Wisdom for the Soul

ANGER

Indulge not thyself in the passion of anger; it is whetting a sword to wound thine own breast, or murder thy friend.
Khemetic Saying
Temt Tchaas: Egyptian Proverbs , Muata Ashaya Ashby, ed.

As the whirlwind in its fury teareth up trees, and deforms the face of nature, or as an earthquake in its convulsions overturns whole cities, so the rage of an angry person throws mischief around them.
Ibid.

A soft answer turneth away wrath.
Solomon
10th Century BCE, Jewish King, Writer
The Bible , Proverbs 15:1, Christian Sacred Text

He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty; and he that ruleth his spirit than he that taketh a city.
Ibid. , Proverbs 16:32

If you are patient in one moment of anger, you will escape a hundred days of sorrow.
Chinese Saying

One who controls occurring anger as one would a chariot gone off the track, that one I call a charioteer; other people just hold the reins.
Buddha
c.563-483 BCE, Indian Prince, Mystic, Founder of Buddhism
The Dhammapada , Thomas Cleary, tr.

Holding on to anger is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else; you are the one who gets burned.
Buddha

You will not be punished for your anger, you will be punished by your anger � Let a man overcome anger by love.
Buddha

He that will be angry for anything will be angry for nothing.
Sallust
86-c. 34 BCE, Roman Historian, Statesman

When in anger we reject other people, or turn on them with the aim of inflicting pain, we damage our souls even more.
Marcus Aurelius
121-180, Roman Emperor, Stoic Philosopher
The Spiritual Teachings of Marcus Aurelius , Mark Forstater, tr., 2000

How much more grievous are the consequences of anger than the causes of it.
Ibid.

Although you may spend your life killing,
You will not exhaust all your foes.
But if you quell your own anger,
Your real enemy will be slain.
Nagarjuna
fl. c. 1st-2nd Century CE, Indian Buddhist Philosopher, Founder of the Madhyamika School

Anger is a stone cast into a wasp's nest.
Malabar Saying

There is no passion so much transports the sincerity of judgment as doth anger.
Montaigne
1533-1592, French Essayist, Moralist

Angry men make themselves beds of nettles.
Samuel Richardson
1689-1761, English Writer

Whatever is begun in anger ends in shame.
Benjamin Franklin
1706-1790, American Statesman, Scientist, Inventor, Writer

For every minute you are angry you lose sixty seconds of happiness.
Ralph Waldo Emerson
1803-1882, American Poet, Essayist

Every wave of passion restrained is a balance in your favor. It is therefore good policy not to return anger for anger, as with all true morality.
Vivekananda
1863-1902, Indian Guru

Anger is a great force. If you can control it, it can be transmuted into a power which can move the whole world.
Sivananda
1887-1963, Indian Guru

Anger is a normal emotion if it is expressed when felt. Then it is over with. If one keeps a lid on it, it develops into resentment or hate. Sooner or later, resentment and hate explode, destroying others, or they are held in, destroying oneself.
Bernie Siegel
1932-, American Physician, Writer
Love, Medicine & Miracles , 1986

To function successfully in our complex world it is necessary for us to possess the capacity not only to express our anger but also not to express it � We not only need to know how to deal with our anger in different ways at different times but also how most appropriately to match the right time with the right style of expression.
M. Scott Peck
1936-, American Psychiatrist, Writer
The Road Less Travelled , 1978

If you don't find a way to express your anger, in a direct, constructive way, it will leak out as indirect, covert hostility, or it will eventually burst forth as explosive rage or violence. It might well attract you to angry people, with the unconscious intention of triggering your own anger.
Shakti Gawain
1948-, American Therapist, Writer
Return to the Garden: A Journey of Discovery , 1989

When you are angry, the chemicals of anger are synthesized and flow throughout the body, bonding to and influencing millions of cells. Soon the liver is angry; the white blood cellsare angry. If this is unhealthy anger – repressed or inappropriately expressed (as opposed to a positive cathartic release of pent-up feeling) – then the white blood cells and liver may become belligerent, refusing to perform their tasks. On the other hand, if you feel happy and secure, all of the cells feel happy.
Kenneth Cohen
1952-, American Qigong Master, Health Educator
The Way of Qigong: The Art and Science of Chinese Energy Healing , 1997

What I've learned about being angry with people is that it generally hurts you more than it hurts them.
Oprah Winfrey
1954-, African-American TV Host, Actress, Producer
in Robert Waldron, Oprah! A Day with Oprah , 1987

When there is anger or frustration in you or around you, instead of focusing on the anger, focus on the seed of compassion, focus on love and resolution. The thought form of resolution in itself sets up a resonant field that enables the mind to perceive methods of resolution.
Dhyani Ywahoo
Native American Spiritual Leader
Voices of Our Ancestors , 1987

But it is not the feeling of anger itself that will make changes. It is how you respond to it. You can take the anger that you feel and make it productive rather than raging. You can use it as a catalyst for addressing wrong with great energy and power.
Angel Kyodo Williams
African-American Zen Priest
Being Black: Zen and the Art of Living with Fearlessness and Grace , 2000

ANGER

This cross-index may help identify and delineate more closely subjective realities often hard to pin down.

Related states elucidate shades of meaning and amplify nuances of feeling
Syntonic elements foster and enhance well-being
Dystonic factors are contraindicated and should be minimized.

Related States & Conditions

Conflict/Opposition | Death/Dying | Depression/Despair/Despondency | Failure/Error, Fear, Feeling/Emotion, Grief/Sorrow, Hate, Impermanence, Insanity, Jealousy/Envy, Limitation, Loneliness, Oppression, Revenge, Shadow, Struggle, Suffering, Unconscious/Subconscious, War/Aggression/Violence, Worry

Syntonic

Acceptance | Appreciation | Attention/Awareness | Autonomy/Control | Balance | Cause | Centering | Compassion/Empathy/Kindness | Composure/Peace/Tranquility | Connection/Interbeing/Interdependence | Detachment | Equanimity, Expression, Faith, Flexibility/Flow/Flux, Forgiveness, Friendship, Giving/Serving, Health/Healing, Humor/Laughter, Introspection/Self-Knowledge, Learning, Listening, Love-Agape, Meditation, Moderation, Oneness/Unity/Wholeness, Reciprocity/Reflection, Release, Renewal, Respect, Restraint, Silence/Stillness, Solitude, Tolerance, Transformation, Truth, Understanding, Wisdom

Dystonic