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Buddhist-Meditation-Systematic-and-Practical

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lust-arousing news <strong>and</strong> pictures. That this gutter-press is<br />

extremely popular we can easily see by comparing their<br />

circulation figures with those of high quality<br />

newspapers. Then there is the scramble for power,<br />

material possessions, money, position, <strong>and</strong> fame—all<br />

resulting in greater worry, diseases of the body, insanity,<br />

<strong>and</strong> so forth.<br />

Besides greed, we should remember that another aspect<br />

is encouraged by our misnamed "civilized state." When<br />

people do not get what they want, they hate. They hate<br />

anything that st<strong>and</strong>s in the way of the fulfillment of<br />

desire. There being many desires, naturally many will<br />

be frustrated, <strong>and</strong> when this happens hatred is the result.<br />

Moreover, this hatred is fostered in many ways: by<br />

horror-comics, films of war <strong>and</strong> violence, crime books,<br />

<strong>and</strong>, in time of war, by official mass propag<strong>and</strong>a.<br />

War itself increases hate, anger, violence, <strong>and</strong> crime<br />

books, <strong>and</strong> wars become ever bigger <strong>and</strong> more<br />

disastrous. The after-effect of wars is not "glorious<br />

victory" <strong>and</strong> "everlasting peace," but only murder, theft,<br />

looting, rape, sadistic violence, poverty, disease,<br />

starvation…, <strong>and</strong> thus more wars in revenge, <strong>and</strong> thus<br />

more hatred.<br />

Going along with greed <strong>and</strong> hatred, there is always fear:<br />

either of losing what is "mine"—my body, wife, family,<br />

house, car, work, fame, or influence—or of getting<br />

something painful <strong>and</strong> unwelcome—blame, disease, old<br />

44

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