Anger resides in the 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 and Krodha—the heating factors of the mind — melt the mind. 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. When a man’s desire is not gratified and when someone stands in the way of its fulfillment, 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.
“Krodhat bhavati sammohah sammohat smriti-vibhramah: Smritibhramsat buddhinaso buddhinasat pranasyati.”
“From anger comes delusion, from delusion, the loss of memory; from loss of memory, the destruction of discrimination; from destruction of discrimination he perishes.”
Anger is the greatest enemy. Contentment is the Nandana garden (the heavenly flower of Indra) and peace is the Kamadhenu (the heavenly cow that begets all prosperity). Therefore, take to forgiveness. Atman is different from the body, the Indriyas, Prana and the intellect. It is self-effulgent, unchangeable, pure and formless.
An angry man commits murder. He himself does not know what he is exactly doing. He becomes emotional and impulsive. A man when he is angry will talk anything. He will do anything he likes. A hot word results in fighting and stabbing. He is under intoxication. He loses his normal consciousness for the time being. He falls a prey to anger.
Irritation, frowning, resentment, indignation, rage, fury, wrath are all varieties of anger, according to the degree of intensity. If a man wants to correct another man and manifests slight anger unselfishly, as a force to check and improve him, then it is called “righteous indignation” or “spiritual anger.”
If a man becomes irritable for trifling things very often, it is a definite sign of mental weakness. When a man abuses you, and when a man takes away your cloth or coat, if you keep quiet, that is a positive sign of inner strength. Self-restraint, or self-control is a sign of great mental strength. An easily irritable man is always unjust. He is swayed by impulses and emotions.
Anger gains strength by repetition. If it is checked then and there, man gains immense strength of will. When anger is controlled, it becomes transmuted into spiritual energy that can move the three worlds. Just as heat or light is changed into electricity, so also anger becomes changed into Ojas. Energy takes another form. Energy is wasted enormously when one gets angry. The whole nervous system is shattered by an outburst of anger. The eyes become red, the body quivers, the legs and hands tremble. No one can check an angry man. He gets enormous strength for the time being and gets a collapse after sometime on account of reaction.
Instances are recorded wherein women have killed their children by nursing them with breast-milk when they were in a fit of anger. Various poisons are thrown into the blood when one is angry. Fiery dark arrows shoot out from the astral body.
Passion is the root and anger the stem. You will have to destroy the root (passion) first. Then the stem (anger) will die by itself.
The root cause of anger is ignorance and egoism. Through Vichara (right enquiry), egoism should be removed. Then alone can one control his anger completely. Through development of the opposite virtues such as Kshama, love, Santi, Karuna, friendship, etc., anger can be controlled to an enormous degree. The force can be reduced. Atma-jnana alone can fry all Samskaras of anger and eradicate it in toto.
“Krodhat bhavati sammohah sammohat smriti-vibhramah: Smritibhramsat buddhinaso buddhinasat pranasyati.”
“From anger comes delusion, from delusion, the loss of memory; from loss of memory, the destruction of discrimination; from destruction of discrimination he perishes.”
Anger is the greatest enemy. Contentment is the Nandana garden (the heavenly flower of Indra) and peace is the Kamadhenu (the heavenly cow that begets all prosperity). Therefore, take to forgiveness. Atman is different from the body, the Indriyas, Prana and the intellect. It is self-effulgent, unchangeable, pure and formless.
An angry man commits murder. He himself does not know what he is exactly doing. He becomes emotional and impulsive. A man when he is angry will talk anything. He will do anything he likes. A hot word results in fighting and stabbing. He is under intoxication. He loses his normal consciousness for the time being. He falls a prey to anger.
Irritation, frowning, resentment, indignation, rage, fury, wrath are all varieties of anger, according to the degree of intensity. If a man wants to correct another man and manifests slight anger unselfishly, as a force to check and improve him, then it is called “righteous indignation” or “spiritual anger.”
If a man becomes irritable for trifling things very often, it is a definite sign of mental weakness. When a man abuses you, and when a man takes away your cloth or coat, if you keep quiet, that is a positive sign of inner strength. Self-restraint, or self-control is a sign of great mental strength. An easily irritable man is always unjust. He is swayed by impulses and emotions.
Anger gains strength by repetition. If it is checked then and there, man gains immense strength of will. When anger is controlled, it becomes transmuted into spiritual energy that can move the three worlds. Just as heat or light is changed into electricity, so also anger becomes changed into Ojas. Energy takes another form. Energy is wasted enormously when one gets angry. The whole nervous system is shattered by an outburst of anger. The eyes become red, the body quivers, the legs and hands tremble. No one can check an angry man. He gets enormous strength for the time being and gets a collapse after sometime on account of reaction.
Instances are recorded wherein women have killed their children by nursing them with breast-milk when they were in a fit of anger. Various poisons are thrown into the blood when one is angry. Fiery dark arrows shoot out from the astral body.
Passion is the root and anger the stem. You will have to destroy the root (passion) first. Then the stem (anger) will die by itself.
The root cause of anger is ignorance and egoism. Through Vichara (right enquiry), egoism should be removed. Then alone can one control his anger completely. Through development of the opposite virtues such as Kshama, love, Santi, Karuna, friendship, etc., anger can be controlled to an enormous degree. The force can be reduced. Atma-jnana alone can fry all Samskaras of anger and eradicate it in toto.
-Swami Sivananda