--- ai_generation_date: '2026-07-29' ai_model: gemini-3-pro-preview audiodharma: talks: - date: '2021-07-31' mp3_url: https://audiodharma.us-east-1.linodeobjects.com/talks/13939/20210731-Gil_Fronsdal-IMC-hatred_5_of_5_liberation_from_hatred.mp3 speakers: - speaker_name: Gil Fronsdal speaker_url: https://www.audiodharma.org/speakers/1 talk_start_time_seconds: 0 title: 'Dharmette: Hatred (5 of 5) Liberation from Hatred' url: https://www.audiodharma.org/talks/13939 video_unavailable: false location_city: Redwood City, CA video_unavailable: false youtube: id: EDHzPakI2YQ imprecise_upload_date: '2022-05-04' title: 'Dharmette: Hatred (5 of 5) Liberation from Hatred' upload_date: null uploader_str: Insight Meditation Center uploader_url: https://www.youtube.com/@InsightMeditationCenter youtube_url: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EDHzPakI2YQ --- # Dharmette: Hatred (5 of 5) Liberation from Hatred - [Gil Fronsdal](https://www.audiodharma.org/speakers/1) _This is an AI-generated transcript from auto-generated subtitles for the video above. It likely contains inaccuracies, especially with speaker attribution if there are multiple speakers._ ## [Dharmette: Hatred (5 of 5) Liberation from Hatred](https://www.audiodharma.org/talks/13939) So it is said that the greatest health is Nibbana[^1], Nibbana being liberation from greed, hatred, and delusion. To have this experience of peace, of deep non-attachment, is not nothing. Rather, it feels like a certain kind of healthfulness or healthiness that has a nourishment to it, a deep satisfaction to it, a deep rightness to it. Importantly, it demonstrates or reveals to us the ways in which movements away from that peace are unsatisfactory. Moving away from that peace is _dukkha_[^2]—it is stressful, involves tension, or what the Buddha called suffering. It is very interesting to feel this in meditation because in daily life, there might be good reason to be actively engaged in the world. Having the mind and body active and engaged is not always so peaceful, but sometimes daily life is actually quite beautiful when active. There are ways of acting vigorously in the world that can feel very peaceful, harmonious, and engaging, if there is no resistance and no greed is part of it. But in meditation, when things get very quiet and still in a vital, vibrant way, the mind might begin to move into some distracted thought, into some feeling or direction of holding on and clinging to something. We can see, "Oh, this is not so good. I am better off without it. The better alternative is the peace." So it is not exactly a condemnation or rejection of being agitated or distracted, nor a reactivity against it. It is just knowing there is a better alternative: peace. As we learn to work with ill will, hatred, aversion, and hostility, we really learn to recognize it. We learn how we get hooked to it, how we get attached to it, and how it itself is a kind of attachment. To have hostility, we are already attached to something. To see that and feel that in a clear way, and then to put it down, to let go, to go to the other side of it to find that which is deeper, and to have confidence in that peace—this is a big part of Dharma[^3] practice. There is a possibility of living without any ill will, any hostility, any aversion, or any strong kind of biased opposition to things. This is part of the radical message of the Buddha and Buddhism: that it is possible to bring an end to greed, hatred, and delusion. This is what the Buddha emphasized over and over again. It is not necessarily easy. For some people, greed, hatred, and delusion in subtle forms—desire and aversion—are so part and parcel of living a life that it is inconceivable not to have them. But it is possible to come to the end of it. We are not diminished or less because of it. We are not less able to take care of ourselves. It is a state of health, and in that health, there is wisdom and deeper understanding. So it isn't just about becoming mindful of aversion and ill will, and learning in mindfulness to hold it spaciously, openly, non-reactively, and not get caught by it. That is very powerful to do, but there is another step, and that is to let go of any tendency to ill will and aversion. The idea is that aversion, as I said earlier, is a form of attachment. If all you are doing is letting go of your reactivity while holding onto it and still allowing the aversion to be there, we haven't gone to the depths of freedom. It is possible to let go. Some people are suspicious of this message and the idea of letting go of ill will in a deep way. It might seem like it is such an important part of life, a way of protecting ourselves, taking care of what we need, and things like that. But there are motivations and ways of living powerfully that arise out of peace and the absence of ill will. One of the most common reference points for this, or common opposites of ill will, is goodwill. It is a radical feeling or attitude of friendliness; some people like to call it love or kindness. This is not because we are acting it out, pretending, or overriding everything else in order to be kind. It is because that is what wells up from the wellsprings within when there is no aversion. We can then learn to live a life of goodwill, to meet the challenges and injustices of life in a way that clearly expresses our goodwill, well-wishing, kindness, and friendliness. Do not get confused by this and think that it is only for the sake of other people. It is for the sake of not losing health here for yourself, not losing your capacity to be free, and not losing the capacity to let the best and fullest part of us be present. That cannot be present if we have hostility, ill will, or aversion. If we have these, we become partial; we become incomplete. The deep letting go of practice and the absence of greed, hate, and delusion is a kind of coming into a wonderful completion. So to not succumb to ill will again is tremendously beneficial for oneself. To come with goodwill and love, and to have that as a reference point for the world and how we act, is maybe more for yourself sometimes than it is for the benefit of others. But it can be both. For the Buddha, one of the consequences of this deep liberation from ill will, greed, and delusion is a life of service. It is a life that is naturally dedicated to the care and the welfare of the world. I like to believe that this is not because it is a duty, but because it is the best thing going. It is what allows the healthy expression of the heart to manifest itself in the world. What it means, though, is that if this expression of goodwill, service, and care comes out of our own hearts, it is going to be expressed in our own particular way. There are an infinite number of ways in which that gets expressed. Some of them are in the form of caring for our immediate family, sometimes caring for our immediate community, sometimes caring for the communities around us in a bigger way, and sometimes it is situational. It depends, and it is all of the above. Care can be different on different days, different months, and different years—where our attention goes, where our service and care goes. But to have that care and service come from our peace and our freedom is one of the best things going. It is one of the reasons why it is important to really have a deep study of hatred and get to the bottom of it. Thank you. --- [^1]: **Nibbana:** A Pali word (often Nirvana in Sanskrit) representing the ultimate goal of Buddhist practice, characterized by the complete extinguishment of greed, hatred, and delusion, leading to profound peace and liberation. [^2]: **Dukkha:** A Pali word often translated as "suffering," "stress," or "unsatisfactoriness." [^3]: **Dharma:** (Sanskrit) or Dhamma (Pali). The teachings of the Buddha; the universal truth or law of nature.