The Buddha spoke of the five corruptions of this world:
The corruption of the age means that this a time when wars and natural disasters are rife.
The corruption of life means that our life span is short.
The corruption of sentient beings means that beings are debased in body and mind.
The corruption of afflictions means that compulsions and hardships caused by attachment, aversion, indifference, pride, and doubt are ever increasing, bringing trouble and chaos.
The corruption of views means that misguided, perverse opinions proliferate: that our bodies are entities that we possess; that we are annihilated after death or else live on forever; that there is no cause and effect; that our arbitrary opinions are best; and that we will attain liberation by our own subjectively chosen methods.
—Master Ou-i
Great Middle Way 