Express/exemplify

Visions/viewpoints

Illuminating/illustrating

Love

Evil is the opposite of live.  Literally. For evil is the word live spelled backwards. Sound like a Japanese koan? One meant for contemplation for decades in solitude among revered monks with little prospect of an outcome with regard to a definitive answer? Perhaps.

Evil exists.  There is no doubt about that. One needs only to look at Hitler’s atrocities or the current unrest in the Middle East or the plight of the children of Darfur to see that.

The news is rampant with images depicting horrific acts that mankind inflicts upon mankind. We are bombarded with the reminder that evil is present in this world. At times it seems there is more evidence of evil and hatred and cruelty in the world than there is of kindness, compassion, grace and love.

It is mind-boggling, not to mention depressing.

Which as is if a childhood game of tag, returns us to the original question—if evil is the opposite of live then how can we fully live when evil is so prevalent ? And more importantly why does it continue to exist if God is all-knowing and all-loving and we are created in that reflection?

These are questions that I’ve personally pondered for decades.

For me, evil is the opposite of live because if you live within the spirit and the recognition that all things are created by and of and for the purpose of love, light and God (whatever that may mean to you) in such a way that you live to your fullest potential with the intention of making this world a better place for yourself, for your loved ones, for your children, for all the children……if you truly live by this code, then it would be impossible for you to inflict harm let alone acts of evil upon another.

Evil is not born into this world. It is created within this world.

So it is up to us to stop its proliferation.  While unrealistic to think we can eliminate all evil from the world, we can prevent it from dwelling within our individual hearts and actions that we impart into this world, unto others.  And if we could all do that then evil would diminish for it would no longer hold value as a human commodity.