Way of the Mind

(once again, from my wiki, though this version is shorter…)

A “Creed of Death” (CoD) is my term for any belief (including religion), philosophy or political system which leads to death instead of life.

Note that I don’t mean “death” merely in the physical sense; in other words, I am not referring to some kind of suicidal cult, or a cabal of necromancers. I mean a “death in life”, a living death.

Common characteristics of a Creed of Death:

1. a doctrine of sacrifice - for your neighbor, for a god, for the people, for the state, for the community, for your brother, for everyone but yourself
2. selfishness and self-interest are considered the worst of evils, while altruism, service and (again) sacrifice are considered good
3. the idea that life is suffering, that happiness and joy are mere illusions
4. the belief that this world is evil, that it “belongs to the devil”; “of the world” becomes another term for evil
5. since the world is evil, a desire to get away from it, at least in mind only; to achieve nothingness, to be a zero
6. believing that everything physical in this life/world is evil; anything good must be “spiritual”, in some next life to be attained if and only if you lead a life of service and sacrifice
7. the idea that man is flawed, inherently evil, with nothing good ever coming from him; that one is worthy only through (drum roll…) service and sacrifice, and otherwise should apologize for being alive
8. an obsession with humility and ordinariness: being great is evil, being a genius is evil, being rich and successful is evil, being happy is evil; only the “common people”, the “little people” are good; to be special is a thing of shame, to achieve something beyond what others can is selfish arrogance
9. the end of the concept of individual rights: “what right have you to live in confort when there are people out there starving? You are lucky to have so much, it is your duty to share with them.”
10. collectivism becomes good, individualism becomes evil
11. little or no regard for human life (after all, we’re all evil, lowly beings): think the Inquisition, concentration camps, Stalin’s purges…

Notes

• a Creed of Death is not necessarily an organized thing; many people (yes, I know some in real life) believe in all of the above by themselves, not from belonging to a church or group.
• most Believers of Death (BoDs) are usually very unhappy people, and spread unhappiness wherever they go. They do it without any evil intent, and they don’t realize they are making other people (usually the ones they care the most for) unhappy; it’s just the way they are. Or they believe that happy people are deluded, and that the BoDs are doing them a favor by shattering their “illusions” early, by teaching them about the “real world”.

Now, I ask you (yes, you :)): do you know any people or groups like this? I’d like to hear your experiences / opinions…

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Related posts:

1. “Good” and “Evil”
2. Forces for good?
3. Asimov, Atheism, and Death
4. An evil god, part 2: good and evil
5. Falwell’s death, and "respect for the dead"