HEALTH MIND BODY SOUL
ANGER
How to deal with the reality of a universal
struggle I BY CHANDREA SEREBRO
RABBI YONI
LIPSCHITZ
– rabbi at
Mizrachi Shul,
businessman and
family man,
married for 20
years and blessed
with six children
Shlomo Hamelech, in Kohelet (Ecclesiastes) 7:9, teaches:
“Anger is the way of the foolish.”
Anger is a normal human emotion, but
when out of control, is a very dangerous
trait. Anger disrupts our relationships
with other people, affecting every aspect
of a person’s life. The book Orchot Tzaddikim explains that angry people are unaware of their actions when they are angry
and would not behave in this way if they
were calm and collected. Anger causes one
to think and speak irrationally. An angry
person is affected on a personal, social and
spiritual level.
The Talmud (Eruvin 65b) explains that
the true nature of a person is revealed by
how he behaves when it comes to: alcohol
consumption, business, and anger. No-
body wants to associate with an angry
person.The Talmud explains that someone
who creates an atmosphere of fear in his
household due to his angry outbursts is
likened to a murderer and people will do
anything to distance themselves from
such a person.
The core of an individual is his desires.
Anger is caused when a situation goes directly against a person’s desires. The reason a person gets angry is when the situation he finds himself in is perceived as
being “against me”.
Our lives are not only determined by
what happens to us, but how we react to it.
To combat anger a person must master
patience and humility.
Patience is the opposite of anger. The Hebrew word for patience is savlanut, which
means to “bear” something. Patience is
bearing the burden of one’s own wants and
desires. The goal of dealing with anger is
being able to bear the burden و