 

[Atheist007]

In cultures past, "evil" was never as final and absolute as it has become in our imperialist culture. When something was called evil, it was more akin to "bad" or "wrong", but now we have the mistaken connotation that when something is evil, it is beyond any goodness. But changing the meaning of the word was a way for the monotheists in power to gain that power and spread the imperialist culture across the globe. It is still used politically in much the same way today, every time a religious figure sites "evil" as the reason homosexuality is wrong, every time an activist justifies a terroristic act, every time a radiation-laced shell gives death to civilians in Iraq.

Evil and Good as opposing forces are a human invention, and lo, in those societies that hold to that concept there are rapes and mass murders and genocides and wars that treat civilians like soldiers. I would like to point out that in tribal cultures where "evil" wasn't transformed for political purposes, depression, suicide, homicide, rape is a rarity to the point of an understatement. Living in a way that is close to the earth, like we as humans have for many thousands of years before our modern culture, you find no "Good vs. Evil", but "Good and Bad".

Keep it razor sharp,on point like that,love that post, my point though i`ll use a whole book to get there...... I guess you can say i`m like the arawaks... i don`t see the world in the terms described throughout this thread

 

[morning-star]

stop that,evil is universal,you can`t call something good if it just profits you,your religion,that`s the root of every conflict,in my culture (norwegian atheist born,and raised),and evil,death,conflict those are in my eyes just different sides of the same thing...... your views is in my view typically american in that they are based on the notion that your supposed to value your own higher,and be unacceppting of anything else...... if you want to know if the christian or the muslim is wrong ask a atheist(we think you both are),or a hindu(oh,i guess you don`t respect his opinion,christans as a whole,not you in particular,since they are not monotheistical),if you wanna do good,follow your heart,and think before you act,never take the easy way,cause shortcuts allways means you will not help those who need help on your way,help on your conditions, for me evil and good is very unlike the language of the bible, for me it is universal

"stop that" who me?

"you can't call something good if it just profits you" I never do or have done.

"tipically american" I'm English. and the whole point of this topic was to ask and get an idea of other peoples views.

"ask an athist (we think you both are)" sorry I'm a LUCIFERIAN, with my heart and soul and everything that I am and may ever be.

And I like the hindu faith thank you....they have some very good views and Gods/Godesses.

I am a good person. I care for others very much, I follow my heart in everything that I do. I try to give love to all, and try my best in all that I do.

And your missing the point of this topic, it's was about peoples theorys on what they think of good and evil, and whether it is real or not.

 

[Darkness]

I concur with morning-star and daemonikus. They have said, basically, what I would have said. The thing is, right, wrong, good, and evil are not starfish. They are not something you can grasp a hold of.

 

[arthra]

Evil is in my view the absence of good or light...it is not a postitive force in the universe.

Also evil can be a "lesser good"... what is considered evil in one context may be considered a norm in another context.. A snake may be a symbol of evil to some but it is also a symbol of wisdom and renewal in some religions. So a snake has venom to protect itself but being bitten by the snake can be deadly.. We expect a three year to be grasping for things and self centered but in a thirty year old man these characteristsics like grasping and self centeredness are not considered virtues.

So evil is more of a relative concept.

- Art