How To Calm Down When Angry: Ways That Actually Work | Bodhi Meditation
We all experience anger. Sometimes it comes from frustration, irritation, or stress. When handling difficult situations, it’s perfectly normal to feel anger building up from time to time.
Although anger is a normal (usually healthy) human emotion, it can have negative impacts on our relationships, health, and overall quality of life.
When our emotions constantly go out of control, we not only alienate co-workers, friends and family, but increase the risk of serious illness or death.
You may be wondering: How to calm yourself down when angry? How to help someone with anger issues calm down? Is there a way to control my emotions and have many successful relationships?
Learn how to calm down when angry. Improve yourself and improve your life!
How To Calm Yourself Down When Angry?
1. Be Broad Minded
What does it mean to be broad-minded? Being broad-minded means welcoming and accepting new ideas or information that we typically do not align with. It means opening your heart and your mind to new perspectives and possibilities. It is an important part of learning and personal growth to be able to listen to others with a peaceful heart.
Living in a polarized world, a narrow mind easily creates arguments and harbours resentment. If you’re broad-minded, you’re free of anger. If you are knowledgeable, you can understand others. If you understand others, you won’t get angry easily.
If a baby scratched you, would you punish him? The answer would definitely be no. Because he’s an innocent baby who just wants your attention and love. We should learn to treat others in the same manner with which we would simply forgive a baby.
Bear the unbearable. Do the undoable.
Be broad-minded. Accomplish great things.
Our mind is as broad as the ocean, containing everything.
From this moment, our world and mind then change for the better.
—— Excerpt from: Broaden One’s Mind To Change One’s Inner Self
2. A Self Reminder
Have a phrase to fall back on in critical situations to remind yourself to calm down when angry. For example, as a couple celebrated their 50-year anniversary, the husband shared four magical words to overcome all hardships and obstacles in their relationship – “just bear with it.” These four words were the secret behind their long lasting and successful marriage.
Asking yourself a quick question can allow rational thoughts to lead to better outcomes. Find one that is helpful, it can be: “What do I need right now to calm myself down from anger?”, “Will this matter to me this time next week?”, etc.
When encountering difficult scenarios in life, we should try to make the best out of everything. Think of it as a test of your endurance and tolerance towards others. It’s a test to see who can make it to the end!
So, how to calm down when angry? Start to remind yourself to calm down at the instant you feel emotions building up. Train your endurance and tolerance for better relationships with yourself and others!
3. The Power of Tolerance
The virtue of ‘tolerance’ is one of the The Six Perfections in Buddhism. Understanding and practicing tolerance allows us to transcend the petty, ordinary, egotistical self to become a selfless and compassionate person.
All experiences in life, be they good, bad, joyous, painful or even boring, are important elements that constitute the person we are today. Learning to be patient and accept reality can make us feel empowered, more in control of the present moment, and more at peace with ourselves.
Tolerance allows us to treat all good and bad situations rationally; treat others with compassion and patience; and treat every phase of life with sincerity and gratitude.
How to calm down when angry at someone? Build tolerance in your life and bid goodbye to anger and stress!
How To Calm Someone Down From Anger?
Most of us want to help our loved ones calm down when they are stressed, angry, or hurt. The most powerful tools are your voice and your presence. Make sure to speak with compassion and gentleness. Speak gently and with warmth, acknowledge their distress, maintain a positive mindset, and slowly you will calm them down.
Sometimes, actions speak louder than words. Offer comfort through your presence. Patiently wait as they calm their emotions down. Show your understanding, support and willingness to help. Do what you can from a place of love and compassion.
4 Ways To Calm Down When Angry
It’s a normal part of life to experience different emotions.
But how to calm down anger and stress? Being able to calm yourself down in the moment is often easier said than done.
That’s why familiarizing yourself with a few ways to calm down can help you to manage your emotions better.
Here are some helpful tips that you can try to calm yourself down!
1. Seated Meditation
Many illnesses are caused by negative emotions such as stress, anger, annoyance, sadness, frustration, hopelessness, and anxiety. When these negative mental issues block your body, your physical functioning becomes hindered.
If the blockage is in the brain, it hinders your wisdom. People find it more difficult to control their temper and emotions; lacking inner peace and getting angry over nothing.
Meditation helps slow down our reactions to our negative emotions and give us time to see ourselves clearly, allowing us to choose how to respond better to situations or people that might upset us.
Meditation clears our mental obstructions, offering physical and mental joy and ease. Consistent practice clears your mind and softens our body, mind, and heart, from inside out. Your family and colleagues will find you more approachable because of your happy mood.
Want to try some meditation? Have a sit, gently close your eyes. Allow Grandmaster JinBodhi’s empowering voice and soothing music in The Meditation of Bone Melting to melt away your stress and worries.
