Kleshas: Neurodivergent Suffering Patterns

The kleshas—five fundamental afflictions in Patanjali's psychology—include avidya (fundamental ignorance), asmita (ego-clinging), raga (attachment), dvesha (aversion), and abhinivesha (fear of extinction). For neurodivergent individuals, these operate specifically around neurological difference. Avidya manifests as internalized ableism and false beliefs about "broken brains." Asmita creates rigid identity around diagnosis ("I am ADHD" as total self). Raga manifests as desperate grasping for neurotypicality or perfect accommodation. Dvesha appears as rejection of one's own neurodivergent traits. Abhinivesha emerges as catastrophic thinking about neurodivergent futures. Patanjali teaches these afflictions are removable through discriminative awareness (viveka). By identifying how these five patterns specifically operate in your neurodivergent experience—which misconceptions you carry, which identities trap you, what you grasp toward or push away—neurodivergent individuals gain agency over the psychological suffering layered atop neurological difference. This distinction between neurological trait and psychological suffering is liberatory.