A rotating panel of experts from the worlds of philosophy, psychology and religion offer their perspective on the dilemmas that come with living in Southern California.
Today’s question: Everyone gets angry. But at times, anger becomes uncontrolled. Even a traffic accident can result in a fatal argument. What can be done to hold anger in check?
The Rev. Ignacio Castuera
Senior pastor, Hollywood United Methodist Church
The power of imagining or envisioning needs to be harnessed to deal with anger, especially by those who live in urban settings where anger-causing situations abound. People need to exercise vision and imagination on a daily basis, placing themselves in their mind in situations of stress and anger and imagining themselves dealing with the situation peacefully and creatively. Athletes have been using imaging or envisioning for years to improve their pitching or tennis serve. Urban dwellers must use this proven method to save their lives and the lives of others. Visualizing peaceful responses will create peaceful actions.
The Venerable Dr. Havanpola Ratanasara
President, College of Buddhist Studies, Los Angeles
You have to look from the other man’s point of view. You have to ask, why did this person do that? Is he an enemy of mine or is he foolish or is he suffering from some problems? You may see immediately this may be a drunken man, or on drugs, or maybe a man without any particular kind of philosophy. People do these kinds of [violent] things due to misunderstanding. Anger is not at all good because anger makes your body deformed. When you are angry, your blood gets heated and your whole system is not working regularly. If you want to do the right thing, you wait and try to understand what this is.
Dr. Hassan Hathout
Author of books on ethics from an Islamic perspective and spokesman for the Islamic Center of Southern California
Voluntary self-restraint differentiates human from animal, as well as having the concept of good and evil. We share biology with animals, but it is not our biology that makes us human--rather our spiritual element. Unfortunately, social metamorphosis in our country extols the physical, the emotional and the selfish in us. “Do what makes you happy” is the ethos of the day. “Be what you are” is the cry, not “Be what you should be.” The industry of mind-making (education and media) should be reformed. Besides this preventive approach, legal punishment should be really a deterrent. Evidence is replete that our judiciary system often favors the criminal over the victims.
