GOOD AND EVIL

Good versus evil is a prominent theme in Western culture. Our myths and popular entertainment are filled with it. Again and again we see two sides struggle for supremacy in some sort of final battle where the good emerges triumphant.

The trouble with applying this concept to life is that we naturally assume we must be the good guys and we must vanquish the other side, which must be evil. In the meantime, the other side is thinking the exact same thing. Thus, both sides gear up for the final, climactic battle. There is no middle ground nor possibility of compromise.

It is time to try something different. Let go of the obsession with conflicts and replace it with a theme that promotes peace and collaboration. Look at life not as a series of good-versus-evil battles, but simply as your travel companions. There is no titanic struggle for supremacy where one side emerges triumphant; there is only mutual assistance among friends…where everyone wins.

The Tao Today

Examine the conflicts you experience or witness in your life. Are they truly necessary? To what extent are they caused by the pervasive tendency to see everything in terms of conflicts? Notice the ones who are most lacking in harmony are also the ones who insist upon their moral certitude and goodness. Can you transcend this limiting mode of thought?

The Tao of Joy Every Day

~ Derek Lin