What Are Kleshas in Yoga Kleshas represent one of the most psychologically profound teachings in Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras, identifying the five fundamental afflictions or obstacles that lie at the root of all human suffering, binding consciousness to endless cycles of dissatisfaction, reactivity, and identification with what we are not. Sutra 2.3 lists them succinctly: avidyā-asmitā-rāga-dveṣa-abhiniveśāḥ kleśāḥ – “Ignorance, egoism, attachment, aversion, and clinging to life are the afflictions.” Unlike temporary problems or external circumstances that we often blame for our unhappiness, the Kleshas represent deep-rooted patterns within consciousness itself – mental and emotional structures creating suffering regardless of external conditions while preventing the clear perception and peace that constitute our natural state.
For practitioners in 2025 navigating unprecedented complexity, stress, and existential uncertainty, understanding these five afflictions and the yogic methods for dissolving them becomes not merely philosophical knowledge but essential practical wisdom for addressing suffering at its source rather than perpetually managing symptoms.
Understanding the Kleshas: The Root of Suffering
Before exploring each affliction individually, establishing clear understanding of what Kleshas are, how they function, and why they occupy such central position in yoga philosophy proves essential.
The Meaning of Klesha
The Sanskrit term “kleśa” derives from the root kliś meaning “to torment,” “to afflict,” or “to cause pain.” Kleshas represent mental-emotional afflictions that disturb consciousness, create suffering, and perpetuate bondage to the cycle of birth, death, and rebirth (saṃsāra). They constitute not temporary moods or passing difficulties but rather fundamental patterns deeply embedded in the structure of ordinary consciousness.
Commentator Vyasa describes Kleshas as the root causes (mūla) of all suffering – the source from which all particular problems, conflicts, anxieties, and dissatisfactions ultimately derive. Like diseases causing various symptoms, the five Kleshas generate the countless specific forms of unhappiness humans experience while remaining themselves beneath surface awareness unless specifically examined.
Importantly, Kleshas afflict not just obviously troubled individuals but all beings operating within ordinary consciousness. Even wise people experience subtle forms of these afflictions, though intense spiritual practice can reduce them to “burned seeds” – dormant impressions no longer actively producing suffering. Complete liberation (kaivalya) requires destroying the Kleshas entirely rather than merely managing or suppressing them.
What Are Kleshas in Yoga The Hierarchical Structure
The five Kleshas don’t exist as independent equals but rather form a hierarchical causal chain where each arises from and depends upon the previous:
Avidya (ignorance) constitutes the root – the fundamental misperception from which all others grow. Without Avidya, the remaining four couldn’t exist.
Asmita (egoism) emerges directly from Avidya – the mistaken sense of being a separate individual self arises because ignorance obscures recognition of our true nature.
Raga (attachment), Dvesha (aversion), and Abhinivesha (clinging to life) all spring from Asmita – once the illusion of separate selfhood establishes itself, the ego naturally develops attractions toward what seems to enhance it, aversions toward what threatens it, and fundamental fear of its own annihilation.
Traditional imagery depicts this as a tree: Avidya forms the trunk or root, Asmita branches from it, and Raga, Dvesha, and Abhinivesha sprout as the final offshoots. Cutting the trunk (removing Avidya) causes all branches and sprouts to die naturally; removing only outer branches (working on specific attachments or aversions) while leaving the trunk intact produces limited temporary relief but not fundamental transformation.
The States of Kleshas
Sutra 2.4 describes four states in which Kleshas can exist:
Prasupta (dormant/sleeping) – Like seeds stored in a warehouse, these Kleshas remain latent, not currently active but retaining potential to sprout when conditions arise. Past life karmic impressions often exist in this dormant state.
Tanu (attenuated/weakened) – Through spiritual practice, Kleshas become thin or weak, like a rope that’s been frayed. They still exist but exert less influence, creating space for awareness and choice rather than automatic reaction.
Vicchinna (interrupted/intercepted) – Kleshas get temporarily blocked by opposing mental states. For example, compassion temporarily interrupts aversion, or contentment blocks attachment. However, when the opposing state fades, the Klesha can resurface.
Udāra (active/fully aroused) – The Klesha operates at full intensity, dominating consciousness and driving behavior. This represents the affliction in its most powerful, unconcealed state.
Understanding these states clarifies that practice aims not merely at suppressing active Kleshas but at progressively weakening and eventually destroying them at their root through the discriminative knowledge (viveka khyāti) that removes Avidya itself.
