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 question to ask!

What we usually refer to when we use the word evil is nothing but a result of ignorance of our true nature and the basic laws of life. It is an undeniable fact that the world is presently full of people who are doing harm to others, and in many cases it’s fully intentional, sometimes even doing harm just for the sake of it, as if it gives some kind of morbid satisfaction. This can happen only when people are totally ignorant of who they are, and have lost all sense of the sacred nature of life.

Our entire civilisation is built on a couple of very specific assumptions, which are hardly ever questioned by anyone. Virtually everybody believes that they are separate entities living in a world of matter that exists independently of consciousness. This gives rise to selfishness, because the 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.

However, it is very 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 conquered nor eliminated. Because the ego itself isn’t ultimately real, it is not the source of “the problem of evil”.

It is the belief in a separate ‘me’ that is the driving force for all conflict 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, and the idea of being separate is what gives rise to selfish and destructive words and behaviour.

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 and evil will start to dissipate and drain away of their 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, 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, conflict and evil. It’s like darkness and light. What is darkness but an absence of light? Turn on the light and darkness is no more. Let the love that you are flow freely, and evil cannot exist. Nor can other manifestations of it, such as fear, desire for power and control, jealousy, the need for revenge, or any of the many other depravities that are likely to cause harm to oneself and others. It’s essentially all a result of ignorance and a lack of spiritual maturity.

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 life-forms and virtual reality will sooner or later fail, quite simply because it goes against life itself, and 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 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 the love that extends out to include everybody; it’s an all-accepting and non-judgmental openness sharing itself freely with all. It is something completely natural and effortless. This love extends to infinity, and includes everything and everybody, and it is the key to changing the world. Just see through the illusion of being separate, the illusion of ego, and realise that there is nobody there as a centre. There is only consciousness itself, which is not personal, but universal. It’s not a thing. 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’s what we are.

We were talking about “the problem of evil”. Evil is the darkness that is the absence of love. The idea of being a separate ‘me’ creates division, conflict and suffering. When you know yourself to be the consciousness that is all, it’s like turning on the light, and entering into the flow of unconditional love. Sometimes it can happen that you meet somebody who triggers this transformational awakening, or it just happens when you least expect it. It is a mystery. You can’t plan for it. You can’t make it happen, but it may help to be passionate about truth, and have a strong drive towards knowing who you are and what life is. It’s also a natural part of this process to keep manifesting loving kindness in the world. It is that pure love that will change the world. If we make that love a reality, if we live and embody it, then we will also have reached the spiritual maturity required to truly ‘be the change that we want to see in the world’……and once the power of love is greater than the love of power, we shall finally be the living manifestation of Peace on Earth.