Top 10 questions

By editor in World picture May 26, 2021

There are some questions that people have always tried to answer. They were people of different nationalities having different worldviews, who lived in different times in different parts of the world. Moreover, their worldviews arose as a result of attempts to answer these questions. Thousands of religions and all kinds of teachings, from occult and philosophical to ethical and scientific, have grown out of these questions. Why are these questions so important? Because without the answers to these questions, a person does not understand the world and himself, he is confused and lost, his life turns out to be empty and meaningless. He lives – but at the same time, he does not seem to live, because he does not understand what everything is for and what he should do. This condition is painful. This is a feeling of inferiority of one’s own being. The moral suffering it causes is a huge part of the pain that constantly torments humanity. And humanity has always tried to find answers to these most important questions. It is literally a matter of survival. Because our existence can only be meaningful, if we understand why the world exists and what is our aim in this world.

In this article I want to give short answers to the most important questions as the Teaching explains them. Of course, there are more than ten important questions, but for the purpose of this article I had to limit them to the “top ten”. The list may vary and may not look exactly the same for different people. There is, obviously, no single generally accepted list. I have tried to select those questions that, in my opinion, have the greatest importance.

So, let’s get started without wasting time on long preambles.

Does the Creator exist? – Yes, he exists. Nature does not develop spontaneously, evolution is not spontaneous. The development of the Universe and everything in it is based on the laws established by the Creator. He is not a supernatural being, but a highly developed and colossal creature. The Creator has transformed himself into the Universe. He established the laws of life and development in his organism, and his organism transformed into a new state. Thus, everything did not appear by itself, out of nothing, and not as a result of a supernatural act, a miracle. The laws of Nature operating in the Universe are based on the laws of Nature of the world in which the Creator lives and of which, therefore, our Universe is a part of.

What is the meaning of existence of the world? – Our world – that is, a planet inhabited by people – is a part of the Universe, and it exists for the same purpose for which it exists. The concept of “world” should be considered in a broader sense – not as an area of human habitation, but as the Universe. And our Universe is the Creator, his body, mind, soul. He transformed himself into it in order to go through a cycle of inner self-knowledge and self-improvement. Now he does not perceive the world around him (that is, the world in which he lives), because he is completely immersed in his inner world, striving to know himself and become better. Without this, he will not be able to develop further in his world. Therefore, the meaning of existence of the Universe (and our world as well) is that the Creator has an opportunity to take the next step along the path of his evolution. The way it is designed contributes to the achievement of this goal. The Universe appeared because of this.

Why does evil exist? – Evil is defined as something abnormal, unnatural, destructive, threatening the normal existence and development of the Universe. It’s like a disease that a body has to fight in order to survive. And through this struggle it becomes stronger, more perfect. That is, the evil that threatens life ultimately strengthens life – and this is the reason why evil exists. It is a constant stimulus that provokes struggle, movement and improvement. This is the general principle, the purpose of evil as an element of the Universe. As for the specific manifestations of evil that take place in human society, they are generated by people themselves. This is the consequence of delusions and mistakes, inability and unwillingness to resist vices and get rid of the worst qualities. Everything wrong and destructive that happens in society is done by people themselves. They destroy their world and torture each other.

What is the purpose of man? – There are many intelligent races in the Universe. Sensient beings (in the terminology of the Teaching) are those who are able to cognize, comprehend and draw conclusions, distinguish between good and evil and make a free moral choice between them. It is through them that the mind of the Creator and his free will are manifested, through them he cognizes himself and becomes better, more perfect. This means that they are the key factor in his development. The speed and the success of this development as well as the result depends on them. Humanity is one of the intelligent races. It plays a vital role in the development of the Creator, sharing this huge and important work, as well as responsibility for the future of the Creator (the Universe). We help the Creator to develop by perceiving the world and ourselves, by making the correct moral decisions (based on the knowledge we gain) and by trying to become better. This is the purpose of all sentient beings, including people.

Why do people suffer? – Suffering is not a punishment from some higher powers. This is a consequence of human imperfection. We do not know enough about the world and about ourselves, we deceive ourselves, we do not want or we do not know how to behave in the right way, rather than choosing something that is wrong, but somehow pleasant or beneficial. What is more, we can’t go for the right things even though sometimes we know exactly what is right and what is wrong. We are very selfish and cruel sometimes. Therefore, we cause sufferings to each other and we suffer ourselves. Our world is full of sufferings – but we ourselves make it that way. The world of people is what people are. The task of humanity is to become better. In this way, we will help not only ourselves, but also the Creator. We are his particles and we are also a part of his soul, and this part we perfect. By becoming better, we are perfecting the Creator. In this way, we both reduce our suffering and fulfill our destiny. In fact, our pain is the pain of the Creator, who suffers from his imperfections. Humans and other intelligent races are here to fix this.

