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Evil
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{{Short description|Opposite or absence of good}} {{other uses}} {{pp|small=yes}} [[File:Demon. A miniature from the Georgian manuscript of the 12th century.jpg|thumb|In many [[Abrahamic religions]], [[Demon|demons]] are considered to be evil beings and are contrasted with [[Angel|angels]], who are their good contemporaries.|354x354px]] '''Evil''', by one definition, is being bad and acting out [[morally]] incorrect behavior; or it is the condition of causing unnecessary [[Suffering|pain and suffering]], thus containing a net negative on [[the world]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=What does Evil mean? |url=https://www.definitions.net/definition/Evil |access-date=2023-12-28 |website=www.definitions.net}}</ref> Evil is commonly seen as the opposite, or sometimes [[Absence of good|absence]], of [[good]]. It can be an extremely broad concept, although in everyday usage it is often more narrowly used to talk about profound [[wickedness]] and against [[common good]]. It is generally seen as taking multiple possible forms, such as the form of personal [[moral evil]] commonly associated with the word, or impersonal [[natural evil]] (as in the case of natural disasters or illnesses), and in [[Religion|religious thought]], the form of the [[Demon|demonic]] or [[supernatural]]/eternal.<ref name="David Ray Griffin 2004">{{cite book|first=David Ray|last=Griffin|title=God, Power, and Evil: a Process Theodicy|publisher=Westminster|orig-year=1976|year=2004|isbn=978-0-664-22906-1|page=31}}</ref> While some religions, [[Worldview|world views]], and philosophies focus on "good versus evil", others deny evil's existence and usefulness in describing people. Evil can denote profound [[immorality]],<ref name="Oxford Dictionary Definition">{{Cite web|publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2012 |title=Evil |url=http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/evil|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120712193606/http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/evil|url-status=dead|archive-date=July 12, 2012}}</ref> but typically not without some basis in the understanding of the [[human condition]], where [[wikt:strife|strife]] and [[suffering]] ([[cf.]] [[Hinduism]]) are the true roots of evil. In certain religious contexts, evil has been described as a supernatural force.<ref name="Oxford Dictionary Definition"/> Definitions of evil vary, as does the analysis of its motives.<ref>Ervin Staub. ''Overcoming evil: genocide, violent conflict, and terrorism''. New York: Oxford University Press, p. 32.</ref> Elements that are commonly associated with personal forms of evil involve [[Balance (metaphysics)|unbalanced]] behavior, including [[anger]], [[revenge]], [[hatred]], [[psychological trauma]], [[wikt:expediency|expediency]], [[selfishness]], [[ignorance]], [[wikt:Destruction|destruction]], and [[neglect]].<ref>{{cite book|last1=Matthews|first1=Caitlin|url=https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/88706.Walkers_Between_the_Worlds|title=Walkers Between the Worlds: The Western Mysteries from Shaman to Magus|last2=Matthews|first2=John|date=2004|publisher=[[Simon & Schuster]]|location=New York City|page=173|asin=B00770DJ3G|archive-url=https://archive.today/20210917193241/https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/88706.Walkers_Between_the_Worlds|archive-date=2021-09-17|url-status=live|access-date=2021-09-17}}</ref> In some forms of thought, evil is also sometimes perceived in absolute terms as the [[Dualistic cosmology|dualistic]] antagonistic [[Binary opposition|binary opposite]] to good,<ref name="PA131 pp.136-7">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kf9err5bmr4C&q=history+yehud+2008&pg=PA131|first=Izaak J.|last=de Hulster|title=Iconographic Exegesis and Third Isaiah|publisher=[[Mohr Siebeck Verlag]]|location=Heidelberg, Germany|isbn=978-3-16-150029-9|pages=136β37|year=2009}}</ref> in which good should prevail and evil should be defeated.<ref name="Paul O. Ingram 1986. P. 148-149">{{cite book|first1=Paul O.|last1=Ingram|author2-link=Frederick Streng|first2=Frederick John|last2=Streng|title=Buddhist-Christian Dialogue: Mutual Renewal and Transformation|publisher=[[University of Hawaii Press]]|location=Honolulu|date=1986|isbn=978-1-55635-381-9|pages=148β49}}</ref> In cultures with [[Buddhism|Buddhist]] spiritual influence, both [[good and evil]] are perceived as part of an antagonistic duality that itself must be overcome through achieving ''[[Nirvana]]''.<ref name="Paul O. Ingram 1986. P. 148-149" /> The [[ethics|ethical]] questions regarding good and evil are subsumed into three major areas of study:<ref name="iep.utm.edu">''Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy'' {{cite web| url = http://www.iep.utm.edu/ethics/| title = "Ethics"}}</ref> [[meta-ethics]], concerning the nature of good and evil; [[normative ethics]], concerning how we ought to behave; and [[applied ethics]], concerning particular moral issues. While the term is applied to events and conditions without [[Agency (philosophy)|agency]], the forms of evil addressed in this article presume one or more '''evildoers'''.
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