Clearing the mind

Reducing the intensity of the kleshas

Om Sri Gurubhyo Namah. Salutations to all the teachers.

In Yoga psychology, the root cause of our stress, anxiety, inability to focus, and general mental suffering is the existence of kleshas - mental colourings or “afflictions”. These colourings appear as a layer on top of vrittis, or mental “whirlpools”.

For example, let us say that you like chocolate chip cookies, and so when you see one in front of you, you feel attracted to it. In Yogic terms, this is a perception-vritti of a chocolate chip cookie coloured by the klesha (colouring) of raag (attraction). This reframing of our thinking process is critical to disentangling ourselves from the web of thought. Rather than saying “I like this” or “I don’t like this” it becomes “this vritti is coloured by attraction or aversion.” Additionally, the very act of classifying the vrittis and kleshas creates a mental distance from them, thus weakening their detrimental effect on your mental well-being.

The goal of Yoga is to clear these kleshas. Even in our everyday language, we use phrases like “my mind feels clear” or “I remember clearly” to indicate mental activity that is klesha-free.

Note: The word “klesha” is mentioned 92 times in this article. If you missed the article on kleshas, I would suggest reading it here before continuing on.

As a quick recap, there are five types of kleshas:

1. Avidyaa: The Primal Ignorance

2. Asmitaa: “I am”-ness

3. Raag: Attraction

4. Dvesha: Aversion

5. Abhinivesha: Fear of change/clinging to constancy

There are two methods to get rid of the kleshas:

1. The shortcut: By getting rid of avidyaa

2. Systematically: By reducing their intensity

The shortcut is called Jnana Yoga - the Yoga of Knowledge, also known as Vedanta, and sometimes called the “direct path.” Here, there is a total dis-identification with the mind-body complex we normally refer to as “me”, leading to a dis-identification with any suffering that goes along with this “me”-idea. We will discuss this path in detail in future articles, but in terms of kleshas, this is the removal of the first and most important klesha - Avidya.

Today, we will discuss the systematic method. 

A klesha is a colouring on top of a vritti. Weaker kleshas lead to a clear mind. Stronger kleshas lead to a restless mind. Yoga systematically weakens the kleshas.

Weakening the hold of the kleshas through labelling

Have you ever looked at a beautiful view, and felt like your breath was taken away by the beauty? Remember the visceral feeling of awe and wonder, that words cannot describe.

Now imagine that you’re looking at the view, and someone starts to verbally describe it. What happens?

The “breath-taking” ability of the “raw” view is weakened, if not gone entirely. You may still find the view beautiful, but now that it has been labelled, the power of the view over your mind - the awe and wonder, or its “spell on you” (so to speak)  - has been taken away.

You may also recognise this phenomenon in the context of someone telling a joke. If someone tells a joke, and you respond not with spontaneous laughter, but rather with a phrase like “that was a good joke”, it is no longer as funny. This is even stronger if you ask someone to explain a joke that they just told.

As an aside, you can use this technique when someone says something mean or hurtful to you. Simply ask them to explain what they mean in more detail (with curiosity rather than defensiveness), and you will see how the initial “hurting” power of the words is taken away.

In these examples, the initial perceptions are the vrittis, and they are coloured with kleshas (here asmitaa, raag, and dvesha). They currently have a hold on you - this is called vritti-saaroopyam (or taking the form of the movements in the mind). Notice, coloured (klishta) vrittis have more of this power than uncoloured (aklishta) ones. For example, something you are attracted or averse to is more powerful than something which is neutral for you.

Just like in the examples above, the simple technique of labelling the vrittis and kleshas weakens their hold and allows you to objectify them, enabling you to get rid of them altogether.

But how do we label them? What is a framework we can use to name them as they arise, that is simple enough to remember yet comprehensive enough to capture all our mental activity?

This is where Patanjali’s framework is extremely helpful. You can visualise it as a table:

Use this table to label your mental activity

In this table, the columns are the 5 types of vrittis, and the rows are the 5 types of kleshas. Any mental activity can be categorised in this way.

