Klesas: Five Afflictions Generating Biased Reasoning

The five kleshas (afflictions) form Patanjali's diagnosis of human psychological disease. Avidya (fundamental ignorance) generates biases in reality perception. Asmita (ego-identification) creates confirmation bias and self-serving bias—the need to protect a constructed self-image. Raga (attachment/craving) generates optimism bias and motivated reasoning toward desired outcomes. Dvesha (aversion/rejection) creates negativity bias and threat-detection bias. Abhinivesha (fear of death/clinging) underlies loss-aversion bias and status-quo bias. This framework brilliantly maps cognitive biases onto emotional and existential roots rather than treating them as isolated reasoning errors. Someone with strong raga-driven samskaras is particularly vulnerable to overoptimism and availability bias around desired outcomes. Someone dominated by dvesha sees threats everywhere (negativity bias, catastrophizing). Asmita drives confirmation bias—the need to be 'right' overrides evidence integration. Understanding which kleshas drive your personal bias patterns connects abstract cognitive errors to deeper emotional and existential motivations. This depth suggests that addressing cognitive biases requires addressing the emotional attachments and defensive patterns underlying them, not just practicing critical thinking techniques.