Our ancient mythologies are full of stories on anger and its effect. A story that stands out in Mahabharata about the devastating effects of anger is Dhritarashtra’s wrath when the Pandavas come to meet him after defeating the Kauravas. Dhritarashtra is filled with anger within, more so for Bheem as he killed Duryodhan. Dhritarashtra calls Bheem closer to embrace, ostensibly to congratulate him on the victory. Krishna, ever the wily and wise, holds Bheem back. Instead, he places before the blind Dhritarashtra, a solid metal statue of Bheem and the vigorous hug of the old man reduces the statue to rubble. Such is the vigour of the anger that burns inside him. And when he realises what he has done, he breaks down like a child. 

If history is any indication, leaders, generals and athletes, who were driven by anger, tend to not only fail over a long enough timeline, but they tend to be miserable even if they don’t. 

Sometime in 2009, my sister was in town and we decided to go out for dinner. I was waiting at the traffic signal at Sarita Vihar on way to a Mall in Noida and a car came from behind and hit me. I got out of my car, pulled out its driver and started bashing him like we see in Hindi Movies. After hitting him for ten minutes or so I left him bleeding all over. In another incidence, while returning to the car park after a dinner with at a fast food chain, and my cousin realised he forgot his cell phone at the cafe. We rushed back. As expected, the phone was not on the table we had occupied and was switched off. I could sense looking at one of the employees that he must have stolen it. I didn’t even ask him anything and started hitting him hard banging his head on the table top. He confessed to stealing the phone and gave it back. I beat him so bad that he could have died that day.

For few years I lived such anger-filled life. I had broken my home TV, glass doors hurting myself. Stress from work was spilling out in the form of anger on others. After such repeated incidents, my wife and I decided that I should visit a counsellor and seek help. It took 12 weeks of counselling for me to finally emerge out of this mess. Those 2 years were the worst phase of my life.

We go through many situations in life which cause emotions of anger inside us. This anger comes out in the form of outburst on trivial things. It negatively effects relationships. Many times with some of our family members or friends or even in some other unimportant interactions, we are tested by our anger. Many researches in the world show how anger is harmful for our health. Illnesses like blood pressure, heart attacks, insomnia, back aches and other problems like digestive disorders, are caused by angry outbursts. Anger is a weakness and you lose respect with it. You lose cooperation and love from people.

Like many of us, I used anger as a weapon in, what we sometimes call, controlling people, forgetting that it is not possible to control people, but it is easy to influence them. Influencing people is always easier and that can take place with peace and love and keeping good wishes. Anger ultimately blocks us from whatever goal we are trying to achieve. Anger can never make you content and happy. Anger is counterproductive. Many a times, anger comes from the overblown sense of self-importance. Often, we also get angry to get attention. 

You may be exercising regularly. As a health-freak, you may be routinely consuming protein and vegetables and getting good 7 to 8 hours of sleep every night. Despite all the care, your body develops bouts of illnesses. The question that would come to your mind – What more should I do to lead a healthy lifestyle? Always know our feelings and thoughts create a subtle energy body. While diet, sleep and exercise influence physical health, a clean energy body is needed to sustain a perfect physical body. Emotional stress and anger manifest as an illness in our physical body. Release past hurt. Forgive people to heal yourself. Remain calm and stable to cleanse the body. We have the power to create a healthy mind, which then creates a healthy body and a happy life.

1 ) Write a journal or log whenever you get angry. You will be surprised what it reveals. Monitor every episode of anger, from fleeting moments of frustration or impatience, to extreme rage. For each one, note down the facts, the intensity of your anger (in a scale of 0-10, 10 being maximum rage). This habit of systematically describing your angry outbursts is often all that one needs in order to gain a little perspective.

2) Watch yourself angry. Roger Federer used to throw his racquet in anger during his earlier days and says watching himself throwing tantrums put him off it for life. The angry are often proud of their anger. Even if they leave a scene having achieved nothing (such as shouting at another car driver from behind the closed windows of their car). Re imagine in your head the scene again. You will feel embarrassed of yourself.

