A reader shares a different perspective on good and bad, which I am not sure I understood completely, but it seemed to have a ring of truth to it:
I stumbled upon this insightful article that categorizes different types of morality while challenging popular notions of what is good and evil. I think this is a good read for anyone struggling with the concept of morality; sociopaths and empaths alike.
However, there are passages that really stuck out to me in terms of identifying with sociopaths. When talking about "highly intelligent" people who fail to feel compassion or sympathy for their "victims":
If this were true, is it possible for a naturally "unwise" person to gain the wisdom needed to halt the persistent need for these "fleeting feelings"? Is it possible for them to achieve true self-fulfillment?
This basically sums it up:
I stumbled upon this insightful article that categorizes different types of morality while challenging popular notions of what is good and evil. I think this is a good read for anyone struggling with the concept of morality; sociopaths and empaths alike.
However, there are passages that really stuck out to me in terms of identifying with sociopaths. When talking about "highly intelligent" people who fail to feel compassion or sympathy for their "victims":
So, why do people suffer, and why do people feel pain at the hands of these people if there is no "evil" in the world?
The answer? Because these "evil" people lack sensitivity of soul. They lack wisdom.
Intelligence and knowledge are tools that help us process and play with the ideas of the fragmented reality that our minds create. Wisdom on the other hand is the sensor that experiences a direct connection to it, it is the sentient perceiver of our existence, the pathway straight to the heart.
These misguided and unwise people are incapable of cultivating peace and harmony in their lives, so instead they act on whatever provides a fleeting sense of fulfillment: money, power, gratification. To them these feelings are "good"; they provide security and a false sense of fulfillment, and so they are willing to do anything to anyone to continue feeling these things.
If this were true, is it possible for a naturally "unwise" person to gain the wisdom needed to halt the persistent need for these "fleeting feelings"? Is it possible for them to achieve true self-fulfillment?
This basically sums it up:
"Good" could be said to be conscious, loving and wise behavior while "Evil" could be considered egotistical, fearful and unconscious behavior. These words work as metaphors for personal growth, as measurements for the quality of life you're attracting. For example, anything which helps you 'awaken' to this wisdom, to experience yourself, to become more authentic and experience something higher than yourself is "good", while anything that hinders this is "evil".
The wiser people will realize that "evil" behavior will attract many problems into their lives - such things as enemies, low self-esteem, paranoia, addictions, attachments, persistent dissatisfaction and suffering, world-weariness and cynicism to name a few.
Essentially, those people who do "good" in life aren't perfectly saintly beings, but are people who realize, if only intuitively, that doing good benefits them, that being compassionate results in less suffering for themselves and produces a deeper sense of fulfillment and connection to others.I'm very interested to hear what you have to say about this particular viewpoint, and what you believe to be true or false. Thanks