Ahimsa

"An it harm none, do as ye will."- Ancient Wiccan rede.

It is the question plaguing Mankind for centuries.

What is evil?

There are those who would give it face and name: coal-red eyes, hooves and horns, demonic laughter and wanton cruelty. All the old icons, all the old names, all the ancient formulas, from Moloch to Asmodai, Lucifer to Baal, the elder archetypes that plague our dreams.

Psychopathy given shape, Sociopathy given form, personified just enough to resemble humanity, but not quite enough for a good look in a mirror.

All the while, not realizing that the evil lay in each of us, the birthright of evolution, that feral selfishness that defies and denies the altruism that flows in our veins as well.

True evil lies within each of us. The power to do true harm to anything that lives, directly or indirectly. There are larger and smaller evils, to be sure: the careless cruelty, the minor selfish act which may or may not alter the course of someone’s entire life, the misspoken jest, the haphazard word, the slandering gossip or the misread cue. These vary on the measure of impact. In both word and deed.

It is harm inferred and harm incurred. Motive and method, modus operandi and malice aforethought, these are the ingredients for the recipe of malignancy.

It is nigh well impossible to sail through life without doing harm, or being subjected to it. There are philosophies that entail doing absolutely no harm to any living creature (how do they eat? Do they even walk down the street, without destroying some infinitesimal insectile life? Mysteries to ponder).

Life and death. Pain and pleasure. These extremes define us, as mammals, as individuals, as a collective herd.

I have taken enough of your time. I leave you with these words:

Ahimsa – do no harm.

There is no greater morality than this.