For the program, 3 inspirational speakers were invited to share their professional opinion and views- Adv. Kautuk Raikar, Dr. Belinda Mueller and Dr. Venkatesh Hegde.
Adv. Kautuk Raikar, started off the discussion mentioning some crucial aspects of anger. He stated that anger is an expression we choose to express which has the power to finish you off from inside. He acknowledged that people express the emotion of anger especially when they have the feeling of authority. He pointed out that between the stimulus and response is the facet of choice of how to approach the circumstance and react. Pertaining to the legal aspect of anger, he brought to light how such a feeling can lead people to commit crimes, especially that of murder. In the court, through Section 304 part 2 of the Indian Penal Code, an individual can be sentenced to imprisonment for murder if the act was committed with knowledge that there would be death. He came to a close with the following points mentioned- people have the choice to deal with anger explosively (like a can of Sprite) or in a very calm fashion (like a water bottle) and that we need to learn to respond instead of reacting.
The speaker that followed was psychiatrist Dr. Belinda Mueller. Anger, in her opinion, is a normal, healthy and ultimately a good emotion. Nonetheless, we can convert this good force into a bane by mishandling it. She illustrated the difference between good and bad anger with very practical, day-to-day situations. Anger is considered good due to the fact that it can help protect us from threat and to correct injustices experienced. When the expression of anger in a given moment is not justified, it is bad anger. One has to rationalize and think whether it is necessary to express anger in a given situation. Also, one needs to find the right way of doing so. She helped the audience understand the biological mechanics of emotion. For those individual who find themselves unable to rationalize during the state of anger should engage in analysis of anger expression after the incident. Finally, she holds fast to the belief that anger should be used to solve problems and not intensify it.
The last speaker was Dr. Venkatesh Hegde who is also an active art of living instructor.He spoke about the idea that people need to be connected with their inner self which is free from the variegated negative emotions such as anger. In this sense, one should be child-like. Suppressing emotions can prove to have detrimental effects as it will be multiplied inside. It will later manifest itself in different forms. He strongly believes that broadening one's vision can help build his/her personality. He quoted the words of Sri Sri Ravi Shankar "The purpose of words is to create silence." Acceptance is essential because there are some aspects of people you just can't change. He concluded by emphasizing on the need to be aware of all the emotions we feel and if we should react or not.
The forum was then open to the audience. Several members of the audience had queries on the different facets of anger and anger management. Those ranged from things like if there is a positive way to manage anger, to whether anger and extraversion are correlated to even dealing with passive-aggression and if it would be good if anger never existed. The session was drawn to a close with the vote of thanks proposed by Sobita Kirtani. Earlier the Kavita Borker, the Head of Department of Pschology, gave the welcome speech.