Normally, when describing what’s going on in our minds, we use terms for “complex” mental activity. For example, we may say that we feel “jealousy”, “greed”, “grief” or “regret” rather than using the building blocks in the table above. The approach in Yoga is to try to break down those “complex” emotions using this framework, and in doing so, weaken their hold over you.

Let’s try a few to get the hang of it.

Regret

Try to remember a time that you felt regret. Notice, you felt regretful about something, it wasn’t just “regret” hanging in thin air. This “something” is the underlying vritti - specifically, it is a memory vritti. Now given that you feel regretful, this means that you wish it had gone differently - this means that not only do you dislike the way it went (memory coloured by aversion), but there is also an imagination-vritti of an alternative past coloured by attraction. In addition to all this, there are also imaginations about the expected and desired future, coloured by aversion or fear, and attraction, respectively. Finally, there is a perception of the present situation coloured by aversion. All of these are also coloured by asmitaa, or “I am”-ness, since this is all about your idea of “me” - this didn’t go well for me or mine, and I wish it went better for me or mine.

To summarise, what you call “regret” is actually:

1. A memory (smriti) of the past coloured by “I am”-ness and aversion 

2. An imagination (vikalp) of an alternative past coloured by “I am”-ness and attraction

3. A perception (pramaan) of the present coloured by “I am”-ness and aversion

4. An imagination (vikalp) of the anticipated future coloured by “I am”-ness, aversion, and maybe fear

5. An imagination (vikalp) of an alternative future coloured by “I am”-ness and attraction 

“Regret” broken down into its constituent vrittis and kleshas

Your specific situation may be slightly different - for example, you may regret having been rude to someone when you actually weren’t rude at all. In this case, there would be an additional viparyaya (error) vritti, coloured by aversion. 

Jealousy

Let’s try the same exercise with the feeling of jealousy. As an example, let’s say you saw someone posting beautiful pictures of their life on Instagram, and you feel jealous of their ability to travel all the time.

Starting with the vrittis, there is a pramaana (perception) of the person’s Instagram feed, a viparyaya (error/illusion) that their life is actually as you believe it is, a pramaana (perception) of your current life, and a vikalp (imagination) of what your life would be like if you had what they had. 

These are all coloured - the visual perception of their Instagram feed is coloured by “I am”-ness, and then attraction or aversion - that is, either you want it for yourself or you are annoyed by it, or perhaps both. Next is the viparyay (illusion) vritti, coloured by attraction - you want what you think they have. The pramaana (perception) of your current life is coloured by “I am”-ness (ie. this is my life) and aversion, and finally the vikalp (imagination) of what your life could be like is coloured by “I am”-ness and attraction (ie. you want it for yourself). ¹

“Jealousy” broken down into its constituent vrittis and kleshas

You can repeat this exercise for any other feeling, using your experience of these feelings as an opportunity to practice. Notice, the more boxes in the table that are filled in, the more “muddy” or scattered your mind feels. This is how kleshas result in suffering. The very first step is to notice and acknowledge that you are feeling this way - one of the 4 keys to practice is satkaar, or internal honesty. Without this, you are simply suppressing the thoughts, but they will remain there, strong as ever, only to return in unexpected ways. Honestly acknowledge the thought, and classify it to the best of your ability. With practice, over time, it will become second nature. Eventually, you will be able to observe the arising and passing away of your thoughts just like you observe any other phenomenon.

P: Labelling the kleshas and vrittis like this is really difficult. I have a lot going on in my mind, and it’s not nearly calm enough for me to clearly see the individual movements. I can barely even sit still, how can I pay attention long enough to categorise in this way?

Jogi: You are not alone - this is completely normal. Your inability to sit still is a direct result of the current intensity of the kleshas in your mind. As a result of the kleshas making the mind muddy and turbulent, you will likely also find it difficult to meditate. There are four levels of intensity in which a given klesha can be present in the mind. Start by categorising their level of intensity. Then, as you gradually weaken the kleshas, you will find it easier to see and address them individually.

