Discussion – ”If God Truly Exists, How Can There Be So Much Evil In This World Today?”
By Sanjib Mukherjee,
Perhaps the most frequent question of any true spiritual seeker is the notion that if there really is a God, then how can there be so much evil in the world today? I would love to hear your views and opinions on this question.
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If there were no summer, would winter even be considered cold. By comparison, you can not know what hot is unless you know the opposite side of “cold”. If life was not so painful, there would be no joy in life. We would always be in one constant state, and never know any difference. But by “Allowing”, not causing, evil in the world, God is able to do 2 core things.
First he is able to see who will truly love and trust him. Relationships require sacrifice. Think about it, your good friends are “good” because they are always there for you, they give to you. But through evil, God is able to see those who truly love and trust in him. In a world of Pain, who will put there trust in God believing that he is good, and believing that God will somehow work out all things for the good to those who love him. This is called “Faith”.
Second, God makes his joy complete by showing what life is like apart from him. This world is corrupted with sin. so the earth passes sin on generation after generation. But God promises to fix all that is wrong. This gives us hope as we wait and trust in God.
If all were perfect, there would be no waiting and no trusting. How would anyone be able to prove to God there love and dedication to him? A light shines brightest in darkness…enjoy…
Hello,
I believe that there is no such thing as evil. Whatever happens is just someone’s Karma in action. And that is like a pebble falling into water. The ripples that are created are felt in different ways by different people. For some, disasters mean ways to improve things that weren’t that good/productive in the first place. To others it might mean, ways to be stronger and more pro-active than what they already are. So whatever happens, happens for an ultimate good.It is for us to realize that good and do the needful to achieve the goodness. Everything that happens in our life is a lesson. Either it gives us an immediate make-over all for good, or we do realize that it wasn’t meant to be that way.(Like what Edison did when he tried 999 different materials for his light bulb filament and didn’t get disappointed over his 999 failures.He only realized that there were 999 materials that weren’t good for making filaments) Everything that has begun has to end so that something new can start over. And it is our Karma that makes things end and new things begin. We are all bound by it and act in different ways to achieve it-with or without realizing it.And of course, what goes around, comes around too. Whether that be in actions or words. Even Bhagwan Krishna wasn’t able to survive this circle. If we give out something, we have to be ready to receive something equal in return too.
Hi,
Maybe there’s no such thing as “good” and “evil”…it’s just our perceptions that make it so.
And of course, we’ve been given the supreme gift of “free will”…so it’s not God who “allows evil things to happen”…but it’s man who CHOOSES to act in ways we consider either “good” or “evil”.
And if the Soul is eternal…then there is no end and no death (apart from the body and the personality…and ultimately, we’re all on a journey to discover who we “are” in truth…and to walk the path of freedom…and love is a stepping stone along the way.
Of course, these are just my opinions!
Namaste!
Hi Sanjib
there is no doubt about that God exist,Life work on because of polar opposites ,happy person not always happy, success is possible only because failure is also possible, victory depends on defeat and like;youth – old age, beauty – ugliness, summer – winter all exist together. the main thing is acceptance then why we debate on this GOD exist or not ,when there is GOD evil also exist.
The topic of discussion is indeed interesting and wil definitely attract so many views according to what people believe and how they interpret it ..
so I believe that HAVING FAITH IN GOD..and if everyone tries to become a liitle more awakened to his senses and action and keeps checking that whatever we do is not affecting anyone directly or indirectly creating hurt or pain ..as in some case we dont even realise that our good words also become a pain for someone…so if we are conscious enough we should give chanve to increase the expectations of others towards us that we cannot fullfiil so that because of us noone feels hurt or bad…and full of negatitvilty towards us…
so the day is blessed WITH start of discussions about SUPREME POWER OF GOD…
Upanishads have given exact answer to the question of this discussion:
Let us assume that God is Truth and Evil is untruth.
Satya is a word in Sanskrit which means truth. How is this word formed? The Upanishad has its own etymological description of this word.
‘Tad etat try-aksaram: ‘This word Satya is constituted of three letters, of three syllables into which it can be resolved. ‘Sa ity ekam aksaram: The first letter is Sa. The second letter is Ti – ti ity ekam aksaram. The third letter is Ya – yam iti ekam aksaram. Sa, ti, ya – these are the three letters which form the word Satya’.Sa is reality; ya is reality; the middle one ‘ti’ is unreality. Unreality or even evil, is covered by truth or real.
The commentators tell us that the middle syllable ‘ti’ is called phenomenal, a form of death or unreality because this letter ‘ti’ occurs in such words as Mrtyu, ‘Anitya’ and such other words which denote unreality or phenomenality.
Now, symbolic is the interpretation of the meaning of these three syllables. The Upanishad tells us that truth envelopes everything and there is that particular character about truth which is encompassing everything. It is present everywhere, in every part of this world, and what you call untruth is a meager frail existence in the middle of this all-consuming, all-enveloping Being which is truth.
Or to put it in more plain language, the phenomenon that we call this creation which is sometimes called the unreal or the relative is enveloped by the real or the neomenon. The neomenon is real; the phenomenon is the unreal. But the phenomenon is enveloped by the neomenon.
