Structural
Defect (Kleisha) YOGA and Native American Indian concept of Character Defect
One pleasure of learning about YOGA from my
friend MC in KL was the good understanding she had of KLEISHAS or structural
defects of the mind. Kleishas or
Structural defects, which form the fundamentals of BUDDHISM as well, especially
the three Kleishas: Ignorance, Attachment and Aversion.
Once we are aware of the five Kleishas, we
can become adept at not being bothered by them or learn to contain them. There
are many ways prescribed through the ages to contain them, but I like the idea
of analysing them and thinking through. But I have learned that one has to be
very careful, not to ask questions which would lead to further destruction of our
minds and us.
These five can be thought of as the root
causes of trouble and strife in ones life.
Ignorance
Ego
Aversion
Attachment
Fear of Change
Every one would agree that IGNORANCE is the
root of the other Kleishas as well.
Yet another philosophy of life as ancient
if not more than the Yogic philosophy, is the philosophy of the American
Indians, natives of the Continent that we call the Americas: from Alaska to
Tierra del Fuego.
Just listen to what a contemporary Quechua
Indian from Peru has to say:
Also ask your heart to purify and cleanse
this defect and harmful desire. Ask also the help of the inner father and
mother. Every time we eliminate a defect we build our soul, our inner temple.
We ascend.
My first lesson in the fear of change came
when the teacher corrected me, please don't say you cannot sit in this fashion,
it will become easier as time goes by and I got the message.
It reminded me of the poster message: If you wait for the right time to do
something, it would never come..
Regarding aversion, my teacher MC corrected
me when I said to her, I really don't like Singapore, she said, there is
nothing wrong with Singapore, it is up to you to decide to be affected by those
things that you do not like about Singapore! Believe it or not, on my next
visit, I came to realize that Singapore has more leafy areas than a city like
Bangalore in India and that Kaya and toast tasted good along with some Kopi in
one of the shops in the Chinatown…Just a little change in your mind, and the
life becomes bearable and even more beautiful.
When these defect arise in your heart, you
tend to do say or do something that is unpleasant to you or those surrounding
you. American Indians would advice: do not do a destructive review but a
constructive review of your thought, and gives an example:
Destructive review is when we ask,
What is the matter with me?
How can I be so stupid?
They feel that this is morbid reflection of
your action or remorse (a concept unknown to the Indians) and may affect your
self-esteem. A constructive review would be to ask,
What will I do next time?
With constructive review as with the
analysis of the Kleishas, we progressively eliminate the structural defects
that stand between our minds and the
harmony of our lives.
It is 5 pm on a Friday as I write this,
looking out at a park in Bruselas, Belgica.
Shabbat Shalom to my family and friends all over the World.
