Instead of automatically reacting

with sarcasm or trying to be clever, think again.

Will our sarcasm impact the listener?

Will our wit ridicule another? 

For a variety of reasons, ranging from wanting to make others laugh to being considered witty, we react on occasion with sarcasm. But what is sarcasm? It’s a form of anger. We think we are being clever but, actually, we are being unkind as we ridicule another person or situation. There’s a good reason the Greeks defined  sarcasm as to “tear flesh.”

Instead of trying to be clever, when actually we are angry at some deep level, how might we react instead?

The Infinite Life Sutra speaks of being “good, pure, and gentle.” Gentleness includes kindness, respect, and humility. When acting from gentleness, we will be planting the causes for kindness and respect in our future instead of being dismissive of others while planting seeds for our own future humiliation.

Comments

[@lftwngdragonfly]

I just want to say I appreciated your insights into sarcasm. I often see the anger you mention in those for whom sarcasm is their primary form of humor.

[Venerable Wuling]

Amituofo. The Greeks were certainly onto something with their definition of to tear flesh. We seem to have lost track of the idea that humor is used to make people happy through laughter. Not to decimate them.