The Fourth Law: The Law of Peace
Congratulations on persevering and achieving the rank of 3/8 in the Octagon Society. You’ve completed two of the three Water degrees in our Order. You’ve looked at two emotions, Sadness and Fear and learned how to transmute them into Happiness and Joy. Now you’ll work with transmuting the third basic emotion of Anger into Peace. As a 3/8 you now have access to our lessons for the first four laws: the Law of Acceptance, the Law of Happiness, the Law of Joy, and the Law of Peace.
The Fourth Law, the Law of Peace, focuses on the achievement of that “peace which passeth all understanding,” the spiritual peace that enables us to endure all things. This is the peace experienced by the Masters who let nothing destroy their peace of mind and equanimity.
Most people in this world are angry much more often than not. They react to their world through their anger and they don’t understand the peace that comes from releasing this anger. They don’t understand that anger is an emotion which can move through us quickly and allow us the opportunity to become peaceful in spite of all circumstances. We can observe our anger, acknowledge it and move on. We can experience our anger in a few moments and restore our peaceful ways. This is the Law of Peace: it is not feeling angry but clinging to anger that deprives us of the peace we seek.
The Law of Peace has eight separate and distinct steps to be practiced in order to attain the rank of 4/8. As you work your way through these tasks, set aside the knowledge than nobody and no things can make you feel angry or peaceful. You have control of these emotions, not them—but for the time being, put that awareness aside and proceed as follows:
• List the things your father did to you that made you feel angry
• List the things your mother did to you that made you feel angry
• List the things your children, brothers, sisters, nieces, nephews, and cousins did to you that made you feel angry
• List the things your aunts, uncles, grandparents, great uncles, great aunts, and all your ancestors did to you that made you feel angry
• List the things your spouse, lovers, friends, fellow students and fellow employees did to you that made you feel angry
• List the things your enemies and antagonists did to you to make you feel angry
• List the things all other persons whatsoever did to you that made you feel angry
• List all the other things in your life that make you feel angry
1. Step One is to list the things your father did to you that made you feel angry. Make this list as complete as possible. This is the first task and it can be completed in the same manner as you approached the First Law, the Law of Acceptance.
The second task is to consciously decide how you’ll handle these same situations in the future regardless of the people, places and things concerned. Your decision is not specific to your father but general to all other situations similar to the events you’ve listed in regard to your father. The decision is how to remain peaceful in many situations that previously caused you to feel angry. Once you’ve completed both tasks to your satisfaction, move on to the second and succeeding steps.
2. Step Two is to list the things your mother did to you that made you feel angry. Make this list as complete as possible. This is the first task. The second task is to consciously decide how you’ll handle these same situations in the future regardless of the people, places and things concerned.
3. Step Three is to list the things your children, brothers, sisters, nieces, nephews, and cousins did to you that made you feel angry. Process these items and complete both tasks in the same manner you handled the first two steps. When you’ve completed both tasks to your satisfaction, proceed to the next step.
4. Step Four is to list the things your aunts, uncles, grandparents, great uncles, great aunts, and all your ancestors did to you that made you feel angry. Process these items and complete both tasks in the same manner you handled the first two steps. When you’ve completed both tasks to your satisfaction, proceed to the next step.
5. Step Five is to list the things your spouse, lovers, friends, fellow students and fellow employees did to you that made you feel angry. Process these items and complete both tasks in the same manner you handled the first two steps. When you’ve completed both tasks to your satisfaction, proceed to the next step.
6. Step Six is to list the things your enemies and antagonists did to you to make you feel angry. Process these items and complete both tasks in the same manner you handled the first two steps. When you’ve completed both tasks to your satisfaction, proceed to the next step.
7. Step Seven is to list the things all other persons whatsoever did to you that made you feel angry. Process these items and complete both tasks in the same manner you handled the first two steps. When you’ve completed both tasks to your satisfaction, proceed to the next step.
8. Step Eight is to list the things you do that make you feel angry. Process these items and complete both tasks in the same manner you handled the first two steps. When you’ve completed both tasks to your satisfaction, you have finished the work of this rank in the Octagon Society.
The Roots of Your Anger
Being more peaceful is the natural state of spirituality we attain when we accept life as it is, decrease our anger and increase our happiness and joy. Those are the goals of your current work and the goals of your previous work on the first Three Laws. If you need additional assistance working through some of your anger, we invite you to investigate the roots of your anger.
Anger is what we call a complex emotion because there is usually some other emotion hiding under the surface of anger. That emotion hiding under the surface of your anger is called the Root of your Anger.
Finding the root of your anger is necessary in order to attain complete peace of mind. If you’re looking for this spiritual peace that calms down the emotional world around you, look for the roots of your anger.
Anger is usually rooted in feelings of helplessness, hopelessness, and unworthiness. But below these three “upper roots,” lower roots lurk. These roots are usually feelings of being used, abused and neglected. These “deeper roots” can also be based upon fear, betrayal and painful hurts from our childhood.
Ask yourself: “Why am I angry? What makes me feel this way?” The answer will usually be found in one of these deeper roots. Find the root. Identify the source of your current anger. Then apply the first Four Laws to this Root of Your Anger. Release the anger and find peace.