By Faye Martins and Dr. Paul Jerard, E-RYT 500, YACEP
How could you release anger through meditation? Anger is a very volatile emotion that grips everyone at one point or another. No matter how peaceful and rational an individual is, anger is an inevitability. Knowing how to handle anger is an important skill for everyone to have. Within every angry moment is the potential for positive change; we only need to learn how to find it. In our society, we are constantly sent mixed signals regarding anger. On one hand anger is vilified, and we are encouraged to repress it as much as possible. Those who experience negative emotions are somehow less than those around them; it’s not holy, rational or enlightened to feel anger.
Release Anger Through Meditation
Anger is one of the strongest emotions we can experience. It is often accompanied by a rise in body temperature, angry thoughts, and a desire to lash out at someone or something. Unfortunately, it can also lead to depression, anxiety and health problems down the line if not addressed properly. The good news? You don’t have to stay stuck in this state of anger. Through regular meditation practices, you can learn how to release anger and cultivate positive emotions instead. Let’s discuss powerful techniques for harnessing your anger through meditation so that you can move forward with more peace and calm.
Physical Warm Ups Before Meditation
When you are ready to boil over into a fit of anger it’s not easy to sit down and meditate. Movement helps us to constructively use energy that needs to be released. Before beginning a meditation practice, it is important to do some physical warm-ups to release any tension in the body. This will help you to be more comfortable and focused during your meditation.
Some simple physical warm-ups that you can do before starting your meditation practice include:
1. Taking a few slow deep breaths – Inhale deeply through the nose, expanding the stomach. Exhale slowly through the mouth, contracting the stomach. Repeat this several times.
2. Neck rolls – Tilt your head forward. Slowly and carefully roll your head from side to side, letting your chin drop down towards your chest with each roll. Repeat this several times.
3. Shoulder shrugs – Raise your shoulders up towards your ears, then release them down away from your ears. Repeat this several times.
4. Wrist and ankle circles – Circle both wrists and ankles in one direction for a few seconds, then circle them in the opposite direction for a few seconds.
Letting Go
It’s easy to get angry. Life can be stressful and overwhelming, and it’s natural to feel angry as a result. Yet, letting go of anger can be difficult. Fortunately, there are ways to manage your anger in constructive ways, such as through meditation. Let’s delve into the many benefits of meditation for releasing anger, from reducing stress to improving overall well-being. Additionally, we will cover some tips on how you can get started with meditating so that you can put an end to feeling frustrated and anxious.
What is anger?
Anger is a normal emotion that we all feel from time to time. It is an emotion that is characterized by feelings of frustration, hostility, and annoyance. When we experience anger, our body releases adrenaline and other stress hormones which can lead to a “fight or flight” response. While anger is a normal emotion, it can become problematic if it is not managed in healthy ways. Chronic or uncontrolled anger can lead to health problems such as high blood pressure, heart disease, and depression.
Managing Anger
Meditation can be an effective way to help manage anger. When we meditate, we focus on our breath and allow our thoughts and emotions to flow through us without judgment or attachment. This can help us to become more aware of the thoughts and emotions that trigger our anger. With practice, we can learn to let go of these triggers and respond to them in more productive ways.
The Effects of Anger
When we experience anger, it’s important to deal with the emotion in a constructive way. Otherwise, our anger can lead to negative consequences like arguments, hurt feelings, and even violence. One helpful way to deal with anger is through meditation. Meditation can help us to find inner peace and calmness, even in the midst of strong emotions.
Meditation as a Life Skill
When we meditate, we focus on our breath and let go of thoughts that may be causing or exacerbating our anger. This allows us to be more present at the moment and better able to deal with whatever is causing our anger. There are many different types of meditation, so it’s crucial to find one that works for you. If you’re unsure where to start, plenty of resources are available in this blog, online, or through your local library. Once you find a meditation practice that works for you, stick with it and make it a regular routine.
How to Meditate to Release Anger
When you’re angry, it can be tough to know how to calm down. Luckily, some proven techniques can help. One of those is meditation. Meditation is an effective way to reduce stress and promote relaxation. When you’re able to relax, it’s much easier to let go of anger and other negative emotions.
Here’s How to Meditate to Release Anger:
1. Find a comfortable place to sit or lie down. You may want to close your eyes if that feels more comfortable or relaxed.
2. Begin focusing on your breath. Notice the movement of the air entering and exiting your body.
3. Any time your mind begins to wander, gently bring it back to concentrate on your breath.
4. Continue for 5, 10, or 15 minutes or longer if you like. When you’re finished, take a few deep breaths and notice how you feel.
Tips for Releasing Anger Through Meditation
If you’re feeling angry, frustrated, or upset, meditation can be a helpful tool for managing those emotions. When you meditate, you allow yourself to become more aware of your thoughts and feelings. This can help you understand why you’re angry and find healthy ways to release anger.
