A Quiet Watercourse

I was thinking about my post on The Dark Side of the Tao the other day. I’d had a conversation recently about the way that a lot of racial minorities are quick enough to claim racism, but also quick enough to perpetrate it against others.

I think that this, among other things, comes down to the inability of our dualistic worldview to deal with the darkness in our nature. This darkness is there is each of us, it can be denied but never destroyed. In dualistic religion and the philosophy, we are supposed to repress our darker impulses and refuse to acknowledge them. I think that the whole belief in a war between good and evil, a “God” and a “Devil” is a huge metaphor for that.

As I’ve opined previously, this repression means that when balance is restored the pressure has built up and the darkness is expressed ferociously. To repress and deny a huge part of our nature is an irresponsible mistake. Once you’re aware of that, it’s easier to see how dangerous this mentality is these days, how much damage and pain it’s causing. Once you know where the darkness comes from, and you’re aware of it, you can redirect it’s energy to assist you in avoiding that sort of behaviour.

For example, religious or racial discrimination. This stems from our tribal past, when to belong to a tribe meant conformity with a set of rituals, beliefs and behaviours. People of other tribes were competitors and were to be distrusted, the tribes became larger and eventually nations replaced tribes, but that mentality remains. Once you’re aware of it, you can redirect it’s energy in an almost Tai Chi like way, thus using it to reinforce a more positive, non-discriminatory mode of behaviour.

It’s worth a try, we need everyone no matter race or creed to work for a more tolerant society. The alternative …. now that path really does lead into the darkness!