by StefanEmunds

The Evil Side of Man

“Then there is an evil side to man,” I said jubilantly.” “You always deny it. You always say that evil doesn’t exist, that only power exists.”

I surprised myself with this outburst. In one instant, all my Catholic background was brought to bear on me and the Prince of Darkness loomed larger than life.

Don Juan laughed until he was coughing.

“Of course, there is a dark side to us,” he said. “We kill wantonly, don’t we? We burn people in the name of God. We destroy ourselves; we obliterate life on this planet; we destroy the earth. And then we dress in robes and the Lord speaks directly to us. And what does the Lord tell us? He says that we should be good boys or he is going to punish us. The Lord has been threatening us for centuries and it doesn’t make any difference. Not because we are evil, but because we are dumb. Man has a dark side, yes, and it’s called stupidity.”

– Carlos Castaneda, The Power of Silence, page 263

#Carlos Castaneda#Dark side of man#Evil