Face the Challenge of Anger

In April many states of India celebrate their New Year. According to the Indian almanac 1985 was the year of Krodhana, so, Swami discoursed on the challenge of anger and how to deal with it.

Good and bad conduct is present among  men but [which of the actions taken is really good or bad] will not be apparent to others. The results of someone’s good and bad deeds, however, will be reflected in each his future life.

Man’s waking life begins everyday with sunrise and closes when he goes to sleep. This is the pattern for all beings, and in the process men attempt to discover the purpose of life. The sun rises in the east and sets in the west, and on this basis the other directions, north and south, are determined. Similarly, on the basis of sun’s appearance and absence, day and night are experienced. The different seasons are also based on the apparent movement of the sun. This is the ordinary experience of man in daily life. When this matter is seen from a different viewpoint, recognizing the fact that the earth is a globe revolving round sun, neither sunrise nor sunset nor east and west has any reality.

The real truth is one thing, and what is apparent from an experience is another. When you are riding in a bus, you are moving with the bus even though you seem to be in the same place. Likewise, although the earth is revolving at the rate of several hundred miles per minute, you are not conscious of its movement. You feel that the earth is stationary and that you are making all the movements. Even scientists who know the truth behave on the basis of their daily experience and not on the basis of the deeper reality. They know that nether sunrise nor sunset nor east and west have any basis in reality. But they regard these [seemingly real phenomena] as facts of life. Likewise, our daily life is based on the apparent facts of day-to-day experience.

Days and nights, weeks and months, changing seasons, and yearly rounds are all based on these recurring experiences. The science of astrology is based on these recurring phenomena related to the movements of the sun, the moon, the planets, and so forth.

Krodhana is the Year of Anger

In the Hindu almanac there is a cycle of sixty years starting with Prabhava and ending with Akshaya. For each year there is a presiding ruler, a minister, and a team of nine officers. Together they have a powerful influence over the course of human affairs during that year. For the New Year Krodhana, which commences today, the ruler is Sukra (Venus). His minister is a malefic deity Sani (Saturn). Among the nine officers, five are malefic and the other four are not so well disposed. Hence, according to the science of astrology, the indications for the New Year from its very commencement presage trouble and turmoil.

The name of the year is Krodhana, which means anger. This year is likely to be full of manifestations of anger. Even in trivial matters it will be difficult for people to restrain their anger.

Restrain Anger

Today differences between man and man, village and village, one state and the other, and one country and another are growing. According to astrology, the New Year is filled with so much hatred and anger that its heat will burn even green grass. In view of this, you have to be extremely vigilant in all your actions. Fire disasters are likely to be numerous in this year. Except in the month of Sravana, rains are likely to be meager during the year. The reason for these difficulties is that since the succeeding year, Akshaya, is going to be prosperous and bountiful, the year preceding it has to be a period of scarcity and trouble. In the cycle of nature, bad is likely to be followed by good and vice versa. Hence, you must cultivate the strength and equanimity to face difficulties and troubles. Only the grace of God can give this strength and courage.

Even in our daily life, you will have to conduct yourselves with great care during this year. Every word you utter must be spoken with due deliberation. You have to restrain your pride and anger to the greatest extent. You must eschew anger and hatred towards anyone. Even if there is some provocation for such feelings, they should be kept in check. If you succumb to such provocations, grave consequences may follow. The primary obligation this year is to restrain anger in your own interest. Ill-will towards anyone will not do any good.

Methods to Control Anger

When you find anger rising within you, you may withdraw from the place to provide time for cooling your emotions. Or you may drink a glass of cold water and sit quietly in a place. Or take a brisk walk for a mile to get over your anger. Or stand before a mirror and look at your face. By any one of these methods, your anger will gradually come down.

Do not, however, stay near the person who has provoked your anger because there is no limit to what anger may lead you to. Owing to anger and agitation the blood gets heated up. It takes three months for the blood to cool down. Within that period, the nerves become weaker and even blood cells get destroyed. Weakness is aggravated and memory power is reduced. Old age sets in prematurely.

All the aberrations that you witness today among men arise from anger. Your entire daily life is filled with anger. When the contribution of the Krodhana year is added to this, the situation becomes intolerable. Therefore, you must meet the problem by presenting a smiling face all the time. That will demonstrate the presence of divinity. Happiness is union with God. You must link your happiness with the Divine. It is by such efforts that you must confront the challenges of the year Krodhana.

Again, when you feel angry, start reciting some song in praise of the Lord, then there will be no fear of what Krodhana portends. Let the entire family join in prayers at least for a few minutes in the morning and in the evening. [Here Swami sang a song sweet and soothing as a lullaby.]

