The Six Enemies of Peace
Sometimes I learn something that blows my mind and I just have to share it. I am learning such a lot from the Sthira Yoga School course on Emotional Empowerment with Sudhir Rishi.
The ancient Indian text, the Bhagavad Gita, is our guide and today I learned about :
‘The Six Enemies’ of peace – the six things that rob us of our inner joy. Here they are in Sanskrit:
Kaama - an intense craving for something. “I want it at any cost.”
Krodha - anger. “I can’t have it because something is stopping me!”
Lobha - greed. “I’ve got it but now I need more.”
Moha - delusion born out of attachment. “I refuse to acknowledge that this thing is bad for me.”
Mada - arrogance. “I’ve got lots of this thing and I’m better than you because of it.”
Matsarya - jealousy. “You’ve got the thing I want and it’s eating me up inside.”
I can apply some of this to my drinking past, especially the first four. I know I’d get annoyed if friends wanted to leave the pub early and I was in a state of denial about how bad alcohol was for me.
When I first heard my teacher say the names and meanings of the Six Enemies, I cried. Because I’ve felt like the moment I pressed ‘publish’ on my book in August last year, my peace of mind was robbed and I’ve been using those words ever since. Many of the elements of this checklist have been responsible, both in myself and other people. I’ve only just regained my inner peace and I’m back on the yoga mat after months of not being able to face it.
The only ‘sin’ (there isn’t an exact translation for that word in Sanskrit) in Indian philosophy is hurting others, including yourself. That is the root of all suffering, along with ignorance of the true nature of the self: which is uninterrupted, unconditional joy.
Maybe this is something someone out there needs to hear – I know it came at the right time for me.
Be kind to yourselves as well as others.