Not all equanimity is skillful. Indifference is not skillful; just giving up is not skillful. You have to work on your mind.

"So our immediate reaction to danger should be not to follow our instincts to get angry or fearful, but to think of the larger principle of maintaining the good state of our minds. And we’ve got good advice from the Buddha on how to do that.

There’s a passage where Ven. Sariputta talks about recollecting the Buddha, the Dhamma, and the Sangha. And it’s interesting for several reasons: One, he says if you’re being attacked, you should remember the Buddha’s teaching on what to do when you’re attacked. Even if bandits were sawing off your limbs with a two handled saw, you should not have ill will for them. Even for them, you should have goodwill. And so, you should make a resolve, “I’m going to follow the Buddha’s teachings.” And Sariputta says you also try to develop what he called skillful equanimity. Notice he places a condition on it: It has to be skillful.

Not all equanimity is skillful. Indifference is not skillful; just giving up is not skillful, saying, “Well, I’ll just have to accept whatever.” Even if you have to submit physically to danger, you have to work on your mind. And as the Buddha says elsewhere, if there are ways that you can escape the danger, go for them. But you do it in a way that’s skillful. But still, it’s largely a matter of training your mind. And Sariputta talks about four qualities that are worth training in.

You try to develop your mindfulness and keep it relentless. In other words, always keep in mind the Buddha’s teachings on how to deal with hardships. Second, try to make your concentration well-established. Third, develop tranquility, and fourth, put forth effort. It’s interesting that tranquility and effort go together there, but sometimes it requires a lot of effort to remain tranquil in the midst of dangerous situations. So mindfulness, concentration, tranquility, effort — this is how you create a skillful state of equanimity."

~ Thanissaro Bhikkhu "Facing Danger & Hardship"

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