The Cure for Anger

By Category: Buddhism in Everyday LifeTags:

Anger is distinguished from greed in that anger is a form of revulsion created by something we do not like while greed is a form of attraction brought on by something we do like. In this limited sense, and in this sense only, greed can be said to be “better than” anger. Greed at least has some positive components while anger generally has none at all.

Anger is one of the greatest obstructions to the successful study of Buddhism. Anger is a form of passionate ignorance. It is hard enough to learn when we are simply ignorant, but how can we ever learn if we are passionate in our ignorance? Only a quiet and receptive mind can learn. A mind raging with fire only burns its own fuel. For this reason, the Buddha often counseled his followers to beware of anger. All of us must learn to control and overcome anger.

Anger is a form of energy. 

The most basic way to cure anger is to see it that way. Remove all labels from it and disentangle it from all stories or excuses about why it is there. Seen purely as energy, anger is more easily put in perspective and controlled. Another way to control anger is to consider times in the past when you were angry. What do they matter now? Did they really matter then? After enough time has passed, recalling anger is like recalling the heat of a fire. There is a memory but no feeling.

The Mahaprajnaparamita Sastra says:

Overcoming anger brings peace to the mind. Overcoming anger leads to a mind without regrets. Anger is the source of the poisons that destroy goodness. All the Buddhas praise one who has overcome anger. When anger has been overcome, there no longer will be any anxiety.

The Saddharma Smrty Upasthana Sutra says that one who overcomes anger is loved by all and is delightful to see. His mind is calm, his face is pure and he is trusted by everyone. Once anger has been overcome, the sutra says, it follows naturally that one will be successful in upholding the precepts and in controlling fear, passion, criticism, harsh speech, and a tendency to complain or be bitter about one’s life. Overcoming anger is the source of much goodness. The merits that accrue to anyone who has overcome this vice lead to good circumstances in this life and a good rebirth after this life is over.

The Mahayana Samparigraha Sastra mentions five ways to overcome anger:

  1. Contemplate that since beginningless time you have been connected with all sentient beings in the universe.

  2. Contemplate the transience of life. Who is there to be harmed and who is doing the harming?

  3. Contemplate that only the Dharma is real and that there is no such thing as sentient beings. In this light, how can there be any such thing as harm?

  4. Contemplate that all sentient beings must suffer. In this light, why would anyone want to increase the suffering of another?

  5. Contemplate that all sentient beings are your children. Why would you want to harm any of them?

When all is said and done, compassion is the single best method for overcoming anger. The bodhisattva must learn to “be compassionate for no reason and to see all beings as being of one body.” 

If anger rises and you desire to harm another being, already you have harmed yourself far more than him. And that is why you must often think on compassion; for compassion keeps from rising all thought of anger, evil and pain.

— Meditation on the Three Contemplations Sutra

From Being Good, written by Venerable Master Hsing Yun.

Image from Pixabay.

More Featured Articles

The Buddhist Tradition of Protecting the Environment
Most people regard the Buddhist religion as conservative and passive. Many think that Buddhism only teaches people to meditate, recite mantras and be vegetarians. They do not associate the religion with active and progressive ideas such as environmental protection. In truth, Buddhism is a religion that embodies the spirit of environmental protection and it has a long history of being active in such matters, well Read more
Conducting Oneself for the Benefit of Others
If we want to understand what the Dharma teaches us about building affinity and living in harmony with others, we must first understand the four great all-embracing virtues. The Buddha teaches that for us to realize our true capacity of connecting with and serving our fellow citizens, we have to first build a good rapport, and the four virtues are tools to that end. The four Read more
To Think Positively
Humans are thinking animals! Since the beginning of time, there have always been people who fantasize, who have delusions, who dream—and many who have ideals. When we lie in our beds at night, we should be free from worry. Yet thoughts about our lives often arise then; thoughts about family, country, or even the world. Everything is within our minds.The average person often tends to Read more
Am I Really Like a Monk?
Given that I have become a monk, I have placed demands upon myself. My sense of leaving the secular and focusing on the path must surpass others; my sense of self restraint and doing for others must be strengthened. I must learn to endure disadvantage, and I must let others gain some advantage at my expense; I must learn how to be patient and how Read more
Only Setting the Tone and Not Becoming the Master
It seemed that I had to do every­thing for Buddhism. For Buddhism, I have to only set the tone and not be­come the master, hand over my physi­cal body to the temple and give my life to the Dharma protectors, heav­enly beings and nagas, and making the aspiration to head out for Buddhism, striving to move Buddhism to­ward humanity and society. It seemed then that Read more
The Humanistic Buddhist Practice of Meditation
In the practice of meditation, once you have developed meditative concentration it does not matter if you are walking, standing, sitting, lying down, carrying firewood, or bringing water—every single action can suddenly lead to enlightenment and seeing intrinsic nature. For true Chan practitioners meditation is whatever they see in their daily lives; it is everywhere. Read more
A Good Reputation
We should always try to see the good in others, not the bad. On the samsaric level of this saha world alone, back-biting and faultfinding are known by most people to be totally counter-productive. Not only does faultfinding produce nothing but anger and mistrust, but the effects of negative speech also create an environment in which it becomes difficult to do anything positive. Read more
Speaking with Kind Words
If we want to understand what the Dharma teaches us about building affinity and living in harmony with others, we must first understand the four great all-embracing virtues. The Buddha teaches that for us to realize our true capacity of connecting with and serving our fellow citizens, we have to first build a good rapport, and the four virtues are tools to that end. The four Read more
Music and Buddhism
Music gives us the capacity to express deep emotions. Whether through holy hymns or chants of praise, music is capable of uplifting the mind to an almost sublime state. As such, it has a significant role in the promotion of religion.All Buddhas and bodhisattvas are very skilled in utilizing music to teach the Dharma and guide sentient beings to enlightenment.Music has a very important function Read more
Putting Teachings into Practice
Dharma is for people. There is one thing about the Dharma that I am completely sure of: the Dharma is for people. The Buddha’s teachings are not a cold philosophy designed merely to rearrange the concepts in our minds, they are a living act of compassion intended to show us how to open our hearts. I learned this truth just as everyone must learn it—by Read more
To be Flexible
If someone is too tough or stubborn, one can say that they have a cold heart, or even a heart made of stone. But consider this: our teeth may be hard and rigid, but they will each fall out as we get older. On the other hand, the tongue more or less retains its form even after we die. In general, things can sustain themselves Read more
Not Lying
Trustworthy WordsIf you lie, you will not be trusted. If you cannot be trusted, you will be ineffective in your own life and useless to other people. Lies hurt others because they damage their trust and their sense of what is right and wrong. This is a very serious kind of damage; it wastes time, frightens people and causes them to doubt their basic intuitions Read more