The Book of Life

Negative thoughts in a person’s mind are always reactions. If someone says something harsh, you become angry. If you experience something unpleasant, you become agitated. If your dignity is insulted, revenge sparks within you. These very reactions, which begin in the mind, ultimately lead to conflict and violence. In this context, the only effective way to prevent both personal disputes and larger-scale wars is through the education of people’s minds. People must be trained in the mindset that religion refers to as patience. This can be achieved when negative thoughts are replaced with positive ones. People should learn not to be provoked by inflammatory words. Instead of engaging with unpleasant things, they should learn to avoid them. They should respond to hatred with love, and make decisions based on calm reflection rather than emotional turmoil. The reform of the mind leads to the reform of action, and the building of the mind is the building of life. AN UNAVOIDABLE REALITY Anne Brontë, the English novelist (1820–1849), wrote with realism. One of her sayings is: “There is always a ‘but’ in this imperfect world.” This is a wise truth. The world was created as a place of testing, so perfection cannot exist here. There are many