Last week, while discussing corona protests, I made a sudden remark: Anger knows no morality, or in Dutch: “Woede kent geen moraliteit”. I made a note of that remark as I sensed a blog topic. Subsequently, I wondered whether the Dark side has its own version of morality. I suppose these are called vices.
Late 2012, I experienced my first-ever blind rage due to an incident, in which I feared losing someone I loved. For a few seconds, I wanted to kill a third person. After several seconds, I regained control over myself. Those seconds felt like minutes. It took me immense willpower getting control over my emotions.
The above incident is an example of a quote by Yoda, a “fictional character in the Star Wars universe”:
“Fear is the path to the dark side. Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to suffering. I sense much fear in you.” Yoda, a Jedi Master, speaking to Anakin Skywalker.
Anger is an example of the Dark side’s vices. The other six vices are: arrogance, envy, gluttony, greed, lust and sloth (source). I suppose vices are like a dark morality, apart from being the opposite of virtues. These seven deadly sins were the central theme in the 1995 movie Seven (rated 8.6 in IMDb).
For a long time, I’ve been an angry man due to a failed marriage. I was able to compartmentalize my anger, which is “a psychological defense mechanism in which thoughts and feelings that seem to conflict are kept separated or isolated from each other in the mind”. Hence, my anger never took over the whole ‘me’.
Without (psychological) compartmentalization, anger will consume you and “become” you. Anger will become the fuel that burns your mind and soul. Hence, I very much doubt the validity of this quote:
“Use your anger for good. Anger to people is like gas to the automobile – it fuels you to move forward and get to a better place. Without it, we would not be motivated to rise to a challenge. It is an energy that compels us to define what is just and unjust.” Arun Gandhi, 5th grandson of Mahatma Gandhi
Sometimes, I wonder whether governments deliberately provoke (our) anger in order to be able to use force to crush protests. More often, I consider stupidity as the reason behind human behaviour.
Cortez the Killer (1975) by Neil Young
artist, lyrics, video, Wiki-1, Wiki-2
Hate was just a legend
And war was never known
People worked together
And they lifted many stones
And they carried them to the flatlands
But they died along the way
And they built up with their bare hands
What we still can’t do today
Note: all markings (bold, italic, underlining) by LO unless stated otherwise.
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