The most important thing that leads people to repress their emotions is disapproval from other people.

Go ahead, try to go into almost any company of people and then break down in tears. You will see how suddenly everyone is made uncomfortable and they all will try to do something so that you no longer cry. To console you. The mood will change. Or try showing your anger or hatred to them, see how everyone will turn away from you in an instant, make you an outcast. Except those who truly love you, and such people are rare.

We live in a profoundly sick society. In this society, good emotions are cheered and bad emotions are universally frowned upon. They are considered “unhealthy”. People think there’s something wrong with you. That you need to be “saved” from them. No. There’s nothing wrong with you. What’s wrong is carrying your pain, your tears, your hatred and your anger with you wherever you go, and desperately trying to hide it all under the mask of superficial happiness and niceness. That’s what’s wrong, and most everyone is doing it, to one degree or another.

There’s no such thing as an inappropriate emotion. Which is why spiritual people flock to each other, they are, to a certain extent, disillusioned with society, with its constant judgment and disapproval, so they seek a deeper acceptance of themselves. And the process of spiritual awakening is always a lonely process, a deeply intimate process, during which you learn to accept all your emotions without judgment, regardless of what other people think is appropriate. And there’s a lot to accept.

That’s also why an enlightened master is like a breath of fresh air to a hurting, struggling soul. You can cry, you can weep, you can hate, you can swear in front of him, and he is unaffected. All is accepted, all is welcome. He understands it all, because he went through it all, through his very own layers of suppression, his very own masks. Never for a single moment he loses his understanding and love for you.