Despite some cultural differences, good and evil is one of the underlying concepts of human reasoning since the beginning of civilization.
Our laws, social norms, education, upbringing, fairy tales, movies, etc. too often tend to make us unconsciously believe that good is strictly separated from evil.
However, good and evil are just two opposite ends on a continuous axis, with none of us really being on its absolute ends, nor even near them.
There are countless examples of evil sparkling even in the most esteemed people.
For example, when someone slips and falls, the vast majority of the people around him tend to laugh. The difference is that some people will smile happily even if the unlucky one gets seriously injured in the process, while some people will laugh only after making sure that the clumsy person is left unharmed.
Sex is another great example for this. Regardless if we do or don’t realize this, we all like both tenderness and aggression in sex up to a certain point. This is true because sex preferences, like good and evil, are not black and white – they are also found somewhere on continuous lines. That said, some people prefer to make love in a very emotional and tender way, while some prefer to cause significant pain to their partner.
Also, we all have prejudices up to some point. Some of us openly hate certain races, nations, religions, etc. Other, more liberal and tolerant people, claim that they have no prejudices and feel no hate - not realizing that they actually do, at least a little bit, hate conservative groups, unintelligent people, and pedophiles, for example.
The more our society develops, the more and more laws and social norms are being established. The more of these rules are rooted in us, the less free we are to express ourselves. As more and more needs and feelings are being stuck inside us instead of being released, we are falling into social anxiety, depression, anger, and deviant behavior.
There is at least some darkness in all of us, and, admit it or not, we all enjoy seeing other people suffering or getting humiliated up to a certain point. It is that certain point that really defines are we 80% good and 20% evil, or 60% evil and 40% good, for example.
To be complete, we must live through all our emotions without judgment, question reality in the shadow-lands, accept our dark side, love our selves without limits, and then we can go through the metamorphosis like a caterpillar and become our best versions. If we suppress our dark side it will work against us instead for us, and we will not be able to let go of it, forgive ourselves, and move forward.
Please let me know:
- Can you give me a personal example when you felt evil satisfaction or evil needs?
- If that’s too much to ask, another common example of little evil outbreaks will have to do.
Have a wonderful day, week, and life!
Disclaimer: I don't own any rights to the images used in this article. I just found them online and wanted to share them with you.