The Five Kleshas Explained
Each affliction possesses distinctive characteristics, produces specific forms of suffering, and requires particular understanding for effective dissolution.
1. Avidya: Ignorance
Avidyā literally means “not-knowledge” or “non-wisdom” – the fundamental misperception of reality that constitutes the root of all other afflictions. Sutra 2.5 provides the crucial definition: anityāśuci-duḥkha-anātmasu nitya-śuci-sukha-ātma-khyātir avidyā – “Ignorance is regarding the impermanent as eternal, the impure as pure, pain as pleasure, and non-Self as Self.”
This fourfold misperception describes Avidya’s essential nature:
Taking the impermanent as permanent: Believing that relationships, possessions, bodies, or circumstances will last forever despite obvious evidence of constant change. This creates suffering when inevitable change occurs.
Taking the impure as pure: Considering the body or material pleasures as sources of genuine fulfillment rather than recognizing their limited, conditional nature. This drives endless seeking while missing what truly satisfies.
Taking pain as pleasure: Mistaking temporary sensory gratification for genuine happiness, failing to recognize how even pleasant experiences contain seeds of suffering through their impermanence and the craving they generate.
Taking non-Self as Self: The most fundamental error – identifying consciousness with body, mind, thoughts, emotions, or personality rather than recognizing the eternal witness (draṣṭṛ) that observes all these changing phenomena while remaining forever free from them.
This final aspect – mistaking what we truly are – proves most crucial. We identify with temporary forms (this body, this personality, this life story) while overlooking the unchanging awareness within which all experience appears. This mistaken identity creates the entire suffering structure because we seek security and happiness through what constantly changes and inevitably ends.
Practical manifestations: Constantly seeking happiness through external acquisitions while overlooking present completeness; fearing death because you identify consciousness with the body that will die; believing your essential worth depends on accomplishments, appearance, or others’ opinions; experiencing anxiety about the future because you don’t recognize the timeless presence always available now.
How to address: The antidote to Avidya involves cultivating viveka (discrimination) – the capacity to distinguish the eternal from temporary, real from unreal, Self from non-Self. This requires both intellectual study understanding the philosophical distinction between consciousness and its contents, and direct experiential investigation through meditation observing the unchanging witness that perceives all changing phenomena.
2. Asmita: Egoism
Asmitā literally means “I-am-ness” – the sense of being a separate individual self distinct from all other beings and from ultimate reality. Sutra 2.6 states: dṛg-darśana-śaktyor ekātmatā-iva-asmitā – “Egoism is the identification of the power that sees with the instruments of seeing.”
This describes the fundamental confusion where pure consciousness (draṣṭṛ – the seer) becomes identified with the mind (darśana-śakti – the power of seeing) and body (the instruments through which seeing occurs). Consciousness mistakenly believes “I am this body,” “I am these thoughts,” “I am this personality” rather than recognizing itself as the witnessing awareness before which all these appear.
From Asmita emerges the persistent sense of being a separate entity with specific characteristics, history, and boundaries distinguishing “me” from “you,” “mine” from “yours.” This creates the entire structure of personal identity – the ego-self that must be defended, enhanced, and perpetuated.
Practical manifestations: Constant self-referencing where experiences get evaluated primarily based on how they affect “me”; defensive reactions when identity gets threatened; compulsive comparison with others to establish relative position; attachment to self-image requiring maintenance through specific behaviors, accomplishments, or recognition; and the underlying anxiety of maintaining this constructed self against inevitable challenges.
The ego isn’t evil or something to violently destroy – it serves functional purposes in navigating relative reality. The problem lies in identification with ego as one’s essential nature rather than recognizing it as a temporary construct appearing in consciousness. Like an actor completely forgetting they’re acting and believing themselves to be the character, consciousness forgets its true nature and identifies completely with the personal self.
How to address: Practices cultivating witness consciousness (sākṣī) help dissolve identification with ego. During meditation, observe thoughts, emotions, and sensations as objects appearing in awareness rather than as “you.” Notice how the witness remains unchanged while all content continuously changes. In daily life, catch moments of self-referencing and recognize them as ego-activity rather than truth. The question “Who am I?” pursued seriously beyond conceptual answers begins revealing consciousness beyond personal identity.
