Good, Evil, and the 108 Evils & 108 Virtues · Academic Version¶
Abstract¶
In the Lifechanyuan system, "good and evil" (善恶, shàn è) operates across two distinct structural levels: at the cosmic Hundun level, good and evil do not exist — only the symmetric balance of the Taiji principle; but at the level of every living being, the discernment of good and evil is absolutely necessary and constitutes the fundamental basis for LIFE elevation and ultimate destination. Concept 200 of the New Era Human 800 Concepts (4th edition) provides the most complete operational inventory in the Lifechanyuan system — 108 Evils and 108 Virtues — spanning five dimensions: conduct, attitude, speech, relationships, and environment. Good and evil directly determine LIFE trajectory through the Law of Karmic Retribution: the good are rewarded with good; the supremely good elevate to become Buddhas; the evil are rewarded with evil; the vicious sink into the ghost realm. The practical path of doing good is Soul Garden construction; generating good thoughts and performing good deeds is accumulating treasure in Heaven.
Source Texts¶
| Code | Source Document | Key Content |
|---|---|---|
| T1 | Xuefeng Corpus · Inner-Spirit · Should Good and Evil Be Discerned? | Cosmic vs. LIFE levels; must discern at LIFE level; LIFE destination |
| T2 | Xuefeng Corpus · Inner-Spirit · Keep Your Eyes on Truth, Goodness, and Beauty | Taiji principle and good-evil symmetry |
| T3 | Xuefeng Corpus · Q&A · Answering Yun Yin's Questions | Good and evil are the Taiji principle |
| T4 | New Era Human 800 Concepts, 4th ed., Concept 414 | No oppositions in Hundun |
| T5 | New Era Human 800 Concepts, 4th ed., Concept 13 | Four standards for judging good and evil |
| T6 | New Era Human 800 Concepts, 4th ed., Concept 26 | Moral judgment standard: joy, happiness, freedom, well-being |
| T7 | Xuefeng Corpus · Q&A · Is It Really True That Good Is Rewarded with Good? | Dialectics of greatest good/evil; overall vs. local karma |
| T8 | New Era Human 800 Concepts, 4th ed., Concept 200 | Complete 108 Evils and 108 Virtues; karmic closing statement |
| T9 | New Era Human 800 Concepts, 4th ed., Concept 192 | Plant melons, reap melons; karmic retribution |
| T10 | New Era Human 800 Concepts, 4th ed., Concept 418 | Definition of the Law of Karmic Retribution |
| T11 | New Era Human 800 Concepts, 4th ed., Concepts 321, 198 | Consequences of repaying good with evil; concealed evil is greater |
| T12 | Chanyuan Corpus · Life Treasures · Everything Is Perfectly Matched to You | Current situation = manifestation of LIFE quality |
| T13 | New Era Human 800 Concepts, 4th ed., Concept 353 | Selfless → Heaven; some selfish → human world; heavily selfish → hell |
| T14 | New Era Human 800 Concepts, 4th ed., Concepts 110, 105 | Selflessness as pass to Heaven; selfishness as pass to hell |
| T15 | New Era Human 800 Concepts, 4th ed., Concept 364; Chanyuan Corpus · Cultivation · Summary of LIFE Reincarnation | LIFE reincarnation and good-evil destinations |
| T16 | New Era Human 800 Concepts, 4th ed., Concept 99 | Soul Garden construction operations |
| T17 | New Era Human 800 Concepts, 4th ed., Concepts 153, 490 | Begin with goodness; good deeds accumulate heavenly treasure |
I. The Dual Structure of Good and Evil: Cosmic vs. LIFE Levels¶
1.1 Cosmic Level: No Good or Evil in Hundun¶
| Level | Content |
|---|---|
| Hundun system | No good or evil, only symmetric balance (T1) |
| Taiji principle | Good and evil coexist, unity of opposites — "all things carry yin and embrace yang" (T2) |
| Essence of the universe | In Hundun, no distinctions between right/wrong, good/evil, beauty/ugliness (T4) |
Core proposition (T3):
"Good and evil are the Taiji principle."
At the highest dimension, good and evil are symmetric forces required for cosmic operation — they carry no evaluative meaning at this level.
1.2 LIFE Level: Every Living Being Must Discern Good and Evil¶
At the level of the individual living being, the situation is entirely different (T1):
- Without a sense of good and evil, right and wrong, a LIFE is dead
- Cultivation does not aim to eliminate the sense of good and evil — it aims to more clearly identify them, thereby "doing no evil, practicing all good"
- Those who refuse to discern are not sages — they are scoundrels; those who teach others not to discern are devils
Structural summary:
| Dimension | State of Good and Evil | Applicable Subject |
|---|---|---|
| Hundun / Tao | No good or evil — only balance | The cosmic whole |
| Living beings | Good and evil absolutely exist; must be discerned | Every LIFE individual |
II. Standards for Judging Good and Evil¶
Four major elements (T5 · Concept 13): Judgment must be based on — facts, science, logic, and spiritual perception — not on the words of ancient people.
