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Why bad things happen to good people.Jan 19 '08 Write an essay on this topic.
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The Bottom Line Free will and suffering and death all go hand in hand.
Again I've been reading books on Buddihsm as to why there is suffering in the world. The Buddhists believe that we suffer because of Karma. We suffer do to past mis-deeds in previous incarnations. While I admit that I believe in the POSSIBILTY or reincarnation I think that the asiatic philosophies concerning Karma is a bit to simplistsic for me. I mean what are you supposed to tell someone who is dying of terminal cancer?; "Gee, I'm like really sorry that you are dying and I know that you lead a very spiritual and moral life, but the reason that you are suffering is because you may have been a cruel dictator in a previouis life."What!? Come on! Get out of here! How is that supposed to comfort some one who is suffering? I think that it really can't. It just sounds a bit TOO simplistic for me. I'm just not sure if the universe works in such a simplistic fashion. But I have a better argument fore suffering. In the Judeo/Christian bible Adam and Eve ate of the tree of knowledge and with that knowledge came the perception of suffering. What a beautiful metaphor! They CHOSE to eat of the tree. They chose of their own free will and then they suffered. I think that this is the meaning of why we suffer. I think that free-will and suffering go hand and hand. I mean think of all of the good times that you've had. You felt good while experiencing those times. Right? In other words when we feel good it feels like we CHOOSE to feel good. So on the other side of the equation when we feel bad it's as if we can control that feeeling but we choose to do nothing about it. I guess that's what most Asian philosophies cover; if we get rid of desire, if we get rid of ther desire to DESIRE, then likewise good and bad thoughts, or good and bad KARMA will fall by the waistside. So in other words bad times and bad feelings are nothing more then a choice and I agree with this whole-heartedly. It is a CONSEQUENCE for us feeling good. So suffering has to be. Let me iterate; SUFFERING HAS TO BE. So I think that if you are suffering think of all the good times you've had. You didn't complain when you were feeling good. Did you? Now I'm not saying that we should simply "grin and bear it" as it were. We should complain. That is our inaliable right. Bur we should simply put things in perspective. So when we are suffering we should think "I feel like crap. I want this suffering to end. But in the scheme of things it's worth it. If I didn't feel pain then I wouldn't feel pleasure and I would simply be a brainless, emotionless automoton." So, in my opinion, it's ALL worth it. Pleasure and pain go hand and hand. You can't have one without the other. It's part and parcel of free will. So the next time you are suffering, at least if only for a split second, think that it's worth it. I would also like to add that because the universe is the way that it is, and by that I mean that it is more CHAOTIC then PREDETERMINED, then likewise we have evolved in a similar fashion. I mean think about it. At any moment an astroid could wipe out this planet, or we could get bitten by a poisonous shark, our we could get in a fatal car accident. So, you see? It's hard for me to explain but because s34t happens, and becuase the universe is the way that it is, and because we CHOSE to take whatever actions that led us up to this horrible demise, and simply because we have free will and we SHOULD have lead our lives acorrding to choice, and death and suffering go hand and hand, and by simply being alive we are doomed to die, then I think that you will have to agree that it is all worth. Suffering, and death, and free-will all go hand in hand. Let me know what you think of this post. Yours Truly, SteveHW  |
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