Transient human wickedness

For the Doctrine of the Spirits evil is man’s creation and its
existence is only temporary, transient, since
it is part of learning

 (Part 1)

"And the passions today are almost the same as yesterday, only more incite, violent and devastating in humans, which continues restless." 
Joanna de Angelis

Evil in men always concerned thinkers of the most diverse fields of knowledge and human action: philosophy, science, art, and religion.

Lisbon abolished moral causes; acquitted God and collective sins and earthquakes began to be seen as natural disasters, something outside divine intention and human responsibility. To explain that evil, as natural process, involving more nature itself, was a way to make the world less menacing.

God is not punitive agent anymore, the cause of problems that return to men as a form of punishment. Evil after Lisbon is reduced to its moral aspect, the one practiced by men, by a resolution of their will.

Within certain predictable patterns human evil no longer seemed to be concerned by philosophers, because evil seemed to have limits ... The Holocaust (extermination of Jews and other victims during the Second World War), however, revived the debate about limits of barbarity, human perversion, launched in the intellectual European atmosphere and in a worldwide wave of pessimism and disbelief.

Despite the disbelief in the Divine Providence, which is accentuated in the post-war, voices were raised to absolve God, for His possible failure in the face of atrocities. (He not is really believed, but when something serious happen, we accuse Him of not appearing, when He in fact, was not even invited to participate in our lives, before the tragedy...) 

We are referring particularly to Hanna Arendt. Jewish philosopher, rooted in the United States, she studied deeply issues of evil and her discussions are in the book “Eichmann in Jerusalem”, which deals with the trial of Nazi executioner, responsible for the deaths of thousands of people.

On the Eichmann case she considers that evil can become banal and spread in the world of men as a fungus, but only on its surface. Roots of evil are not permanently installed in the heart of man and because they cannot penetrate deeply to the point of making it a home, they can be pulled.

Her defence of Divinity is found in a page of a letter from a friend saying that "The world as God created seem to me as a good world''. With God acquitted (even partially) by the creation of evil and its consequences, let’s see the spiritual vision on this issue.

Spiritist vision of evil

For the Doctrine of the Spirits, evil is man’s creation and it is only temporary and transitory because in the major arrangement of life the permanence of evil makes no sense. Evil thus is part of learning, but on the condition of waste, so it must be discarded at some point.

As Kardec points in “Posthumous Works” God did not create evil: the men produced that by abuses made of the gifts of God, because of their free will." This small patch makes up the most beautiful essay that Kardec would leave, not intentionally, for later publication. That is “Selfishness and pride: their causes, effects and ways of destroying them”.

To develop the theme, the Master of Lyon based on the assumption that the instinct of conservation, natural and necessary for the survival of man is the cause of selfishness and pride. This and other instincts have their justification. However, men abuse of this instincts, because of attachment to feelings that matter impress on them.

They live then (and here begins our analysis), their long epic towards maturity, being required to release them from everything that hold to them to infant stage, of immaturity, of attachment to the ego, in which everything should revolve around us.

In the message "The law of love" of Lazarus, found in: “The Gospel according to Spiritism”, the author states that:

In their origin, men have only instincts, when they are more advanced and corrupted; they have only sensations; when educated and purified they have feelings. The delicate point of feeling is love...

Instincts, sensations and feelings will be present in human existence in certain combinations, throughout the evolutionary process, with the preponderance of some on others.

In the early stage of the human journey - on the condition of simple and ignorant - it is possible that instincts are the best guide, as they develop potencies of the soul – intelligence, will - he tends to cling to sensations, as they haven’t developed their feelings in the same proportion yet. Feelings remain as a latent presence and future promise; as the intelligence is carried out more quickly, in absence of feelings such as faith, hope, charity, men tends to attach to the material sensations; finally, combining intelligence (instructed) and the experiences of life (purified), feelings begin to occupy more space of psychological manifestations in men.

We can, therefore, say that instincts and feelings are still living with us today, because, as embodied spirits, immersed in a physical body, we are submitted to laws and attractions of matter, but feelings tend to dominate our the souls, combined with the intelligence, the we have developed in its various forms.

Back to Kardec’s essay which will insist on the debate on selfishness and pride, placing them as the cause of all evils.

However, before we continue and deepen on this issue, there is another concept that we need to analyse, the concept of passion. 