The core moral standard (T6 · Concept 26):
"Any doctrine or order that can make people happy, joyful, free, and well is moral. Any doctrine or order that hinders people from attaining happiness, joy, freedom, and well-being is immoral."
Dialectics of greatest good and greatest evil (T7): - Overall level: the Law of Karma indeed operates as "good rewarded with good, evil with evil" - Local level: special cases of "good rewarded with evil, evil with good" can occur - But local exceptions in no way affect the operation of the overall karmic mechanism
III. The 108 Evils and 108 Virtues — Categorical Analysis¶
(For the complete lists, see the Internal Version)
3.1 Categories of the 108 Evils¶
| Category | Representative Items (3 each) |
|---|---|
| Offenses against the sacred | Blaspheming the Greatest Creator, slandering celestials and Buddhas, defaming sages |
| Harm to interpersonal relations | Beating and cursing parents, harming siblings, insulting teachers |
| Abuse of the vulnerable | Bullying widowers and widows, deceiving children, forcing people into prostitution |
| Disruption of public order | Disrupting governance, organizing gambling, advocating violence |
| Environmental destruction | Destroying mountains and forests, polluting rivers, causing suffering to all living beings |
| Poisoning the inner Spirit | Spreading superstition, pretending to be supernatural, corrupting character |
| Infringement on others' interests | Theft and robbery, embezzlement and bribery, seizing others' property |
| Personal moral degradation | Boasting and showing off, complaining and jealousy, being lazy and slippery |
3.2 Categories of the 108 Virtues¶
| Category | Representative Items (3 each) |
|---|---|
| Reverence for the sacred | Revering the Greatest Creator, revering LIFE, revering nature |
| Care for others | Helping others in urgent need, rescuing from danger, sympathizing with disasters |
| Respect for elders and care for the young | Being filial to parents, respecting elders, emulating sages |
| Upholding truth | Seeking truth from facts, suppressing lies, saying what is true |
| Maintaining public order | Following orderly conduct, not competing with the world, being just and fair |
| Caring for nature | Drawing close to nature, cherishing grass and protecting flowers, planting fruit trees |
| Personal cultivation | Being diligent and frugal, rising at dawn, being fond of learning |
| Image and bearing | Being clean and tidy, dressing appropriately, being cheerful and lively |
The core principle (T8 · Concept 200):
"Do no evil; practice all good."
The closing statement (T8 · Concept 200):
"Misfortune and fortune have no gate — people invite them upon themselves. The retribution of good and evil follows like a shadow. Plant melons and you reap melons; plant beans and you reap beans. The net of Heaven is vast; though its meshes are wide, nothing slips through."
IV. The Karmic Mechanism of Good and Evil¶
Definition of the Law of Karmic Retribution (T10 · Concept 418):
"The law that maintains the sum of the universe's positive and negative energy at zero is called the Law of Karmic Retribution."
Operational characteristics (T9; T11; T12):
| Proposition | Content |
|---|---|
| General rule | Plant melons, reap melons; plant beans, reap beans; misfortune and fortune have no gate |
| Concealed evil | Concealing evil makes the evil greater — private wrongdoing has greater consequences |
| Repaying good with evil | Misfortune will never leave the family of such a person |
| Meaning of current situation | Each person's present circumstances are the precise manifestation of their LIFE quality |
V. Good, Evil, and the Destination of LIFE¶
The three-realm framework (T13; T1):
| Degree of Good/Evil | LIFE Destination |
|---|---|
| The good | Heaven |
| The mixed (good and evil) | The human world |
| The evil | Hell |
The selflessness framework (T14): - Selfless → LIFE of Heaven (Concept 110: selflessness is the pass to the Kingdom of Heaven) - Some selfish → LIFE of the human world - Heavily selfish → LIFE of hell (Concept 105: selfishness is the first pass to hell)
The LIFE reincarnation standard (T15 · Concept 364):
| Degree of Good/Evil | Reincarnation Destination |
|---|---|
| The supremely good | Elevate to become Buddhas |
| The vicious | Sink into the ghost realm |
| The overbearing | Descend to the frozen layer |
| The cruel | Descend into the fire-tempering layer |
VI. The Practical Path of Doing Good¶
Soul Garden construction (T16 · Concept 99): Practicing good is concretized as building the Soul Garden — clearing the weeds (evil) and planting flowers (virtue).
Daily guideline (T17 · Concept 153):
"Let your eyes be full of light; let your heart be full of love; begin every thought and intention with goodness; carry out daily affairs with diligence."
Accumulating heavenly treasure (T17 · Concept 490):
"Generating good thoughts and performing good deeds is accumulating treasure in Heaven."
VII. Key Quotation Index¶
- "Good and evil are the Taiji principle." (T3)
- "Do no evil; practice all good." (T8 · Concept 200)
- "Misfortune and fortune have no gate — people invite them upon themselves. The retribution of good and evil follows like a shadow." (T8 · Concept 200)
- "Heaven belongs to the good; hell belongs to the evil; the human world belongs to those who are a mixture of both." (T1)
- "Selflessness is the pass to the Kingdom of Heaven." (T14 · Concept 110)
- "Generating good thoughts and performing good deeds is accumulating treasure in Heaven." (T17 · Concept 490)