Heart Center of Intelligence Part 5
December 30, 2025
The Heart Center of Intelligence Part 5
The heart doesn’t ask permission before it fills with rage, grief, or joy. But we can choose what happens next. The heart holds our joy and our grief, our merriment, and our anger. Such strong emotions are real and valid. Frequently we cannot choose our emotional state because of the circumstances around us. For example, in wonderful events such as the birth of a child or grandchild, our joy is uncontainable. Likewise, when someone steals from us, we are naturally incensed and angry. Joy and merriment are welcomed emotions, but anger and grief are not usually so welcome.
Instead of being prisoners of our negative emotions, our hearts can be free from their disastrous effects. Herb was a victim of his own anger. He was let go and replaced by one of his boss’s friends. After nearly fifteen years in service to his company, he was falsely displaced under the name of “staff reduction.” Herb’s rage was overwhelming, and it increased to the point he had dreams of harming his boss. His heart was full of anger and resentment. But Herb had a change of heart when a dear friend who had gone through the same injustices several years before, came to the rescue. Jake shared with Herb how he channeled the virtue of serenity to heal his passion of anger.
The virtues and Holy Ideas are what we are made of, but we lose contact with them when we believe lies. Jake said to Herb, “Look buddy, you can stew in your own juice, or you can wake up and smell the coffee that your life is still thriving ... You are a living human who is strong, talented, and worth a lot. That did not change. Man, your skills haven’t been taken away because of what your boss did. There is another place for you, even better than the one you lost.” Thanks to Jake, Herb’s anger slowly morphed into a serene feeling that all was not lost. Then he had the energy to take the action of getting another job. His new place of employment valued him and was far better than the one he lost.
Spiritual practice: How do you channel your virtue? Channel it now and see how powerful it is against your passion.
Self-inquiry: What toxic emotion threatens to set up shop inside you today?
Prayer:
Dear God, I surrender my emotions to you. I am powerless against so many feelings that sweep over me. Anger is one of the worst of these. Yet with the flow of your spirit, I can transcend these toxic feelings. I pray for the awareness of my connection to your True Being. Amen.
