Someone recounted a moment of anger toward a benefactor, after which they heard the grandmaster's voice come as a warning, and asked what this meant and how to address it.

The Grandmaster's Warning Getting Through Means It's Still Recoverable

Hearing the grandmaster's warning after a lapse into anger toward a benefactor shows that things are still at a stage where correction is possible. Had the unwholesome side fully taken over, no teacher's warning could get through at all. The fact that the grandmaster's voice still reaches us shows that the wholesome side still holds some ground. Slipping into anger when the unwholesome side briefly possesses the mind is entirely ordinary — it's only a matter of how severe it becomes.

Anger Toward a Benefactor Affects the Quality of One's Merit

When anger arises, demerit presses us down from a coarser dimension into an even coarser one. This directly affects our merit, because the coarser the dimension, the lower the quality of what can hold that merit — so the merit we receive becomes correspondingly weaker. Meditation grows harder too, as we become layered over with obscuration, yielding less merit from our practice.

The Remedy: Recalling the Goodness of Our Benefactors, as We Recall Our Love for Our Own Children

The remedy is to reflect on why we love our own children and grandchildren. Understanding that love and goodwill helps us understand the elders who once loved and supported us in the years we depended on them. It's unfitting for us to lash out in anger at those who cared for us when we were young, in the same way it would be unfitting for our own children to lash out at us now that we've grown old — since we, too, loved and cared for them tenderly throughout their childhood.

The Difference Between 'Respect' and Mere 'Acknowledgment'

There's a real difference in quality between respect and mere acknowledgment. Acknowledgment means simply accepting someone as one's parent — while still being willing to argue or show anger toward them. Respect runs deeper: it makes one unwilling to argue or show anger at all, because the goodness of that person stays constantly in mind.

Letting It Go, Without Holding a Grudge, Is the Lasting Solution

The law of karma ensures that whatever cause we create, we receive its corresponding result. If we show anger toward our benefactors, we too will fail to earn the respect of our own children and grandchildren in years to come. The lasting solution is to let go of each person's faults rather than holding onto them, since everyone carries a mix of good and bad. Understanding this allows us to live together peacefully, without anger and demerit taking hold of us again.