Understanding the Stages of Panic and Inertia That Arise When Facing Difficulties and Obstacles in Life

Both panic and inertia are responses to situations that arise in the life of individuals. They come about when something new or unexpected comes forward to challenge the individual. In the case of panic, there is clearly a perception of danger, and the rising of fear in the being. This drives the individual into what is generally regarded to be a manifestation of the “fight or flight” reaction. There is no ‘thought’ involved. It is a reaction of the vital being that drives the individual’s response to the situation. Depending on how the vital being responds, one can see either the predominance of the rajasic impulse or the tamasic reaction.

With respect to inertia, there is a falling back into tamas, particularly if the vital being is overwhelmed and feels powerless to achieve any positive result in a situation. The vital being is ‘stunned’ and exhibits a form of vital paralysis and essentially ‘gives up’. Inertia is a classic symptom of the predominance of tamas, and is considered to be a major element of the physical consciousness.

For the most part, these initial stages of response to something new, unexpected and potentially harmful, are almost automatic reactions or instinct-driven reactions that do not involve clear and deliberate review and decision making, which come in later stages.

Dr. Dalal notes: “It is interesting to note that the psychiatrist Karl Menninger, in describing the behaviour of human beings when faced with difficulties and obstacles in life, employs concepts which are analogous to the concepts of yoga psychology mentioned above. There are, says Menninger, five stages in man’s response to life crises: Panic, Inertia, Striving, Coping, Mastery. Panic, a characteristic of the vital consciousness, is often the first reaction to stress because in most human beings the vital is the predominant part of the nature. Inertia, which is the chief characteristic of the physical consciousness, may precede the stage of Panic as in the case of individuals who, dominated by the physical consciousness, lead a life of apathy until they are goaded by a dire difficulty which throws them into a state of panic. But the stage of Inertia often follows upon that of Panic when an individual, paralysed by an overwhelming difficulty, resigns himself to it or tries to escape from it. In terms of yoga psychology, such an individual, normally living predominantly in the vital consciousness, temporarily regresses as a result of stress to a state dominated by the physical consciousness. However, sooner or later, the majority of individuals recover at least to some extent from the initial reactions of panic and inertia, and learn to confront and combat their difficulties, thus entering the stage of Striving.

Sri Aurobindo and the Mother, Looking from Within, Introduction by Dr. Dalal, pg. viii