Levels of Intensity of Kleshas

अविद्या क्षेत्रम् उत्तरेषां प्रसुप्ततनुविच्छिन्नोदाराणाम्  ॥

Avidya Kshetram Uttareshaam PrasuptaTanuVichhinaUdaaraanaam

[Primal] Ignorance (ie. Avidya) is the field [for all the other kleshas] which can be [in one of four states] dormant, attenuated, interrupted, or active.

- Yoga Sutras 2.4

Kleshas don’t just hang in thin air - a klesha requires a vritti upon which it can be present (just like a colour needs a substance upon which to be present). For a given klishta (coloured) vritti, there are 4 broad levels of intensity in which the klesha can manifest:

1. Udaara: Strong/active

2. Vichhinna: Interrupted

3. Tanu: Attenuated/Weak

4. Prasupta: Dormant

Additionally, a klesha can be completely absent. This type of vritti that is completely uncoloured is known as aklishta, or without kleshas. Additionally, within each category a klesha can be mild, medium, or strong.

As an aside, the goal of the entire system of Yoga is to systematically weaken the kleshas, in this sequence (udaara to prasupta), and ultimately destroy them completely. This way, the mind becomes like a pure crystal, clearly reflecting whatever it comes in contact with. This clarity of mind is a prerequisite for Moksha, or liberation. Another analogy is that of a mirror - in order to clearly see your reflection in a mirror, you must first clean the dirt from it. Similarly, in order to clearly see the reflection of the Self (Purusha) in the Buddhi (aka Moksha), the mind must first be cleared of all kleshas (ie. the mind must be sufficiently sattvic).  

While labelling the vrittis and kleshas will certainly weaken their hold on you, this is difficult if the kleshas are too strong. This is where the preparatory practices come in. In particular, Eka-Tattva-Abhyaas, the Brahmavihaaras, and one or more of the stabilising techniques will weaken them enough to make them somewhat manageable.

P: You said that a klesha requires a vritti upon which to be present, and that kleshas don’t just hang in thin air. What about someone who just feels angry all the time, or someone who just feels a general sense of sadness?

Jogi: This is a great question. Here also, the kleshas are present on top of vrittis, but there are so many of these klishta-vrittis, and their intensity is so high, that it is hard for the person to clearly identify the underlying vrittis. As a result, they feel as though there is a general feeling of anger or sadness. A person like this is most likely angry or sad at a lot of different things, very frequently or very intensely. These could be imaginations, memories, illusions, perceptions, or all of these. The intensity of these kleshas also results in intense tendencies towards more kleshas, creating a vicious cycle of kleshas from which it is hard to break out, leaving the person in a clouded, tamasic, state of mind.

P: So what should someone like this do? Asking for a friend.

Jogi: The first step is for the person to decide to take action. You cannot force anyone to take action to calm their mind - it must be their own choice. Once they have decided, they can start by practicing eka-tattva-abhyaas, then the Brahmavihaaras. Once the mind is a bit more calm, they can start to use one or more of the six techniques to calm the peaks and valleys of their inner life. At this point, the practice of Kriya Yoga will weaken the kleshas so as to prepare the mind for the eight limbs of Yoga, including meditation. This is the systematic process of weakening and then destroying the kleshas so the mind can be free, calm, and clear. 

In order to understand the levels of intensity of the kleshas, we will use the example of addiction to alcohol. 

Important: While this particular example involves the object of alcohol, it can extend to any type of vritti - not just any physical object, but also any idea, illusion, memory, or even to sleep. There is no judgement being applied here towards alcohol in particular, or any addictions in general. Additionally, while this example involves addiction, which is klesha of raag (attraction), this classification extends to all of the five kleshas.

Udaara: Strong/Active

In this situation, the person wants alcohol all the time, whether or not it is present in front of them. When it is present, they feel a strong craving to consume it, which starts with a thought, and quickly flowers into action through the karmendriyas (organs of action). If they try to suppress it, it will flower as anger, frustration, sadness, and sometimes as fear. Additionally, it may translate into a physical reaction in the body - sweating, tiredness, raggedness of the breath, or even trembling of the limbs.  When alcohol is not present in front of them, it will appear in the mind in the form of smriti (memory) or vikalpa (imagination). The bhumi in this state is generally kshipta (agitated), and all available mental energy is expended in trying to satisfy the craving, often at the expense of others. Depending on the level of intensity within the category of udaar, the klesha may even lead the person to violence, lying, or stealing.

