I have always felt that one of the most important aspects of spiritual health, is the ability to forgive our transgressors. It seems to be the thing that is the most easily said, and yet the most difficult to achieve. This is, I believe, because of the way many of us deal with anger. When someone takes a physical of intellectual action against us, we, as humans, have a tendency to become angry, and hold that anger close, like a beloved pet, stroking it again and again, as it purrs it's reassurance that we are the ones that are in the right. It whispers in our ears, that we have been treated outrageously, and must "get even", to ever reach any type of catharsis, and only after that, will our life be set right. There is, however, a serious flaw in this scenario: if you put a container on one side of a scale, and fill it with bile, and then, to balance it out, add a container of bile to the other side, while things appear, on the surface, to be even, all you really have is twice a much bile.
When we hold a grudge against anyone or anything, it is a weight on our soul and on our being. It is, unfortunately, only felt by those who carry it, and generally ignored by the objects of their annoyance. Day after day, it rides on our shoulder, and seems to grow, many times out of proportion to the original affront. Finally, it spurs us to take action, and rather than the sense of closure we have been searching for, we find ourselves more empty than before. This can, in turn, begin a downward spiral, seriously affecting our spiritual wellbeing, physical wellbeing in the form of dis_ease, and our ability to interact with those around us, by causing cascades of internal dialogues, which drown out the voice of our higher being, making any meaningful communication beyond the physical realm, all but impossible. If, instead of acting on these feelings, we choose to repress them, the results are essentially the same. What then, are we to do? I can only offer what works for me, and hope that it may have some value to others as well.
When a person or situation causes me to become angry, I have conditioned myself to stop, and take a few deep breaths. I begin seeing my anger as a bird laying in my hands. At this point, either physically, or mentally, I throw my hands up into the air and say, "Be free!" I then picture the bird flying up and disappearing into the sky, symbolically merging with the energy of the Cosmos. When this is finished, I can physically feel that a weight is gone from me. If you try this method, I would love to have some feedback, with the results. I can be reached at firesisle@yahoo.com. Best of luck in all you do.
Bright Light and a Short Journey,
-Firesong
