Why is there suffering in the world?
This is asked at some point by everyone because everyone is subjected to suffering at different times and at different levels. Sometimes it is general dissatisfaction, sometime it is absolutely unbearable. But always there is this feeling of why me or this is unfair, what is the reason for this event or circumstance, for it serves no useful purpose.
Why not ask why is there pleasure in the world?
When we experience pleasure this is never questioned yet clearly pleasure and suffering are related in that one denotes the absence of the other. So what is pleasure, where does it come from and what is its purpose?
Pleasure comes from the will to receive as does suffering. If we get something that we want that is pleasure, if we loose something we had that is suffering. Of course this applies not just to physical things but feelings, thoughts and emotions.
So, what is the purpose of suffering and pleasure? They are both drivers of evolution. Evolution on personal, social and spiritual level. What are we evolving towards? Kabbalisticly the whole of creation is moving from the will to receive to the will to bestow. The will to bestow is the nature of the Creator. What you call the Creator is up to you, if you believe in a Creator is up to you, it simply makes things easier to explain and think about. However, if you feel that there is no spiritual realm or reason for our existence, you will certainly see that a world more orientated to giving and sharing is something worth having.
If we have suffering we are driven to alleviate it, to make changes or enquire. If we have pleasure we are driven towards more. This desire for pleasure causes us to expand our search for clearly the search for pleasure is forever mobile, think of the carrot and the stick. So, why suffering, why pleasure? They are the carrot and stick of evolution.
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