Vichhinna: Interrupted

In this scenario, the person wants alcohol only when it is present in the mind. That is, they may also crave it if a memory or an imagination comes into the mind, not just if it is physically in front of them. When it is not present (physically or mentally), they don’t crave it, but when it is there, their karmendriyas will spring into action to acquire it. 

When the klesha is in this category, there may be a tendency to try to suppress the desire, and the person will be in a state of inner turmoil, fighting with their mind.

In this level of intensity, there is a natural tendency to try to hide from the object of the addiction. In this example, the person may get rid of all the alcohol from their house, avoid being in situations where alcohol is present, or try to distract themselves mentally. While this can certainly be helpful, the root of the problem has not been solved, since not all situations are within their control. As a result, if the separation has not yet resulted in a weakening of the klesha, the moment the person is confronted with alcohol, the mental battle will start up again, and they will either give in to the temptation, or start to feel agitated.

Tanu: Weak/Attenuated

In this state, the desire for alcohol still exists, but it’s not quite a craving. If alcohol is present, the person will still want it, but if it’s not there, it’s not a big deal. At this level, the klesha manifests not so much as a craving, but rather as a weakened attraction.

Moving beyond this state involves one of the biggest traps in Yoga.

We can easily fool ourselves into thinking that a klesha is weakened, when it is actually just interrupted (vichhinna). This can easily be tested by evoking the image of the object in the mind, or placing it in our physical presence. If the mind feels agitated and restless, the klesha is still vichhinna. If not, the klesha is tanu.

At this level, the klesha does not result in mental agitation, although it may still result in some mental scattering.

Often, people will say “I can’t sit still and meditate” or “I find it very difficult to meditate.”

Until most of your kleshas are in this category, meditation is very difficult. If you feel this way, it is likely that you have kleshas which have not yet been weakened to this degree.

Through the practice of Kriya Yoga, kleshas are brought into this state, so that they can be weakened further through the process of meditation.

Prasupta: Dormant

In this level, the klesha is like a seed that can sprout given circumstances that are just right, but otherwise remains dormant. It doesn’t mean that the attraction is completely gone, just that the conditions have to be perfect for it to arise again. To continue the example, a person with a prasupta-klesha of raag (attraction) towards alcohol may not drink at home, and may not even order alcohol when they go to a restaurant. Even when they go to a party where drinks are being served, they will go for an EANAB (equally appealing non-alcoholic beverage).

Now let us say the person’s college friends come to town, and over the weekend they go on a trip. On the trip, someone pulls out a bottle of their favourite whiskey and offers it to them. At this point, they may want the drink as the attraction begins to rise again, and the karmendriyas spring into action.

Notice, in this situation it took just the right conditions - the college friends coming to town evoked certain memories, the weekend allowed them time to recover from the effects, the trip away from home provided a safe location, the bottle of whiskey was their favourite, and it was physically offered to them.

Just like a seed needs the perfect amount of water, soil, sunlight and nutrients, at the perfect temperature in the perfect location, a prasupta-klesha needs the perfect conditions to rise out of dormancy. 

In this state, just like in the tanu state, the klesha does not result in any mental agitation or inner turmoil, although it retains the potential for becoming strong again, just like a seed retains the potential of turning into a tree.

A klesha can be in any of these four levels of intensity: dormant, weak, interrupted, or strong.

Aklishta: Without kleshas

In this final stage, the klesha is completely gone. This is the goal of meditation².

The traditional commentaries compare this to how a seed that has been burned can never grow again. Here, the person may look at alcohol, be offered alcohol, have the perfect conditions arise, or even consume alcohol, but they will remain completely neutral towards it.

