Reconsidering the power of anger as a positive and necessary tool for achieving spiritual liberation and social change.
For many Buddhists, anger is often thought of as a root cause for suffering and lasting, negative repercussions. In American culture at large, anger-particularly among men of color-is delegitimized, demonized, or "supposed to be" suppressed. In this book, social activist and Kagyu lama Rod Owens offers a different understanding. For Owens, anger is one of the most important aspects of his personal identity as a Buddhist, social activist, African-American, and gay man. When denied or repressed, unconscious anger can have a negative impact with destructive repercussions. But when recognized and used mindfully, it can be a positive source of vitality, courage, and dedication as one travels the path of spiritual and social transformation. Anger serves as protectorate role as a bodyguard for our personal pain and suffering. When recognized and handled with attention, love, and compassion, it can be a powerful mobilizing factor in our solidarity and commitment to enacting social change. However, too many activist communities have an ill-informed, immature, and romanticized relationship to it. What is needed, says Owens, is a relationship to the heartbreak of anger that is embodied, nondestructive, and deeply healing for all. In this book he offers personal insights, stories from others, as well as Buddhist teachings and meditations for tapping into anger's liberating potential.