The concept of passion 

The definition of passion found in dictionaries can help us understand, in advance, what the spirits and Kardec want to express when using this term. According to Aurelio’s dictionary passion is a: "Feeling or emotion led to a high degree of intensity, overriding the lucidity and reason; ardent love; Intense inclination emotional and sensual; Very lively enthusiasm for something; Activity, habit or dominator addiction”.

Reading a small piece of initial pages of “The Spirits’ Book” (Introduction to the Study of the Spiritist Doctrine), Kardec expresses in these terms (p. 25): 

The Spirit incarnate is under influence of matter, men who wins this influence, by elevation and purification of soul, get closer to good spirits, in whose company one day they will be.  Whoever permits the bad passions to dominate them and puts all their joys in satisfaction of vulgar appetites, approaches to unclean spirits, giving precedence to their animal nature. (Emphasis added) 

In the same introduction, where deals with the scale of class where we classify spirits in their evolutionary path, the encoder states (p. 24): 

The [spirits] of other classes are increasingly distant of the perfection, being the ones of inferior categories, mostly contaminated by their passions: hatred, envy, jealousy, pride, etc. Indulge it selves in wrong. (Emphasis added) 

We must now highlight the selfishness and pride that make up what Kardec designate as passions. What we can confirm when you read below, in the Introduction (p. 27): 

Teach us that selfishness, pride and sensuality are passions that take us to an animal nature, tying us to the matter; that men who disconnected of the matter in this world, despising worldly vanities and loving the neighbour, is approaching the spiritual nature. (Emphasis added)

In the chapter that he deals with the spiritual scale, Kardec when locating the imperfect spirits in the third order traces their general characteristics (p. 89): "Predominance of matter on the Spirit. Propensity towards evil. Ignorance, pride, selfishness and all the passions that are their consequence. "(Emphasis added).

We will need now to jump in and find the third part of “Spirits’ Book” (Moral Laws), Chapter XII, “From moral perfection”, in the item specifically called “passions”. Covering six questions (907 to 912), Kardec did a brief yet deep study on this subject, in the dialogue with superior spirits who cooperate with the Spiritist Codification.

In summary this is what we learnt:

§                     The passions are constituents, part of what we call the human nature. Its principle is not originally bad, because "the principle which it origins was insert in men for the good." Our additions, the human will, the excesses, as the "abuse of them is that is causing the evil." (Issue 907)

Boundary between good and evil

As already commented by Kardec in previous lines, certain passions "takes us to an animal nature”, however, by turning off from matter and its attractions through the action of love neighbour, they can approach "already in this world" their spiritual nature. (Emphasis added)

We can infer therefore that the passions, this "very lively enthusiasm for something" or the "feeling or emotion led to a high degree of intensity" in the definition of Aurelio’s dictionary passed in the spiritist view of animal nature to spiritual nature. From instinct of preservation which impels us to seek everything for ourselves, in our desire to preserve our life at any cost, at expense of others lives (when close to the animal nature, in the beginnings of human experience) then we pass to another extreme, which is the abnegation, that also in the definition of Aurelio’s dictionary means "give up something, sacrifice yourself, crucify yourself, to benefit of God, your neighbour, and yourself." Not for nothing, even the sacrifice of Jesus, especially in Catholic tradition (death on the cross) is called Passion (of Aurelio’s dictionary indicates use of capital letter to designate it).

•                 Government of passion is what determines the limit where is situate the line between good and evil. Passion becomes a danger when we lose control over it and we cause harm to others or to ourselves. As a lever that can decuple our strengths, if is badly driven and directed it can turn against us and crush us. (Issue 908)

In response of the spirits to Kardec it is also said that passions are similar to a steed, a fast horse, "which is useful only when is commanded and it is dangerous when it takes the command." Popular wisdom teaches us that vanity, or selfishness or pride does not cause evil if in appropriate doses. Phrases like "a little vanity is good for the person" and other similar to that (when said with sincerity) correspond exactly to what spirits in other words refer to the control of passions.

It also said that passions, in addition to enlarge human forces, they "assist in implementing designs of Providence."

Passion, as defines Aurelio’s dictionary, is also a “very lively enthusiasm” and the word enthusiasm is "exaltation or extraordinary rapture of those who were under divine inspiration”, also meaning “passionate dedication, ardent”. Therefore men become excited, in the highest sense of the term, they can help in tasks that the Divine Providence design to them and which men is a tool.

