I once heard of a zen master who would get extremely angry at his students, especially when they wouldn’t do as they were told. It is actually unheard of for a zen master to behave in this way, but this zen master would just say that “as long as I’m getting angry, you know that I am still alive.”
In this way, Shinzen Young, author of The Science of Enlightenment, and a person who was on the receiving end of this master’s anger stated that he wasn’t happy with the whole exchange, but later realized the wisdom of his master, which came through the use of anger.
In this way, I don’t say that it is impossible to feel negative emotions (like anger) and continue to be happy (I know it’s contradictory), but the way we get angry is the difference that makes all the difference.
As such, not everyone can just say “I’m happy while I’m angry” or experience any other negative emotions for that matter and stay happy. Yet, the mark of an expert is their ability to maintain a cool head despite whatever comes their way.
Reversely, I’m not referring to “toxic positivity,” which is an attempt to feel positive regardless of whatever happens in the world. People who do this don’t really understand the difference that makes all the difference and it is that we can feel negative, but we have to do it the right way.
I will admit that the “right way” to feel positive is hard to describe here as I consider it to be one of the “advanced” skills, only reserved for happiness masters. Still, I teach it in my masterclass Happiness Today & Forever, and you can learn it today!
For now, it is enough to state that most people can’t separate negative and positive emotions and they are slaves to their feeling, which is unfortunate, and destructive. I wouldn’t wish this on anyone in the world, despite the vast majority of people already feeling exactly this way.
Still, I hope that you (and many more people) can learn this essential skill in life as your well-being and enjoyment of life will depend on it!
