Practice, Practice, Practice

If we ask ourselves whether we are happier when we are angry or when we are calm, the answer is very clear. Knowing the answer, why do we so often end up becoming angry?

Unfortunately, while we know the principle, we have not yet learned to consistently control our thoughts and the ensuing emotions. So there is a gap between our knowing and our acting accordingly. Usually, a big gap.

Just like the man who stopped someone on a street in New York and asked how to get to Carnegie Hall and was told "practice, practice, practice," we too need to practice. Not just when conditions are good; but more importantly, when we feel all the bad habits arising within us. 

Our mental afflictions and bad habits do not go away on their own, as most of us have probably noticed by now. It takes hard work and sustained effort to weaken, lessen, and eventually eliminate them over time.

To accomplish this, we need to listen to the teachings so we will have regular reminders of the importance of this work and of how to proceed. We also need to remember to not get hooked by those situations and people that consistently elicit our repetitive, harmful reactions. Then we need to practice the teachings by incorporating what we hear into how we act. With time, this incorporation will occur more frequently and last longer.

And gradually, with "practice, practice, practice," we remain calm in the face of situations that would have angered us in the past.