Curious about the true meaning of bone melting? In this short dharma teaching, Grandmaster JinBodhi would tell a magical story, uncovering the mystery of bone melting!
Listen to a sample: https://www.cibeiyin.com/en/v102010010004?___SID=U
2. Chanting and Mantras
Chanting is a special method that not only benefits health, but also enables us to access unspeakable, endless energy and wisdom. Frequent chanting brings peace and tranquility to the soul. Focus your mind and visualize that each cell within you is pure and sincere. Each cell is saying, together with you: “I am most compassionate! I am most happy! I am most healthy!” Fill yourself with an enormous amount of positive energy and start chanting. —— Excerpt from: How To Use Visualization While Chanting
Sincerely chant to The Earth Store Bodhisattva’s (Ksitigarbha) Heart Mantra; connect our ordinary human hearts with The Earth Store Bodhisattva; obtain blessing, protection, purity and calmness for the body and mind. Let’s all chant our way to health and wisdom!
3. Energy Bagua within Nature
Being away from a stressful environment, breathing the fresh air and connecting with the natural environment is a natural stress-relief method.
By simply walking around a tree, Energy Bagua is an exercise that can quickly replenish vitality, improve immunity, lose weight, improve a cold constitution, etc.
During Energy Bagua, our movements, thoughts and visualizations are maintained in a state of ease and kindness. Throughout this process, the body can automatically absorb, adjust and balance energy; transforming negative emotions into positive energy.
Check out our website to learn more about the philosophy, origins and features of Energy Bagua, or watch our introductory YouTube video.
4. Listen to Calming Music
Music is a universal language. It has been powerfully entwined with spiritual, emotional and physical wellness since time immemorial.
Harmonious sound connects quite literally with the heart, a truth to which a multitude of Bodhi practitioners would attest: Grandmaster JinBodhi’s profound healing music has the power to connect with body and soul, facilitating deep emotional and physical wellness.
Sit in a most comfortable position and listen to Grandmaster JinBodhi’s “Beyond the Worldly Mind;” relax your body and mind, purify your soul.
Take a deep breath and exhale; let the gentle melody calm and soothe your emotions, reconnecting you with Nature.
The Bottom Line: The Best Technique To Calm An Angry Mind
Meditation is beneficial in understanding the inner-self. Through the accumulation of energy, we will have better control over our emotional state and also self-awareness of rights and wrongs.
Read through the testimonials below to see how participants benefit from Grandmaster JinBodhi’s teachings and meditation practices!
Singapore | Ning Gang: Meditation Releases Physical and Emotional Strain
When I started practicing The Meditation of Greater Illumination, I found my mind undistracted and free from tension, and even my breathing stabilized. During the classes, listening to Grandmaster JinBodhi’s dharma teachings gave me peace.
On the second day of the retreat I experienced spontaneous fasting, a phenomenon that occurs through meditation. Despite little to no intake of food and reduced sleep, one still feels energetic. While fasting, I felt full of vitality and my weight dropped to 62 kilograms (137 pounds).
After the retreat, I continued to practice The Meditation of Greater Illumination and at least two and a half hours of full prostration a day. I began to let go of my arrogance and stubborn ways, embracing imperfection for the first time in my life.
My mind expanded because of Grandmaster JinBodhi’s teachings. These days I’m happy, and have become gentler and more patient. I’ve learned to respect, empathize with, and listen to my employees. My staff commented that I am a positive person now.
I will continue introducing people to Bodhi Meditation, so that they may enjoy health and happiness as I am.
Ru Xiang | Los Angeles: Better Hearing Calmer Mind
I teach at a high school and the stress of dealing with workplace challenges really got to me. Whenever I felt extremely stressed, which was often, my heart would race. During the Energy Bagua foundation course, at first I struggled with fatigue and a lack of concentration.
After a few weeks, I realized that my emotional burden was lighter and I became calmer. When encountering problems, I didn’t feel nervous and my heart rhythm remained steady.
Energy Bagua is an easy-to-practice form of walking exercise. It has become a regular part of my routine. I highly recommend everyone experience Energy Bagua to reap a wealth of unexpected benefits.
I grew up in a high-altitude plateau area; after moving to Los Angeles, the change in altitude caused my hearing to decrease – sometimes I could not even hear my students. Yet after three months of practicing Energy Bagua, my hearing improved.
I’m thrilled at the positive changes that this simple yet wonderful practice has brought to my life.
The secret behind how to calm down from being angry? It’s simple!
Grandmaster JinBodhi reminds us that tremendous tolerance is a vast and broad mind like an ocean containing all rivers, all external things. If one wants to have energy and wisdom, we need to learn to accept and tolerate – compassionate tolerance.
Courageously face life with such compassion and Universal love. Many afflictions of ours will be easily resolved!
Now you know all the tips on how to calm down when angry. May your life be filled with love and happiness!
