This explains the psychology of anger.
अन्धीकरोषि, वाग्बाणं सन्धीकरोषि, मे श्रुतिम् ।
मन्दीकरोषि, मन्यो!, मां बन्धीकरोषि सर्वदा ।। 1 ।।
Anger! You impair my vision, shoot words like arrows, block my hearing and always bind me (to my emotions)!
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On ahamkara and anger. However good a person may be too much of ego and anger can make them unpopular.
तृणीकरोत्यहङ्कारः सर्वानपि गुणानहो ।
भस्मीकरोति सद्यस्तान् कोपस्तस्यैव सोदरः ।। 2 ।।
Alas! Ahamkara makes all other gunas (good qualities) appear like dried grass (worthless) and anger, it’s brother, immediately burns them off to ashes!
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It is not possible to solve all problems with patience. So, a little bit of anger is required to solve some. Mahakavi Bharathi also said ‘ரௌத்திரம் பழகு’. This is the message of the poem. The word kshama क्षम is used in three ways!
क्षमस्त्वं हि भवाऽमर्षे कार्यं तेनैव साधय ।
न सर्वदाऽऽदृता चापि क्षमाऽक्षमेति भावय ।। 3 ।।
Become (त्वं भव) an expert (क्षमः) in using anger (अमर्षे) to get some work done (कार्यं साधय). Patience (क्षमा) is not always (न सर्वदा) appreciated (आदृता) and also it is not competent (अक्षमा) to solve problems always! make a note of this (इति भावय)! But let us not take anger to our heart and allow it to blind us!
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This is a rejoinder to the previous one as anger is a double edged sword – it does damage to both sides!
कोपस्तु प्रतिकोपेन न दमयितुमर्हति ।
यतते कोऽप्यनुन्मत्तः नैव वह्निं हि वह्निना ।। 4 ।।
Anger does not deserve to be pacified by a reciprocated anger. No sane person will attempt to douse fire with fire indeed! The repetition of sounds in the last pada may be enjoyed!
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The ocean is called a ratnakara – a treasure of gems! As they are completely submerged with water, they are as good as not being there – for practical purposes for the world. It is not appreciated!
Similarly, let a person have many good qualities. If he or she has excessive anger, they lie covered under the flames of fire! It is also not appreciated!
सागरे सन्तु रत्नानि पिहितानि जलेन वै ।
तथाऽऽत्मनि गुणा गूढाः कोपज्वालेन किं च तैः ।। 5 ।।
So what? Not many people can look beyond the waters / fire in search of the gems / good qualities!
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Why should one get rid of anger? With knowledge one acquires what we call tejas or radiance (a form of fire). But with anger arises another fire, in which disappears the former!
अन्तर्दधाति तेजो वै ज्ञानेन सहजं च यत् ।
अनले कोपसञ्जाते वरमपरवारणम् ।। 6 ।।
Disappears indeed that tejas which is a coeval of jnana in the fire that is aroused by excessive anger! Controlling the latter is better! We all lose our balance in anger, how much so ever educated we are!
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Anger is such a black hole which can swallow in an instance all our buddhi even if it were akin to the halo of a Sun! By all means let us try to conquer it completely without leaving its head or tail! Rahu, the dangerous snake, which has only head and no body or tail, eats the Sun itself (traditional account of eclipse)!
आमुखं संहरेत् कोपं ज्ञानवानपि सर्वथा ।
मुखमात्रस्तु राहुर्वै भक्षति सूर्यमप्यहो ।। 7 ।।
By all means let even a learned man overcome anger completely. Being only a mere head, Rahu consumes even the Sun. Tapas or power is consumed by the fire called anger!
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Normally the first one to get angry in a discussion would be at fault! Or he or she would not have understood the intention of the other person to say the least. But if there is repentance later on then there is the presence of good qualities also. Kopam irukkum idathil gunam irukkum, provided repentance is there!
-by Dr.Sreeram Jaganathan Setlur (Nakula)
