Love and Rage: The Path of Liberation Through Anger

Owens (Radical Dharma), a Lama in the Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism, presents an essential guide to “facing our anger and welcoming it as a teacher and friend.” Owens, “a black, queer, cisgender, and male-identified, fat, mixed-class, Buddhist teacher and minister, yoga teacher, and shit-talking Southerner, among other identities,” writes of feeling inspired by the crushing results of the 2016 election. His reaction to Trump’s victory sparked a recognition that he could use his anger to “make space” and work through his own sense of woundedness. He invites readers to tread along a similar path by not shying away from feelings of rage and shares a number of anger-inducing anecdotes from his life, among them many moments in which he encountered racism (both subtle and overt). Writing with generosity and understanding toward those that have inspired his anger, Owens demonstrates the “neutral ground” needed for exploring both society-wide and personal pain. His appealing tone and easy-to-follow instructions on meditation, breath work, processing trauma, and visualization make Buddhist principles open to any reader. By showing how to harness the regenerative, disruptive power of empathy, Owens’s welcoming work can help readers turn indignation into healing. (June)