3. Raga: Attachment
Rāga means attachment, desire, or attraction – the compulsive pulling toward experiences, objects, or states that previously produced pleasure. Sutra 2.7 states: sukha-anuśayī rāgaḥ – “Attachment follows from pleasure.”
When any experience produces pleasure, the mind forms attachment – a subtle impression (saṃskāra) creating compulsive desire to repeat that experience. This mechanism operates automatically: pleasant experience → memory of pleasure → desire for repetition → attachment that drives future behavior. The ego, having identified certain experiences as enhancing itself, develops clinging that demands fulfillment.
Attachment differs from natural enjoyment. Experiencing pleasure itself doesn’t constitute Klesha; rather, the compulsive grasping and mental dependence whereby happiness becomes contingent on obtaining or maintaining particular objects, experiences, or states creates suffering. You can enjoy food without being attached; attachment means craving specific foods, feeling incomplete without them, and experiencing distress when unavailable.
Practical manifestations: Craving specific pleasures – foods, entertainment, substances, sexual experiences; dependence on relationships where happiness requires particular people behaving in specific ways; attachment to accomplishments or status where self-worth depends on maintaining achievements; clinging to comfort zones avoiding growth-producing challenges; and the underlying sense that “I need X to be happy” rather than recognizing inherent completeness.
The suffering attachment creates becomes obvious when desired objects are absent, obtained things prove unsatisfying, or pleasant experiences inevitably end. Moreover, attachment itself feels uncomfortable – the constant craving, restless seeking, and anxious grasping that characterize Raga prevent present-moment peace regardless of whether desired objects are obtained.
How to address: Cultivating santoṣa (contentment) and vairāgya (non-attachment) gradually weakens Raga. Practice appreciating what’s present rather than constantly craving what’s absent. Notice how attachment feels in the body – usually as tension, restlessness, or compulsion. Observe that happiness fluctuates independently of whether attachments are satisfied, revealing that fulfillment doesn’t actually come from external objects. Gradually experiment with not pursuing every desire, discovering that you survive and often feel better by allowing cravings to arise and pass without automatically acting on them.
4. Dvesha: Aversion
Dveṣa means aversion, hatred, or repulsion – the compulsive pushing away of experiences, objects, or states that previously produced pain. Sutra 2.8 states: duḥkha-anuśayī dveṣaḥ – “Aversion follows from pain.”
Parallel to Raga’s mechanism but opposite in direction: painful experience → memory of pain → aversion toward similar experiences → compulsive avoidance that drives future behavior. The ego, having identified certain experiences as threatening, develops resistance demanding protection from repetition.
Dvesha manifests across a spectrum from mild preference against to intense hatred and rage. All represent the same fundamental pattern – consciousness in resistance mode, pushing against what it perceives as threatening to the ego’s comfort or survival. Like Raga, the problem isn’t the natural response to actual threats but rather the compulsive reactivity and mental dependence whereby peace requires avoiding or eliminating whatever triggers discomfort.
Practical manifestations: Avoiding experiences, people, or situations that produced past pain even when circumstances have changed; harboring resentment, grudges, or hatred toward those who’ve caused hurt; resistance to uncomfortable emotions causing suppression or numbness; aversion to aspects of yourself creating internal conflict and self-hatred; and the constant expenditure of energy fighting against what already is rather than accepting and responding skillfully.
The suffering Dvesha creates extends beyond obvious cases like hatred. Even mild aversions – not liking particular foods, weather, or social situations – create continuous low-level resistance that prevents peace. Moreover, what we resist often persists and intensifies: trying not to think about something makes it more prominent; avoiding uncomfortable emotions allows them to accumulate underground; and resistance to pain often creates more suffering than the pain itself.
How to address: Developing ahiṃsā (non-violence) and equanimity toward all experiences gradually dissolves Dvesha. Practice accepting what arises rather than immediately pushing it away – can you allow discomfort to be present without resistance? Notice that aversion feels worse than the actual experience you’re avoiding. Investigate whether things you’ve been avoiding are actually as threatening as imagined. Cultivate compassion toward those you’ve been hating, recognizing they too suffer under Kleshas’ influence. Gradually discover that you can experience unpleasant things without the additional suffering of resistance.
5. Abhinivesha: Clinging to Life
Abhiniveśa means clinging to life or fear of death – the fundamental will to survive and continue existing that pervades all beings. Sutra 2.9 states: svarasavāhī viduṣo ‘pi tathārūḍho ‘bhiniveśaḥ – “Clinging to life, flowing by its own nature, exists even in the wise.”