What awaits a person after death? – Death is only the death of the material body, but not the person himself, not his personality. When the physical body ceases to exist, the energy body remains. After death, each of us spends some time in the world of energy, where he suffers, rejoices, communicates, wanders, etc., and then is reborn in a material body. During one life it is very difficult, almost impossible to know enough and completely change oneself, getting rid of all the worst qualities and developing the best ones. A person goes through this difficult path in several lifetimes; many have to be born dozens and dozens of times. In the end, everyone reaches the highest possible point of his development, becoming so perfect that there is no longer a need for further births. Then he leaves the energy body, and in the form of a particle of pure Spirit enters the world of Spirit – that is, he merges with the renewed soul of the Creator. When all the particles of the Spirit pass through the sentient beings and become purer and better, then the Creator’s transformation into a more perfect being will take place.

Is human destiny predetermined? – No, it is not predetermined. Predestination would turn any action into a purely mechanical action, the result of which is programmed. This would exclude free will, and we would not be able to develop morally by making conscious and free decisions. This means that we would not perfect the Creator. The life of a person and his very existence would turn into nonsense. After all, the point is precisely in learning to distinguish between good and evil through knowledge (that is, to distinguish between right and creative from wrong and destructive), learn to understand their interweaving and, of our own free will, make correct, morally determined decisions. It is the desire and ability to make such decisions that makes us better. Consequently, it also makes the Creator better, which is exactly what is required. Taking free, not predetermined from above decisions, a person himself forms his own destiny, which is also influenced by the free decisions of the people around him.

What is the meaning of life? – It is about becoming better yourself and making the world a better place. This is how you fulfill your destiny – you perfect the Creator. All the good you can do serves this purpose; every right desire, right choice and right deed brings your closer to this aim. Thus, you also make other people better and reduce sufferings in the world. People appeared to fulfill their destiny. Their whole life should be devoted to this. That is, you need to live in such a way that everything is subordinated to the main aim – the perfection of the Creator, for which everyone bears personal responsibility. How this should be done on practice is a separate question, there are many options. Ideally, your occupation, your behavior, everything that you do in everyday life, etc. should fit into the purpose, contribute to its implementation. Each person’s life has its own circumstances and nuances, so everyone achieves this in their own way. You just have to try to live in the way that all the goals of your life converge in one higher goal, all meanings ascend to the higher meaning, like streams flowing into one river, tending to the ocean.

What is the worst vice and what is the best virtue? “The worst vice is pride. It is raising oneself above others, preferring oneself to them. Pride breeds selfishness and is at the root of most, if not all, vices. For example, envy (why is it from someone else and not from me?), greed (I will take everything for myself, because I deserve it more than others), arrogance (I am better than others), vanity (I deserve fame and honors more than others), deceit and meanness (for the sake of your own good you can deceive and betray another), cruelty (for your own benefit or pleasure you can torture and kill others), laziness (I do not want to do anything, and this is the main thing) and so on, etc. Pride gives rise to and aggravates other vices, adding suffering to the world and hindering the moral improvement of a person. The best of the virtues is justice. A just person always tries to evaluate everything correctly and to do the right thing. He will be demanding of himself, will not fall into pride, and thereby greatly facilitate his deliverance from vices. He will be fair in relation to other people and the world, he will make the right decisions. Why didn’t I mention kindness or the ability to love? Because even not the most kind and loving person, if he is just, will act well towards people and the world. And there will come both kindness and love. We can say that we learn in order to learn to be fair. This is the guarantee of successful moral self-improvement, and hence the fulfillment of the destiny, that is, the perfection of the Creator.

Can the Truth be Found? – Sure. We constantly acquire it, collect its particles, using our own experience and what we can get from others. After all, the Truth is everywhere, it is around us and in us, because it is reality itself. Whatever you look at, whatever you touch – all these are manifestations of the Truth. The most important moment of our development lies in its cognition: after all, if it were impossible to cognize it, then it would be impossible to improve morally through moral choice and thereby improve the Creator. We can claim that: if reality could not be cognized, then it would not exist, since there would be no meaning in its existence. Of course, it is impossible for a person to know the entire Universe. But this is not necessary. A person’s abilities allow him to cognize enough in order to reach the necessary stage of development and make the contribution that is required of him for the Creator’s perfection. What you can learn over the course of your lifetimes is enough to make the right moral decisions and fulfill your destiny. But only on condition that you really try to cognize, you will all the time move along the path of cognition, striving to find and accept not what is convenient and beneficial for you personally, but the objective Truth, whatever it may be.

These are the answers the Teaching gives to the main questions. These answers form the basis for everything else it says. They are like the foundation on which the picture of the world according to the Teaching is based. The whole building is naturally built on the foundation. If you understand these fundamentals, it will be easier to understand the Teaching as a whole – its ideas about the Universe, the world, man, human life and its meaning, actions, and in general about everything that exists and happens around us, down to nuances and details. For those who are not familiar with the Teaching, the ten answers voiced above can become a kind of first lesson that allows you to grasp the whole picture with one glance, albeit in general, but the most important features. For the followers of the Teaching, who are familiar with this worldview and understand it, they can serve as a compactly presented material for repeating the basics. After all, their repetition is never superfluous.