Floods of View and Ignorance
There are two other floods: of view (ditthogha) and of ignorance (avijjogha). "Views" refer to the instinct we have to hold beliefs, opinions and dogmas in order to gain a standpoint. They could be anything from "Buddhism is the best religion" to "The liberal party is fair and just and seeks for the welfare of the nation" to "Women are hopeless drivers" to "Our nation is the source of truth and harmony in a brutal world". Or a view could be a lot more personal, "I am a Taurus and that means that I will get on well with Scorpios". Such broad-brush generalisations form an easy basis for our decisions, loyalties and world-view. And so, throughout history, societies have adopted views such as, "There are witches who consort with the devil and bring blight onto the crops and plague into the city". Or they have adopted the view that Jews are a contamination and should be eradicated; or that communists are infiltrating...