How to Defeat the Enemy According to Buddhist Wisdom

"Even the worst enemy cannot hurt you as much as your careless thoughts," Buddha said.

Eastern philosophy schools look at conflicts and even the concept of victory over an enemy in a completely different way from Western ones.

In particular, the destruction of the enemy or the deprivation of his honor and dignity are not considered a victory at all. To win means to neutralize those who want to harm and, if possible, to do so in such a way as to turn the enemy into a friend.

To us, such a conflict approach may seem very strange. Unfortunately, most people believe that victory over their enemy is something that can bring joy and happiness in itself (regardless of the method by which this victory was achieved).

This view stems from the rather damaging idea that the outcome is more important than the path that led to it. Not surprisingly, revenge becomes more important to them than personal growth.

The problem is that defeating the enemy with the help of negative, aggressive, and violent means brings only a very temporary and very relative triumph. When we try to deal with the enemy, not only do we harm the offender, but we also nurture the most negative part hidden in the depths of our souls.

Yes, by winning by such means, we can experience short-term joys and satisfaction, but at the same time, we strengthen all the destructive emotions that were previously hidden within us.

What enemies are we fighting - externally or internally?

Enemies can be both external and internal. Internal enemies are often much more dangerous and destructive than external ones. Emotions such as anger, pride, hatred, and so on are among the internal enemies.

The inner enemy can strike us in the most vulnerable place. And he does it at the most inopportune moment.

External enemies begin to overtake us only when they succeed in awakening internal enemies within us. Why? Because when we are caught up in anger or hatred, we lose our most important advantage: intelligence.

Thus, the main thing that the philosophical schools of the Orient learn is that we cannot truly defeat the external enemy unless we defeat the internal ones.

And if we do not do this in advance, then during the conflict we will be completely subject to the influence and determination of the external enemy. With our own hands, we bring him victory. On a silver platter.

The real enemy

The Buddhist school of philosophy is also trying to help us understand who the real enemy is. She points out that in most cases, she is not at all an envious, selfish, or overly ambitious person who is trying to hurt you.

The real enemy and the most dangerous are those negative emotions that we have to deal with. The very emotions that lurk in our souls. The very emotions that can be aroused at the most awkward moment… if we let them do it.

"To direct a person to the path of evil is capable only of his mind, but not of his enemy or adversary," Buddha.

To defeat the enemy, we must overcome these feelings and emotions, no matter by whom they are directed. Zen Buddhists believe that our actions can bring order or chaos to this world. And it's up to us what.

Any active conflict inevitably leads to chaos, which sooner or later affects us - and, as you can imagine, it is by no means positive. Each action provokes its reaction, which means that acts of hatred only increase that hatred. And who knows, when will he return to you?

Buddhism teaches us that any conflict is, in fact, meaningless, take away our strength, time, and energy, and gives us nothing in return, leading the world to destruction.

How to defeat the enemy

According to Zen teachings, any action aimed at defeating the enemy must aim at neutralizing it. To neutralize means to block their ability to harm you.

Not only Zen practitioners but also martial artists are aware of the futility of conflict: they know full well that the best way to win is to completely avoid fighting. And the real victory is that as a result of which both sides have the opportunity to learn something and become better.

The best strategy in this regard is to make the enemy understand that he is only wasting his time and effort, and his hatred is useless because it does not hurt you.