Anger

Anger

While writing the daily 'Eternal Quote' for the Face Book for the next day I am stuck with a Sloka on 'Anger'.  Anger is not any Piza or Burger which we eat knowingly that it tarnishes health. Anger is a devastating Weapon used by one who aims at killing thousands in his suicide attack. Anger gives the result then and there. Therefore it can be considered as  our deadliest enemy.
The spiritual traditions of India are firmly based on a detailed understanding of the mind, its states, impulses, operations, functions and reactions to stimuli. One of these guidelines is repeatedly stated:

akodhena jine kodham (Pali),
akrodhena jayet krodham (Sanskrit)

One should seek to conquer anger with non-anger What are the tools one may employ to improve oneself?

The first step is atmavalokana, self-observation. Through self-observation one pulls oneself out of the delusion of denial, ‘Oh, I never get angry’- uttered in the most angry voice! This is not self-criticism, but simply self-critique.

Self-observation helps one to observe oneself getting angry, realize its futility and note its results in the form of unhappiness caused to loving ones, and damages invited to oneself from the reactions of others – for which one commonly blames those very same ‘others’. Then all it takes is sankalpa, a decision, a resolve, to make oneself sweeter with Upanishadic prayers like: 'Jihva me madhumattma'  May my tongue be a most honeyed one. Normally the youth always feel they are best. They are knowledgeable, then can guide the friends around. But at the outset they should realise  who are the enemies within and around. The actual enemies are with in you and they are not external. The friendship  or the enmity mostly depends on your tongue. ' మాటవలన జరుగు మహిలోన కార్యముల్ రామమోహనుక్తి రమ్యసూక్తి' is what I wrote in some other context. i.e your dialogue brings you success in all you endeavors in the environment you live.

In this context let me narrate a small story : 

Once there was an young Sanyasi who preaches knowledge to the society for which he goes to various places. After going there depending on the invitation of the 'Grihastha' the head of the house he stays with the Grihastha and his family. Likewise he became a guest to a Grihasta who was living with his wife. He was as much as their son's age, had they had.

one day in the house after having dinner the Sanyasi and the Grihastha were discussing on certain philosophical matters and it so happened , the Grihastha shouted at the Sanyasi loudly. The Sanyasi also did not spare and he retaliated. However the discussion ended at a heated note. The Sanyasi went to bed. Then the 'Grihini' went into the Sanyasi's bed room and tried to cover him with a blanket with all her motherly affection. Then she noticed blood coming out of his nose. She immediately put her hand on his head and brushing so soothingly told him "My child you are practicing sanyasa and you did not care to shun anger which is the first step on the pedestal to Sanyasa.  He felt as if  It was like Goddess Lalitha telling him. He abruptly got down from the bed, knelt before her by touching her feet and confessed " Mata your  advice is an eye opener for me. From now on my task is to gradually obliterate my anger. Thus he could overcome it with in an year and with all ecstasy he went to her to convey the same to her. Then again the Grihastha  had philosophical discussion with this Sanyasi and out of over emotion he slapped him. The Sanyasi kept silent with a smile. Then he prostrated before the Sanyasi confessing for his deed and surrendered himself accepting the Sanyasi as his Guru. The Sanyasi in turn told him "My guru is your Grihini. It is due to her simple guidance I could overcome this complex emotion." 

If we observe this story carefully we understand that the young Sanyasi  could overcome his anger by sheer commitment and self-confidence.

 He felt he could conquer. Once you have conquered a new territory in the spiritual realms, you gain a belief, shraddha, in your capability to continue making progress. But that was not the final accomplishment. Winning one battle doth not a conquest make. Our kleshas(sufferings), afflictions, lurk in us in pra-supta i.e.  dormant states. They wait for the right stimuli to manifest themselves in the (udaara) wide open form as soon as they are presented with the corresponding instances that had excited them. They have to be attenuated, thinned down deep within, till they lie dormant no more. The masters of the yoga tradition often expose their trainees to excitants ( which are instrumental to excitement )and then expect to see that the disciple shows his mettle in conquering these challenges and maintains equanimity.

Listen. Listen to others when they say ‘You are getting angry’. Do not be trapped by the mind’s habit of denying its diseases. Remember, that of the 10 defining characteristics of dharma (dashakam dharma-lakshanam) in the Laws of Manu, the tenth is a-krodha, non-anger.One needs to remind oneself:" I believe in being a spiritual person, dharmic by nature; then how can I infringe the dharma code by being angry?"

The further suggestion given in the texts is: if you must be angry, be angry with anger which destroys so much within you and at the same time robs you of your loved ones. If you slap on somebody out of anger you may invite to get yourself slapped. Than that if you slap yourself for your behavior then you are on the path of reforming yourself. Swami Rama’s two books, The Art of Joyful Living, and Creative Use of Emotions can guide you to the upper rungs of tranquility. 

Do not attempt to handle anger by suppressing it at any cost. This leads to depression. Note that Suppression is not conquest.  Seek not to suppress but to replace. Patanjali calls it prati-paksha-bhavanam, cultivating the opposites.

Just ask yourself that how could you provide space in the mind to lodge destructive enemies like anger?
Swasti.