In our everyday lives, regardless of whether we strive for spiritual upliftment or not, we encounter the vices that exist within our minds. And one of these vices is Anger. Whether it be from the accumulated frustration of previous events or envy and animosity towards others, we all possess some amount of anger within our minds. And while struggling to conquer this anger is a normal part of life, being angry all the time is not. Chronic, lingering, and uncontrollable anger is not normal. As you read this if you are justifying your anger with words such as, “I can’t control myself when I get angry” or “anger just takes over sometimes”, then you must make a change in your life.

The consequences of constant anger are not small. If a driver loses control of a car, the outcome can be devastating. Likewise, anger occurs when we lose control of our own mind, and it impacts every facet of our lives. When we are angry, our immune cells do not function. Stress hormones are released, and crucial pathways become deoxygenated and inflamed. Furthermore, chronic anger often leads to sudden outbursts; in the two hours following an outburst, the chances of having a heart attack are doubled and the likelihood of a blood clot in the brain leading to a stroke is tripled. But more importantly, anger strips our mind of any and all clarity. It robs us of our ability to see and think clearly. In that state of blindness, we are able to say hurtful things to our loved ones that we do not mean and wish we had not said. Every action performed with anger damages our lives and causes remorse.

Unfortunately, there is no pill or injection that we can take to cure anger. There is, however, one natural remedy: Meditation. Only through meditation can we gain the inner strength and willpower to calm our mind and conquer the vices that reside within it. It is only then that we can achieve our life ambitions and gain the control over our lives that we so desperately seek.