Having grown up in peace and freedom from war, raw hate—as a primal reaction to vicious injustice or unhuman atrocity—is not a part of my life. Still, I know hate when I feel it, and I know that hate is good because, just like every strong emotion, it is a teacher of life.
When I hate myself, I know what my bodymind is trying to tell me. In fact, it is shouting at me, “Your actions are weak-willed, your efforts mediocre, and your results below what you could achieve!” I listen to my hate, I see the shame, and I let it fuel the power of my will. Conversely, if I do not hate myself after, say, having failed at a willpower challenge, I know that there is little for me to gain from it and that I have to take up another challenge that truly matters to me, that does make me feel disappointed and loathe myself when I do not win.
Similarly, when I hate successful people, I know what my bodymind is trying to say. Again, it is shouting at me, “You are not living up to your full potential, you are not taking the risks you should be taking, and so you hate those who have the strength to get the results you desire!” I listen to my hate, I see the envy, and I let it fuel the power of my will. To be fair, I have never hated a successful person per se. I only hate it when someone I do not respect has achieved something I have not, but want to. Because it makes me wonder: Do I have to become like that person to achieve what he has achieved?
Hate tells me that I am not doing my True Will. By listening to my hate, I learn about my True Will negatively. By knowing what my True Will is not, I can reflect on why this is the case and thus get a better understanding of what it is positively. Hate is a doorway to self-knowledge. Walk through it with a cool mind and your True Will will be strengthened!