What Creates Evil? What can be done about it?

[prplchknz]

nothing is evil on the surface, but dig deeper and you will find it.

 

[Zangetshumody]

I think a person experiences evil when their hope (their faculty of 'why things will be' [some way]) is overcome by their limited ability to bear with 'how things would be' (which they happen to be perceiving). If your hope is strong enough, you can have the wisdom to deal with any situation: to then (just) record 'what will be' [through ones response]. Hope comes through hearing and understanding (and is made complete through doing). So if you are haunted by evil, open the doors to the word (your ears).

To answer the question directly, evil is made manifest when one's hope is forsaken. [edit: and is therefore created by one's judgement of 'how things would be']

 

[danseen]

Evil IMHO is a feeling created by little children. Grown people hold no tolerance for silliness such as evil.

 

[zago]

So concentration camps weren't evil?

 

[danseen]

perhaps not.

 

[zago]

perhaps not.

You are one confused person.

 

[danseen]

I'm only human, people conflict are at emotional/mental odds lol..

 

[Amargith]

I liked angellights story very much

I too believe that the most evil thing is the enjoyment of another's suffering. From there there is a gray scale where someone's free will is sacrificed for 'the greater good'/'greater evil'. And yes, this happens when someone's ego/defense mechanisms take over and overrule other living beings rights to their own free will.

How to prevent it? I'd say education and a continuous effort to promote a healthy psyche from childhood is probably your best bet. Considering the variables that go into that, it is always going to be a tough act to balance. But it is known that the 'evilest' of minds usually are more likely to tap into their evil potential when they are raised in precarious circumstances i.e an abusive, oppressive, traumatic and stressful childhood.

Granted, eliminating all stress points in life would not challenge the psyche to grow, but their breaking point is going to be earlier than that of most people - and those people too are far more likely to commit 'evil' acts when preoccupied with survival, and dealing with chronic stress and traumatic events. Perhaps it is not so much the fact that we go through those events, but more that we are not always given the tools to deal with and heal from those events that allows evil to enter into the world.

For all our focus on physical health, emotional healing is often shunned, not recognised as necessary, ridiculed and well, let's face it - we aint as knowledgeable as a species about it just yet. At the same time, it seems to me that there is nothing more important than offering our children (and adults for that matter!) the immediate access to resources to deal with trauma - big and small, in their lives instead of shielding them from it which inevitably fails, or letting them fend for themselves - we wouldn't leave them lying on the floor with a broken leg either. And yet, in many cases, the emotional damage is way more extensive and way more damning than a broken leg would be.

The solution stands upon the edge of a knife - and always will. Achieving balance has never been more important.

 

[ygolo]

I may have been feeding the wrong wolf over the last few months.

I've let loneliness, bitterness, and general frustration with respect to life goals get the better of me.

I apologize to all who may have been adversely affected.

 

[ndovjtjcaqidthi]

I may have been feeding the wrong wolf over the last few months.

I've let loneliness, bitterness, and general frustration with respect to life goals get the better of me.

I apologize to all who may have been adversely affected.

: solidarity :

 

[Alea_iacta_est]

Evil IMHO is a feeling created by little children. Grown people hold no tolerance for silliness such as evil.

If anything, little children are the epitome of innocence, turned evil through the actions of their care-takers, who in turn were turned evil by theirs and so on. Evil is only 'silly' when it is perceived indirectly, when you are on the receiving end of evil, it becomes a serious matter.

 

[Julius_Van_Der_Beak]

Whenever someone makes themselves out to be a nihlist, I usually end up thinking of this scene. I can't help but feel that it's relatively close to the truth.

 

[ceecee]

Evil IMHO is a feeling created by little children. Grown people hold no tolerance for silliness such as evil.

No. I do hope you find a competent mental health professional to assist you.

 

[Winds of Thor]

Yea. Take your medication.

 

[danseen]

No. I do hope you find a competent mental health professional to assist you.

er.. OK lol..

But then, yeah, modern society doesn't say the same thing, and most are "mentally ill", right?

 

[danseen]

Yea. Take your medication.

I don't need any. I have no condition in the DSM. Do you?

 

[danseen]

If anything, little children are the epitome of innocence, turned evil through the actions of their care-takers, who in turn were turned evil by theirs and so on. Evil is only 'silly' when it is perceived indirectly, when you are on the receiving end of evil, it becomes a serious matter.

Says who? Evil clearly exists.

 

[danseen]

Whenever someone makes themselves out to be a nihlist, I usually end up thinking of this scene. I can't help but feel that it's relatively close to the truth.

It's normal for people to say that evil doesn't exist. it's modern society...

 

[Julius_Van_Der_Beak]

It's normal for people to say that evil doesn't exist. it's modern society...

Do you mean that modern society is evil? Are you Baron Society? Good luck finding a society that actually existed in history that was less evil.

 

[Mole]

Apart from genetics, natural selection and natural disasters, it is child rearing practices that create evil.

We learn evil as small helpless children, and as we grow up, we express what we have learnt.

Those to whom evil is done, do evil in return.