September Gītā: 2.63

krodhād bhavati sammohaḥ
sammohāt smṛiti-vibhramaḥ
smṛiti-bhranśād buddhi-nāśho
buddhi-nāśāt praṇaśyati

‘Anger generates delusion, and delusion results in loss of memory. Loss of memory brings about the destruction of discriminative intelligence, and loss of discriminative intelligence spells ruin to a man.’

Bhagavad Gītā 2.63

Whilst anger can protect and keep us safe when we are under threat, there is plenty of scope for the seed of anger to be watered regularly in the whirlwind of modern day living – just walk around London or glance at social media and you may find it. If we lose our ability to take a pause, anger can easily surge forward under a hairline trigger. Anger is described as fire for good reason as it can literally engulf our being at an alarming rate. At these points, when we feel the flames, this sloka can help us to anchor ourselves back into our true selves. When we are angry we may forget who we love and that we could in fact be wrong. Instead, anger comes with an unswerving sense of righteousness and an intoxicating strength. It is in this blur of bewilderment that we lose our ability to see what is. Knowing this, we can, with discipline, choose to breathe into the heat and select a more skilful response.

– Louise Newton