Why does evil exist?

I have come to believe that my "evil tendencies" are vitally important, for me to be a good man. If I KNOW that I am a good man, and that I have no evil tendencies - I am in a sense quite blind. I have this huge blindspot, wherein all sorts of evil can thrive undetected and hidden from my view. A man who thinks himself purely good is blind to the ways in which darkness can creep into his actions unacknowledged. Such a man is susceptible to moral self-righteousness, hypocrisy, and the subtle corruption of his own ego. He becomes a judge of others without ever judging himself.

But if I KNOW that I am an evil man, then I can strive towards goodness and evil is most certainly not in my blindspot and I may aspire to become a good man. I do not elevate myself above any other man because I KNOW my darkness and I KNOW that I am no better. The man who knows his darkness can never place himself above another. He understands the struggle, the temptation, the capacity within himself to fall. And because of that awareness, he can choose consciously, deliberately to do good. His goodness is not naïve; it is not a performance. It is forged in self-awareness.

Only someone who knows their shadow - their evil and their darkness also know the light. Light that has never known darkness is fragile, shallow, and easily shattered. But light that has walked through darkness and emerged on the other side is resilient, deep, and unshakable.

Do not seek to destroy your shadow. You seek to integrate it. To bring it into awareness so that it no longer controls you from the depths of unconsciousness. That is real mastery. That is what it means to be a whole human being.