The battle of good versus evil
The subtle battle of good versus evil has been waged periodically since the earliest times. It is once again being fought in the subtle world during the years 1999 – 2006. After the intensity of subtle battle is reduced in 2006, a gross battle on Earth will ensue. Thereafter the world will undergo a period of flux recovering from the battle on Earth and preparing for a new era. This new era will be known as the Divine Kingdom and with it humanity will see a thousand years of peace and Righteousness. The times we live in are very significant as the ramifications of this battle will be felt by the entire universe and it is highly conducive for spiritual practice to attain God-realisation (the highest spiritual state).
Note: To understand this article, it is necessary to read the article on the three subtle basic components of Sattva, Raja and Tama, the fabric that permeates all of creation.
1. The definition of good and evil
From a Spiritual science standpoint, people who are living or who have passed on (subtle bodies), who have an intense desire to do spiritual practice with the goal of surrendering everything including ego unto God and aligning their life with attaining God and deities are defined as ‘good’. These are typically persons who are above the 30% spiritual level, are Raja-Sattva or Sattva predominant and righteous. People without the above mentioned characteristics but doing some good deeds like donating to orphanages etc., though meritorious, do not necessarily qualify for what Spiritual science would define as ‘good’ people, especially if the act is done with immense pride. Good people and good subtle bodies collectively come under ‘good forces’.
On the other hand, evil persons (living or subtle bodies) are raja-tama or tama predominant, unrighteous and have a high ego. They may even be doing spiritual practice but it is done with the goal of acquiring spiritual power for the fulfilment of some personal ambition. The word ‘Ego’ used in a spiritual context here, in addition to its everyday usage as self esteem and self conceit also includes the attitude of duality with God. Duality means thinking of oneself as having an existence distinct from God. Evil people and subtle bodies collectively come under ‘evil forces’.
From a strictly Spiritual science perspective those who are doing spiritual practice with the objective of God-realisation and who are progressively offering their body, mind, wealth and ego to God would qualify in the ‘good’ category. Thus according to this definition of ‘good’, in present times the good people on Earth are negligible. The majority of people come under evil. Among these however, those who try to harm society and reduce the Sattva component in the world amount to 30% of the population.
2. Where did good and evil come from?
2.1 When did evil come into existence?
Everything in the universe has originated from the One God. The God principle permeates everything in the universe and also exists beyond it. From this perspective both good and evil have originated from the God principle. They have both existed since the creation of the universe. However the evil was in seed or latent form at that time.
According to a spiritual law ‘everything has originated from God principle, will be sustained and then undergo dissolution back into the God principle’. This happens as per an inherent absolute plan. Thus the universe has come into existence, it will be sustained for a predecided period of time and then it will undergo dissolution. As a part of this divine plan, the evil that was in seed form at the origin of the universe steadily grows. It manifests in the form of evil elements and persons. With the passage of time the evil element will keep on growing till it reaches 100% percent, when the universe will cease to exist.
2.2 Where do good and evil forces get their energy from?
Since both good and evil come from the Supreme God principle, they also get their spiritual energy from God. This may seem like a paradox; however it can best be understood by the following analogy. Two employees of a company work equally hard and earn the same wage. After the money is in their hands, it depends on them how they will use it. One person may use it to feed himself and after that whatever is remaining to help society. The other person may use it to harm society. Earning money is akin to obtaining spiritual energy when we do spiritual practice. The intention behind doing spiritual practice is very different for good and evil people. For the former, it is to merge with God and the other is primarily to get spiritual power. Once we build up our reservoir of spiritual energy, God gives us the free will to use it as we please. This spiritual energy when used by people for Righteousness is known as good energy and when used for unrighteousness it is known as evil energy.
The important point to note is that when it is used for righteous means; one experiences oneness with that aspect of God. Hence he can access that much divine energy corresponding to the extent of the oneness. Thus one does not end up losing any spiritual energy. When used for unrighteous means, it being contrary to God, the person ends up using the energy that he gained from spiritual practice, thus depleting it.
3. What is the mission of good and evil?
The mission of the good forces is to establish an order across all the regions of the Universe based on the Sattva component.
