Referring to questions and doubts about why evil exists, the head of the Imam Khomeyni Educational and Research Institute examined various views in this regard and explained the views of Islam. RNA – In a speech on epistemology, Grand Ayatollah Mohammad-Taqi Mesbah-Yazdi, the head of Imam Khomeyni Educational and Research Institute in Qom, spoke on the subject of evil and tribulations and said, “Today, the Coronavirus has spread to other countries and is becoming more widespread day by day.”
The revered source of emulation added, “There are many questions about such issues from different strata of society, which can be examined in two theoretical and practical areas. Sometimes, intellectually, we want to know what is the rational justification for the existence of disasters and tribulations, which is a theoretical discussion, but sometimes we want to know the duty of mankind in this manner which is a practical discussion.”
He said that the issue of evil has always been raised, “The materialist tendency says that the world has always been like this and has no particular reason, this tendency will not enter into the discussions on the divine, theology and the wisdom of creation and will be set aside.”
Ayatollah Mesbah-Yazdi continued, “When we say that the world was created by a Creator, goodness can be considered as a result of divine wisdom and prudence, but what should we say in times of evil, considering the importance of discussing those issues from ancient times, they have believed in dualism and said that there are two sources of good and evil.”
His Eminence stated, “Other people said that God created everything, including the devil, that is, God is good, and the evil of the world is related to the devil. What is related to monotheistic beliefs and divine religions, especially Islam, is that the whole universe has a creator who has all the attributes of goodness and perfection, and there is no imperfection in Him, and He has created everything with wisdom.”
The member of the Society of Seminary Teachers of Qom said, “It is asked why evil was created, and how it can be rationally justified why God, the Wise One, who has no ugly traits and is purely good and wants nothing but good, has created evil.”
Ayatollah Mesbah-Yazdi noted, “There have been very deep and long discussions throughout various periods, the result of which goes back to the statement that evil is not a creature but a non-existent matter.”
The representative of the people of Khorasan Razavi province in the Assembly of Experts added, “Muslims and divine religions believe that in eternal life there are two houses of good without evil and evil without good. This raises the issue of why God created hell and what would have happened if he had not created it and all people went to heaven and there was no harm to God.”
He stated that sometimes a person does something that leads to evil reaching him and said, “For example, if a person sins, the effects of sin will reach him, especially in the Hereafter, which is a secondary and reactionary evil, but the worldly evil is relative.”
Ayatollah Mesbah-Yazdi added, “For example, it is true that fire burns paper, but it causes food to be cooked, which means that its evil is relative, and it is good for some things and evil for others. What is a matter of discussion and doubt is evil concerning human beings and pain and suffering.”
His Eminence said, “To understand why evil exists, we must pay attention to why God created mankind. Mankind is a creature who can receive the highest divine grace by his own free will.”
He continued, “This creature deserves the highest level of grace when it comes to choice, there must be two ways to choose, and without it, choice makes no sense. No creature like mankind has the capacity, and for mankind to be able to have different levels of completion, he must be in a world where change can pave the way for different choices in various fields so that the right choice paves the way for the highest level of divine grace.”
Ayatollah Mesbah-Yazdi stated that the secret of the existence of evil is not inherent but is the unintentional purpose, said, “The existence of evil is to provide the grounds for choosing between good and evil. This in itself is a prelude to providing more grounds for good. The most general wisdom of the existence of evil and calamity is that it provides the grounds for mankind to choose, so that mankind, by choosing good, deserves to benefit from the highest divine perfection.”
His Eminence said, “Considering that the capacity of human beings is different, there should be different offers of good and evil. The answer is clear concerning the primary and worldly evils, but there is a capacity in mankind that he can choose the path of good for a while and then change course, and vice versa.”
He pointed out, “Those who make the wrong choice but have the principle of faith and knowledge in their hearts, God’s grace requires that grounds for growth and development be provided. One way is to suffer from afflictions to reduce one’s belonging to this temporal world and possibly repentance from past sins.”
Ayatollah Mesbah-Yazdi added, “The emergence of evil in this temporal world and the hereafter is not inherently purposeful, evil in the hereafter is the result of human actions in the world and has no intrinsic purpose. Evil is not inherently desirable and because it will eventually lead to great good, it is created.”
Rasa News Agency