Vanquishing Hatred with Love

Susan Reviere
September 26, 2025

Dear Sangha Friends,

I’m so sad about all of the divisiveness, violence, and death over the last few months. We are so divided. But no matter the position we hold, the Buddha invites us not to get attached to our views and opinions. He teaches interdependence with all beings. And he teaches, “Hatred is not vanquished by hatred but by love alone. This is an eternal truth.”

Is he saying that love alone can dissolve the hard edges of hatred? If love is a verb, can we soften those edges with open-heartedness rather than rage? If love is action, might it propel our curiosity towards understanding the pain of another before jumping into their storm? Might we, instead, at least try to stay in our peace and, with curiosity and compassion, invite others to join us there?

I think we each have to hold accountability for the ways we support the divisiveness that drives this discord…in our conversations with others, in our posts, in our demeanor, and even in our thoughts. But it’s hard not to react sometimes. We are humans with limbic systems that lead us into fight or flight. I’m pretty sure I’m not a “lunatic” or “radical” and it’s hard to hear such name-calling and not react in anger, not feel blame.

But on this path of the Buddhadharma, the care or kindness we can offer is not transactional. It’s not based on what someone else has done or hasn’t done. It offers a greater spaciousness within which we can pause, reflect, and, with discernment and intention, turn toward a more compassionate response.

If we water the seeds of othering and anger, those will grow in us. If we marinate our hearts in hatred, we will contract in fury and hopelessness. Or, we can choose a wiser path led by the heart.

There I find hope in the belief that one moment at a time, one heart at a time, my kindness will matter. It may or may not change the course of history, but this wisdom growing in a single heart might just touch the heart of another and another. No one can ever take my kindness away from me.

So I tell myself on a daily basis: make the choice to get curious not furious. Make the choice to see that if I harm another with my words and actions, I also harm my own heart. I wish to be in interdependence that supports healing rather than deepening the schism. This is where my hope lives.

With Metta,

Susan