Transcending Insanity, Part Three: Patience
Buddhism Beyond Belief with Susan Piver
A Personal Story: Losing Temper in Traffic
Susan recounts a driving incident where anger dissolves upon seeing the humanity of others.
In this episode, I move on in our exploration of the Six Paramitas (“transcendent actions”) to the third paramita: patience.
There is a common misconception that patience means tolerating bad behavior or remaining silent in the face of harm. Instead, patience is a profound and active spiritual practice that can help us transcend aggression and stay present with reality as it unfolds.
Drawing on classical Buddhist teachings and a personal story about losing my temper in traffic, I talk about how we can remain connected to our own and others’ humanity—even in difficult moments—and why doing so is essential for a compassionate life.
Highlights:
- What Patience Is (and Isn't):
- Not about tolerating wrongdoing or suppressing anger.
- True patience is the opposite of aggression—it’s about staying present and not shrinking the world to your anger.
- A personal story of losing patience
Two Keys to Patience:
- Staying connected to humanity—even when angry.
- Letting go of expectations.
Three Forms of Patience (from the Buddhist tradition):
- Overcoming Others’ Destructiveness – Meeting aggression without adding more.
- Realizing the Nature of Aggression – Seeing the pain behind harmful actions (in others and ourselves).
- Individual Examination – Resisting assumptions and prejudice; seeing each situation and person freshly.
War has never led to peace, and hatred has never resolved anything. We must learn to fight injustice without aggression.
Cultivating patience begins with how we relate to our own inner experiences.
What would happen if you responded to frustration or criticism without expectations—and stayed open to the humanity behind every interaction?
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Produced by Citizens of Sound
Music by: Derek O'Brien
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