Letter # 96: "Revenge And Forgiveness"

Albert Pierrepoint, Britains’ last official hangman, kept his opinions well to hmself until he retired. Then he said that hanging is more about revenge than about justice: "I have come to the conclusion that executions solve nothing, and are only an antiquated relic of a primitive desire for revenge which takes the easy way and hands over the responsibility for revenge to other people...The trouble with the death penalty has always been that nobody wanted it for everybody, but everybody differed about who should get off."
Peirrepoint had followed his father and uncle into the "family business" of hanging, in 1934.
Rising to great esteem in his work, he hanged over 450 people. He resigned over a dispute about a fee. By then he had fulfilled his ambition of becoming the best executioner in the country.
During his time, he went from anonymity to celebrity to infamy. The gruesome story is well told in the disturbing 2005 movie "Pierrepoint: The Last Hangman" by director Adrian Shergold, starring Timothy Spall.
Revenge and justice are related concepts where revenge is usually thought of as personal and justice as societal.
In order to better understand the words revenge and avenge, it would be useful to review their orgins.
Revenge come from the French revengier, from the prefix re- meaning intensive, and vengier meaning "to take revenge," which word in turn comes from the Latin vindicare . The latter word is probably from vim dicare "to show authority," from vim, and dicere "to say".
The Columbia Guide to Standard American English," 1993 states, “To avenge is “to get revenge” or “to take vengeance”; it suggests the administration of just punishment for a criminal or immoral act. Revenge seems to stress the idea of retaliation a bit more strongly, and underlying it is hatred.
Revenge, vengeance, retribution, or vendetta are all about retaliation to a perceived wrongdoing, and have more injurious goals than has justice. The intent of revenge is to wreak upon on the perceived wrongdoer the very pain that was originally inflicted.
The spiritual texts speak of revenge. The Old Testament laws “eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot…” are described in Exodus 21. Those messages are softened in the New Testament. Romans 12;19 states: “Vengeance is mine, ... saith the Lord. Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink; for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire upon his head."
Wars are forms of revenge. In the Vedic text, the Bhagavad Gita, Prince Arjuna fears facing a terrible civil war. After lamenting to Lord Krishna, Arjuna puts down his bow in grief and confusion, and not wanting to fight, he asks for guidance. BG 1.46: BG 2.7.
Lord Krishna gives solace: “While speaking learned words, you are mourning for what is not worthy of grief. Those who are wise lament neither for the living nor for the dead. Never was there a time when I did not exist, nor you, nor all these kings; nor in the future shall any of us cease to be. As the embodied soul continuously passes, in this body, from boyhood to youth to old age, the soul similarly passes into another body at death. A sober person is not bewildered by such a change. BG 2.11; BG 2.12; BG 2.13.
While war is about authorized killing, and is in the control of governments, revenge is a personal matter and thus is in the control of the person. Those who can’t or won’t control the urge for revenge would do well to ponder the wise words of Confucius, Chinese philosopher & reformer (551 BC - 479 BC: “Before you embark on a journey of revenge, dig two graves.
Modern cognitive therapy informs us that the control of emotions is through the thoughts. The ancient spiritual texts tell us that also.
The Buddhist Dhammapada instructs that the control of hatred is by changing one’s thoughts. ‘He abused me, he beat me, he defeated me, he robbed me,’ – in those who harbour such thoughts hatred will never cease. In those who do not harbour such thoughts hatred will cease. For hatred does not cease by hatred at any time; hatred ceases by love, this is an old rule. [P7,8. Verses 3,4,5]
The ancient texts tell us that forgiveness is the antidote to resentment, anger, ill will, rancor and vengefulness. And we can always do with some help in moving towards forgiveness. See Forgiveness, A Simple 'Thank You Technique' For. Letter # 26 and Fortitude: Expecto Patronus. Letter # 10
Guru Nanak sings a soothing message: “Sadh sang(i) kis sio nahi bair(u); sadh kai sang(i) na biga pair(u)”, which means: “By associating with saints, man does not feel enmity with anyone; By associating with saints, there is no swerving from the good path.” [SS Asht 7 P75].

God Bless; Allah Hu Akbar; May The Forces Of The Universe Bring You Harmony; Hare Krishna; Radha-Swami; and Nanak Naam Chardi Kala Tere Bhane Sarbat Dha Bhalla.

I wish to express my gratitude for your comments, which inspire me to carry on writing. Please forgive my fallibilities in presenting this material. Also, feel free to send this message on to someone that you might think would like to receive it. If you do send it on, my only request of you is that you send it as it is, in its entirety, and to not alter or modify any of the text, references or authorship information. Thus you will help to give credit or liability to where they are properly due.
Jas Bhopal
Copyright© 2008
References: "The Holy Bible" Online version; "The Koran" as translated by SV Mir Ahmed Ali 2005 ISBN 0-9761870-0-0); "The Bhagavad Gita As it Is" as translated by Srila Prabhupada ISBN 0-89213-268-X; The Srimad Bhagavatum as translated by Srila Prabhupada ISBN0-89213-259-0; "I Am That. Talks With Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj” ISBN 0-89386-022-0; The Dhammapada ISBN-10:1-84483-344-5; The Sacred Sukhmani ISBN 81-7205-098-4; Wikipedia.