The energy of hate.

Over the last few weeks, I have thought a lot about the energy it takes to hold hate inside you.  For some people, it’s a flash.  For others, it seems as if generations of hate has been passed down.  Right now, in my personal feed on social media, there seems to be anger, as well as the energy of hate.  I am not talking about politics, I am talking about you, or someone you know, staying in this emotion of hate and how the long-term effects of this will begin to pollute not only your body, but your world as well.

Hate, fear and anger often go hand in hand.  Hate can be used to manipulate others into thinking that one way is the only way, and that to fit in with that particular group, you have to hate the same things.  But I caution you to pause and check in with yourself during this trying time.  It is important to stop and not immediately go into that other person’s hate energy.  Can you discern if those hate-filled words are being used to cause a feeding frenzy against a person/place/thing or whatever it is that you are being told to hate?

Hate can pollute your entire view of the world.  It can be a poison that runs deep in people you know and maybe even their family if they were raised in hate…but the interesting thing is this.  You have the power to choose my friends.  You do.  In researching what hate does to the body, I came across this TED talk and of course, had to watch it.  In this particular example, a man talks about the hate he was raised in, how he chose to overcome it and what it’s like to realize that you have more in common with people you are taught to hate than you realize.  Please watch this if you can.

I want you to ask yourself, seriously, if hate has a place in your life? 

I thought about this long and hard one day.  I was tired of holding a grudge and while I didn’t hate, I hadn’t forgiven someone either.  When I finally let go of holding on to that grudge, thinking about who was right and who was wrong and who had said what, it was very freeing.

Now here’s the thing about me…I burn pretty hot from being raised by a father who has a very hot temper.  I was raised by a father that yes, did use whippings and sometimes that kind of thing can cause you to have some anger issues.  As I started my studies in other religions, ways and people while becoming yoga teacher certified, I started to look at what is passed down.  We all have the power to say I don’t want to be like that (side note: I love my dad and he’s a good person, but he was raised like that as well).  We don’t have to carry generational anger or hate forward and if there’s proof you can break the pattern, I think Zak Ebrahim’s speech shows us how and why it’s important to move forward.  You are never too old to stop carrying that around.

What do you do when you feel hate or rage inside of you and want to snap?

1. Stop and think.  Is it worth it to have this feeling or you just reacting in old habits?  Take a deep breath and let it out and repeat that 3 times.
2. Is someone deliberately trying to provoke you?  If yes, why?  What do they gain?  If no, can you move on to another emotion?
3. Can you observe the thoughts and move from the ouburst to a calmer line of talking?  Sometimes gernerational behavior makes this difficult, but I want you to challenge your thoughts.
4. Go for a walk, do yoga, meditate and play music.  Be purposeful in your energy and change it.

It is easy to hate and it is difficult to love. This is how the whole scheme of things works. All good things are difficult to achieve; and bad things are very easy to get.     

~Confucius

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