My article write-up in The Statesman Newspaper - 22 January-2018
(The Statesman was founded in 1875)
India has
been known for its rich culture since ages. From Gautam Buddha to Mahatma
Gandhi, we had been the land of peace and non-violence. Today teenagers are the
worst sufferers and in their impulse often resort to actions which cannot be
corrected. Educators, practitioners and counsellors get cases of children often
referred as incorrigible. The news of a teenage girl stabbing a first standard
child in a Lucknow school shakes us to our roots. Last year witnessed numerous
such cases including the most infamous case of a Gurugram school. These
incidents should not be studied as standalone cases but as the reflection of
the silent churning of our society. Anger is a natural emotion but uncontrolled
anger is a threat to humanity. Anger breeds when things don’t go as per our
desire. At initial stages it’s the desire for miniscule objects later
identifying with money, power, prestige, ego and relationships. Unrestrictive
anger breeds intolerance and its inception is trickling down day by day
reaching the youngest of the lot.
Intermittent
explosive disorder (IED) is an impulse-control disorder characterized by sudden
episodes of unwarranted anger. The disorder is typified by hostility,
impulsivity and recurrent aggressive outbursts. People with IED essentially
“explode” into a rage despite a lack of apparent provocation or reason. The
recent episode of a government officer going berserk and massacring six
innocent people in Palwal is falling under this category. He was a university
topper and had proven track record. The point to ponder here is the origin of
his problem and not the consequences. Psychiatrists view that these actions are
the result of chronic stage of emotions taking the shape of a disease. It is
the result of neglect of initial symptoms of betrayal and defiance.
Youngsters
of today’s India are sitting on a volcano of rampant anger which has already
started showing signs of eruption. Sudden burst of anger on issues like a
release of a movie, mismatch of political thoughts, choices of sexual
orientations, caste issues, showcasing of patriotism, animal welfare, troubled
relationships etc. both in the real and virtual world are an alarm for our society.
Most people shirk away from accepting what they are going through. This
constant denial breeds in them emotions that are highly dangerous. Mahatma
Gandhi rightly said anger and intolerance are the enemies of correct
understanding.
Anger
cannot be eliminated from the human lives as it’s a natural emotion but it can
definitely be controlled and channelized. Prolonged anger leads to scheming for
vengeance and criminal activities. The sudden splurge of anger is a result of
lack of acceptance among youngsters. It is the high time we should take this
seriously before the Frankenstein monster takes its sway. Holding on to anger
is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else; you
are the one who gets burned. We should teach our kids anger management and
prevent this anger volcano from bursting out. The board and universities should
act on this call of the hour and introduce anger management for all the kids.
Management of anger is of utmost importance since childhood. Children should be
taught through anecdotes. One such is about the anger management of Mahatma
Gandhi. In South Africa, when he was thrown out of the train by the Britishers.
It’s not that Gandhi didn’t get angry, he was rather exasperated, but he
channelized his boil through non-violence and the rest is history.
Renowned counsellor-psychologist
Vikas Attry who deals with school children finds rate of defiance at its
extreme high even in the remote areas. He further adds that there are very less
tools available with the practitioners. One such tool to counter anger is
spiritual learning. Contemporary education system is going away from devotional
learning. It is becoming too much materialistic. Teaching kids the divine
essence of spiritual texts can act as a strong motivating force towards anger
management. Buddha postulates that holding onto anger is like drinking poison
and expecting the other person to die. The children should be taught to remain
contented. Acceptance is liberation. Gita says, ‘bandhur atmatmanas tasya
yenatmaivatmana jitah, anatmanas tu satrutve vartetatmaiva satru-vat’,
which means ‘For him who has conquered the mind, the mind is the best of
friends; but for one who has failed to do so, his very mind will be the
greatest enemy’.
Jagdeep S. More, Educationist
