We humans love a good struggle. Titanic clashes between the dark villains of evil and the benevolent heroes of good are found in almost every aspect of the human experience. In nearly every major religion, the struggle between good and evil occupies a central place. If person is aligned with the good side, he or she will enjoy happiness, bliss, and peace. If, however, a person is on the bad side, he/she can expect things like pain, torment, and agony. It is certainly a very stark choice but, interestingly enough, one that is not at all prominent in the Buddha's teachings. The Buddha taught a rather different way of looking at the relationship between the negatives and positives in our lives. In contrast to the ubiquitous good versus evil motif, we are instead given the ideas kusala and akusala. In this thread, we'll focus on the word kusala.
According to the The Pali Text Society's Pali-English Dictionary (p. 223), kusala is defined as "skillful, cleaver, expert, and meritorious especially in a moral sense". The Sanskrit equivalent is kuśala and has the same meaning(s). Kusala can also be understood in terms of its opposite, akusala, meaning wrong, bad, improper, demerit, etc.
According to the Buddha, there are no divine laws laid down by a creator deity to be followed (Gooood!) or violated (eeEEEvuul!!). Instead, there is the idea of natural laws (one definition of the word 'dharma'). We can think of dharma in this context as meaning "Law of Nature" much like the laws of gravity or thermodynamics. How much sense would it make to call gravity "evil" or "good"? Gravity is simply part of the way the universe operates. It is not a conscious entity forcing apples to fall on our heads; it is only a description of one of the universe's many laws.
When we begin to seriously engage in spiritual practice, our minds become clearer and we become more aware of both our inner and outer worlds. With this increased awareness, we can more carefully observe how and why things work in the context of natural/spiritual laws (like karma for example). To use this knowledge in ways that are beneficial to ourselves and those around us is the essential idea behind kusala. If we perform deeds that bring harm to ourselves and those around us, this is considered akusala.
Thinking in terms of "good" vs. "evil" is not useful because, from the Buddha's perspective, no being is truly evil in the sense we normally use the word. Granted, there are people who have done, are doing, and will be do truly horrific things. We can and do label things like genocide and slavery as evil but a more accurate description would be unskillful, or akusula. Many might immediately object to describing something like slavery as simply "unskillful" but we also have to keep in mind that some actions are MUCH MORE unskillful than others. The consequences of murder for example, cannot compare to the consequences of spilling milk on a table.
Another reason the Buddha taught in terms of kusala/akusula is that when we get caught up in dividing the world into "good guys" and "bad guys", we generate tremendous negative qualities like hatred, aversion, and combativeness. As mentioned above, no being is fundamentally evil. In fact, the Buddhadharma teaches us that all beings possess Buddha Nature; the potential to awaken the perfected qualities of wisdom and compassion and blossom into a fully enlightened Buddha. Beings harm themselves and others because they are deluded and misguided, NOT because they are "bad seeds". In his classic treatise, "The Way of the Bodhisattva", the great master Shantideva expresses this idea, saying:
According to the Buddha, there are no divine laws laid down by a creator deity to be followed (Gooood!) or violated (eeEEEvuul!!). Instead, there is the idea of natural laws (one definition of the word 'dharma'). We can think of dharma in this context as meaning "Law of Nature" much like the laws of gravity or thermodynamics. How much sense would it make to call gravity "evil" or "good"? Gravity is simply part of the way the universe operates. It is not a conscious entity forcing apples to fall on our heads; it is only a description of one of the universe's many laws.
When we begin to seriously engage in spiritual practice, our minds become clearer and we become more aware of both our inner and outer worlds. With this increased awareness, we can more carefully observe how and why things work in the context of natural/spiritual laws (like karma for example). To use this knowledge in ways that are beneficial to ourselves and those around us is the essential idea behind kusala. If we perform deeds that bring harm to ourselves and those around us, this is considered akusala.
Thinking in terms of "good" vs. "evil" is not useful because, from the Buddha's perspective, no being is truly evil in the sense we normally use the word. Granted, there are people who have done, are doing, and will be do truly horrific things. We can and do label things like genocide and slavery as evil but a more accurate description would be unskillful, or akusula. Many might immediately object to describing something like slavery as simply "unskillful" but we also have to keep in mind that some actions are MUCH MORE unskillful than others. The consequences of murder for example, cannot compare to the consequences of spilling milk on a table.
Another reason the Buddha taught in terms of kusala/akusula is that when we get caught up in dividing the world into "good guys" and "bad guys", we generate tremendous negative qualities like hatred, aversion, and combativeness. As mentioned above, no being is fundamentally evil. In fact, the Buddhadharma teaches us that all beings possess Buddha Nature; the potential to awaken the perfected qualities of wisdom and compassion and blossom into a fully enlightened Buddha. Beings harm themselves and others because they are deluded and misguided, NOT because they are "bad seeds". In his classic treatise, "The Way of the Bodhisattva", the great master Shantideva expresses this idea, saying:
Although it is their sticks that hurt me,Finally, the idea of kusala is also a reminder of the preciousness of human life. To be reborn as human is a considered very auspicious because as humans, we are capable of making great spiritual progress. Buddhas are perfectly awakened HUMAN BEINGS. To be fortunate enough
I am angry at the ones who wield them, striking me.
But they in turn are driven by hatred;
Therefore it is with their hatred I should take offence.
Ch. 6, v. 41 (trans. by Padmakara Translation Group)
to be born as a human means we engaged in many meritorious (kusala!) actions in previous lives. As humans, we are blessed with an opportunity to practice the Buddha's teachings and cultivate the qualities of the heart that can lead ourselves and those around us to liberation. A famous passage from The Dhammapada reminds us of this:
Just as from a heap of flowers,
Many garlands can be made,
So, you, with your mortal life,
Should do many skillful things.
Dhp Ch. 4, v. 53 (trans by. Gil Fronsdal)
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