Here are some tips for using meditation to release anger:
1. Sit or lie down in a comfortable place. You may want to close your eyes and observe your breath.
2. Allow yourself to feel the anger. Don’t try to push it away or ignore it. Accepting that you’re feeling angry is an important part of the process.
3. Try to understand where the anger is coming from. What triggers it? What thoughts and beliefs contribute to it?
4. Once you’ve identified the root of the anger, start questioning those thoughts and beliefs. Are they true? Do they help or hurt you?
5. Release the anger by visualizing it flowing out of your body and dissipating into thin air. Alternatively, you could imagine putting the anger into a balloon, letting it go, writing it down on paper, and then tearing it up.
6. Lastly, forgive yourself for being angry. It’s a natural emotion that doesn’t have to control you if you don’t let it own you.
Attaining Inner Peace
The concept of how to manage your anger through meditation takes practice. Although it may seem daunting, practicing mindfulness and mindful breathing can help you find inner peace and better regulate your emotions. Meditating can be a powerful tool for managing anger and living an overall healthier life by learning how to stay present at the moment.
The Power of Anger
On the other hand, anger is strongly associated with power and respect. In movies and on television, the protagonists often live out the mantra ‘Don’t get mad; get even!’ which makes them robust and attractive. People relate to them because they are doing what many wish they had the freedom to do; to act out on their poisonous emotions and stop denying it’s there. So, let’s begin conquering anger through meditation.
Anger in History
Media rarely paints an accurate picture of the toll anger takes on an individual; they only focus on the positive aspects of anger, which are boldness, daring, lack of inhibition, and sudden, decisive action. They choose not to portray the fatigue, depression, fear, ramifications of poor choices made in the heat of the moment, and loneliness that anger usually leaves in its wake.
The Risk of Ignoring
Those who meditate may inadvertently create a ticking time bomb of repressed anger within themselves without even realizing it. Starving an angry ego of power and attention through the process of meditation is usually enough to dissolve the underlying mind pattern of an angry reaction, but sometimes this is not the case. Occasionally, those who meditate grow used to ignoring their anger daily.
Poisoning the Host
Ignored anger has the potential to be much more destructive than blatant, direct anger because one has an outlet and the other does not. Living the old saying ‘A good fight clears the air’ certainly isn’t enlightened living, but at least the anger is experienced, regarded, and released. It doesn’t have the opportunity to accumulate and poison its host.
Observing Anger
Let’s understand how to observe and release anger through meditation. Firstly, you must realize this form of meditation isn’t for everyone. For many, it is a method for surpassing anger, but for others, the emotional pain is too much to bear. Instead of drawing away from the offense in this meditation, go as deeply into it as possible. Feel the pain, anger, and rage. Observe the mind without emotion as it rattles off various plots of revenge and retaliation against whoever caused your outrage.
Begin to Release Anger
Sit in a quiet place where there will be no interruptions. Breathe in and out a few times to get settled into the practice. Now breathe in, observing the anger, knowing it’s present and allowing it to be. Then breathe out, knowing that the emotion won’t last forever. Breathe in, knowing that anger causes as much pain to its host as it causes to others. Breathe out, knowing that you are infinitely more potent than any anger inside you.
Finishing the Session
Breathe in, feeling the anger fully. Breathe out, knowing that it’s okay to experience irritation sometimes. Continue in this manner, turning anger from pain to blessing. By making the anger itself the subject of intense contemplation, the anger is accepted, respected, and addressed. Through anger meditation, individuals must never be slaves to hidden negative emotions again. This leads to true joy and peace.
© Copyright – Aura Wellness Center – Publications Division
Click here to see our online Yoga Nidra teacher training course.
Are you an experienced teacher looking for YACEP credits or continuing education?
Subscribe to Our Newsletter for Special Discounts and New Products
Related Resources:
Cow in the Parking Lot: A Zen Approach to Overcoming Anger
The Anger Control Workbook (A New Harbinger Self-Help Workbook)
Do you want to become a yoga teacher? See our selection of affordable meditation and yoga instructor training intensive courses.
Thank you for this, as repressed anger caused me harm for many years, in many ways. Learning to accept it as a valid emotion, facing it and releasing it was truly transformative!
Thank you for dealing with anger meditation way. Vipassana meditation completely answers the remedy for good and bad thoughts. Every situation good or bad is not going to stay for long. It is bound to banish. With this attitude, one can overcome all types of body sensations.
Through anger meditation, individuals need never be slaves to hidden negative emotions again. This leads to true joy and peace. Thanks for sharing this valuable article.
Starving an angry ego of power and attention through the process of meditation is usually enough to make the underlying mind pattern of angry reaction dissolve, Thanks for useful posting!