May 29, 2007

This morning in Bhagavatam class we discussed anger and how to deal with it.
This discussion was in the context of the description of Lord Boar speaking
in such a way as to make Hiranyaksa angry.

“The Personality of Godhead said: Indeed, We are creatures of the jungle,
and We are searching after hunting dogs like you. One who is freed from the
entanglement of death has no fear from the loose talk in which you are
indulging, for you are bound up by the laws of death.” SB 3.18.10

In this particular case Krishna wanted to enjoy fighting pastimes, so to
enhance His pleasure he insulted Hiranyaksa (one whose eyes are always on
the gold), and He was quite successful His endeavor.

Generally though, Anger is something that is less than desirable. Anger is
one of the Anarthas (unwanted things) that are impediments in achieving the
goal of Krishna consciousness. There are so many verses about controlling
anger in the sastras.

The question is though, how should we deal with anger, especially the anger
that arises after we have been insulted.

Generally we take the tact of suppressing or repressing anger. Suppression
means that we are aware that we are angry but we hide the symptoms.
Repression means that we push down the anger and deny that we have an issue
with it.

Both suppression and repression are not healthy responses to anger.

The anger will eventually surface in some other context, either as anger
directed towards another (innocent) object or sublimated anger which
manifests as another harmful emotion.

Repressed or suppressed anger can also affect a toll on the physical body.
One can develop different ailments such as TMJ (in which one grinds ones
teeth and may even need a mouthpiece to protect the teeth at night).
Internalized anger can also result in organ damage.

Usually our bodily difficulties (syndromes) are due to an emotional state
that we have not come to terms with. This can even apply to serious
illnesses like cancer and such.

We certainly want to deal with our response to insults in a healthy Krishna
conscious way then. What are some healthy ways to deal with insults?

1. One method I call the Jada Bharata method. Jada Bharata (who was
previously Bharata Maharaja and then a deer) was insulted by a king when JB
was helping to carry the kings palanquin. Out of compassion JB was jumping
to avoid some ants in his path. The king hurled insults at JB, but JB
responded by explaining that all the insults the king hurled were in
relation to the body, and in actually we are not the body. So in this
particular method of dealing with insults one is completely convinced that
one is not the body and is not attached to the body so bodily insults do not
affect one.
2. Another method is what I call the Haridas Thakura (compassion)
method. He was being whipped in many different market places, yet he was
feeling overwhelming compassion towards those who were attempting to torment
him.
3. The third method I call the Dharma the Bull method. With this method
one understands that the Supreme Personality of Godhead has arranged this
circumstance for one’s edification. Then one tries to understand what the
Lord is teaching one, what one has to learn, how one should act.
4. The fourth method is the Token Reaction method. This means that one
understands that one is getting a token reaction for what one has done in
the past. Also one understands that if he/she keeps serving Krishna
enthusiastically with his/her body, mind and words in spite of this
reaction, one will be a fit recipient of Krishna’s mercy. “The purport of
this verse is that when a devotee is in a calamitous condition he takes it
as a benediction of the Supreme Lord and takes responsibility himself for
his past misdeeds. In such a condition, he offers still more devotional
service and is not disturbed. One who lives in such a disposition of mind,
engaged in devotional service, is the most eligible candidate for promotion
to the spiritual world. In other words, such a devotee’s claim for promotion
to the spiritual world is assured in all circumstances.” (SB10.14.8)
5. The fifth way is for most of us who haven’t completely realized our
spiritual nature yet. In this method one experiences the anger (doesn’t
suppress or repress it) and identifies what basic unfulfilled need is
causing the anger. One sees the insult or other external event simply as a
stimulus for the anger, not the cause of the anger. By getting in touch with
the need one sees that the unfulfilled need is the cause of the anger rather
than the external event which is simply the stimulus.

I am sure there are more healthy ways to deal with anger but these are the
ones I can think of now.

If we want to be materially healthy as well as spiritually healthy we need
to deal with our emotions in healthy ways