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Vigilante Anger

Are you always getting angry? If you are, do you get angry because you want to punish others for their mistakes? Are you feeling an overwhelming sense of justice and feel it’s up to you to make the world a better place by correcting the wrongs of others? Maybe it’s time to reconsider your role and tactics for a better life and a better world.

Next time you get angry, take a beat and reflect on what’s behind it. Are you getting angry because the world is unfair? Does someone need to be corrected? Somebody didn’t behave as you think “they should”?

Road rage is a great example. You get cut off in traffic, but why did you get angry? Was it the act itself? Just having to slow down ever so slightly, or swerve to avoid getting too close? Probably not. Driving is all about adjusting speed and position of the car. So, what really made you angry? The injustice of it! The “crime” committed by the driver, which you, in milliseconds, have judged as being a menace to other drivers, incompetent and irresponsible. And in a flash, your amygdala takes over, your cortex is shut off. You’re no longer in control. You’re no longer a sane human being. You’re now a beast sent to punish the offender. You gesticulate, yell and, in some cases, get physical about it. You basically make a fool of yourself, put yourself and others in danger and achieve little of use.

The same goes for a misbehaving boss, someone taking your parking spot or your child being unruly. It’s not the act itself. It’s the need to correct the world. It’s a cry for justice!

Anger, however, is never the solution. When you’re angry, you’re stupid. It’s you at your worse operating conditions. It’s bestial and the results can be downright catastrophic.  Even if it really does befall upon you to correct the deviant behavior, doing it with anger is never the way to do it. Even those whose profession involves violence and punishment, such as soldiers, judges, martial artists and police officers cannot act with anger. Even if it’s your job to knock someone senseless or kill them, this must be done with a cool head, in full control of your senses.

There are laws, there are cops, courtrooms, internal rules in companies, schools, clubs, gyms, etc. There are people whose job it is to correct, reprimand and educate the waywardly. Let them take care of it. And, anyway, there is the law of karma (https://3tpath.com/teachings/what-is-the-law-of-karma/) and God. It’s pretty much covered. There really is no need for you to act as judge, jury and punisher in the streets, parking lots, office or at home.

So, work on that sense of justice. Don’t try to curtail the anger that results from it, because it’ll be too late by the time it flares up.  Instead, cut that source of anger at the root. Redirect your sense of justice, from useless flashes of anger, to intelligent action. Justice is needed. Justice is divine. But so is mercy, peace and kindness. Make your home a better place with education and patience. Make the office a better place with cooperation and mutual friendship. Make the world a better place by, first, being the best person you can be, secondly, seeing how to influence the political scene and nudge it towards greater fairness, equality and opportunity. There is so much you can do. And getting angry will only make the world a worse place, and your life more miserable.

In my book, “The 3T Path” (https://3tpath.com/books/), I explain in more detail the neuroscience of anger, how destructive it is, and how you can learn to quell its rise before you lose control of yourself.

Check out my video on this topic here:

 

Check out what people are saying about my book, “The 3T Path”: “Amazing book and life changing, full of good advice and philosophical timeless wisdom! I highly recommend it!” – Radha Krishna


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