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Ill
United Communities of Spirit
The First of the Buddha's Four Noble Truths is that human existence is suffering, or ill (Pali dukkha), which connotes the idea of an illness generated by the self through its false attachments. Often this condition is described by the metaphor of a universal fire engulfing the world. In Hinduism, the human lot of samsara is to go through an endless cycle of death and rebirth, conditioned by nature (the gunas) and rooted in the results of past actions. This is likened to a universal tree, turned upside-down, whose roots and branches trace the sequences of actions (karma) back to the beginning of time: The whole of it is suffering. In Christianity, the doctrine of Original Sin conveys a similar idea: Humans are, by their fallen condition, cut off from God and hence unable to fulfill the true purpose of life. We may try to be good, but in spite of our best efforts, we miss the mark. Original Sin, like the Hindu notion of samsara, is understood to be a condition perpetuated throughout the generations of humankind. (The doctrine of Original Sin also includes an explanation of its cause in the primordial Fall of Man, but that topic is deferred to the next chapter.)
Analogous statements recognizing that the human condition is inveterately ill, deficient, or sinful can be found in the scriptures of many religions. No one is untainted by sin and evil. Few are they who truly seek truth, beauty, and goodness. Even when people begin with the best of intentions, their behavior usually degenerates and ends in acrimony, betrayal, or violence.
Interfaith passages at: origin.org/ucs/ws/theme047.cfm
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