The Problem of Evil
I recently had a conversation with a friend about the so-called “problem of evil” which essentially revolves around the question of how a benevolent and loving God could have created a world which is so full of what we often think of as evil. How is this possible? Wouldn’t it make more sense if the good God in Heaven had created a world without evil? It seems like a reasonable questions to ask!
However, it may well be the case that this question is incorrectly framed, in the sense that it takes as a given fact that there is a good God in Heaven, and that for whatever reason he can be held responsible for the existence of evil in the world. After all, he is almighty and definitely in charge, isn’t he? Well, maybe we should consider the possibility that it doesn’t quite work like that.
In order to look at this issue in a different way, wouldn’t it be an idea to first of all try to define what exactly we mean by evil? It’s reasonable to think of evil as an extreme expression of selfishness and an egocentric mind set, but that begs the question, “Where does selfishness come from?” That question is fortunately easy to answer: Selfishness is essentially caused by the idea that we are separate entities living in a material world that exists independently of consciousness. This creates a split between the ‘me’ and the ‘you’ or the world, introduces a subtle division, a duality that by its very nature brings with it some degree of conflict. This division is the root cause of all conflict, which in its most extreme expression is manifesting as war and other acts of what we could call evil.
So that’s all quite straightforward, but it is equally important to understand that the ‘ego’ is really only a temporary fluctuation of thoughts, memories, feelings, conditioning and habits, and has no real existence apart from being a makeshift and functional entity that may be useful for practical purposes. In other words, the ‘ego’ isn’t real. It’s not something that actually exists, so therefore it can neither be controlled, conquered nor eliminated, because any such effort is just more ego trying to improve itself. But if the ego isn’t ultimately real, then what is the real source of selfishness and evil?
It is the belief in a separate ‘me’ that is the driving force behind all conflicts and whatever it is that we call evil. This is the true root of the many problems we are constantly creating or facing, both in our own personal lives, and also on a much larger scale. The belief in being a separate ‘me’ entity tends to give rise to many forms of selfish, egotistical and unscrupulous behaviour, including what we call evil. It is this central idea of existing as a distinct ‘somebody’ that is the real issue, not something or somebody ‘out there’ in the world, whoever or whatever we may think is the cause of the world’s conflicts, wars, exploitation and misery.
It all flows from the ignorance of our true nature as unlimited, universal, ordinary consciousness, which is what we all are in essence. Once you see, know and embody the truth that you are the impersonal and universal consciousness that is aware of these words and their meaning, selfishness in its many forms will start to dissipate and drain away of its own accord. However, to truly understand this, it’s necessary to grasp the fact that there isn’t a separate entity within that is conscious or aware. Only consciousness is conscious, only awareness is aware, and that is the true self.
Love, peace, joy and harmony are qualities that are natural expressions of Life itself. And what is Life? It is conscious creative intelligence of such an order and magnitude that we are currently unable to fully comprehend it. It is the Great Spirit that is all. We could therefore say that in essence we are all unconditional love, which is the only love there ever is, and where there is love, there can be no fear, greed, conflict or evil.
Humanity is presently involved in an epic and unprecedented battle for survival, and the process that we are part of during these extraordinary and world-historic times is more than anything else nothing short of a spiritual transformation. It only remains to be seen what price we are going to have to pay for giving birth to the new human inhabiting the new Earth, and what we are going to have to sacrifice on this journey.
The natural expression of humanity will certainly survive, and the insane drive towards technocracy, transhumanism, synthetic lifeforms, AI, virtual reality and the so-called metaverse, will sooner or later fail, quite simply because it all goes against nature and Life itself. It is a direct attack on everything that is good, true, beautiful and sacred.
The new human will not know evil, and will have no desire to keep alive the memory of the ‘old world’ that is now in the process of passing away. It is certainly true that spiritual transformation is very often a painful process, but this temporary discomfort is a small price to pay for a new world of peace, harmony, creativity and love.
What we are in essence is consciousness itself; an all-accepting and non-judgmental openness sharing itself freely with all. It’s something completely natural and effortless, and realising this as our true nature is the key to changing the world. Just see through the illusion of being separate, and realise that there is in fact nobody there but consciousness itself, which is not personal, but universal. It is not a ‘thing’ as such, or something that can be defined or described, categorised or compartmentalised. It is that which is beyond form, yet contains all forms within it.
That is what we call the spiritual; the eternal Great Spirit. That is what we are, and if we live, embody the Great Spirit that is ultimately all, we will also have reached the spiritual maturity required to truly “be the change that we want to see in the world.” When the power of love is greater than the love of power, we shall finally be the living manifestation of Peace on Earth.
