Anger held in the heart gnaws us
from the inside, wears us down, operating like toxic waste that has seeped into
our system. This leads us to a state of permanent stress. When we are nursing a
grudge constantly, we get into the ‘fight or flight’ situation. We are in a
continuous state that prompts us to either attack – give vent to our anger – or
escape from an unbearable situation. Our physical, emotional, psychological
and spiritual energies are so stressed, that we slip into overall
lethargy. This accelerates the ageing process. In this sense anger is the
extreme opposite of what was called the fountain of youth. One therapist calls
it "The Tub of Ageing"
Holding on to anger also taxes
our immune system – the complex system of immunity responds to stimuli from
within and without. Even a relatively minor ailment like a cold can challenge
the system and put it on high alert. External events like a traffic holdup, a
child’s stubborn behaviour, the harsh temper of a superior, or a quarrel with
your spouse, can have adverse impact on your immune system. Stress causes
insomnia – and so can bitterness.
We still can’t explain or even understand
how the body-mind-soul connection works. Our emotional turmoil is manifested in
our body. We wage war with ourselves. Doctors have a peculiar word, somaticise,
which means taking an emotional issue and unconsciously displacing it on to our
own body. The result can be anything from a perforated ulcer to a cancerous
growth.
Resentment, unforgiveness,
hostility, guilt, anger, and enmity cause diseases related to heart, lungs,
chest, stomach, intestines, ear, nose, and throat. These researches show that
repressed resentment, anger and being unforgiving lead to definite problems in
the organs of digestion, as well as in the head, eyes and ears. These negative
emotions are “bottled up” inside us, and we keep “swallowing” their toxic
contents, until they affect our health adversely.
Forgiveness sets us free. It
allows us to be freed from the grievances, penalties, and shackles of past
mistakes. It heals the one who forgives – and the one who is forgiven.
