Kleshas: The Five Afflictions Underlying Political Pathology

Patanjali identifies five kleshas or afflictions—ignorance (avidya), ego-sense (asmita), attachment (raga), aversion (dvesha), and fear of annihilation (abhinivesha)—as the root sources of all suffering and distortion. Rather than viewing these as moral failings, he presents them as fundamental misperceptions that generate suffering when operating unconsciously. In political psychology, this framework provides extraordinary diagnostic power. Political conflicts rarely stem from genuine incompatibility of values but from the five kleshas operating unconsciously. Ignorance causes misunderstanding and false beliefs about political opponents. Asmita causes fusion of identity with ideology. Raga (attachment) causes desperate clinging to power, privilege, and systems that benefit oneself. Dvesha (aversion) causes fear-based rejection of those perceived as threatening. Abhinivesha (fear of death/annihilation) drives the defensive tribalism where groups perceive challenges to their worldview as existential threats. Political polarization, violence, and intractability all trace back to these afflictions. The Yoga Sutras teach that these kleshas can be dissolved through cultivated awareness and practice. Political psychology informed by this framework moves beyond blaming individuals toward understanding how universal psychological patterns create systematic political dysfunction, suggesting interventions focused on transforming consciousness rather than merely changing policies.