Kleshas as Trauma-Generated Mental Afflictions

The kleshas—avidya (ignorance), asmita (ego), raga (attachment), dvesha (aversion), and abhinivesha (fear of death)—are the five fundamental afflictions that generate all suffering in Patanjali's psychology. C-PTSD can be understood through this lens: trauma creates avidya (disconnection from present reality), asmita (identification as "broken" or "victim"), raga (craving safety/control obsessively), dvesha (intense aversion to triggers), and abhinivesha (existential fear). Rather than pathologizing these as psychiatric symptoms, the klesha framework reveals them as conditioned mental patterns rooted in a fundamental misunderstanding of the nature of self and reality. This reframe is profoundly therapeutic: it depathologizes while maintaining clarity that these patterns cause suffering. Recovery involves systematically examining each klesha—not eliminating them (impossible) but reducing their grip through knowledge, practice, and witnessing. This ancient taxonomy offers C-PTSD survivors a map of inner terrain more nuanced than diagnostic criteria.