Feelings and Reality

There are many people who hate feelings. These people make this error: Denying themselves and others positive feelings while indulging in bad ones.

These people have not of course gone beyond feelings. They are constantly in the grip of one bad feeling after another. Jealousy, hatred, possessiveness – you name it. These people do not accomplish anything like rationality or enlightenment. Instead they deny people the benefits of good feelings while being completely controlled by bad ones.

No human being has ever fully overcome feeling, and no human being ever will. Feelings are inextricable from human makeup. Even people who meditate for hours a day do not ever get beyond feeling. They may achieve wisdom; they may achieve strength. But they will never be beyond being subject to feelings, whether these feelings be good ones or whether they be bad ones.

The sane way to deal with this matter is to recognize reality. People will have feelings. And then it is to make the most of this reality – encouraging and supporting the good feelings, confronting the bad ones.

The result will be better people and better world.