Evil Intentions – Having the desire to deliberately cause suffering or harm to another

To remember the meaning of the term Evil Intentions, use the following mnemonic:

It was evil to squash them in a tent (evil intentions), deliberately harming them.

One of the golden rules of many religions, particularly Christianity, is to "do to others as you would have them do to you".

However, good intentions towards others are not universal. Some people or groups are intent on doing harm to others, for a variety of reasons that include territorial gain, racism, jealousy, political advantage, and simple greed.

Evil intention is not always clear-cut. For instance, someone might form the intention to steal, but only because they are extremely poor and their family is starving.

In war, there is deliberate intent to harm the other side, usually involving fatalities and life-changing injuries, but if the cause is just – e.g., the defeat of the Nazis in World War II – then this is not generally viewed as evil intent.

Adolf Hitler had an evil intention to take over Europe; the decision to declare war on Germany and rout the Nazis, knowing that it would result in huge loss of life, is viewed as a good intention rather than an evil one.

Most religions teach that good and evil are real forces and that it is easy for people to be taken over by evil and begin to form bad intentions.

For individuals, determining what intentions are good and what are bad can be problematic – where is the line to be drawn when it comes to, say, causing a little harm to avoid a greater harm?

Some religions, such as Jainism, take an extreme view, teaching that people should do no harm to the extent of avoiding accidentally walking on tiny insects and only eating produce that falls off trees rather than picking it.

Other religions permit war and other violence when it is perceived as being for the right reasons.