Children, disaster unexpectedly strikes the lives of many of us. The sudden death of a loved one or unbearable financial losses can make us lose our mental balance. We may then feel overwhelmed by sorrow and disappointment.
If anyone is responsible for this pain, we might feel intense anger towards that person. That anger can lead to a strong desire to take revenge. However, if we are careful not to act indiscriminately, we can lead the mind back to the right path.
To do so, we must calm the mind at once. Only a calm mind can think clearly. Strong and uncontrolled emotions affect one’s discernment and impair one’s memory.
Hence, instead of reacting impulsively, we must calm the mind down first so that we can think clearly and ascertain the causes for the disaster that befell us. Amma remembers a story. A drunken driver knocked into a young man, killing him.
The young man’s mother could not bear the sorrow of her son’s untimely death. For days on end, she remained lost in memories of her beloved son. She was overwhelmed by grief, which slowly transformed into the desire for revenge.
She decided to kill the driver to avenge her son’s death. But when her mind became calmer, another thought entered her mind: “If I kill him, will my son come back to life? No. Not only that, I suffered unbearable anguish because of my son’s death.
If I kill that man, his mother and loved ones will suffer so much. Why must they grieve because of me? No one else should suffer the misfor.
