What you believe be it religious, spiritual or not.

[Spirit of Light]

As a Humanist, I believe that the best approach to life is to be guided by reason and our common humanity, and to realize that moral values are properly founded on human nature and experience alone.

I believe that "spirituality" means giving meaning, value, and purpose to life by our own independent thought, free inquiry, and responsible, creative activity. Further, that my spirituality, for me, includes accepting my unconditional relationship with our natural world and all within it, and that we should seek the building of a more humane, just, compassionate, and democratic society using a pragmatic ethics based on human reason, experience, and reliable knowledge-an ethics that judges the consequences of human actions by the well-being of all life on Earth.

"Spirituality" that focuses on something outside of my humanity and my connectedness to the real world is, for me, sham and meaningless, because there is no hint that anything outside the real world or beyond my own humanity exists.

Have you tried seeking for god within yourself?

 

[Link]

Seek within to draw out all evil and be the light.

The light is the name of God and those who are his name are willing to help us, aide us, and build us protective barriers, as long as we don't associate satan and his forces with God. If we equate the wicked and righteous, the enemies of Ahlulbayt (a) with their friends, and see the sorcery of Iblis on equal basis in bringing "goodness" in people with the sustenance from God that is only attained through patience/perseverance (Sabr) and connecting to God constantly (Salah) - then God will not honor this judgment and will leave us to ourselves or we can seek help from whatever source of energy as God says "and the prayer of the disbeliever is but in error".

If you want the light, then God says go to those who I've declared pure and my light, my chosen exalted ones, not to those who declare themselves pure by reputation they built for themselves or themselves declared themselves to be directly.

I will respect people and right to choose whatever religion they want, but I won't not condemn the choice of preferring falsehood over the truth that God has clarified and proven with so many signs and proofs.

Also, Ahlulbayt (a) through Quran and their words as well as their power from God and interceding capabilities, will cure the evil, if we call upon God to permit them to do so.

Having preferred the darkness and evil jinn - the left handed path people for example, and sorcerers and those who incline to other then doors of God and instances of his holy spirit, how can they be accepted for the choice to love evil and uncleanness over the purified chosen ones and the guidance of God in form a scripture that is far beyond and been proven beyond doubt to be from God for anyone who studies and researches with any seriousness over the issue?

The playful nature of dismissing and talking non-sense about God's words, how can that be accepted?

I will never accept people who have rejected the best humans and oppress their followers and spread mischief in the earth.

 

[Evangelicalhumanist]

Have you tried seeking for god within yourself?

That question doesn't even have meaning for me, let alone suggest anything that I might do.

For some reason, many people think that there must be something "greater than themselves," or some "power" to which they need to submit themselves. I have no sense of this whatever, so why would I ge seeking it? I am sufficient to myself by just being me, so long as I recognize my connectedness to the rest of the world and those within it.

 

[Truthseeker]

I think one must first conquer the darkness from within before one can defeat the darkness from others

And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye? Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye? Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye.
Matthew, "The Gospel of Matthew - ευαγγέλιο του Ματθαίου", 7:3

I wish I did that all the time. Is there any value in admitting that you don't observe something like you want to, but at the same time give advice on observing that?

 

[Spirit of Light]

That question doesn't even have meaning for me, let alone suggest anything that I might do.

For some reason, many people think that there must be something "greater than themselves," or some "power" to which they need to submit themselves. I have no sense of this whatever, so why would I ge seeking it? I am sufficient to myself by just being me, so long as I recognize my connectedness to the rest of the world and those within it.

It was ment as a friendly suggestion

 

[Spirit of Light]

And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye? Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye? Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye.
Matthew, "The Gospel of Matthew - ευαγγέλιο του Ματθαίου", 7:3

I wish I did that all the time. Is there any value in admitting that you don't observe something like you want to, but at the same time give advice on observing that?

If you know you can give the advice to others, you can look within your own heart and see if you need to give the advice to your self too
I did that and realized i had a big beam in my eyes, I have to pull that out before I can truly help others to see.

 

[Truthseeker]

I agree. But doing both may be self reinforcing. No social reformer had been perfect, but that did not stop them from doing things that made the world better.

I think maybe you answered my question above. While striving to conquer the darkness within, we can still do what we can in the meantime.

 

[Evangelicalhumanist]

It was ment as a friendly suggestion

I know. I'm just trying to explain why it doesn't have any meaning for me. I don't try to "seek my inner Napoleon," but that is no part of what I am. I love poetry, drama, music and the arts -- but I don't look for my "inner muse," because I am already aware that I do not possess that sort of creative talent.

In the same way, I don't look for my "inner straight man" (no do you look for your "inner gay man") because we both know there is nothing of the kind there.

