Kleshas: Recognizing Core Wounds Beneath Behaviors

The five kleshas—avidya (ignorance), asmita (ego), raga (attachment), dvesha (aversion), and abhinivesha (fear of death/change)—are psychological root patterns in Patanjali's system. For inner child work, they map core wounds. Avidya: the inner child doesn't know it is lovable. Asmita: shame-based identity ('I am bad'). Raga: compulsive clinging to caregivers despite harm. Dvesha: violent rejection of feeling or needs. Abhinivesha: terror of abandonment driving desperate behaviors. Reparenting involves recognizing these kleshas not as character flaws but as intelligent survival mechanisms. The adult self brings awareness and compassion to each: I understand why you clung; I see the fear underneath the rage. Rather than fighting these patterns, Patanjali teaches discrimination—seeing their origins without being run by them. This brings the inner child from unconscious reactivity to informed choice. The kleshas framework prevents reparenting from becoming superficial positivity, instead grounding healing in honest recognition of deep wound structures.