Do you wish mean people well or do you wish the nine stages of hell?

Hi Artemis432, such a nice discussion you started here with :), and I feel your emotions, and understand where you're coming from when talking about the retreat, and your reaction of crying. I could only wish that more people will open their heart and follow your way, my way in this state of mind :) It's been for a very long time that i wasn't able to forgive and forget, but in the last few years I am getting much better at, and feel so uch happier and more free inside of me. It's like I am lifted above the daily problems and struggles, and above the petty emotions of revenge, and eye for an eye (mentality of my life before the change) or worse action. Enemies could be changed into friends, and it is from friends that we should watch ourselves often :) Thanks for the great discussion.

I don't believe in hell. I don't wish anyone "eternal punishment". I definitely don't hold petty grudges, and when it comes to most things I forgive easily and quickly. However, there are some things that I don't believe in forgiving, and there are certain people whom I hope suffer. It doesn't matter to me why they have caused people harm, only that they have, and I think that certain crimes do deserve severe punishment. I suppose I'm just mean that way. =P

Very well-put my friend, I agree with you on this. I believe that everyone deserves a second chance, a third, fourth and even forever. We don't have the right to condemn someone, for we are not God to judge someone as that. I believe we should let these so-called "justice" be performed by those whom we pay for, like those who upholds it and those judges on courts!;) Yes, sometimes these people are those victims of such injustices and that all we have to do is understand them instead of cursing back at them!;)

It depends on what you mean by mean. If I see someone physically trying to harm someone I care about, I can get pretty nasty and will do whatever I have to do to stop it. Even if that means getting physical. I can't seem to help myself, I can't stand seeing someone get hurt. I had to do that recently with a friend who had a stalker who tried to grab her while we were out one night. I put a screeching halt to that. But if you're talking about someone who just has a bad attitude, I find them rather amusing at the moment and give them little thought afterwards. I don't much sweat about why they are the way the are. Unless they have a mental problem, they have chosen to be the way they are. They didn't have to chose to be mean. I've known a lot of people who have been severely hurt, abused or had horrible childhoods and they chose to be nice people. I don't wish anyone harm or as you said the nine stages of hell. In general I do hope that they can change their ways and understand that being mean gets them nothing and nowhere in life.

Fortunately I just don't come across very mean, narrow-minded, petty people that often....Thank goodness! If I ever did, or if I do bump into someone that is well, in a say cranky, hostile mood, I just feel sorry for them, and figure, well, gee, maybe they're just having a bad day, or something is going on in their lives that is making them feel and be this way --Also,I would just feel a tremendous pity for them, and hope that good will come into their life--there usually IS always a reason why a person might act like this

The latter. Think about it this way: If you wish for them to find success in life, that means somebody else will not. Because the job this mean person gets is a job a nicer person doesn't get. The money that goes into this mean person's wallet is money that doesn't go into a nice person's wallet. The medical attention given to a mean person is medical attention not given to a nice person. This is true by definition, as there are only so many jobs, so much money and so many doctors to go around. As for abstracts like peace and happiness... they can have it, since those are generally exempt from economic laws :P

I believe in karma, 'nuff said!

your such a good person as well all the people that responded to your dicussion but me... hmmm I'd like to be honest with you, I can tell that i'm not a good person like you. Whenever I have an enemy or when someone do something bad to me I do curse them. I said lots of bad things to them but only through my mind. I don't feel sorry for them or any compassion. I do believe in god and I cherish all the teachings but when it comes to stepping to my dignity or doing wrong to me I want to fight back not physically but some way that I can let them know they dont deserve compassion or respect. But when it comes to narrow minded people... well I feel bad for them cause there ignorance is eating there understanding....

We are supposed to do good to our enemies, but usually I try to avoid them. I do not wish them the worse luck in the century, that they will get boils, that they will be struck by the ugly pill, because I realize that they, like all of us, were born sinners, but whereas some of us got love and the things that we needed, they were short shafted. So while we go a mother's love, they got hatred. The right one came along at the right time for some, but for them it was too late. Good fortune happens to some, but some get the shaft. Is it any wonder that they keep the meanness they were born with? So for that reason, I try to be nice to everybody no matter what. It seems to work because I was on the verge of being mean.

at first, i'd wish all those that annoyed me bad things, i'd wish them hell. LOL but after a while, i'd decide not to waste energy on cursing them and instead just ignore them. its difficult to fill your mind with curses, its stressing. ^__^;;

I'm going to be perfectly honest with you...when I read the title of this discussion my first thought was "the nine stages of hell" for sure because I was thinking in particular about my former boss who gave me a real royal sc*ewing for the ages. Then I read the rest of what you wrote. Maybe the sort of retreat you went to would do me good because feeling hatred and anger is not pleasant or fun, it's not something I like to feel at all nor something I feel very often. I'm usually the one who wishes peace for everyone like the typical liberal that I am, and I usually look for reasons for people to do the things they do. Thank you, you've just been an inspiration to me; that may sound, I don't know corny or dippy but it's the best way I can think to describe it. Hugs and PEACE! Annie

I'm a firm believer that two wrongs don't make a thing right. I've had a lot of wrong done to me in my lifetime and it's only made me a stronger person because I know how it feels to be wronged so I don't want to make anyone else feel that same feeling. However on the other hand, if someone hurt someone or something that I love dearly, I'll wish harm to come to them but in truth or rather when I cool down, I do change my way of thinking and wish them good ridance, I don't wish the person any harm but good ridance.