This represents the deepest instinctual fear – the terror of annihilation, the desperate clinging to continued existence, the fundamental unwillingness to let go. While connected to literal death fear, Abhinivesha extends more broadly to resistance against any form of ego-dissolution, change, or loss of identity. We cling not just to physical life but to familiar patterns, established identities, and known circumstances – anything representing psychological survival.
Remarkably, Patanjali notes this affliction exists “even in the wise” – indicating that even those who intellectually understand impermanence and non-self still experience this deep instinctual fear at subtle levels. It operates beneath conscious awareness, driving behavior through the fundamental biological and psychological imperative to preserve existence.
Practical manifestations: Fear of death whether conscious or unconscious creating background anxiety; resistance to change, growth, or transformation because these involve “dying” to what you’ve been; clinging to relationships, possessions, or circumstances even when harmful because letting go feels like annihilation; unwillingness to take risks or pursue authentic calling because safety seems more important; and the pervasive sense of being a vulnerable separate entity that could cease existing rather than recognizing the eternal nature of consciousness itself.
The suffering Abhinivesha creates extends far beyond death anxiety. Every moment of resistance to change, every rigid clinging to how things were, every refusal to grow beyond current limitations – all represent this fundamental fear operating at varying levels of intensity. The ego knows intuitively that genuine transformation requires its dissolution, creating desperate resistance to practices and experiences threatening the familiar sense of self.
How to address: Addressing Abhinivesha requires both practical and profound approaches. Practically: Investigate death consciously rather than avoiding the topic – what actually happens? Understanding death as transformation rather than annihilation reduces fear. Practice letting go of small things, recognizing you survive the loss. Cultivate trust in life’s unfolding rather than desperate control. Profoundly: Recognize through direct experience in meditation that you are not the body or mind that will die but rather the consciousness witnessing all arising and passing. The eternal witness never dies because it was never born – only forms appear and dissolve while awareness remains. This recognition doesn’t eliminate biological survival instinct but removes the existential terror rooted in misidentification.
How the Kleshas Work Together
Understanding individual Kleshas proves valuable, but recognizing how they interact and reinforce each other reveals the complete suffering mechanism.
The causal chain operates thus: Avidya (not recognizing your true nature as eternal consciousness) produces Asmita (identifying as separate ego-self). Once the illusion of separate selfhood establishes, Raga naturally arises toward what seems to enhance the ego, Dvesha toward what threatens it, and Abhinivesha as fundamental fear of the ego’s annihilation.
These three – attachment, aversion, and fear – create the cycle of craving and suffering Buddhism describes as duḥkha. You pursue what you’re attached to, discovering either that obtaining it proves unsatisfying or that it inevitably ends, creating more suffering. You avoid what you have aversion toward, discovering that what you resist persists or that avoidance creates its own suffering. You cling desperately to life and known patterns, discovering that change occurs anyway while clinging creates anxiety.
Meanwhile, each painful experience reinforces Avidya by confirming the ego’s reality and vulnerability – “I am a separate self that must protect itself from harm and seek enhancement through pleasure.” This strengthens Asmita, which amplifies Raga, Dvesha, and Abhinivesha, creating a self-perpetuating cycle where suffering reinforces the very afflictions that cause it.
Breaking the cycle requires addressing the root – Avidya itself. While working directly on attachments, aversions, and fears produces beneficial results, ultimate freedom requires the discriminative knowledge removing fundamental ignorance about your true nature. When consciousness recognizes itself as the eternal witness beyond all changing phenomena, the entire Klesha structure collapses at its foundation.
Overcoming the Kleshas Through Practice
Patanjali describes systematic practices for weakening and eventually destroying the afflictions rather than merely managing their symptoms.
Kriya Yoga: The Preliminary Practice
Sutra 2.1-2 introduces kriyā yoga – the yoga of action consisting of three elements specifically designed to weaken Kleshas: tapaḥ-svādhyāya-īśvara-praṇidhānāni kriyā-yogaḥ. samādhi-bhāvanārthaḥ kleśa-tanu-karaṇārthaś ca – “Discipline, self-study, and surrender to the Supreme constitute Kriya Yoga, practiced for cultivating samadhi and weakening the kleshas.”
Tapas (discipline, austerity) involves willingly embracing difficulty that serves growth – fasting, cold exposure, maintaining practices when unmotivated, or any voluntary discomfort building capacity beyond seeking mere comfort. This directly counters Raga’s pursuit of pleasure and Dvesha’s avoidance of discomfort.
