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Understanding and love are not two things, but just one. Suppose your son
wakes up one morning and sees that it is already quite late. He decides to wake up
his younger sister, to give her enough time to eat breakfast before going to school.
It happens that she is quite grouchy and instead of saying, "Thank you for waking me
up," she says, "Shut up! Leave me alone!" and kicks him. He will probably get angry,
thinking, "I woke her up nicely. Why did she kick me?" He may want to go to the kitchen
and tell you about it, or even kick her back.
But then he remembers that during the night his sister coughed a lot, and he
realizes that she must be sick. Maybe she behaved so meanly because she has a cold.
At that moment, he understands, and he is not angry anymore. When you understand, you
cannot help but love. You cannot get angry. To develop understanding, you have to practice
looking at all living beings with the eyes of compassion. When you understand, you cannot
help but love. And when you love, you naturally act in a way that can relieve the suffering
of people.
From "Peace is Every Step . . .
The Path of mindfulness
in Everyday Life"
Bantam Books
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