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1. #1 RedHeron
   2010-02-0521:59:26 There is a piece of wisdom from the old TV show "Kung Fu" that I rather liked. Master Po said:
   
   "What is evil but the self, seeking to fulfill its own secret needs? All that is necessary is that we face [evil within ourselves], and choose."
   
   And another by Master Po:
   
   "Evil cannot be conquered in the world; it can only be resisted in one?s self."
   
   The acts are not what is evil; rather, it is the intent behind it which is evil. In the example above, the father who steals to feed his family because he sees no other choice has stolen. There is nothing which can undo the action. But would it not be better if he had friends and neighbors who would help him before he reached such a level of desperation?
   
   The intent of the public not to trust one another is a sure sign of social illness… and that is the real evil: the inability to feel empowered to ask for a little help when it is needed.
   
   Not everyone has options, especially in areas where assistance is strained. By creating the opportunity to produce something in exchange for receiving seems to me the best way… and it doesn't need to be a lot, just productive at the individual's level of ability.
   
   In this way, all needs are met, and evil becomes lessened.
   
   But evil is also necessary for balance. The right to dissent is considered evil by some, but is fundamental to the processes of democracy. In the 1950's, a gay couple could be thrown in prison for up to 5 years for sodomy. The awareness of homosexuality being something beyond one's choice has helped to shape public opinion to the point that this is no longer the case. If the right to dissent and break the law (and suffer the consequences of doing so) is not upheld, then bad laws cannot be changed.
   
   Evil is therefore something that we each determine for ourselves, and is not something which rules or judgment can determine. It is an internal condition, not an external event.
   
   Just my own perspective.
2. #2 stevef
   2010-02-0605:20:03 Evil is just a word. it's a strange word; one what inspires fear. Fear is what people use to control weak minded individuals. I've been called evil often in my life. For not being involved with the major religion in my state, for being a Jedi, for enjoying horror films, and many other occasions. Evil is a label put on things by people who are against someone using that grey squishy thing in your skull.
   Evil is mass ignorance created by those serving themself like you said. So the true "evil" is fear, agression, anger anything that serves your own greed.
   We are all connected in a number of ways in the force I think. We are all symbiotic on this planet, what you do or say has an affect on everything in more ways that anyone can calculate. And belive me "Chaos theory" tries to calculate it. another of many connections is the force. The energy that exists in life. Science has proven we all have bio energy. I have an EMF meter that can verify that. That being said we are beings of energy- Science doesn't know if or I like to belive how your energy affects those around you.
   look at it this way- this christmas one angry guy tried to blow up a plane- his chaotic energy and his nutty plan shook the world for a minute. So was it his nutty energy or was it more his nutty plan that shook us?
   The world was saddened by Hati. By all rights most of us never knew anyone in or from Hati. So most people would likely say "Who cares? It's not my deal" but the collective emotion from that tragedy hit us all. Even if we had no direct or indirect relation to hati we felt it, even the non-Jedi felt the "disturbance in the force" (for lack of a better term).
   I think the Wiccan's phrase it the most simply- "do what ye will, but harm none". and with the aforementioned connections to everyone and everything that simple rule is much more complicated. You've got to figure how your actions figure into the world.
   My two cents…
3. #3 jarin
   2010-02-0607:50:36 thank you both for your replies to my first blog.This is exactly the kind of ponderings I had considered during my contemplation although it is aweome to hear others perspectives and insights such as Red heron's examples from the old tv show "Kung Fu" which I had not even considered during this time that seems to fit perfectly with the results I came up with. And stevef,your response about evil being a word that inspires fear and your comments about how you had been considered evil for not following the religion or"social norm" leads into my next blog pefectly in which I will discuss a wide variety of topics such as anger and how it lead me for a time to walk in what I can only term the Dark Side of the Force and what affect it had on me.
4. #4 RyuJin
   2010-02-0821:38:27 evil is also a bean burrito before bedtime
   
   good and evil are all a matter of individual point of views…the holy rollers would call any who don't share their views as evil without even taking the time to learn anything about what they are condemning…i had wiccan friends in school that were called evil by holy rollers…yet if they had taken the time to get to know them they would have seen that wiccans are not evil(usually)…in my view a true example of evil would be people like dahmer, or manson…