72. Extinguishing Ignorance

Hearing ignorant opinions can be frustrating. They are almost inescapable when they are widely shared, so this frustration can become part of daily life. The situation feels even worse when the ignorant opinions are shared by those who have power over others.

In response to my frustration, I want to block out the ignorant views. But when I do this, I run the risk of limiting my own awareness, which is the only thing that protects me from succumbing to ignorance. For my awareness to broaden and grow, I need to allow my attention to remain open, and that means I will be regularly exposed to a wide variety of opinions, including ignorant ones.

Instead of limiting myself, I need to examine my frustration. I feel frustrated because I judge ignorance to be harmful to myself and others. To expect frustration not to arise would be foolish. At the same time, I must not hold on to it or the judgment that produces it. By holding on, I allow my frustration to accumulate and transform into anger. I must allow the feeling to arise and then depart without fighting it. To fight is just another way of holding on.

As ignorance perpetuates suffering and unnecessary pain, I still need to try to eliminate it where I can. But I must do this out of compassion and not out of frustration or anger. A hostile response to an ignorant opinion will not change anyone’s mind. Even an argumentative response might cause the other to become further entrenched in their ignorance.

Compassion is the only hope I have to alleviate ignorance in another person. By responding with compassion, I am more likely to help them see things in a new way, which may lead them to doubt their existing opinion. It is important to remember there is nothing I can do to directly extinguish someone else’s ignorance. It is their own doubt and only their own doubt that can dislodge their opinion.

To inspire doubt about a strongly-held opinion is not easy, which means a compassionate response will be both difficult and time-consuming. In many cases, it will not create any immediate change. But regardless of these caveats, compassion is still and always my best option when I encounter ignorance in the world.