Panch Kleshas- Five Obstacles in the journey to the inner-self.

Klesha is the negative state of mind, such as fear, anxiety, Desire, anger, depression, jealousy etc. Every human being has sufferings deep inside their mind. Most such things are suppressed by our superficial lifestyle and daily routine, that does not allow us to feel strongly about that pain. These pains and suffering are not just ignored, but also underestimated by us.  It has become a part of our life, so much so that, it is never seen as a barrier in improvising or transforming life. To prove that we are right, we tend to overlook and escape addressing our obstacles due to Ego. The attractions and repulsions towards objects and people and strong desires are the causes of pain and miseries in life.

The Yoga Sutras of Maharishi Patanjali has described the sicknesses that afflict every material being. These are: “Avidya, Asmita, Raga, Dwesah, Abhinivesah  Klesah”

Avidya is the base of the problems and obstructions in positive living. In simple terms, it is lack of knowledge.  It is a Sanskrit word and its literal meaning is misconception, poor and incorrect information, ignorance, and is the opposite of Vidya. Vidya is to rightly perceive about the situations in life and to understand the knowledge.  Where ‘Vidya’ is the ultimate knowledge source, helping us to know more, to gain correct facts and clarity, here Avidya is the ‘Mother of all Kleshas’, i.e., Asmita, Raga, Dwesha and Abhinivesha.  These conditions are in the series and are born is a sequence. Avidya gives birth to Asmita, Raga is born out of Asmita and so on. These kleshas may be dormant sometimes as we may not strongly perceive them. These five kleshas are detected in people in different situations and timeframe. Practically, we are never free from them. According to Sutras, Avidya is an error in spiritual perception. Avidya is a kind of psychosis, not a neurosis. In Vedanta, it is said that the body, the senses and the mind, buddhi, have their own limitations and beyond this, there is consciousness. Consciousness is very pure and spiritual and the base is very impure. Consciousness is eternal, but the base is non-eternal and unhappy. Avidya is an illusion or a drug that develops the defect in our psychic vision. Many people misunderstand and spoil their relationships with others.

 Asmita is the identity, the feeling of ‘I’. When we start losing or gaining too much knowledge then after certain time we start losing ourselves, there is a gap created between ourselves and others. It is also described as ‘Ego’. It is at this point when we create a self-image about ourselves based on our beliefs that may not be true in reality. Asmita is a consciousness which identifies the person with his vehicle. At such a time reading philosophical books and about great scholars do a very short and temporary treatment. Great Scholars say that it is not possible to overcome Asmita through the intellect. It can only be done through meditation. Meditation helps a person to see clearly about himself and realize the truth in life. The person asks questions like ‘Who am I’ and ‘what comes to mind’. Ramana Maharshi had a similar experience at a very young age. He watched his own dead body while practicing meditation. If a person is able to spend some great time in meditation and reaches the higher stages of it, then there would a time when a person will cross Avidya, realizing the true nature of himself. Dhyana and jnana yogis are the two methods to overcome Asmita. It also requires the purification of the heart and mind, thus Asmita can overcome. Self-Inquiry and Self-realization sessions in Meditation Programs are great to guide a person and to refrain from this problem.

Raga is the desire, liking, attraction, and pleasure. We cannot obtain everything that we desire. If we begin to chase all our desires then what we will experience is lack of time, becoming poor in planning, developing more and more greed, being untruthful, start disrespecting others, and stubbornness also adds in. Such desires are endless and once we are satisfied with one then the urge for another one pops in. There comes a time that one starts to hurt one’s loved ones as well. Observing the mind, recognizing desires, and developing the space between them and you; is an apt solution and requires meditation practices.

Dwesha, the fourth Klesha, is the opposite of Raga. Dvesha can also be understood as a repulsion and dislike as ego is definitely involved in this situation. Just imagine when sometimes we are confronted out of our comfort levels and zone then we start disliking. Disliking can be an object, a person, a workplace, a relationship, an environment and so on.  It is always better to learn and take the step to balance ourselves that can lead us to a better environment and out of the comfort zone. It’s a good way of improving yourself. Dwesh should be removed and then raga will also go.

Most spiritual aspirants have raga and dwesh as the major obstacle in their journey to moksha. When Dwesh is removed then meditation becomes deeper, hence, removing raga. It is said that human beings are affected by dwesha than by raga, therefore dwesha has to be eliminated first.

Abhinivesh, is the desire for more life, it is the fear of death. Every human being is afraid of dying and strong desires to live a very long life.  The fear of death develops between the age of thirty-five and forty-five and become strong as the person keeps ageing. Out of all the kleshas, abhinivesha is the most dormant Klesha. Abhinivesha is the universal truth and you will see it in every person, a creature and an insect. It is said the sanyasis are in the latent condition of Abhinivesha. The great saints say that abhinivesha is an evidence of sanskar, karma, believing in reincarnation as it is the seed which we are born with. Many people are obsessed with looking young, undergoing surgery, doing a weight loss program at the gym and consuming medicines.  Aging is not a disease, it is a natural process and a person should manage to live a spiritual life leading to happiness and purity.

Look for the signs. Address the five poisons, that are the hindrance in the journey to the inner self. Visit http://www.nirvanathemoksha.com for Meditation Retreat.