I have heard these phrases "fighting fire with fire", "an eye for an eye", "a tooth for a tooth" etc. so many times that it sickens me.
The origin of the idiom fighting fire with fire is from the firefighters technique of actually fighting fire with fire. This method is usually used to control violent forest fires. The strategy is to make a roadblock to the oncoming fire by setting a fire intentionally on it's path. By burning the nearby timber the original fire runs out of fuel to feed itself when it reaches the burned out area. This tactic is efficient in this particular case but it has to be noted that in normal situations a firefighters main weapon is water.
The point I would like to bring out through this article is just because someone did something wrong to you doesn't make it alright for you to do the same thing back to him. We normally get back at people because we didn't like what they did, how they behaved or how they insulted us. One thing to bear in mind is putting out another person's candle doesn't make yours any brighter. There is nothing you can gain by getting even with someone. Some may argue that getting back at people gives them satisfaction, that is only if the person doesn't react back. If that happens both of you will be wasting your time settling scores.
As Martin Luther King Jr. stated "Darkness cannot drive out darkness, only light can do that, hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that". Forgiveness is the key.
Letting go of grudges and bitterness can make way for
The origin of the idiom fighting fire with fire is from the firefighters technique of actually fighting fire with fire. This method is usually used to control violent forest fires. The strategy is to make a roadblock to the oncoming fire by setting a fire intentionally on it's path. By burning the nearby timber the original fire runs out of fuel to feed itself when it reaches the burned out area. This tactic is efficient in this particular case but it has to be noted that in normal situations a firefighters main weapon is water.
The point I would like to bring out through this article is just because someone did something wrong to you doesn't make it alright for you to do the same thing back to him. We normally get back at people because we didn't like what they did, how they behaved or how they insulted us. One thing to bear in mind is putting out another person's candle doesn't make yours any brighter. There is nothing you can gain by getting even with someone. Some may argue that getting back at people gives them satisfaction, that is only if the person doesn't react back. If that happens both of you will be wasting your time settling scores.
As Martin Luther King Jr. stated "Darkness cannot drive out darkness, only light can do that, hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that". Forgiveness is the key.
Letting go of grudges and bitterness can make way for
- Healthier relationships
- Greater spiritual and psychological well-being
- Less anxiety, stress and hostility
- Lower blood pressure
- Fewer symptoms of depression
- Lower risk of alcohol and substance abuse
Moreover when you try to get even with the people who made you feel bad, by playing their game you are stooping down to their level. You turn into them, which is the last thing you want to be. From that point you should think how different does that make you from the person whom you definitely don't want to be.
"An eye for an eye, will make the whole world blind" ~ Mahatma Gandhi.
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