Why So Much Suffering in the World?

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Why So Much Suffering in the World?

Sadhguru, if the creation is perfect and the creator has done such a good job on us as you say, why is there so much suffering in the world? Why do we need to depend on somebody’s compassion to exist here?

If creator had done a good job on us why there is so much suffering in the world. Why we need to depend on other people’s compassion and understanding to exist here.

It happened once, a little boy came home with a $10 bill, Luke, in Ohio. A little boy came home with a $10 bill. His mother asked, he said, “I found it.” His mother asked, “Luke, did you really find it? Are you sure?” He said, “Sure ma’am. I even saw the man looking for it.”

Why there is so much misery if this is a perfect job. It’s such a perfect job that it gives you the opportunity to be whichever way you wish to be. If creation had not given you the necessary opportunity to be what you wish to be, then there would be no possibilities, isn’t it? Then there would be no such thing as liberation. Why create a bondage and then liberation? Why couldn’t you be liberated? Then there would be no creation. Only because there is creation. Now the possibility of going beyond that.

Now, in animal nature, and in other forms of life that you see around you, every kind. There is not much possibility. The possibility is just to survive, procreate, carry on with life and die one day. Because there is not much possibility. There is not much misery either. You don’t see other creatures of the planet suffering like human beings. Their suffering is purely physical. If they’re physically harmed, they’re in pain. Even in pain they do not know the kind of suffering that a human being knows.

Human being knows this suffering, not because creation gave this suffering to you, creation just gave you the freedom to make whatever you wish to out of yourself. You’re making suffering out of yourself. Or a large population of the world has decided to make suffering out of themselves, that is their choice.

Physical realities sometimes are comfortable, sometimes they’re not comfortable. That is so. We have been given the necessary intelligence to create necessary comfort for ourselves. That’s not an issue really. If we have no problems with each other, creating comfort for all the population in the world is not a problem. It’s not at all a big problem really. Simply because we have enough problems. Simply because this freedom which should have been a benediction has become a curse upon humanity. Right now, what human beings are suffering is not their bondage, they’re suffering their freedom.

If you suffer your bondage, it’s all right. If you suffer your freedom, that’s tragedy. Right now, human beings are unfortunately suffering their freedom. This moment you can make anything out of yourself. You can make joy out of yourself, you can make suffering out of yourself, but today 50% of the people, or 90% of the people are choosing to make misery out of themselves. That’s not creation’s fault. Just gave you the freedom so that you could go beyond.

Once you have come as human you are not trapped anymore. Other creatures are trapped in their own instincts, beyond that, they cannot think. You have instinct for survival, but still you have the possibility of going beyond this instinct. If you don’t choose to go beyond, that means still enough suffering has not touched you. It’s because, it’s unfortunate in the world that very few people transcend out of their intelligence. Most people have to be trashed by life only then they will transcend. Only then they will think of going beyond. Otherwise, no.

I don’t know if you are aware of this, Luke, you came early. In India, if you tell somebody that, “I’m living in an ashram.” They will ask you, “What went wrong? What happened to your life?” They believe only after something really goes wrong you’ll go to the ashram, okay? Because most people’s intelligence is such, because they kept their brains in cold storage. They think they’re going to use it in future, so they can only seek anything beyond, when something really goes wrong with their life. Till then … even if something really goes wrong, they will only pray for a better life next time.

Now, you don’t have to depend on anybody’s compassion or understanding, the whole world can live under the umbrella of your compassion and your understanding. I would like to say that you stand up that way. That the world lives under your compassion and understanding. You don’t live in other people’s compassion and understanding. If you have any dignity, that’s how you should live. Isn’t it? Isn’t it so?