Questioner: How to control our anger? Should be reactive, somebody hurt us, or how to react in a way?
Acharya Prashant: There are two parts: One, how do we control or anger? Second, how do we react when somebody hurts us? You see in both these parts you are describing the moment of happening. The anger has already come. The hurt has already taken place. Now you are asking what to do? Couple of days I was asking somebody that you know, jogging is a good method to prevent heart attack but somebody is already in the moment of heart attack, would you advise him to go jogging?
In the moment when the thing has already struck, it becomes very difficult to do anything. It is impossible because in the moment of anger you are dominated by anger. In the moment of hurt, the mind is full of hurt. There is nothing else. It’s become very difficult to take action then.
But that’s how you operate. We do not ask how to live a life in which anger does not arise? We do not ask that question. We do not ask what is that mind, that does not get hurt? We do not ask that question. What do we ask? We ask how to control anger? Now controlling anger presupposes the presence of anger, right? And that has already come. Now I want to control it. What to do when hurt? You are saying, “I am already hurt”, now what to do? You are not asking how not to get hurt? What is it within me that gets so frequently hurt? How to live a life in which hurt has a little place?
When you are angry then you cannot do much. Then at best, you can watch your anger and that too depends upon the quality of the mind. Watching anger is not at all easy. Watching any emotion or passion is not at all easy. Do not wait for the moment to arise. Live life in a way in which these have little space to arise, that these do not find an opportunity to arise. We will have to understand what anger is?
