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How Do You Know What Is Evil?
- Thread starter Mister_T
- Start date
EnhancedSpirit
High Priestess
Very good question!
Evil, in Buddhism, becomes a situational response one has within one's place in samsara. We can choose to become trapped in samsara, unconsciously accumulating bad karma by wrong action and with harmful intent (which defines evil) -
Or we can choose to develop actions that are truly not "natural" such as compassion, love, forgiveness, and patience toward one's enemies. These choices in the numberless opportunities life provides us brings us closer to liberation or rebirth into samsara.
I apologize if the above sounds like I'm proselityzing.
My above statements are relevent in that evil can dwell in our hearts long before any actions bear it's fruit. The Five Precepts are a good start:
1) I will be mindful and reverential with all life. I will not be violent nor will I kill.
2) I will respect the property of others. I will not steal.
3) I will be conscious and loving in my relationships. I will not give way to lust.
4) I will honor honesty and truth. I will not deceive.
5) I will exercise proper care of my body and mind. I will not be gluttonous nor abuse intoxicants.
The Buddha then spelled out specifically the Eightfold Path that includes not only what is Right Action, but Right Speech and Right Thought.
Therefore, in my tradition, evil does not exclude minor infractions such as yelling out of anger at your spouse or your children. It is a much broader definition that encourages the Buddhist practitioner to consistently practice toward enlightenment in order to not only escape the wheel of samsara, but to eradicate evil toward all sentient beings, and to plant the seeds of compassion for the world's benefit.
Again, I hope I'm not perceived as trying to "sell" my beliefs on to anyone here.
Peace,
Mystic
Evil, in Buddhism, becomes a situational response one has within one's place in samsara. We can choose to become trapped in samsara, unconsciously accumulating bad karma by wrong action and with harmful intent (which defines evil) -
Or we can choose to develop actions that are truly not "natural" such as compassion, love, forgiveness, and patience toward one's enemies. These choices in the numberless opportunities life provides us brings us closer to liberation or rebirth into samsara.
I apologize if the above sounds like I'm proselityzing.
My above statements are relevent in that evil can dwell in our hearts long before any actions bear it's fruit. The Five Precepts are a good start:
1) I will be mindful and reverential with all life. I will not be violent nor will I kill.
2) I will respect the property of others. I will not steal.
3) I will be conscious and loving in my relationships. I will not give way to lust.
4) I will honor honesty and truth. I will not deceive.
5) I will exercise proper care of my body and mind. I will not be gluttonous nor abuse intoxicants.
The Buddha then spelled out specifically the Eightfold Path that includes not only what is Right Action, but Right Speech and Right Thought.
Therefore, in my tradition, evil does not exclude minor infractions such as yelling out of anger at your spouse or your children. It is a much broader definition that encourages the Buddhist practitioner to consistently practice toward enlightenment in order to not only escape the wheel of samsara, but to eradicate evil toward all sentient beings, and to plant the seeds of compassion for the world's benefit.
Again, I hope I'm not perceived as trying to "sell" my beliefs on to anyone here.
Peace,
Mystic
Faint
Well-Known Member
I would say that "bad" is anything that leads people away from happiness towards misery and suffering. Evil is that which does this on purpose.
Sometimes bad is not as bad as it first seems. There may be opportunity in crisis.
But it is always wrong to cause intentional pain to those who don't deserve it. The greater the pain caused, the greater the level of evil.
Sometimes bad is not as bad as it first seems. There may be opportunity in crisis.
But it is always wrong to cause intentional pain to those who don't deserve it. The greater the pain caused, the greater the level of evil.
Quoth The Raven
Half Arsed Muse
You are Twisted
lilithu
The Devil's Advocate
As I said earlier, to define evil is to define what is morally permissible and what is not. If you know that then it is your responsibility to avoid what's not permissible and to resist it when others do it. To say that there is no such thing as evil is to say that everything is morally permissible. It requires nothing of you. Thus, there is no responsibility.Jaiket said:
Quoth The Raven
Half Arsed Muse
Shhh! They don't know me here...don't spoil all my good work by letting cats out of bags.:slap:Jaiket said:Certainly true.
Yerda
Veteran Member
Who is the responsibility to?lilithu said:
EDIT:
You drive? You fly? We westerners are contributing the vast majority to the effects of climate change which threaten the most impoverished people in the southern hemisphere. Essentially our ignorance is leading to their suffering, floods, droughts, hurricanes, famines etc.lilithu said:
Perhaps your furniture was crafted using illegally logged timber, resulting in the deaths of indigenous people, the disappearance of huge areas of forest and hunting of primates.
Repressive governments are propped-up by mining of elements most likely found in your computer.
Perhaps your ignorance in your bank's activities has lead to proliferation of weaponry to militias that are guilty of ethnic cleansing, and privatisation of water resources in the Third World leading to poverty, disease and death.