Svādhyāya (self-study, scripture study) includes both studying sacred texts that teach discriminative knowledge and honest self-examination revealing how Kleshas operate in your life. This addresses Avidya by replacing ignorance with wisdom while weakening Asmita through objective self-observation.
Īśvara Praṇidhāna (surrender to the Supreme) involves releasing the ego’s desperate control attempts, recognizing forces beyond personal manipulation, and offering actions to something greater than yourself. This directly weakens Asmita’s sense of being an independent agent while addressing Abhinivesha’s clinging through trust in transcendent reality.
The Eight Limbs
The complete eight-limbed path systematically addresses Kleshas at all levels:
Yama and Niyama (ethical restraints and observances) directly counter specific afflictions – Ahimsa addresses Dvesha, Aparigraha addresses Raga, Santosha addresses attachment to outcomes, etc.
Asana, Pranayama, and Pratyahara create physical comfort, energetic stability, and sensory withdrawal reducing the constant stimulation feeding Raga and Dvesha while building capacity for inward focus.
Dharana, Dhyana, and Samadhi progressively refine consciousness until direct recognition of the eternal witness occurs, removing Avidya at its root and causing all dependent afflictions to collapse naturally.
Pratipaksha Bhavana: Cultivating Opposites
Sutra 2.33-34 recommends pratipakṣa bhāvana – cultivating opposite thoughts when afflicted by negative ones: vitarka-bādhane pratipakṣa-bhāvanam – “When disturbed by negative thoughts, cultivate the opposite.”
When Dvesha arises as hatred, consciously cultivate compassion. When Raga manifests as desperate craving, practice contentment with what is. When Asmita creates defensive reactivity, remember your true nature beyond personal identity. This doesn’t suppress afflictions but rather provides alternative patterns that gradually replace destructive ones.
Viveka Khyati: Discriminative Knowledge
Ultimately, Sutra 2.26 declares: viveka-khyātir aviplavā hānopāyaḥ – “Unbroken discriminative discernment is the means of removal.” The final solution involves developing and stabilizing the direct recognition that you are pure consciousness rather than body-mind, eternal rather than temporary, complete rather than lacking.
This knowledge differs from intellectual understanding – it represents lived experiential realization arising through sustained practice. When consciousness recognizes itself clearly and unwaveringly as the witnessing presence beyond all phenomena, Avidya dissolves completely. With the root gone, all branches wither: Asmita’s separate self, Raga’s attachments, Dvesha’s aversions, and Abhinivesha’s clinging all naturally cease because the fundamental misidentification supporting them no longer exists.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are Kleshas the same as emotions?
No, though they produce emotional reactions. Kleshas represent deeper mental-emotional structures or patterns that generate specific emotions. For example, Dvesha (aversion) might produce anger, resentment, or fear depending on circumstances. The Kleshas are root causes; emotions are symptoms. However, recognizing emotional reactions can reveal underlying Kleshas – noticing anger might indicate Dvesha operating, while anxiety might point to Abhinivesha.
Can you completely eliminate the Kleshas?
According to Patanjali, yes – this constitutes complete liberation (kaivalya). The highest stages of practice destroy Kleshas at their root like burning seeds that can no longer sprout. However, this represents the culmination of extensive practice potentially across lifetimes. Most practitioners experience progressive weakening – Kleshas becoming thinner (tanu) and less dominant – while complete elimination remains the ultimate goal. Even significant weakening produces dramatic reductions in suffering.
Which Klesha should I work on first?
While addressing any Klesha proves beneficial, working backward from symptoms to root creates lasting change. Notice specific attachments or aversions in daily life (Raga/Dvesha), then investigate the ego-identification (Asmita) that creates them, ultimately addressing fundamental ignorance (Avidya) through discriminative wisdom. However, practical advice: start where you have most awareness – if constant craving troubles you, work with Raga; if hatred dominates, address Dvesha. As practice deepens, naturally progress toward the root.
How do Kleshas differ from Buddhist concept of attachment?
Significant overlap exists – Buddhism’s second noble truth identifies craving (tanha) as suffering’s cause, closely paralleling Raga. However, Patanjali’s system provides more detailed taxonomy distinguishing different forms of affliction (five Kleshas vs. Buddhism’s three poisons) while maintaining similar fundamental insight: misidentification and resulting craving create suffering. Both traditions recognize ignorance as the root and prescribe similar practices for dissolution through wisdom and ethical living.
