MEDITATION TIPS (Episode 291)
6th Sunday in Ordinary Time
February 15, 2026

“Whoever insults a brother or sister will be brought before the Supreme Court. Whoever says ‘You fool!’ will be thrown into the fiery hell.” (Matthew 5:22)

　These are Jesus’ terrifying words. Yet they pierce the human psyche. “Supreme Court” and “hell of fire” are metaphors signifying the worst possible state. Words are a form of self-suggestion; what we speak to others unconditionally enters our own minds. For no one hears our words more than our own ears. In truth, the brain does not recognize subjects. If you say “idiot” or “fool” to someone, your brain automatically processes it as “I am an idiot, a fool.” If you say ‘wonderful’ or “the best” to someone, your brain automatically processes it as “I am wonderful, the best.” And whether the words are good or bad, repeating them over time shapes you into that very state. “Life and death are set before man; he chooses the path he desires, and it is given to him” (Sirach 15:17). Heaven and hell exist within one’s own mind. “The mind is its own place, and in itself can make a heaven of hell, a hell of heaven.” (John Milton, Paradise Lost).

　Jesus’ stern words in Matthew 5:21-26 describe the dysfunctional psychological state of humans consumed by anger and resentment—this is the “prison” (5:25). What hinders our happiness is none other than our own thoughts and the images we conjure in our minds. Moreover, human memory often deteriorates and is unconsciously rewritten. Within these rewritten memories, people criticize and condemn others, deluding themselves into believing they are right and superior. In doing so, they cast themselves as victims, striving to protect their right to suffer. They then make this unhappiness their identity, fueling obsessive thoughts to sustain that feeling.

　This is the dysfunctional psychological state of a person trapped in a “prison,” akin to viewing the world through frosted glass. Therefore, we must recognize these illusions and fantasies. Forgiveness is the central theme of Jesus’s gospel message. Yet, forgiveness is not something that can be achieved simply by “trying” to forgive. In fact, the harder we try to forgive, the more it can backfire. Above all, forgiveness is not something that can be achieved simply by “trying” to forgive. What is needed is “awareness,” and that awareness is that “anger and resentment only destroy oneself.” Therefore, shifting from an attitude of forgiving to one of letting go of anger and resentment as meaningless is crucial. This process of awareness is not achieved through one's own effort but is given as a grace from God. For example, true artists, whether consciously or not, enter their creative process in a state where thought ceases—a state of “mindlessness.” Scientists, too, have experienced flashes of insight within this state of thought cessation. By awakening, one comes to understand what awakening truly is. What awakening requires is to become aware of the self that is currently not awake. The moment one becomes conscious of one’s dysfunctional state of thinking, one is already liberated from the “prison” of that very dysfunction.

 　　　　　(Contributed by Father Yutaka Akabae)