3 Purposes of Anger

There are 3 distinct reasons why anger arises.

             Anger is an intelligence.  It is our higher wisdom – our soul, our ‘higher self’ – speaking to us.  Until now, we’ve not recognized this.  And so we’ve not realized what it is saying.

1.         The first way in which most people begin to recognize that they are experiencing anger is this:  After a boundary has been breached.  The purpose of anger in this case is to alert them to where they need a boundary for their well-being.

            Most of us are clueless when it comes to knowing where we need boundaries – and what kind.  We’ve grown up in – and for generations contributed innocently to – a codependent culture in which we’re taught not to have boundaries.  Instead, we’re taught to overlook our own deep-seated needs and enmesh with each other’s miseries.

            Anger, in its most fundamental arising, identifies to us where our boundaries need to be – by identifying to us when these non-existent boundaries have been overstepped.

Anger is an intelligence.

It is our own higher wisdom – our Soul, our ‘Higher Self’ –

speaking to us.

            2.         The second way in which most people – as they become more sensitive and alert to the nuances of anger – begin to recognize that they are experiencing anger is this:  Before a boundary is about to be breached.  They are attentive enough to their inner guidance – their inner wisdom – to recognize that their anger is a premonition.  It is giving them foresight, encouraging them to erect a boundary before it is overstepped.

            As people wake up to anger, they become more empowered, as they stand in their sovereign self and claim the territory of their well-being.  This is the second purpose of anger – to aid them in this strengthening endeavor.

            For boundaries are what assist us to be in our integrity, our honesty – internal boundaries within ourself, and external boundaries in relation to the world around us.  Boundaries are what align us with our authenticity.  They keep us ‘plugged in’ to who we really are.

Anger is what

motivates us to grow.

3.              The third way in which people begin to experience their anger is purely pro-active.  This arising of anger is how our soul entices us to grow.      

            When we feel frustrated.  When we feel ‘fed up’.  When we feel like we can’t stand a situation any more – this is our soul nudging us to stretch out into a larger experience of ourselves and of life.  Anger is what motivates us to grow.

* Excerpt from The Power of Anger – Blasting Through Your Limitations.

Questions to Ponder:  When you feel anger, take a moment to reflect.  Which of the ‘3 Purposes of Anger’ is at play?

Curious about receiving personal mentoring in exploring your own questions regarding anger?

* Images with gratitude to buckeyepsych.files.wordpress.com and nottingham-therapy.co.uk