§                     The principle of passions is based on a "feeling" or a "natural need", therefore, passions can not be conceived as an evil in itself, because they are "one of the providential conditions of our existence", excess in use of this tool is that cause evil; passions approach them to animal nature take them away from spiritual nature, that will be, on the other hand, “ predominance of spirit on the matter" when men use passions to serve as an instrument of good feelings, which will lead them more quickly to perfection that we all must achieve. (Issue 908) 

§                     Efforts, attempts to reach a goal, can lead men to "win their bad inclinations." But men do not usually work on that matter, which would, in fact, require "very little efforts." (Issue 909)

Importance of will 

Kardec and the spirits relate in this issue the misuse of passions and bad inclinations, tendencies, making them synonymous. The spirits then said that the government, the domain that can be done on passions, does not require, usually, great effort, but dedication and persistence. 

§                     Men can count on the Good Spirits, whose mission is to help them, if they want to win their bad passions or inclinations. (Issue 910) 

There is an entry in the doorway in Delphi, Greece, saying that "invoked or not He will always be present"; the divinity or God is always present in our lives, even if we do not ask ... The same occurs with good spirits, that always assist and help us. In spite of our rebellion, and sometimes, our diving in the wrong decision, they patiently wait for an opportunity to lift us up, putting us in a position to resume the journey toward the Good. If invoked (and invoke is to request assistance or intercession for someone) or if evoked (evoke is to call, claiming the presence of someone) the spiritual friend will be helping us to overcome our bad passions or bad tendencies and inclinations. 

§                     The will can always triumph over bad passions, dominating them. Men, however, that are pleased with evil, which give them pleasure, by affinity with anything that approximates them from their transient but stubborn animal nature, they are those "whose will is only on theirs lips." Those who understand their "spiritual nature" fight to punish and repress theirs own bad tendencies. "To win bad tendencies is, for them, a victory of spirit over matter." (Issue 911) 

It's easier and more convenient to fool and to delude ourselves, than to face the fights without quarter that we have to hold for the victory on ourselves, against evil existing within ourselves. The iron lever of will, that can help us to remove all obstacles of the way, needs to be invented every day, recharged by prayer and vigilance.

It is necessary, therefore, to be vigilant and in communion with the High, so we do not to become soft as it is common that we permitted us to be dragged by the siren songs of sloth, of accommodation and of pleasures that this implies or leads. 

§                                 Finally, the antidote recommended by spirits in the combat that we must fight to overcome the "predominance of corporeal nature" is the practice of abnegation. (Issue 912) 

The very definition of abnegation indicates what we must do: “give up something, sacrifice yourself, crucify yourself, to benefit of God, your neighbour, and yourself." The verbs that are used to define abnegation suggest two types of attitude: the active and passive. 

Root of all evil 

To give something up is apparently a passive attitude, leaving, abandoning and deleting yourself or even escaping from any situation. However, no one can renounce the things of the world in favour of something or someone without mobilize forces of thought and heart, with "ardent dedication, zeal" typical of those who mobilizes enthusiasm in what they are committed. The abnegation is, finally, a feeling of resignation, of sacrifice, of annulations of the ego for the experience of active love to your neighbour.

Well, after having examined the questions 907 to 912, on the passions, we must state that the questions that follow deal with the selfishness. From the question 913 to 917 Kardec and the spirits talk about this "running sore of the society."  Bad passions or inclinations Kardec will be designated now as vices as seen in question 913: "Among the vices, which it is considered radical?"

The answer is of course the selfishness, which is in the root of all evil (hence the adjective radical used in the question). And the spirits continue: "The more they fight it they can not eradicate it, while they do not attack evil by the root, while you have not destroyed the cause. Tend, therefore, all efforts to that effect... "(Our emphasis)

And in the end of the response of the spirits are clear: 

Whoever wants to get closer to the moral perfection from this life must cross off every feeling of selfishness from their heart, because egoism is incompatible with justice, love and charity. It neutralizes all other qualities. 

The idea that selfishness and pride can be located as the cause of all human evil can cause malaise for many who offer to examine these issues. The spirits and Kardec, so simple and consistent, are very happy to locate in the last cause field, the role of passions or feelings of selfishness, of pride and other similar ones. Anything else would be in the field of effects. (Which may become cause of other effects)? The socio-economic misery, for example, may have its origin in the extreme concentration of income in a given country or region. In the spiritist vision, without overlook the sociological, economic or any other analysis, the cause of this phenomenon is in selfishness and pride of men, ultimately. The extreme concentration of income, alleged as cause, in fact, would be an effect of the primary cause, which are bad passions. (Read the conclusion of this article in next issue of this magazine.)