WISDOM OF THE WORLD - WEEK 69

Why We Shout When In Anger

A wise man was travelling with his companions when they came upon a group of family members on the banks of a river shouting at each other in anger. The wise man turned to his friends and asked.

'Why do people shout in anger shout at each other?'

His friends thought for a while, then one of them said, 'Because we lose our calm, we shout.'

'But, why should you shout when the other person is just next to you? You can as well tell him what you have to say in a soft manner.' asked the wise man.
The friends discussed the matter for a while but couldn’t get to an answer they all agreed on. Finally the wise man explained.

'When two people are angry at each other, their hearts distance a lot. To cover that distance they must shout to be able to hear each other. The angrier they are, the stronger they will have to shout to hear each other to cover that great distance.

What happens when two people fall in love? They don't shout at each other but talk softly. Because their hearts are very close, the distance between them is either nonexistent or very small...When they love each other even more, what happens? They do not speak, only whisper and they get even closer to each other in their love. Finally they even need not whisper, they only look at each other and that's all. That is how close two people are when they love each other.'

He looked at his friends and said.

'So when you argue do not let your hearts get distant, Do not say words that distance each other more, Or else there will come a day when the distance is so great that you will not find the path to return.'

WISDOM OF THE WORLD - WEEK 46

A STORY ABOUT ANGER

There was a little boy with a bad temper. His father gave him a bag of nails and told him that, every time he lost his temper, to hammer a nail into the back fence.

The first day the boy had driven 37 nails into the fence. Then it gradually dwindled down. He discovered it was easier to hold his temper than to drive those nails into the fence. Finally the day came when the boy didn’t lose his temper at all. He told his father about it and the father suggested the boy now pull out one nail for each day that he was able to hold his temper.

The days passed and the young boy was finally able to tell his father that all the nails were gone. The father took his son by the hand and led him to the fence.

He said “ You have done well my son, but look at all the holes on the fence. The fence will never be the same again. When you say things in anger, they leave a scar, just like this one.”

You can put a knife in a man and draw it out. It won’t matter how many times you say you are sorry, the wounds will always be there. A verbal wound is as bad as a physical one.

WISDOM OF THE WORLD - WEEK 30

A farmer and his three sons were working hard in the fields, when he realised he needed a message from the town. He sent his eldest son into the village, where the Buddha happened to be talking to the local people. The eldest son got caught up with the message of the Buddha and stayed to listen. The farmer got fed up when the boy didn’t return, so he sent another son to see what was happening. He too became interested in the Buddha’s message and didn’t return home. The farmer was getting most irritated as there was so much work to be done. “Go and see what is keeping your brothers and get them home straight away, he ordered the lad. Off went the youngest son, but coming across the Buddha, he too couldn’t tear himself away from the teachings.

By this time, the farmer was really angry. He stormed into the village and saw what was happening. He strode up to the Buddha and angrily, began to confront him. “What kind of teacher are you, that keeps honest boys away from their work. I have crops in the fields and they won’t bring themselves in.” The farmer ranted angrily for about ten minutes, while the Buddha just sat peacefully. At last, the farmer ran out of steam. “What do you have to say for yourself?” he challenged the Buddha.

“Well,” replied the Buddha. “If you gave somebody a present and they didn’t want it, who would the gift belong too?”

The farmer was nonplussed by the question. “What? It would still be mine” began the farmer, “but I don’t know what you are talking about”

The Buddha smiled at the man, with compassion. “I don’t accept the gift of your anger,” he replied.

Traditional Buddhist

LEG

A young man, 24 years old, had one of his legs amputated at the hip in order to save his life from bone cancer. He was very angry and bitter. It seemed to him that life was terribly unfair that he had to suffer such a loss so early in his life. His grief and rage were so great it took several years of continuous work for healing to occur; healing, not only of his body, but also his broken heart and wounded spirit. He worked hard, using many methods including art therapy. When he first started drawing, he made a crayon sketch of his own body in the form of a vase with a deep black crack running through it. He redrew the crack over and over again, grinding his teeth with rage.

As he slowly healed, he developed a profound compassion for others in similar situations and he began to visit others in the hospital, who had also suffered severe physical losses. Once he met a young singer who was very depressed over the loss of her breasts. She wouldn’t even look up when he came in. He visited her regularly. One day the young man came in and the radio was on. It was a hot day and he was wearing shorts. Desperate to get her attention, he unstrapped his artificial leg and began dancing round on his one leg, snapping his fingers. The girl looked at him in amazement and then burst out laughing and said, “Man, if you can dance, I can sing.”

Several years later, the young man was looking over his early pictures. He picked up the vase, ran his fingers over the crack, picked up a yellow crayon and drew light streaming through the crack into the body of the vase. He turned to his aide and said; “Our hearts can grow strong at the broken places.”

Our sorrows can heal, allowing us to grow into our fullest, most compassionate identity. When we truly come to terms with sorrow, a great unshakeable joy is born in our heart.