Can therapy help with Kleshas?
Yes, significantly. While therapy may not use Klesha terminology, addressing attachment patterns, core wounds, and identity issues works with the same fundamental structures. Therapy can weaken Kleshas by bringing unconscious patterns to awareness, healing past traumas feeding attachments/aversions, and developing healthier relationship with self and others. However, yoga’s ultimate goal – complete dissolution through recognizing consciousness beyond all content – extends beyond most therapy’s scope. Ideally, combine therapeutic work addressing psychological dimensions with yogic practices targeting spiritual realization.
Do animals experience Kleshas?
Patanjali states Abhinivesha (survival instinct) exists “even in worms,” suggesting all beings experience this fundamental clinging. Animals likely experience crude forms of Raga (attraction to food, mates) and Dvesha (aversion to threats). However, humans’ advanced self-reflective consciousness creates more elaborate ego-structures (Asmita) and complex attachments/aversions. The capacity for self-recognition that creates suffering also enables liberation – humans can consciously work with Kleshas in ways unavailable to other beings.
How long does it take to overcome the Kleshas?
Varies tremendously based on practice intensity, accumulated conditioning, life circumstances, and individual capacity. Sutras indicate this may require multiple lifetimes of sustained practice for complete elimination. However, significant weakening producing substantial relief from suffering can occur within months or years of dedicated practice. Rather than focusing on timeline, commit to consistent practice recognizing that even partial progress dramatically improves quality of life while setting direction toward ultimate freedom.
Can you experience pleasure without Raga or pain without Dvesha?
Yes – this represents key distinction between natural response and affliction. You can enjoy pleasant experiences fully without the compulsive grasping (Raga) that creates suffering when pleasure ends. You can acknowledge pain while responding skillfully without the resistance (Dvesha) that amplifies suffering. Liberation doesn’t mean becoming numb or joyless but rather experiencing life’s full spectrum without the additional suffering Kleshas create through attachment, aversion, and misidentification.
Conclusion
The five Kleshas – Avidya (ignorance), Asmita (egoism), Raga (attachment), Dvesha (aversion), and Abhinivesha (clinging to life) – represent Patanjali’s profound psychological analysis identifying the root causes of all human suffering as structures within consciousness itself rather than external circumstances we typically blame. By recognizing that suffering derives not from what happens but from the mental-emotional patterns through which we relate to experience, yoga philosophy empowers practitioners to address unhappiness at its source rather than perpetually managing symptoms or seeking to control an uncontrollable world.
The essential wisdom involves understanding the Kleshas’ hierarchical structure – all derive from Avidya, the fundamental misidentification of consciousness with temporary forms rather than recognizing its true nature as the eternal witness. This insight indicates that while working directly on specific attachments, aversions, and fears produces beneficial results, ultimate freedom requires developing the discriminative knowledge (viveka khyati) that removes ignorance at its root. When consciousness recognizes itself clearly as pure awareness beyond all changing phenomena, the entire affliction structure collapses naturally like a house built on sand when the foundation dissolves.
For practitioners in 2025 navigating unprecedented stress, complexity, and existential uncertainty, the teaching of Kleshas offers both diagnosis and cure – explaining precisely why suffering persists despite improved external conditions while providing systematic methodology for liberation through ethical living, physical practices, breath regulation, sensory withdrawal, concentration, meditation, and ultimately the supreme absorption revealing our true nature as infinite consciousness eternally free from all affliction. The journey from suffering to freedom remains available to any sincere practitioner willing to look honestly at these deep patterns, commit to the transformative practices yoga prescribes, and persist with patience and dedication toward the ultimate recognition that dissolves all Kleshas at their source.
About the Author
Neha Kulkarni – Journalist & Cultural Writer
Neha Kulkarni is a cultural journalist with a background in anthropology and Indian folklore. She specializes in documenting and preserving Indian festivals, temple architecture, and traditional storytelling. Her expertise includes Hindu festivals and their historical roots, Indian temple architecture and iconography, folklore, legends, and oral traditions, and the impact of Hindu culture on world civilizations. Notable works include The Story Behind Every Hindu Festival and Sacred Geometry in Hindu Temple Architecture. Her articles have been featured in leading cultural magazines, and she actively works on preserving India’s intangible heritage through documentary films and digital storytelling.
