Book Title: World of Philosophy
Author(s): Christopher Key Chapple, Intaj Malek, Dilip Charan, Sunanda Shastri, Prashant Dave
Publisher: Shanti Prakashan
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GOD vs. EVIL: THE HUMAN DILEMMA
- Prof. P.Seshadri "What, if life be full of scare,
With time only to stand and stare." I am unable to recall when I read these lines some time while schooling; I do not even know if I have reproduced these correctly. One thing that stands out in everyone's daily life is the fact that the word 'scare' is as much part of it as 'care'. People who are cared for and loved sense a feeling of belongingness, a sense of feeling wanted and find life worthy of living despite its ups and downs.. Those who lack or are devoid of love and care feel unwanted, frustrated and find life unworthy. Either way no one wants to get rid of life, if one could; and the race begins to carry forward in life by whatever means human ingenuity invents and allows. One problem that every one faces is the fact of suffering and pain - it is only in degree and kind that it varies from one individual to another.
'Pain', 'suffering', 'anxiety', 'worry', 'restlessness', 'monotonous', 'fear' are all synonymous with something that one would like to avoid if one had it within him. All these can be subsumed under the term 'evil'. 'Good' is what is appropriate and desirable; 'bad' is something inappropriate and undesirable. 'Evil' has more serious overtones and undercurrents than 'bad'. It is something that is repugnant to human existence, much beyond the physical, social, moral and cultural planes. Not only human, it is repugnant to all things 'alive'. And man being endowed with the capacity to reason and the ability to think, has to necessarily deal with evil. Animals (conscious) can deal with it at their instinctive level purely with the aim of survival; plants (semi-conscious or non-conscious) make their adjustments depending on their cellular potential; and it is only man (self-conscious) who can deal with it rationally and with circumspection.
We may define evil as any kind of suffering, some thing unpleasant and painful in a man's life, something he would like to avoid or escape from, if he had the option. We always desire to possess and enjoy what is pleasant and sweet, and avoid what is bitter or sour. (Some people do enjoy what is 'hot', bitter or sour! They are rare exceptions). It is a matter of personal experience, with, without or despite one's choice. It is very rare that we see a person who has never seen any pain in his life. Happiness and sadness, pleasure and pain go hand-in-hand, like an object and its shadow. What is predominant depends on the situation and circumstances at the material time. The only people who seem to have no evil in their life are the true saints, mystics and hermits whose 'other-worldliness' makes them either immune or indifferent to evil. One thing is for sure - even if we do not personally encounter any pain in our life, there is definitely a feeling of dejection or
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