When the mother and children gather round
To sing the bhajan [song] of Sai Natha [Sai Lord],
Loving Sai will stand beside them. 

Where, then, is the room for anger?
And why despair when Sayeesa [name for Sai] is there?
Why despair when Partheesa [name for Sai] is beside you?

The name of the year does not matter. What is really important is how you think and feel. If you do not fill your heart with pure and sacred thoughts, any year will be unfavorable to you.

Realize the Divinity in Man

You should not be preoccupied with the external world. Where, in reality, there is only one, it appears to us as two—the soul and God. The soul is absorbed in the external. This absorption is a sign of forgetfulness. Turning the vision inward is the real awareness. Looking inward reveals God. The process by which the divinity in man is realized is known as tarakam [logic].

This divinity can be realized only by sacrifice, or renunciation of worldly things. Sacrifice is a supreme virtue in man. Someone who has no spirit of sacrifice will be sick in body and mind. What sacrifice does to a man is to eradicate his selfishness. As long as self-interest is dominant, a person cannot understand reality. The self-centered man cannot attain the Supreme. Hence, you must cultivate a broad mind and seek to serve fellow beings who need your help. Even in the pursuit of liberation, there is no place for concern with your own self. To be concerned about naa mukti (my salvation) will lead only to na mukti (no salvation). If you are concerned only about your liberation, you will not achieve it.

Prema is the Basis for Everything

To understand the true meaning of self-realization, you first need to grasp the significance of the love principle. For everything, love is the basis, the cause, and the consummation. If there is no love, there is no life. When you develop love, anger automatically ceases. When you feel angry, sit down with a hearty laugh. Limit your speech. Too much talk leads to heated exchange of words.

The lesson to be learned in the year of Krodhana is the cultivation of peace by keeping anger in check and developing a large-hearted love for all. The values a man must cherish as his life breath are truth, righteousness, tranquility, love, and non-violence. Of these five vital principles, love is the foremost. Love flows as the undercurrent for the other four values. How does it flow this way? When love is associated with feelings, it produces tranquility. When love animates actions, it results in righteousness. When love is combined with understanding, it becomes non-injury. Therefore, whenever you feel angry, think of love and develop thoughts of love in your heart. You will have peace.

This is the way you have to develop human values. Anger and hatred are demonic qualities. Envy is worse than either of them. You must get rid of these demonic qualities and attune your life to dignity. When anyone reviles you, do not retort in the same way. You then descend to the level of the other man. You should not do yourself what you consider bad in others. Strive to develop sacred qualities not just for this year, but for your entire life. Awareness is life. You must know everything that needs to be known but make only the good things part of your life.

Call to Women to be on Their Guard

All must be careful about their behavior during this Krodhana year. Women in particular must be on their guard because women are capable of making great sacrifices either for good or bad purposes. So make all your sacrifices for good causes. Develop good traits, and eschew all that is evil. When the housewife has such good qualities, the house becomes a miniature paradise. When the mistress of the house indulges in bad deeds, there will be no peace in the home. Controlling their tendencies to quarrel over petty differences, women should try to behave like sisters, developing harmony and mutual regard.

Men also should learn to behave like brothers, believing in the fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of man. Young people should realize that the nature of their actions will determine the nature of their future. Bad actions will only result in bad consequences. Moreover, in this year, it is advisable for everyone to practice the virtue of reticence. Control of speech is highly desirable. Whatever thoughts may arise in the mind, let them not find expression in words. It has been said that restraint in speech gives abundant peace. Excessive talk harms the mind. Even in restrained speech, there should be sweetness and joy.

Apart from warning against giving vent to anger, the Krodhana year is fraught with some unwelcome happenings. Poor harvests are in prospect. Scarcity of food is likely. Excessive rains in some areas and poor rainfall in others are also likely.

Karma is Inexorable

These occurrences are the result of past misdeeds. Hence you should be continuously vigilant about every one of your actions. When actions are bad, even a stick can turn into a snake. There is no escape from the consequences of your actions. Only by vigilance can disasters be avoided. [Swami then recited a poem.]

Can you escape from karma, O man?
Whatever your scholarship,
Whatever your daily worship,
Whatever penance you may perform,
Can you avoid the results of karma?
Whether you fill your vessel
In a small pond or the vast ocean,
It will be filled only up to its capacity.

Therefore, if you watch over your actions, the results will be appropriate. You cannot indulge in sinful deeds and hope to realize the fruits of meritorious actions. Hence, embark on good deeds and sanctify your life. Do not get needlessly agitated over the name of the year. Shed all fear and, placing your faith in God, transform even a dreadful year into a divine one.

Source: Sathya Sai Speaks, Vol. XVIII