Reality encompasses the whole of existence. It is present everywhere, it covers untruth from all sides as if to swallow it and to give it only the character of an appearance. Even what you call appearance or phenomenon has an element of reality in it. So the Upanishad says that truth is present even in untruth.
excellent, very nicely explained.
Evil and goodness is just the perceptions of individuals and good and bad habits give you somewhat satisfaction that is why we cling to it as good but really it is not good for us in future. but we still are willing to stay … See Morewith that habits even if we are good people .. just like us some bad habits became so strong within us we look evil… like when a person is in anger, he looks bad… but a person in love looks good.
Good and bad is not dependent on God. it is your perception. In Mahabharat, Duryodhan was not willing to perceive and understand the Lord Krishna…why ??? and read Bible, you will see what type behaviour is done with Lord…but Lord is still forging… why so ????
every bad and good has same type of soul, both demands love. Give Love to everybody and see the change in your vicinity .. there is no evil ..
Do not include God in your mind perceptions(Good or Bad). HE is pure love and is with you in form of pure love. if you think you are good and best, then tell me did you see God?? people donate millions of dollers but can not realize God …why ??? but a saint who sacrificed his all things and pleasures ,,, able to realize God with empty hands and mind….
all good and bad is at mind level but God is not there
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absence of god is evil just like there is no entity like darkness but absence of light is darkness…. and both are within us… it only depends on us that what we allow to come out…
i’ve had the opportunity to sit in a discourse of sri sri where this question was raised. the ans was – ……..and only because the evil exist, you have the opportunity to be good, compassionate and feel divine. without ravana, rama would have not become the hero. and none would have even known him. with the disappearance of all the evils, will disappear all the good in no time….
“Good and bad, Right and wrong, Positive and negative, friendship and enmity,love and hate: One can turn into another, They are opposites but like twins,coupled yet distinct. Closely following each other. Transcendental in nature.
A minor change in circumstances and one makes way for the other. Divide it and we will be continuously tortured by the duality. “
Opposite values are “Complementary”…
Yes, Opposites in language, complementary in emotional feel, Same when it comes to the usage of brain and With an interdependent existence.
hi sanjib!I think angels and devils both do exist in the world-one person can be driven both to good work and also towards the evil doings-like destruction,and by hurting the people and the world –
Wow, amazing responses guys, thanks so much…. I would like to throw something into the equation, if good and bad need to exist for balance to occur in this world, or if bad needs to exist for good to be experienced, why is there no bad in heavan and only on earth?
If good can be experienced in the heavans without the existance of evil, then why can’t good be experienced on earth without evil?
Would love to get more of your views…
I guess if we have beautiful thoughts in our mind we feel happy from within then everything around turns to be look like heaven …so this heaven is also in mind only…
so we have to create goodness in ourselves only…then in people around us and then on larger scales society nation and world…and if all are able to remove their evilness of minds so the connected societies wil be indeed wiithout evils…so it is nothing like that we cant experience the goodness on earth…
There is difference between having luxuries and Enjoying them too.Earth is fortunate to have both of these.
For example same piece of bread gives different feelings to different people. Only hungry person on earth will feel blessed to have a bread.A rich person in heaven will only eat it, mechanically to fill the stomach so life may sustain.
Earth is so fortunate that even devatas living in heaven have to take birth here to advance their journey to higher realms. so this explains why a tiny black mole on a white face increases the beauty of the face.
The evils are these moles on the face of earth, which help us struggle and shine, digging deeper into sorrows and coming out with feelings like ‘karuna’ and ‘compassion’.
“
where there is will ,there is wish just like where ever is GOD , there is EVIL & its fact. your soul at a time think & does good thing on the other hand within a fraction of time does bad thing also. am i right??? same is happing in this case. & thats why God’s importance is always remain constant in human mind.TRUST there is GOD , its true….
I agree with everything said, here is another side.
God exists and belief and faith is required that he does so. God can also be called by various names in different cultures.
If we say that god/spirit exists inside everything, then god exists inside us. We are creators just as god, we can create using our minds. We can also hurt using our minds. Every negative thought if it persists and is not cought early enough can cause hurt. So heaven and hell are created by thoughts. No one can say that they have never had bad thoughts but to be concious of them is a requirement or they have pontential to manifest in the physical plane.
Just a thought
OR you may ask..If Evil is existing; how can God exist in this world today?
…God and evil always co-existed…BUT now its high time to churn the mountain again and repeat Sumdramanthan…..so that a balance is gained among GOD and Evil…..
Different people have different meanings to heaven.
For me heavan is where you simply connect with your higher being…its not a location, but a state of consciousness…. I think this concept truly crystalised for me when my dad died 14 months back.. I know he’s in heaven, but also feel him with all the time….
when such concepts become a living reality, spirituality takes on a whole new dimension…it becomes a living art form, as opposed to theoretical knowledge…
Keep increasing the love, and never mind going to heaven, heaven comes to you:)
There has to be evil so that good can prove its purity above it.
