Learning In Action through friendship building, marriage preparation, and making mistakes and learning from it!
I found this interesting site recently: Susan Gammage, Baha'i Life Coach and here's what she says on the subject of avoiding anger.... it's something that I've thought about too - Here is anger, I need to avoid it like a lion. What would I do if a lion came around? I'd look at it and climb a tree is what I always came up with. But Susan goes further.....now I feel I need to understand anger better in order to be able to avoid it and it's effects. The same with jealousy.
Often when we've been hurt, our first response is to get angry; to want to punish someone as much as we feel we've been hurt, but Bahá'u'lláh teaches:
Anger doth burn the liver: avoid [it] as you would a lion. (Bahá'u'lláh, The Compilation of Compilations vol. I, p. 460)I used to think this meant I shouldn't feel it at all, but I don't think that's what it means. If I'm in a jungle and see a lion, I would be foolish to deny its existence. No – first I say: "There's a lion", what should I do now?"
I googled "How to Prevent a Lion Attack" and this is what I found:
o Mountain lions tend to avoid people, so if one seems to be approaching, try to give it a chance to escape.
o Look the lion in the eye (s) if it continues to approach you.
o Make loud noises. Showing your teeth and making growling noises may help.
o Make yourself appear bigger by raising up your jacket or other clothing and extending or holding up your arms.
o Stand up straight and stick out your chest.
o Pull children close, and if possible, put a small child on your shoulders to appear larger. If there are other adults, stand close together.
o If you feel you can retreat, back away slowly, and remember to never turn your back to the animal.
o Use anything within reach as a weapon and try to avoid bending or kneeling to get it. Mace or pepper spray, sticks, branches, rocks, a knife. If you have a bicycle, you can hold it up as a shield.
o Try to target an eye and jab it with your thumb (people who have done this have been successful) or use a weapon if available.
o Yell "lion" or something specific instead of just "help."
How do you think this applies to the quote by 'Abdul-Bahá? What does it teach us about how to avoid anger?