Seeds of Anger, Despair, Negativity

We all have a seed of anger,

a seed of despair,

and a seed of jealousy in us.

If you live in a negative environment,

the environment can trigger these seeds.

If you live in a positive environment…

the [negative] seeds … are not touched,

not watered easily.

So it is wise … to choose a good environment

that will prevent … negative seeds

from being touched often.

When you read an article full of violence

or watch a violent television program or film,

you turn on the seed of violence.

The first step of diligence

is not to turn on these negative seeds …

not to allow the environment

to turn them on.

The second aspect of diligence

is calming and replacing negative seeds

that do manifest in your conscious mind.

When a negative seed is triggered …

you need to … help it stop manifesting

and return to its original form as a seed.

Don’t let it stay too long …

because … it will grow stronger

and cause a lot of destruction.

There are many ways to calm

a negative energy …

recognize it … smile to it …

invite something nicer to … replace it.

The Buddha … used … a peg …

to attach two pieces of wood.

When the peg is rotten,

it cannot hold … two pieces together,

so he removes the old …

and replaces it with a new peg…

The third aspect of diligence …

always invite good seeds to manifest …

a seed of love, a seed of forgiveness,

a seed of joy, of peace, of happiness …

touch them and help them manifest.

—Thich Nhat Hanh, The Art of Power