~ Buddha
Heaven and hell, the way I see it are our own perceptions. If you look at different cultures, each perceive heaven differently depending on what they crave for and what they lack in, usually materialistically. I guess it is so just so that common man can also understand the concepts. Some cultures define heaven as a place where everything is bright and sunny and with trees overhanging with fruits and flowers(predominantly in cultures which are exposed to harsh elements of nature like the snow and the rain the year around with less or no cultivation possible), while some other cultures perceive heaven as a place where good people get to enjoy wine and good food and all the other earthly pleasures and have servants who wait upon them to satisfy their every whim and fancy. Does the soul which is all that is left behind after our deaths really need flowers or fruits or good food or wine or any other pleasure? What good will all that do to a body which doesn’t have any hands or legs or stomachs to enjoy those pleasures?
So heaven as I see it, can be anywhere you choose it to be. For some, work is heaven. For some, home is heaven. For some being with their family is heaven. For some being away from their family is heaven too!:)
Same for hell too. If you understand your Karma and do it with your wholehearted devotion, that is heaven for you. If your mind is distracted by the slightest speck of doubt or dissatisfaction in your action, then it will be hell in no time.
That is another revelation I have had in the recent times when I started retrospecting my life..
Hola!La Luz y la Oscuridad,pertenecen a una misma Energia,solo que polarizada en sus contrarios,son como las dos caras de la moneda…depende de cada uno de nosotros a cual alimentemos…la misma capacidad que tenemos para un lado,la tenemos para el otro…Saludos!Vir
Ram and Ravan..inside us!!
opposites values are complimentary
I believe that evil exists because of imbalances and distortions in what people see as good, which comes from wounds and creates more of them. In humanity, we have that the primitive wilderness was often harsh. People were not so aware as we were testing reality a lot so we created our own confusions.
Even in things that seem to be only good sometimes is distortion and this creates imbalance and evil. There is a saying: “Evil arises out of the desire to be Good.” This is a paradox tho it is not the only truth on this topic and truths often seem to contradict one another. What we tend to identify as evil, are those crimes that are most blatant and disgusting to us and brutal. But often evil is hiding in unsuspected places and even disguises itself as righteousness.
Then we see moral bigotry and divisions between human beings. Such as husband and wife in alienation, causing hurts and resentment, leading to infidelities because somebody is expected to live to some harsh, unloving “spiritual “”reality.” In the Bible we learn that a man should cling to his wife, and that this creates harmony in society because they have each other. But if the marriage is distorted from this, that is the first adultery and creates more distortions after it.
So if people ar chained to situations they feel they cannot get out of because society does not allow them these freedoms to pursue their hearts desires, society has become inhuman, and inherantly corrupted by evil. IN “People of the Lie: The Problem of Human Evil” M. Scott Peck says cleverly, Evil is Live spelt backwards. Jesus said, I have come so that you may have Life and have it more Fully/Completely. So we struggle to find balance that keeps is afloat in the waters of life.”
God gives us the choices… we pick what suits us… so i guess its all about inability to understand which results in something being considered an evil deed by one whereas the same deed, a divine revelation that is carried out… evil and good all depend on our own perception… if you make peace with yourself… then the evil that is killing innocent people can be seen as simply God’s Will whereas it can also be seen as man’s evil deeds… i dont know if it makes any sense but it helps in dealing with alot that is going on these days… i guess its all about perceptions then…
“Evil arises out of the desire to be Good” ,
It can also rise from “unethical selfishness with ulterior motives”. Here the desire is not for being good, but for achieving an objective [yes, its for the best (good) of an objective, the very nature of the objective might be questionable too]
Thanks Sanjib and everyone involved for a wonderful platform. The whole discussion moves from a macro level, to a micro level. Feels good to be involved.
I think, there is God, and he gave us all the tools,to create our reality. The world of duality, ie good and evil, is something that man has created for himself, because he has lost touch with God. Whoever, lets the power of god flow through him creates something that is good for everyone.
Again good and bad, also depends on the intent of the person. A knife in a the hand of a surgeon is different , from the one in the hands of a murder. So one knife can save a life and the other can take it away.
God created man in his own image, and our job is to keep that image clean, so that the image can finally realise itself
Cheers
It’s a “Marketing thing” <<(process metaphor) Good and Evil have different bosses doing it's marketing, if "we" filter what we see via the media, we are being entrained to see, hear and feel, what other's what us to see, hear and feel, yet if you go out in to the world, you will find 99% of the human race what, and seek kindness, good thing's from the people and the communities around them, it's only a very tiny percentage of the population, that are looking out to harm and hurt others intentionally. As for God, he gave mankind free will, and our will is being manipulated by the media we are feed by.
Interesting question. We’re in a feeling Universe, this means there must be something to feel against, otherwise we don’t know we’re feeling
I believe certain things are there for us to distinguish between what is good and what is bad?
I believe that there is a God and he gave us free will, love and the ability to forgive.
I also beleive that he lets us learn by our own decisions ..and who says what is good or bad ..it is down to perception ..what is “good” can be “bad ” for another ..so how can there be an ultimate right or wrong ..just our own set of beliefs and values
God has given us the power to think, to decide – we have to make a choice between good and bad. Whatever wo do, we have to bear the consequences.