Overcoming anger and hatred

If you are a victim of anger and hatred, try to feel sincerely that these forces are your enemies. This is not imagination; it is reality. They are your enemies. Think of anger as a thief. When you are angry with someone, feel that your anger is a human being who has come to steal your inner wealth, your peace and poise. If you are wise, you will never allow a thief to enter into you. Think of hatred, too, as a human being who has come to rob you of your love, which is also your inner wealth.

When you know that somebody is a thief, immediately you take precautions against him. So you have to feel that your anger is a veritable thief, your hatred is a veritable thief. If you regard your anger and hatred in this way, then naturally you will always stand at the door to your existence and keep your door properly guarded. If you see a thief there, you won’t allow him to enter.

You have to feel and realise that there is no peace, no joy, no satisfaction in the anger or hatred that you are offering and becoming. When you offer anger, you have to feel that you have become anger. When you offer hatred, feel that you yourself have become hatred. The moment you want to give something to someone, feel that you yourself are that thing, and that is why you are in a position to give it. When you offer something to someone, you expect to get some inner satisfaction. But if you give anger to someone, he does not appreciate it and you also do not get any satisfaction from it. Now, when you give something to someone and he does not appreciate it, then you feel miserable. If your gift is not going to be well appreciated, then you don’t give it. You try to give something else, which will please the person.

Do the same with hatred. Feel that it is something you are offering to someone which he does not care for. Since he does not care for it, you will have to offer him other wealth. What he will care for is your love and your peace of mind. If you offer these qualities or some other divine qualities, naturally they will be appreciated. Let us think of a customer and a shopkeeper. If the customer does not want to buy what we are offering him, then we offer him some other thing which will please him.