Clouds That Roll but Do Not Rain: The Five Kleshas and Their Remedy

Morning satsanga with Sri Swami Jyotirmayananda, Tuesday, October 27, 2026.

The satsanga opened with the invocation to Lord Rama of the Raghu dynasty, whose complexion is like a blue lotus, very tender and delightful, with Sita seated at his left side and a powerful bow and arrow in his hands. After the Hare Rama mantra, Swamiji read a short poem on the question "Who is successful?" He who can conquer the enemies in the form of anger, greed and pride is indeed victorious. He who can withstand the trammels of the mind is indeed a hero. And he who can remain balanced in pleasure and pain, gain and loss, raging adversity and sweet prosperity, is truly successful.

Serenity, Contentment and Satsanga

Swamiji returned to the four gates of liberation: shama, serenity; santosha, contentment; satsanga, good association; and vichara, the power of inquiry, "Who am I?" When one passes securely through any one of the four, he said, the other three will always be there, and sadhana becomes very progressive. The demoniac movement in the mind works to obstruct all four.

For serenity, Swamiji turned to the verse that begins prasannatam ya na gatabhishekatah. Rama's face is the embodiment of serenity. When he was told he was going to be crowned, his face did not become elated; when he was told he was banished for fourteen years, he was not depressed. That, Swamiji said, is the key to divine success.

With serenity comes contentment. A contented person is not looking for support from others. As long as one keeps calling friends and relatives together to work for victory, one lacks the insight that all the resources for victory are already in one's own self.

In satsanga, Swamiji taught, your personality should become a source of sunshine, so that whatever you do brings spiritual upliftment to all people. Anyone who is spiritually advanced becomes a source of satsanga. Then the mind remains undisturbed by challenges. Instead of being overpowered by them, you take an aerial view, look into the challenge and see where its cause lies, and the negative forces cannot stay hidden. Your movement becomes steady. You put your foot down against the demoniac movement, as Angada illustrated: no one could shake his foot, and instead they were all shaken.

Vibhishana and Pure Buddhi

Vibhishana, Swamiji explained, gives the illustration of pure buddhi, the purified intellect that promotes vichara. When that inquiry is alive, all of Ravana's movements cannot hide. Pure buddhi allows one to ask "Who am I?" until the revelation dawns: I am not the body, I am not the mind. Shivoham.

The Five Kleshas

Swamiji then named the pancha klesha, the five afflictions: avidya, ignorance; asmita, egoism; raga and dvesha, attachment and hatred; and abhinivesha, the fear of death. Through these afflictions one's vision becomes distorted.

The moment egoism is present, he said, you do not see the good things; all you see is demonic power. Ego inflation is like rolling clouds. Most times they do not rain, but they roll quite a lot, and people are threatened.

Attachment and hatred operate in practical life. When good situations come, you become attached to the people who presented them, but you begin to hate those same people if they do not fulfill your mission. "Attachment is not real love." "It's false love." Soon the same person whom you loved so much hears, "Don't talk to me!" and "Never come to me."

Behind all of these lies body identity, and with it the fear of death. Any idea that you are going to die brings great distress in the mind, and in every movement you are constantly terrified. You come out of your gate, see a snake, and in panic you fall and break your bones, and it was only a rope.

The Opposing Virtues

Against the five kleshas Swamiji set their opposing movements. Vidya, knowledge, removes avidya. Vinaya, namrata, humility, removes egoism: the more you succeed, the humbler you become. If success gives you pride, it is not success. Real success gives humility, the feeling that it is not me, that this is divine grace and I am only an instrument. The greater the success, the more that humility increases.

When people come to praise you, you say, "Don't do that." "I'm indebted to you." "All of you gave me opportunity." And those who give you more challenges, you adore them, because they too are giving you opportunity.

When body identity is gone, there is no longer the fear of death, and the revelation is Shivoham. The real remedy, Swamiji said, is Self-realization; otherwise there is no other treatment. As long as there is body identity, mental energy is controlled by the fear of death. But with the vichara, I am not the body, "Now your energy is boundless." With the idea, I am the body, one is always counting one's birthdays and bringing the mind to terror.

The Closing Prayer

Swamiji closed with a prayer that the grace of God shower on all, with the blessings of Durga shakti, which removes all adversity, and of Lakshmi shakti, divine virtue. As virtues develop, love is for God alone, and you see God in everyone; whomsoever you love, you are loving God in that person.

Then comes mukti, the revelation of Shivoham: no longer subject to birth and death. "I am like the sun." The sun may appear to rise and set, but the sun only appears to; morning, evening and storms are all created by its energy. So one realizes, I am that sun. The satsanga ended with Tryambakam yajamahe, sarve bhadrani pashyantu, and Om Shanti.

Terms in This Satsanga

• pancha klesha — the five afflictions that distort the vision: ignorance, egoism, attachment, hatred and the fear of death.
• asmita — egoism; inflated like rolling clouds that seldom rain.
• abhinivesha — the fear of death, rooted in body identity.
• vinaya — humility, which grows greater with every success and removes egoism.
• vichara — inquiry into "Who am I?", promoted by pure buddhi.
• Shivoham — I am Shiva; the revelation that one is not the body and not the mind.

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