Evil is a pervasive problem in human society. And since at least 1996, if not before, I've tended to look at it more as a disease and problem than anything else. I'm not saying I don't believe in personal responsibility. And no one has ever heard me say that. But I think everyone in their hearts probably would agree with me anyway. We should for example look at the cause of societal problems, before we simply punish destructive behavior. And never is it justified to be cruel, under any circumstances, no matter what a person has done. I know the feeling. I used to feel that way myself. But that kind of attitude is always destructive and accomplishes nothing in the end. So anyone agree? Disagree? Thoughts in general?
"Despite all appearances, no one is truly evil; they are led astray by delusion. Ponder this truth often, and you will offer more light than blame and condemnation." Dhammawadaka Shunryu Suzuki roshi once said that "strictly speaking, there are no enlightened people; only enlightened activity." If his premise is true, then the inverse must also be true; strictly speaking, there are no unenlightened people, only unenlightened activity. We all possess Buddha nature; we are all "whole and complete; imbued with wisdom and compassion." But due to our delusive thinking, we've lost the plot. Like Angulimala, our innate Buddha nature is immutable; despite our ignorance, hatred, and greed. Like a lotus root, it's always there; obscured beneath the accretions of shit we've accumulated, waiting to bloom and be revealed. If the answer to suffering was to inflict more suffering, we'd all be living in a perpetual state of ecstatic bliss by now.
Yes; a bit more Zen than Nichiren, but the same basic principles apply. The Atlantic ocean and the Pacific ocean are both comprised of the same seawater, which tastes the same.
evil is not an identity. it is a form of behavior. aggressive inconsiderateness is that form of behavior. not because of what me or any book says, but because it is at the root of not only every universally agreed upon crime, but of every anxiety and unpleasantness in life. and being a form of behavior it is a choice. and being a choice, no one has to keep shaming themselves by doing so. no many things in life are this simple. this one is. certain dominant beliefs muddy this water needlessly. they do so by encouraging the hatred of logic, and by denying that goodness and the desire to be feared, being absolute binary opposites.
No matter. Technically speaking, they're all part of the whole. The Global Conveyor Belt - Currents: NOAA's National Ocean Service Education
