Hatred is exactly the opposite of Love. Also, just as ‘loving’ is not the same as ‘liking’ (click here to see how), ‘hatred’ is not the same as ‘dislike’, either. Hatred is the malevolent disposition towards a person or a group of persons because of a bad experience, jealousy or plain prejudice. The world would be a better place to live in without hatred. You can do your part to make this world a better place by eliminating hatred from your heart.
But it is really hard not to hate some. For example you may hate a person or a group of people who hate (and harm) you, or your ethnic/religious/cultural group. Or you may hate someone who did gross injustice to you or to a dear one. However, even here, the best approach is to hate their evil nature but love them anyway. The reason for my submission is that any person who willfully commits a harmful act against another person has a corrupted soul that is heading for divine punishment. What that person requires is personal repentance and reconciliation with God and man.
Hate breeds only vengeance; and vengeance is neither good for you nor for that person who has offended you. Hatred is evil because it brings suffering to those who harbour it; and may also lead to grievous hurt to those to whom it is targeted. Therefore we must get rid of hatred from our system. How can we do that? “That is not a human possibility”, you may say. True. We cannot do it with our strength and wisdom.
But you can, if you follow this tried and trusted advice, “Bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you’. Bless that person in your mind repeatedly until hate is replaced by love. This recipe has worked on others, and it will work on you as well. You have the spirit of God in you and all you have to do is to activate it by following the above important advice. Soon your hatred will be replaced by love. You will have peace and joy. You will be a different person. Life is too precious to waste it on bitterness, hatred and revenge.