Universe: Overcoming anger and anxiety

All of us struggle with disturbing emotions from time to time. They can be cunning and stubborn, often overwhelming us when we least expect it. Yet, within each of us lies a powerful resource — wisdom. This wisdom grows sharper and clearer when we take the time to reflect, question, and truly examine our minds.

When we make a sincere effort to study and reflect, we begin to see more clearly the nature of both our wisdom and our troubling emotions — such as anger or attachment. These emotions are not random; they arise from the mind’s tendency to believe that things are exactly as they seem, fixed and solid.

This grasping mind — convinced that everything exists just as it appears — is very forceful and persistent. Its close companion is the self-centred attitude, which can be equally stubborn. But if we become mindful and careful, we can gradually cultivate the kind of wisdom that sees things differently — that recognises things do not exist in the absolute way they seem. In Buddhism, this is known as the wisdom of emptiness. With steady effort, this wisdom becomes our greatest ally in overcoming disturbing emotions.

These emotions, and the traces they leave, act as obstacles, preventing us from fully realising our own potential. By nature, our consciousness is open and capable of vast understanding, but these obstructions veil the mind’s true brilliance. When we succeed in clearing away these clouds, the mind naturally becomes fully awake — this is what we call enlightenment.

It is important to remember that enlightenment is not some distant place or heavenly realm. Rather, it is the natural state of the mind, revealed in its fullest and most positive expression. To reach such a state, we start by working patiently to reduce our negative habits and gradually nurture positive qualities, one by one. Over time, there comes a point when these disturbing emotions no longer trouble us — they simply cannot return.

The Buddha’s teachings were never intended as mere philosophical speculation. Every teaching was meant to help people find practical ways to work with their own minds and emotions. To overcome anger and hatred, for example, the Buddha advised meditating on loving-kindness. To loosen the grip of attachment, he recommended looking at the less attractive aspects of what we desire. Logical reasoning can also help us realise that our belief in things as solid and permanent is mistaken. Ignorance is the root of such confusion, while the wisdom that realises emptiness is its antidote.

If we understand this, we see that disturbing emotions are only temporary visitors to the mind. They are not our true nature, and they can be completely overcome. When the mind is free from such defilements, its essential qualities — clarity, openness, and awareness — shine through. As our understanding deepens, so does our confidence in the possibility of reaching inner peace, nirvana, and ultimately Buddhahood. This discovery is a source of great joy.

Even if every being in the universe were to turn against you, they could not truly destroy your peace of mind. Yet a single surge of disturbing emotion can bring great suffering in an instant. This is why, in Buddhist teaching, disturbing emotions are seen as our real enemies — far more dangerous than any outside threat. If we give in to the demands of an ordinary enemy, that person might eventually become a friend. But the more we give in to disturbing emotions, the more they harm us.

With human enemies, even if you win a battle, they may return to fight another day. But when you have truly uprooted disturbing emotions with the power of wisdom, they cannot come back. Once you see the true nature of reality with clarity, these emotions dissolve — and vanish like mist in the morning sun.

— As told to Rajiv Mehrotra