ABSTRACT
This initial chapter introduces a story about Chinggis Khan and how it triggered my research into evil. At around the age of 60 years, this brutal warrior participated in several dialogues with Ch’ang-Ch’un, a Taoist priest. The nature of the dialogues intrigued me, and I found myself also thinking about the interplay of good and evil. That people are capable of demonstrating seemingly opposite traits, such as being a ruthless conqueror as well as honoring a devout spiritual practice, has been explored by depth psychologists whose work I have read such as C.G. Jung, Marie-Louise Von Franz, Lionel Corbett, and James Hillman, to name a few. Relevant biographical notes concerning Khan’s life are included to provide historical context as well as my attempt to understand evil. Finally, my own fears about exploring evil emerged and it became clear that exploring the dialogues was going to require much deeper research if I hoped to be able to answer questions I had about the dialogues satisfactorily. This work became especially pertinent to me considering current problems such as the Trump phenomenon, homelessness, human trafficking, the history of slavery in the United States, a persistent climate of misogyny, and the seemingly deliberate damage to our planet.