On the other hand, evil forces strive to establish a demonic kingdom based on the Raja and Tama components. This demonic kingdom is a kind of kingdom that is most conducive for demonic forces to fulfil their desires. These desires range from indulging in sensual pleasures and power in excess, to troubling seekers of God, to wiping out spiritual practice for God-realisation.
4. The balance between good and evil
As a result of the missions of good and evil forces being diametrically opposed to each other, there is always conflict between the two. This balance fluctuates over time and is never constant. Its effects are felt across all the regions of the universe. For example, when there is an increase in the power of demonic forces and ghosts (demons, devils, negative energies etc.) the situation across all the positive planes of existence (Earth, Heaven etc) begins to worsen. On Earth, it affects us at a physical, mental and spiritual level. However the negative regions (i.e. all the various levels of hell) experience a positive effect in their paradigm.
When there is a tilt in the balance towards good, there is an increase in the subtle basic Sattva component and Bliss is experienced throughout the universe. Peace and prosperity reigns on Earth. The demonic forces are however distressed by this positive trend. It is like making a thief stay in a seminary or shrine.
4.1 What are the reasons behind the tilting of the balance in the
direction of the evil forces?
At every twist and turn, evil forces in the universe are trying to adversely influence the balance of power. Despite the demonic forces’ constant attempts to reduce the basic subtle Sattva component and stop seekers of God from practising and spreading spirituality, the good forces reign supreme as long as there are Saints and seekers doing spiritual practice. This is because God helps Saints and seekers due to their devotion to overcome the evil forces.
The major reservoir of power of good and evil resides in the subtle regions. The forces of good and evil on Earth are like puppets on strings. They both get their power from the forces of good and evil respectively in the subtle realm.
4.2 Spiritual level and attack by ghosts
(demon’s, devils, negative energies etc.)
The demonic forces generally attack the good forces that are within +/- 10% spiritual strength of their own strength. The reason for this is that a ghost cannot affect a person where there is a difference of 10% in spiritual level in favour of the person. This is because a person is able to harness 10-20 % of God’s protection, more than the level of distress by ghosts, which protects him from an attack by a ghost having a lower spiritual energy.
Those ghosts at a spiritual level of more than 10% of a person’s spiritual level do not bother to attack him, as he is small fry and thus inconsequential to the ghost. So e.g. a person at 30% spiritual level will be attacked by a ghost (demon, devil, negative energy etc.) in the range of 20 – 40% level.
It becomes easier for demonic forces of evil to exert their power over mankind especially when people are more materialistic and less inclined to practising Spirituality.
When there is an increase in the Tama component in mankind, demonic forces being Tama predominant themselves take advantage of the situation and try to establish their control over humanity.
Refer to the article, “To what extent does spiritual level provide a protection against ghosts?”
5. When does the battle between good and evil intensify?
The battle between good and evil intensifies when the subtle basic Sattva component hits rock bottom and the subtle basic Tama component reaches a high. The Sattva hitting rock bottom is a function of the percentage of evildoers on Earth. What is ‘rock bottom’ differs over time and era. For example, the worst period of Satyayuga (the first era of the universe) would be far more Sattvik than the period of highest Sattvikta in the whole of Kaliyuga.
Please note: The figures for the first three eras are for the main era, not for the mini-cycles within it.
In the future, in the next mini-cycles, rock bottom will come after the evildoers have crossed 35%, 40% etc. When they become 100%, the universe will cease to exist because all will have to be annihilated by God.
6. Where is this battle fought?
The battle between good and evil is fought mainly in the subtle worlds between the subtle good and subtle evil forces. This battle, even though at a much larger scale than any battle on Earth, can only be perceived by a person who has an activated sixth sense.
After the subtle battle is won by the subtle good forces, it is followed by the battle in the gross (physical) i.e. on Earth. This gross war affects the entire world. It is required to annihilate all the evil persons from the face of Earth. At first the battleground manifests on Earth in people’s minds and it seems like we are living in a world that has gone crazy. This is pretty much like the world in recent times. This is primarily because of ghosts (demons, devils, negative energies etc.) possessing or affecting mankind. Along with this there is an increasing intensity of natural disasters (floods, tsunamis, epidemics, drought etc.).
Later the manifestation of the battle in the subtle escalates on Earth and presents itself as a major world war along natural disasters of a monumental level. It is nature’s way of cleansing the planet of the tama predominant elements, making way for a better world.
