Riding the wave: the yoga approach to anger

Our life is a constant assessment of likes and dislikes. We want to hang on to certain people, material possessions and concepts and get upset if we cannot. And likewise we try to escape or avoid people, situations and ideas we do not like.

Attachment to who we think we are and how our lives should be is the origin of a lot of trouble. The yogis were already aware of this many thousands of years ago and tell how our ego is preventing us from having a realistic view of life; realising that everything in life is ever changing, and so are we. Anger in its different forms, like jealousy, sadness, frustration and outrage, is the result of unwanted change or processes in our bodies, relationships, careers and lifestyles, and society.

Buddha already compared anger to picking up a burning coal, throwing at someone and in the process burning yourself. Anger on the bodily level speeds up heart rate and breath, creates muscle tension and blockages and burns energy rapidly. Also on a mental level anger threatens your health, especially since we often carry anger for longer periods.

Eckhart Tolle mentions in his book ‘A new Earth’ his observation that after two ducks get into a fight, which never lasts long, they will separate and float off in opposite directions. Then each duck will flap its wings vigorously a few times, thus releasing the surplus energy that built up during the fight. After they flap their wings, they float on peacefully, as if nothing had ever happened.

Tolle: "If the duck had a human mind, it would keep the fight alive by thinking, by story-making. This would probably be the duck's story: 'I don't believe what he just did. He came to within 5 inches of me. He thinks he owns this pond. He has no consideration for my private space. I'll never trust him again. Next time he'll try something else just to annoy me. I'm sure he's plotting something already. But I'm not going to stand for this. I'll teach him a lesson he won't forget.' And on and on the mind spins its tales, still thinking and talking about it days, months, or years later.“

You can see how problematic the duck’s life would become if it had a human mind. We humans are almost addicted to the drama and keep upsetting situations or events from the past alive for a long time.

So what is the best way to deal with your anger? The yogic philosophy encourages us to learn how to observe anger, instead of suppressing or letting it take over completely. The first step is to practise awareness, so you can start to feel anger coming up as a wave. Then through use of the breath and relaxation techniques you can actually feel and watch the sensations of the anger wave in your body and mind without getting washed away by it. By keeping a positive outlook and focussing on solving problems without blaming others or yourself, you can actually allow the biochemical reactions of anger but you are riding the wave and remain in the present moment whenever and wherever.

Classical Buddhism approaches anger in much the same way, says Ven. Thubten Chodron, author of Working with Anger: "In Buddhism, we are constantly practicing the mindful observance of ourselves, including the arising, abiding, and subsiding of destructive emotions like anger. We don't stuff our anger down, but we don't buy its storyline either. Sometimes we can just watch it, and it will lose its power and dissipate. Other times we apply an antidote to it—a more realistic or beneficial way of looking at the situation so that the anger evaporates."

And after the anger wave subsides we can follow the duck's lesson of Ekhart Tolle: “Flap your wings--which translates as 'let go of the story'--and return to the only place of power: the present moment."

Pranamaya Yoga offers daily yoga classes in Kathmandu, Nepal. For more information and class schedule www.pranamaya-yoga.com