Greed Is the Cancer Deep Within Human Nature
Human nature is essentially greedy. The so-called morality is merely one of the means of self-restraint that human beings resort to when forced; law is only a bottom line that society sets to ensure everyone follows basic morality. Without the constraints of morality and law, humanity would have no peace; greedy human nature would keep humanity living in war every day.
As long as there is a chance to escape punishment, greedy human nature easily takes over, and morality can only stand aside or be used as a decorative front. Cancer cells are also greedy; for their own reproduction and growth, they conquer territory in the human body and stop at nothing.
Greedy human nature and the cancer cells in the human body have a great deal in common, and neither is easily defeated. The laws for dealing with them are similar: on the one hand, through education and transformation; on the other hand, through striking them down.
Religious leaders and educators believe that through teaching, human nature can be transformed, making humans—this greedy, cunning, and violent species—become civilized. This is like some doctors always trying to turn cancer cells into normal cells. Regrettably, this wish is not easy to realize.
Religion and education may in the end become tools of war—and war is indeed the ultimate expression of human greed. There are always people who, to compete for resources, regard the lives of others as worthless grass. Cancer cells also regard the human body as worthless; they care only about their own survival and growth, not whether the host lives or dies.
My view of human nature is neither pessimistic nor optimistic, but very pragmatic. Decades of life experience have told me that everyone, myself included, has a greedy side to one degree or another. It is just that some people can restrain themselves and others cannot. If a person's desires are continually stimulated, his greedy nature may keep expanding.
In fact, under continuous stimulation, the human brain does change. Those who have long practiced a musical instrument react to notes faster than ordinary people. Those constantly tempted by greed only grow more and more greedy.
I fear greed, because I know how terrible it is—it will make a person lose peace and tranquility, and make him lose reason and composure. "When there is still more behind him, he forgets to pull back his hand; when there is no road ahead, he thinks of turning back." Humans controlled by greed easily do not weep until they see the coffin.
Although I am an atheist and deeply resent religions brainwashing people, I am quite willing, like a true religious believer, to lower my desires to a minimum and restrain the greed deep within my heart. A person's ability to restrain his own desires must also be trained; it absolutely does not arise out of thin air.
Once this cancer of human nature is out of control, it can devour many beautiful things in a person and drag him into the mire of life. How many people, unable to overcome their own desires, suffer bitterly!