Sometimes we can be fooled into thinking that the klesha is absent when it has in fact been replaced by its opposite. In this example, the person may feel actively averse to alcohol, maybe even stating openly that they dislike it or find its taste disgusting. This is the opposite klesha (dvesha, or aversion), and must be weakened through the same states. Any klesha, not just attraction, has a scattering effect on the mind. You may recognise this phenomenon occurring with other types of objects, or even ideas, beliefs, people, emotions, and even kleshas themselves (yes, you can be averse to the idea of aversion!).

Something to note - the intensity of the kleshas in someone’s mind is not visible to anyone else (with the exception, perhaps, of brain imaging technology). There are no external indications of any of the levels that cannot be attributed to something else. For example, it might seem externally as though someone is addicted to alcohol, but it could very well be that their agitation is actually about something else altogether, and that they are mentally completely neutral towards alcohol. The person with the klesha in their mind is the only one with the vantage point necessary to evaluate the level of intensity.

This means that any judgement that one may have towards another person’s addictions, aversions or fears is only based on conjecture or presumption.

So what do we do about these kleshas?

The first step is to acknowledge the kleshas in your mind, and then to categorise their intensity. This allows you to view the mind in a non-judgemental way. The kleshas are not good or bad, they are simply phenomena. You can keep them or get rid of them, as you wish, but knowing the consequences is a helpful tool. Keeping kleshas active in the mind results in mental scattering, the accompaniments, and general suffering. Removing the kleshas calms the mind, and generates feelings of happiness and clarity. Simply training the mind to see kleshas as the cause of suffering will create tendencies to weaken them.

Sometimes, we can get stuck in cycles of moving from strong (udaar) to interrupted (vichhinna), and back to strong again. Simply knowing that this can happen, and being aware of what is going on in the mind will allow you to counteract this possibility as it is arising, by applying the tools of Yoga.

To summarize, the order of operations is as follows:

1. Deciding that you want a calmer mind: No one can decide this for you - it has to be of your own volition, when the time is right for you.

2. Eka-tattva-abhyaas: Making a habit of focusing on one thing at a time

3. Brahmavihaaras: Applying the four attitudes in your day to day life

4. Stabilising Techniques: Using one or more of the six techniques to smooth over the extreme fluctuations of the mind

5. Kriya Yoga: Three steps we will discuss in more detail next time. This brings the kleshas to the tanu, or attenuated state.

6. Ashtaanga Yoga: The eight-limbed Yoga, including meditation. This allows you to bring the kleshas to the seed (prasupta) state, and then burn the seeds so the klesha does not arise again.

Each of these steps systematically reduces the kleshas in the mind. As you start to practice, you will notice the mind getting calmer, clearer, and more joyous. Don’t take my word for it, try it for yourself!

Until next time:

1. Think of at least one tendency that particularly disturbs your mental peace, and that you want to weaken over time. This could be towards any object, idea, belief, person, or feeling. Write it down.

2. Optional: If you can, break it down using the table of vrittis and kleshas above.

3. Categorise the level of intensity that that klesha is currently in, using the four levels described above.

4. As you continue your practice, write down the level of intensity that the klesha is in, week over week, to see your progress over time.

Next time: Patanjali’s Kriya Yoga: How to attenuate the kleshas

1. You may notice that whenever the last three rows (attraction, aversion or fear) are filled in, the first and second rows (ignorance and “I am”-ness) are filled in too. This is because recognition of objects requires avidyaa. Additionally, in order to be attracted to, averse to, or fearful of something, it requires a “me” who is attracted, averse, or fearful. Asmitaa, (“I am”-ness) stems from avidyaa (Ignorance), and attraction, aversion, and fear stem from asmitaa. Avidyaa → Asmitaa → Raag, Dvesha, Abhinivesha.

2. The goal of meditation is Moksha (liberation from the cycle of birth and death). Liberation is the removal of avidya which is the first of the kleshas, removing which all other kleshas are removed. In the systematic approach of Raja Yoga (which we are currently discussing), the other kleshas are removed to clear the way for the removal of avidya, which is what finally results in Moksha. In Jnana Yoga, on the other hand, avidya is directly removed, but this cannot be done until the mental dirt and mental scattering brought about by the kleshas are weakened to a sufficient degree for the teachings to settle in the mind.