Quote:
Originally Posted by M13  What about bad things that happen to good people? What about victims of crime? Abused women and children? The way the interviews sound these people asked for it. |
Well, from certain perspectives that I can see, yes, people who do become victims are "asking for it", at least in a way.
You can either look at it as the victims
chose to be in the situations that they were in when they were victimized, probably subconsciously. Some might suggest that these good people might have been obsessing over the idea of guilt, and subconsciously gotten themselves into a situation where they would be punished for whatever it was they felt guilty about, because they thought that they shouldn't "get away" with what they did. I certainly know some people who actually do this
consciously. So, I wouldn't be the slightest bit surprised to find out that other people do this subconsciously even more often.
Also, you could look at it in a more Buddhist way, and realize that you can't be a victim unless you think you're a victim, thus your own
thinking is the real cause of suffering, not something external. The same exact event could happen to two different people, and one might appreciate it, while another feels like a victim. For example, death. Some people look forward to dying and others fear it - so it's not the death that causes the suffering, it's what people think about death that causes suffering. Same thing with physical pain - some folks welcome pain because it makes them feel alive, while others are paralyzed with fear at even the idea of pain, so it can't be anything inherent in pain that causes the suffering, therefore it must be something about the individual's beliefs that causes the suffering. Fortunately, we have more control over our own thinking than anything else. Admittedly, though, it's not easy to change your beliefs. But it's the only way you can completely eliminate suffering.
-Turtle