3) Take care of yourself. Most of the time you will find you are angry because of alcohol, hunger, stress, fatigue, unmet needs, PMS. Get some sleep; take some time off; streamline your week; delegate; relax; improve your diet. In short, look after yourself.

4) Become less judgemental – Most of the things in life are matter of opinion and not fact. Some religion propagates worshiping of cow and some eats beef. You may object to lovers kissing on public benches; there will almost always be someone who agrees with you, and others who staunchly oppose you. If you think its “Just the way I was brought up” or “my way of doing things”—then it is silly to judge others for not following them. It helps to remind yourself of the many different ways in which humans around the world operate. 

5) Understand that anger is a problem. Anger is an in effective way of working in this world. It will mostly backfire and ruin relationships. Studies say 80% of the time people direct their anger on their family and friends. These are not the people you wish to intimidate. Understand that having a warm relationship is the key to emotional health and well-being. And if you cannot sort it out yourself, seek professional help like I did. There is no shame in going to a Doctor to sort it out. It is like any other disease. 

Anger is counterproductive. Anger hurts not just ourselves but many others as well. Always look at the bigger picture. Replace anger with love, gratitude and purpose. You will be a winner. You will build a solid foundation to ‘Reboot your life’. 

Do you believe that somewhere down the line, we have complicated every aspect of our life? Do you wish to go back to simpler times when you led a modest life and found happiness in ordinary moments? Today we say relationships are complicated, jobs are hard, parenting is a challenge, health is deteriorating… The truth is that world is not complicated, our minds are getting complicated due to over thinking, holding on to the past, trying to control what we cannot, reacting impulsively and living in an auto-pilot mode. So, our mind, intellect and body are constantly under stress. It’s time for us to simplify our mind, our life and our world. Today, try to release everything that is holding you back from keeping things simple. Allow simplicity to take over. You will realize the immense freedom and joy it brings, to you and to people, who live or work with you. 

Couple of weeks ago, we were on this boat ride with an American lady on the Yamuna. We had gone to see the beautiful Taj Mahal. She said ‘Thanks’ so many times in that half an hour, to the boatman, guide or us. Never complaining about any thing despite the stink coming from the river or filth around. That was such a learning moment for me.

We often overlook the power of simple gestures like making eye contact, smiling, paying a compliment or greeting people. These meaningful acts certainly add happiness to our days and theirs. By helping others feel good about themselves, our own happiness significantly grows. Take a moment to see how your positive energy brightens someone’s day today. Everyone is looking to be acknowledged and heard. Sometimes that is all that people need from you. Let them know through your words and actions that they matter. Notice how you feel when you greet the security guard at the gate, hold the door open for a stranger or thank your family member. When you spend time with someone, you understand their value and importance. Kindness in action will bring you more joy than you thought.

The world’s greatest stretch – also known as ‘Spiderman with thoracic rotation’ – targets everything from your ankles and hamstrings to your hips, spine, shoulders and glutes. 

Combining thoracic rotation with hip mobility, not to mention the fact that this exercise requires you to move through the plank position, the world’s greatest stretch is essential if you sit down a lot.

Since it’s a dynamic stretch with static elements, it can be used as a part of your dynamic warm-up or at the end of a session.

It doesn’t need to be exclusive to your warm-up, it can be incredibly beneficial to anyone who has been sitting at their desk all day, to loosen the hips and regain some mobility. 

Give the World’s Greatest Stretch a try. When you do it properly, you’ll strengthen and stretch all the areas you want limber and strong.

Nishant Mandal is a certified Personal trainer/Online fitness coach based out of Delhi NCR. He is ACE-CPT, Crossfit L-1, PN-L1 certified and Calisthenics enthusiast, Deadlift Junkie, Movement & Mobility expert.

Mail @ nishant.mandal2008@gmail.com

Twitter @NishantPTrainer

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 Joe Dispenza, D.C., author of Breaking the Habit of Being Yourself and Evolve Your Brain, has a passion for teaching others how to use the latest discoveries from neuroscience and quantum physics to reprogram their brains, heal illness, and lead more fulfilled lives. One of the experts featured in the film What the BLEEP Do We Know!?, Dr. Joe teaches workshops and lectures all over the world. He’s also designed a corporate program that brings his model of transformation to businesses.

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