As society we seem to exist on a shorter fuse these days. Fly-ing into a rage or blowing one’s top off, is all too commonplace — at home, in the office, in the gaze of the public eye, in places we are being served (when one is hungry and the food is taking time to serve.

Never mind even if it is at a wedding), in our hallowed institutions and even over mobile phones (all it takes is a spouse or kid or service guy who either doesn’t answer the call or return it or chooses to switch off the instrument). Sparks, it would certainly seem, are waiting to erupt into a conflagration.
Not just major upheavals, even routine disruptions like a power cut, a swarm of mosquitoes or a sleepless night are enough for tempers to run high. Often starting rather innocuously, encounters rapidly escalate and then in rare cases something terrible happens (like we read in the news reports of the lover whose advances were spurned or the man whose garden had been trespassed into) ending in death/serious harm and a lifetime of remorse.
The bottom line is that irreparable damage is caused; people are affected in a myriad ways and left brooding as to whether the outburst was worth it all. I am sure if we look back at the times when anger got the better of us, nine times out of 10 we don’t ever think, “Boy I am really glad I reacted that way.”
To assuage our feelings of guilt we tend to draw comfort by laying the blame on someone else for pulling the trigger or reason that the outburst was justified.
The truth is that the key was really in our hands — to lose it or keep one’s sanity and handle even an explosive situation while maintaining our equanimity. Small wonder, therefore, that anger is not just considered a negative emotion but branded a major vice by our scriptures.
According to the Sikh gurus, there are five vices — kama (lust), krodha (anger), lobh (greed), moh (emotional attachment) and ahankaar (ego).
In Buddhism too anger along with greed and ignorance is among the three poisons that are responsible for the endless cycle of samsara and rebirth.
If one delves deep down to trace the root of this emotion, one realises that it all boils down to attachment and desire. And subsequently a chain reaction is set off. As the Bhagavad Gita puts it, “When a man thinks of an object, attachment to the object arises. From attachments desire is born; from desire, anger rises; from anger comes delusion, from delusion the loss of memory, from loss of memory the destruction of discrimination and from the destruction of discrimination a man perishes.”
Conquering anger is easier if one realises that what one has to do to stay in control is to consciously let that fleeting moment when things are hotting up, pass. Gulp some water if you must, respond as the Buddha says with non-anger and soon you will be glad that it has all petered out.
Today even the food we eat has a bearing on our anger quotient. Saatvic foods — lots of whole grains, fresh fruit and vegetables, with the minimal spices, salt and aerated drinks — make for a saatvic temperament as opposed to rajasaic and tamasaic foods (which cause aggression and slothful behaviour, respectively).
We all know that type A personalities (hostile, impatient kind of people who are also highly driven and motivated) are the most likely candidates for heart attacks.
Why allow anger to damage one’s health? Louise Hay, author of You Can Heal Your Life says, “Over the years I have learnt that there are really two mental patterns that contribute to disease — fear and anger. Anger can show up as impatience, irritation, frustration, criticism and resentment, jealousy or bitterness. These are all thoughts that poison the body. When we release this burden all the organisms in our body begin to function properly.”
There is enough evidence to prove that spiritual practices such as reiki, meditation, chanting and yoga also positively affect how you react to situations that might provoke one into anger. Over time you will notice that you react more slowly and less violently than prior to your embarking on this spiritual path.
In closing, here is a really touching story that illustrates the kind of havoc anger can wreak. A man was polishing his new car. His four-year-old son who was with him, picked up a stone and started scratching the car. The man was furious and saw red. He got hold of his child’s hand and whacked him hard not realising that he (the father) was also wielding a wrench. At the hospital the child lost all his fingers due to multiple fractures.
When the child saw the father, he asked, “Dad, when will my fingers grow back?” The father was speechless. He went back home and kicked his car many times. He was devastated by his actions. He peered closely at the scratches and figured out that all the child had done was to write, “Dad I love you” on the car. The man’s heart broke and the next day he committed suicide. What a heavy price to pay for anger!