Old adages are a treasury of traditional wisdom. They are not adages for nothing. They are adages because they have stood the test of time.
People who are quick to anger repent at leisure. Anger is certainly not a positive trait. In fact, anger gets us into sticky situations more often than not.
Once our anger subsides, we begin to wish we never said or did whatever we said or did! So, it is much better to keep our cool and show a little more patience than to blow our top at the drop of a hat.
Much of human anger is impulsive in nature. Every other person you meet seems to be in a hurry to get angry. Many times, our anger gets triggered by our impatience to hear out the other person. We do not even wait for the other person to complete what he or she is saying. Anger resides in our minds because we are less than considerate towards our fellow beings.
Sometimes people deliberately stoke anger in us. They provoke us. If we are mature, we will see through the situation. We will not get provoked. An angry man’s actions and reactions are never sensible. We pawn our senses to the devil when we are angry.
Even when we are wronged unnecessarily, it pays to reason with the other person than react to what is being said. It makes no sense to react to a situation that demands only a response. When we spit anger, we vitiate and poison the atmosphere. We create bitterness and bad blood. Angry brawls often bring out the worst in us. And, demonstrates to us that neither party is new to shouting matches. Often it results in ugly situations where it becomes a prestige issue as a result of our ego problems. Once we reach that stage, it becomes difficult for either party to apologise or withdraw. Compromise becomes impossible. And, it results in prolonged enmity.
I am not saying that we should never get angry or show anger. We should get angry if the situation demands that we show anger. We should get angry if our anger is justified. Sometimes anger helps subdue our opponent when he or she is wrong and solves a lot of problems. But we must ensure that such anger is not uncontrolled. It is all right to show anger on your face, your voice, or in your behaviour if the situation warrants such a thing. But we must maintain our cool inside. We should never lose sight of reason. There is a huge difference between being driven by anger and showing anger just for the sake of posturing when the situation justifies your anger. Remember: it is always the person with a cool mind who has the upper hand.
You must have heard of the saying: ‘When angry, count a hundred!’ This is not just a proverb. This is the bedrock of wisdom. Because, it works. Because, by the time we count a hundred, we begin to cool off and good sense begins to prevail over us. By the time we count a hundred, we may even forget what we were getting angry at because it works as a diversionary tactic.
The fact of the matter is that in the ultimate tally of things, the person with a cool mind enjoys an upper hand. The person with a cool mind is always in control of the situation more than the person who gives in to anger easily.
