I will make no attempt in this paper to differentiae between an emotion and a passion. The dictionary definition uses them as a part of the same expression. Webster 's definition of passion is:

     In this paper we will refer to all of these kinds of feelings as passion rather than a state of emotion. There are many different forms of passion in our lives. If we were to try to list them I suppose the list would look like something like this: hunger, anger, jealousy, sex, and love. In Napoleon Hill's book Think and Grow Rich on page 201 he lists two kinds of passion (he calls them emotions):

     There may be others. The scope of this paper will be to focus mostly on what he lists as negative emotions or passions because of our tendency to consider those passions as addictive or controlling against our will.

     As a part of those passions then can be listed something we might call controlling habits. An example of some of them would be: smoking, drinking, drugs, immorality, swearing, lying, uncontrolled eating, compulsive buying, gambling, etc. etc. You could list anything I suppose that is a vice or weakness and say that when you give in to it, it is giving into a negative passion. Anything that comes under the category of needing self control to not become controlled by or addicted to something could be added to the list.

     I remember many times hearing my wife say, "You should never go to the store when you are hungry because you buy a lot more than if you go when you are full". That used to fascinate me. Why would our judgment be impaired by our hunger. Why would we not buy what we needed no matter how hungry or full we were. But then I began to see that same "phenomenon of passion" in other things. I noticed it for example in people who have a problem with swearing. People say they will never swear again, but then when they get angry, they swear. Why? Why would the heat of anger change our judgment. Why would we be so in control at church or school where people see us and then when at home or alone not be able to control our temper and swear? Why would we not think of lying in normal circumstances? And then it is like we forget who or what we are when the passion of embarrassment falls upon us. We are almost possessed with another spirit and can not stop the words from coming forth from our mouth. We tell a "little white lie" to cover ourselves. I have noticed the "phenomenon of passion" in the exact same way in relation to immorality. Many a young person has said they would never make a mistake as they sat and talked to parents, church leaders or friends, yet when they are in the back seat of a car filled with the emotions of passion, it is like a second personality takes over. They forget who they are and what they are and do things that they said that they would never do. The walls of resistance fall down. They give in to their passions rather than have self control. WHY?

     The question, WHY is the main focus of this paper. It is an attempt TO DISCOVER WHY. Why does passion have the power to make the walls of self control or resistance fall down when we are in certain situations. Why do we give in to a passion anyway when we have worked so hard and so long to control it? Why? It is also an attempt to show the commonality between passions. Maybe it could be said that there are more kinds of "holics" than alcoholics. I have heard the all of these expressions used and more like them: the company executive who has become a workaholic, a person that loves chocolate so much that they have become a chocoholic, or a criminal that is a sexaholic. Each negative passion on the list above could have the term "holic" attached to it if we define the term "holic" in the sense of something that has power in certain circumstances to make us do what we have resolved not to do or as. As Webster says above, when passion overcomes reason, it is then something controlling.

     The more I have thought about this "phenomenon of passion" the more I can see a common thread in all of the aspects of their functionality in our lives, and the effect giving in to negative passion has on us. Each of the negative passions listed above is a very different emotion, yet each seems to work in a similar way when it comes to having power to control us. When it falls upon us, it some way has the power to break down our fences and almost in a sense "MAKE US GO WHERE WE DID NOT WANT TO GO". Or did we? That is the very core question. Even though becoming an alcoholic is very different than having the compulsion to eat chocolate, there are some very common elements in the feelings that cause us to do both.

     Understanding the power of passion is what this paper is about. It is an attempt at understand our seeming double personality in some circumstances as it relates to all forms of our negative passions and the similarity in power or control they have over us. Writing this paper will allow me to assemble together in one place many of the things I have learned over the years about these "common" elements of passion and their "common" effects in our daily lives. In sharing it with you, I hope that we both will come to better understand why so many times we say one thing and yet in the right circumstances do another.