Using insight to assist others with anger etc

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Not two, not one, modified 4 Years ago at 9/1/19 11:16 PM
Created 4 Years ago at 9/1/19 11:16 PM

Using insight to assist others with anger etc

Posts: 1038 Join Date: 7/13/17 Recent Posts
Hi there,

Does anyone know of any anger management or personal development programmes that are based on insight? My motiviation is to use insight to help people get on top of embedded patterns of violence, dishonesty or bullying. For example, prison inmates.

I realise the simple answer is - the dharma!  But does anyone know of introductory programmes around concentration and self-reflection, for people who are trapped in self-destructive cycles of behaviour? I'm trying to avoid the current 'mindfulness movement' in favour of something that draws more on dependent arising (particularly contact, feeling tone, thirst, inflaming, urges) and not-self.  I hope to identify an existing body of practice that I could work within and develop.

Thanks in advance for any discussion or pointers!

Malcolm

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Edward, modified 4 Years ago at 9/2/19 3:19 AM
Created 4 Years ago at 9/2/19 3:19 AM

RE: Using insight to assist others with anger etc

Posts: 129 Join Date: 6/10/19 Recent Posts
Not exactly what you're after but if you don't know it, Ajahn Amaro's teaching on Dependent  Origination is really helpful. He convincingly frames DO as the eplanation for cycles of addiction so think it's relevant.

https://cdn.amaravati.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/29/Just-One-More-Ajahn-Amaro.pdf
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spatial, modified 4 Years ago at 9/2/19 7:14 AM
Created 4 Years ago at 9/2/19 7:08 AM

RE: Using insight to assist others with anger etc

Posts: 614 Join Date: 5/20/18 Recent Posts
I have found Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) to be useful in my own life. It is not Buddhism, but conceptually it seems quite compatible. I found it attractive because every other form of psychotherapy or self-help that I had looked into were clearly just reinforcing the knots of my self-concept that I could see were causing the problems in the first place.

There's a new book out:

https://www.amazon.com/Liberated-Mind-Pivot-Toward-Matters/dp/073521400X
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Chris M, modified 4 Years ago at 9/2/19 7:46 AM
Created 4 Years ago at 9/2/19 7:45 AM

RE: Using insight to assist others with anger etc

Posts: 5117 Join Date: 1/26/13 Recent Posts
Curious, there is an order of Zen Buddhism led by Roshi Bernie Glassman that is devoted to the practice of anger management and non-violence:

https://zenpeacemakers.org/

The Zen Peacemaker Order was to be based on Three Tenets: Not-knowing, Bearing Witness and Loving Actions; the Peacemaker Precepts, based on the Zen Buddhist precepts, were articulated by the Founding Teachers of the ZPO: Grover Genro Gauntt, Bernie Glassman, Joan Jiko Halifax, Sandra Jishu Holmes, Eve Myonen Marko, Wendy Egyoku Nakao and Pat Enkyo O’Hara. The Zen Peacemakers were intent on developing practices and skillful means to help people actualize these three tenets. They practiced meditation in an abandoned school site with stones forming a zendo, and developed rules and procedures for the ZPO.
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Not two, not one, modified 4 Years ago at 9/3/19 12:59 AM
Created 4 Years ago at 9/3/19 12:59 AM

RE: Using insight to assist others with anger etc

Posts: 1038 Join Date: 7/13/17 Recent Posts
Thanks!  Really appreciate the suggestions. I will look in to them all.
shargrol, modified 4 Years ago at 9/3/19 5:46 AM
Created 4 Years ago at 9/3/19 5:46 AM

RE: Using insight to assist others with anger etc

Posts: 2344 Join Date: 2/8/16 Recent Posts
I saved a link to this stuff a while ago, been meaning to investigate it fuller. It is much more anger therapy, but it might give you some ideas...

http://www.monamiller.com/angerwork.html
JP, modified 4 Years ago at 9/3/19 8:44 AM
Created 4 Years ago at 9/3/19 8:44 AM

RE: Using insight to assist others with anger etc

Posts: 175 Join Date: 3/31/17 Recent Posts
It's not specifically focused on just anger, but somatic experiencing and EMDR are two trauma treatment methods that both seem to make heavy use of insight methods for processing trauma-related emotions like anger, shame, and fear.  EMDR makes uses of impermanence by encouraging attention to alternate between trauma-related thoughts/feelings/images/memories and either eye movement or vibrations that rapidly change between the two sides of the body.  Somatic experiencing focuses on objectifying trauma-related body sensations like a flush of heat, tingling, tension, etc. -- but unlike choiceless awareness, the therapist will actively encourage the patient's attention to return to neutral or positive body sensations so that attention doesn't get sucked into magnifying trauma  reactions.  Somatic experiencing also includes explicitly noticing and communicationg the vedana of some sensations.

Not sure it's 100% applicable to front-line anger management, but I'd guess a lot of people with anger issues have a trauma history.

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