7. Who participates in the battle between good and evil?
Those persons and subtle bodies on the good side, from 30-50% spiritual level range, have an understanding of the issue only at a psychological level. They can contribute little at the spiritual level. Such people who are fighting on Earth usually perish. But at least they accrue merits because they fought on the side of God. Those at a spiritual level of 50% and above having spiritual emotion and a warrior's attitude are really able to participate in the battle at spiritual level and thus contribute maximally.
“To be able to participate at spiritual level” means having a very low ego, an advanced activated sixth sense and a strong understanding of pure Spirituality that is beyond sectarian or organised religion. Only then is one able to perceive God’s will and act accordingly rather than according to one’s will. As the acts done by the person are as per God’s will, the person is able to access divine energy and also create no give-and-take account with his actions. The devotion of the person also causes God to rush to his aid. It is because of God rushing to the aid of the true devotee, that the people associated with the devotee and his mission also benefit. This can be understood from the following analogy. When a devotee of God, trapped in a building in the middle of an earthquake, cries for help from God, God will save him. But others in the building will also be automatically saved.
Mmost of the seekers of God across the world, who have not studied the subtle battle aspect of Spiritual science or who do not have an activated sixth sense are not in the know of it. As a result, they can neither prepare themselves to face the attack by demonic forces, nor can they participate in the battle. Most Saints on Earth who are involved purely in their own individual spiritual practice are also unaware of this battle. So other than what God gets done from them as a function of their spiritual level, i.e. their oneness with God, nothing much is contributed by them too.
There are very few Saints who are actively involved in guiding seekers to do spiritual practice for the sake of society. They do so due to Their yearning for establishing Righteousness on Earth. They are thus more extensively one with God whose fundamental characteristic is Righteousness. Spiritual practice for the sake of society includes assisting humanity in understanding and practicing Spirituality according to the five basic principles of Spirituality and living a righteous life. Hence God functions to a much greater extent through them. Consequently they are actively involved in the subtle battle and are guiding seekers to fight this evil at a spiritual level. All persons and subtle bodies below 30%, with high ego, those engaged in criminal, terrorist activities, those perpetrating sexual offences and denigrators of deities, symbols of worship and reverence etc. fight on the side of evil forces. Religious fundamentalists think they fight on God's side and indulge in (religious) terrorism but they too come under evil forces. As a part of this subtle battle, higher level ghosts (demons, devils, negative energies etc.) force the weak ancestors' subtle bodies to make use of their give-and-take accounts with their ‘good’ descendants to trouble them.
8. When was the first battle between good and evil fought?
The lifespan of the universe is divided into 4 eras i.e. Satyayuga, Tretayuga, Dwaparyuga and Kaliyuga. The current era we live in is the last era of the universe and is called the Era of Strife (Kaliyuga) and it will last for 432,000 years. We are currently 5,500 years into this era. (Refer to the picture below).
In each era there are smaller cycles of Satyayuga, Tretayuga, Dwaparyuga and Kaliyuga. Each small era cycle is further sub-divided into even smaller four eras. This sub-division of mini-cycles within mini-cycles occurs six levels deep. The smallest mini-cycle lasts for a period of about 1000 years. The figure of 1000 is as per the time calculation in present times. For example, a corresponding mini-cycle in Satyayuga era would be much longer. This is because Satyayuga was an era which had a very highly subtle basic Sattva component. One of the characteristics of Sattva is expansiveness, whereas that of Tama is decay. Hence one year of Kaliyuga would essentially mean many more years in Satyayuga.
At the beginning of creation the balance was 100% in favour of the good forces as the demonic forces were only in latent/seed form. This is because in the First Era, i.e. Satyayuga, all of mankind was engaged in spiritual practice. In fact, their entire life was spent with the attitude that it is spiritual practice itself and of service to God. When the mini-Kaliyuga in the last mini-cycle of Satyayuga began, the total number of evildoers on Earth became more than 2% of the entire population. The basic subtle Tama component was high enough for the evil forces, i.e. ghosts (demons, devils, negative energies etc.) to strike a claim to supremacy. This was the first battle between the good and evil forces and it was waged at the end of this mini-cycle Kaliyuga in the last mini-cycle of the Satyayuga.
