Why is there a Dark Side?

It’s good to consider – why does a world expressed by the Divine have evil? The answer is all about balance.

In the Vedic perspective, there are 3 forces in creation: creation, maintenance, and destruction. Those 3 forces evolve into 3 qualities (gunas) which evolve into the 5 elements, 5 senses and so forth.

The 3 qualities or gunas are:
Sattva: creative, purity, clarity, smooth
Rajas: fire, action, energy, transformation
Tamas: inertia, rigidity, resistance

Without inertia, we would have no form. In fact, nothing would last. As Dharma is that which sustains, tamas is required for the world to hang around so we can enjoy life.

The issue arises when things go out of balance. If we get too much fire, we can get caught in anger, desire, and ego wanting to control. Things change too much and too fast. That can lead to frustration and then resistance. Resistance leads us into tamas and we get more rigid. Suffering deepens. The heavy tamasic emotions come to dominate.

If we get caught there, we fall into the “dark side.” To transform inertia and get it moving, we need energy, rajas. But the transformation process itself can put us back in anger, desire, and ego’s wanting to control. It can be hard to see our way out.

But rajas can be a positive transformation if we’re moving towards sattva. It can roast the inertia, leaving light and flow.

Keep in mind this isn’t about having a bad day or even week. Everyone gets angry or sad. Grief is a natural part of processing change. We may even get depressed once in awhile.

This is about our ongoing habits; what we’re culturing. Do we invest in anger? Sulk past the due date? Or do we favour the positive when there’s a choice? Which way are we pointing the boat? This is what leads to the long-term trend.

People can also have a “dark night” or spiritual crisis – perhaps when they’re struggling to overcome a limitation or the ego. Or a major fog comes up in awareness to be resolved, overshadowing us. Becoming more conscious of what is here can be rough sometimes. Adyashanti described several possible types of dark night I outlined here.

Yet the potential transformation of darkness is profound. Not to dwell there but to see and move through it to the light. We don’t want to seek it but nor should we reject it when it arises. Often it’s discovering what is already here, bringing our shadow into awareness.

Darkness itself is not evil – light always casts a shadow. Knowing our shadow side is healthy and balancing. The light of awareness can dissolve the inertia that has impeded our growth and clarity. We can say that darkness is not the enemy; we just want it in balance like day and night.

If we take a devic perspective of this, the light beings recognize their role and relationship with the Divine. Energy beings also do but if things get out of balance, they feel disconnected and would happily just party, manipulate, and fight. The darker beings least relate to their source when things are out of balance. While their work is still needed, they’d be happy to have a sit-down strike or get drunk. Of course, this is a broad analogy. But perhaps you get the point.

How things are is not “the way it is”, just the way it is now.

We attract the kind of energy we produce. When we’re out of balance, we attract too many of the type we’re amplifying, pulling us further into it and making it harder to turn the tide. Momentum is a powerful force.

But none of it is insurmountable. We’re the source so we can change the balance in time.

As the world grows in awareness, the unprocessed debris of the past is being brought to the surface to be seen. That brings the opportunity for restoring balance. But not so much if we have a freak over it. As awareness rises, tamas will gradually shift back into its rightful role. Dark, like the night, doesn’t have to be evil.
Davidya