I've read much of what you've posted, and you truly seem to be seeking something "outside of" or "beyond" yourself -- but I have no such need. I have come to terms with the wonder of my own existence just as it is, and don't need anything to make it somehow better, or more valuable.

 

[Truthseeker]

Ego

According to the Baha'i teachings, Satan is actually the ego within.

 

[Spirit of Light]

According to the Baha'i teachings, Satan is actually the ego within.

I agree,

 

[Clara Tea]

Be the best you can toward others. Respect others may be different than yourself.
Be happy for what others find good in themselves or in others.

Seek within to draw out all evil and be the light.

But: That is much easier said than done...meeting evil every day isnt easy. And its easy to fail...or easy to give up.

Christians believe similar things:

Luke 6:31 (Golden Rule) "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you."

Be kind to our enemies and turn the other cheek. So, if an enemy gives a Christian a black eye, they should turn the other cheek (symmetry is important...so both eyes are black). Kindness for kindness sake.

Sin of envy (wanting what others have). Hence black eyes (see above). Envy ends when theft begins.

Originally, the bible said "don't be tempted by evil" (that is greed, envy, etc.), but modern translations in English (in Matthew, for example) say "don't be tempted by Satan). Temptation by evil is free choice (that is what determines if we go to heaven or hell). Temptation by a devil is a new idea. However, the snake tempted Eve in the Garden of Eden.

Meeting evil every day makes failure easy. I don't worry about failure in falling for my sister's evil. I do worry, however, that my sister will go to hell. In hell, of course, she will take over and push Satan out. That's in her nature.

 

[Clara Tea]

According to the Baha'i teachings, Satan is actually the ego within.

That is the original Christian belief, too. But the bible was translated wrong. If you don't believe me, look up the same bible passage in its original latin, and translate it (I did when I was doing a bible study with my Christian minister fiancee).

 

[Truthseeker]

That is the original Christian belief, too. But the bible was translated wrong. If you don't believe me, look up the same bible passage in its original latin, and translate it (I did when I was doing a bible study with my Christian minister fiancee).

Whether the Bible was translated wrong or not on this, it could be seen as symbolism.

 

[Kooky]

Feel free to share or discuss the OP

I think one must first conquer the darkness from within before one can defeat the darkness from others

I do not believe in evil. What I believe in, is harmful behavior - harmful to us or others, or both.
I believe that many people engage in behavior that is ultimately harmful to someone - some do it unwittingly, some to it deliberately, some do it because they can see no other way to survive, some do it because they literally have no other way to survive.

Some people may form habits out of these behaviors, and it becomes hard or perhaps impossible to extricate the person from the harm they do. Undoing harm, though, doesn't begin and end with an inner journey of redemption, a person needs to actively work with others to make amends and do good.

 

[idea]

As a Humanist, I believe that the best approach to life is to be guided by reason and our common humanity, and to realize that moral values are properly founded on human nature and experience alone.

I believe that "spirituality" means giving meaning, value, and purpose to life by our own independent thought, free inquiry, and responsible, creative activity. Further, that my spirituality, for me, includes accepting my unconditional relationship with our natural world and all within it, and that we should seek the building of a more humane, just, compassionate, and democratic society using a pragmatic ethics based on human reason, experience, and reliable knowledge-an ethics that judges the consequences of human actions by the well-being of all life on Earth.

"Spirituality" that focuses on something outside of my humanity and my connectedness to the real world is, for me, sham and meaningless, because there is no hint that anything outside the real world or beyond my own humanity exists.

I love the idea of "unconditional relationship with our natural world and all within it". I was raised in a very religious environment, and the transition from seeing everything as being "God's will" to instead being "just the laws of nature" was extremely healing for me.

I'm still exploring, do not see myself ever settling for any religious group as I too value the individual journey - no borrowed light, no leaning on any arms of flesh as some would say. It does seem like we have a spirit - conscience, self-awareness, more than just information but the ability to act, to create - whatever life is - I guess "spirit" is as good a word as any to describe the spark of life.

 

[osgart]

Be the best you can toward others. Respect others may be different than yourself.
Be happy for what others find good in themselves or in others.

Seek within to draw out all evil and be the light.

But: That is much easier said than done...meeting evil every day isnt easy. And its easy to fail...or easy to give up.

The Dark Factor of Personality: Determine your D-Score


Here's a cool research program about the dark side of personality and something called the D factor.

 

[Truthseeker]

The Dark Factor of Personality: Determine your D-Score


Here's a cool research program about the dark side of personality and something called the D factor.

I took it, and I will remain anonymous about the score.

 

[osgart]

I took it, and I will remain anonymous about the score.

I thought the questions were pertinent to the thread. The questions I thought got right to the point about the dark side of personality.