Philosophy of Anger

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Philosophy Of Anger

<br>----------------------<br><br>It will be admitted on all hands that everyone

without any exception whatsoever, is a victim of this

horrible malady. Indeed control of anger will bring in its

train supreme peace and immeasurable joy. As such, let

me presently describe in detail what anger is, its

various forms, how it affects the nervous system, its

exact relationship with passion and lastly the various

practical methods that can be safely employed to

effectively eradicate it—root and branch. My one fervent

appeal to you all is that, you will apply yourselves

heart and soul to the eradication of this dire disease

by following these valuable practices. <br><br>Anger

is a Vritti or modification that arises in the

mind-lake when the Gunas (Tendencies)—Rajas and

Tamas—predominate. It is Rajo-Guna Vritti. Some take it as a

Tamo-Guna Vritti. It is a wave of unpleasant feeling that

arises from the Antahkarana, when one gets displeased

with another. It is in other words, a modification of

desire or passion. Just as milk is changed into curd, so

also desire becomes changed into anger. It is the most

formidable enemy of peace, knowledge and devotion. It is the

straightest road to hell itself. <br><br>It was Arjuna who

asked Sri Krishna: “But what impels man to commit sin,

O Krishna, in spite of himself and driven as it

were, by force?” The blessed Lord said: “Kama esha

krodha esha rojoguna-samudbhavah, Mahasano mahapapma

vidhyena-miha vairinam. Dhumenavriyate vahniryathaadarso malena

cha, Yathodbenavrito garbhah tatha tenedamavritam—It

is desire, it is wrath, which, springs from passion.

Know that it is our enemy here, a monster of greed and

sin. As a flame is enveloped by smoke, as a mirror by

dust, and as an unborn babe by the womb, so is this

enveloped by that.” Gita: Ch. III-37&38. Then again says

Sri Krishna: “Trividham narakasyedam dwaram

nasanamatmanah kamahkrodhastatha lobhastasma-detattrayam

tyajet—Three are the gateways of this hell leading to the ruin

of the soul—lust, wrath and greed. Therefore let man

renounce these three.” Gita Ch. XVI-21 <br><br>Anger

resides in the Linga Sarira (astral body), but it

percolates into the physical body just as water percolates

through the pores to the outer surface of an earthen pot.

Just as heat melts lead, just as heat and borax melt

gold, so also Kama (lust) and Krodha (anger)—the

heating factors of the mind—melt the mind. <br><br>Anger

begets eight kinds of vices. All evil qualities and

actions proceed from anger. If you can eradicate anger,

all bad qualities will die by themselves. The eight

vices are; injustice, rashness, persecution, jealousy,

taking possession of others’ property, killing, harsh

words and cruelty. <br><br>When a man’s desire is not

gratified and when someone stands in the way of its

fulfilment, the man becomes angry. The desire gets

transformed into anger. When one is under the sway of anger,

he will commit all sorts of sinful deeds. He loses

his memory, his understanding becomes clouded and his

intellect gets perverted. <br><br>“Krodhat bhavati sammohah

sammohat smriti-vibhramah: Smritibhramsat buddhinaso

buddhinasat pranasyati.” <br><br>“From anger comes delusion,

from delusion, the loss of memory; from loss of

memory, the destruction of discrimination; from

destruction of discrimination he perishes.”

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If an aspirant has controlled anger, half of his

Sadhana is over. Control of anger means control of lust

also. Control of anger is really control of mind. He

who has controlled anger cannot do any wrong or evil

action. He is always just. It is very difficult to say

when a man will be thrown into a fit of fury. All of a

sudden he gets an irresistible fit of anger for trifling

matters. When anger assumes a grave form, it becomes

difficult to control. It should therefore, be controlled

even when it is in the form of a small ripple in the

subconscious mind (Chitta). One should watch his mind very,

very cautiously. Whenever there is the least symptom

or indication of light irritability, then and there

it must be nipped. Then it becomes very easy to

control anger. Be careful and vigilant and watch the

ripple, then only you are a sage. <br><br>Whenever there

is a little irritability, stop all conversation and

observe Mouna (the vow of silence). Practice of Mouna

daily for one or two hours is of great help in

controlling anger. Always try to speak sweet soft words. The

words must be soft and the arguments hard; but if the

reverse is the case it will lead to discord and

disharmony. There is a sharp sword in every tongue.

<br><br>If you find it difficult to control anger, leave the

place at once and take a brisk walk. Drink some cold

water immediately. This cools down the body and mind.

Chant ‘OM’ loudly like a lion for ten minutes and then

chant ‘OM SANTI’ mentally or verbally for five minutes.

<br><br>Think of the picture of your Ishtam. Pray. Repeat your

Ishta Mantra for ten minutes. Gradually the anger will

vanish. <br><br>Find out the real cause of your anger and

try to eradicate it. If a man abuses you and calls

you names, you become furious at once. Your blood

becomes hot. Why do you feel offended when he calls you

‘a dog’ or ‘a donkey’? Have you developed now four

legs and tail like a dog? Why do you get excited for

little things? Enquire: What is this abuse? Is it not

mere vibration in the ether? Am I body or Atman? No

one can injure Atman. The Atman of the abuser and the

abused is one. Do I really gain anything by retaliating?

I waste my energy. I hurt the feeling of another

man. I disturb and pollute the thought world. I do

real harm to the world by sending a current of hatred.

This world is unreal. I will live here for a short

time only. Let me bear this insult. Let me excuse him.

I will develop inner mental strength and power of

endurance. You can thus very effectively eradicate the

feelings of anger. A time will come when you will not be

irritated even a bit by harsh words, abuses and insults, of

this kind. You will not pay the least heed if a man

says that such and such a man has said bad words

against you. You will simply laugh the whole matter away.

An irritable man is very weak and has no mental

strength.