Eastern Roots of Emotional Intelligence

What is the basic pre-requisite to be intelligent in anything? If we want to be intelligent in

Mathematics the basic pre-requisite is numerical, knowledge of basic operations including addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division and further enhancing this knowledge to solve the complex problems including log, differentiation & integration, permutation & combination etc. Similarly, if we would like to be called ourselves as intelligent in language, the basis starts from alphabets, followed by word building and finally landing to such words where some alphabets are silent to even more complex words which are difficult to spell. So, either in language or in mathematics we have the foundation of numerical and alphabets to build on.

So, if we want ourselves to be called as emotionally intelligent what is the basic pre-requisite of it? It is the emotional vocabulary. How many emotions do we know? In my trainings or awareness programs till now whenever I asked this question, I get this answer… happy, sad, angry, excited, and nowadays a very comfortably used term Depressed. Our vocabulary is just limited to these five or maximum six emotions. And then my next question to them is how much Emojis are there in your smart phone? May be more than 1000. Did we ever wonder how can we name these emojis? If there are so many emojis where is the vocabulary. If we want to be emotionally intelligent, we need to have emotional vocabulary.

The term emotional intelligence has been coined through Peter and Savoy model which came to existence in 1920. Which describes 4 stages of being emotionally intelligent.

1. Emotional Perception where we perceive or get a sensation that something is changing at our emotional level.

2. Emotional Assimilation where we can segregate exactly which emotions we are feeling.

3. Emotional Understanding where we are aware how much and how fast we are moving

from one emotion to another and dealing with complex emotions in one situation.

4. Emotional Management where after getting all the awareness about emotions what to do with them in an effective way.

So, the question comes whether before 1920 when the term Emotional Intelligence has been coined, did we not have any idea about it. Yes, we had. In our old scriptures we find the term Sthitpragnya which means Emotionally Stable which is almost similar to being Emotionally Intelligent. And the proof of this can be found in the war of Kurukshetra when Arjun felt overwhelming emotions seeing his cousins and Gurus in front of him and asked Krishna to enlighten him. He could understand what he was feeling so he was already at stage three of Emotional Intelligence model. He was offered that enlightenment by Krishna to manage his overwhelming emotions. Geeta focuses mainly about Emotional management because till that time how to understand those emotions was part of our knowledge.

If emotional understanding was there in our education system as found in old scriptures, why it is not found in modern education? Because with industrial revolution came the modernisation of education. Where people started learning about the technical skill sets which can be applied in the industries. And in the heat of learning those skill sets, social and emotional learning lost its ground. And success started getting to be seen in terms of getting the job or moving into business based on the skill sets and then earning money from that job and business. Then comes the famous dialogue of movie Deewar

Aaj mere paas buildingen hain, property hai, bank balance hai, bangla hai, gaadi hai, kya hai tumhare paas…….Mere paas Maa hai.

What makes that dialogue popular even after 50 years? What makes Amitabh Bachchan to shut his mouth when Shashi Kapoor says “Mere Paas Maa hai”? What does Maa give us? Selfless love to have that emotional connect. So does this emotional connect overpowers our success? It was true then also and it is true today also. And today after almost 100 years we have again realized its importance and Social Emotional Learning has been included in NEP 2020.

Because we realized that we now know how to earn a livelihood but perhaps we forgot how to Live. Because taking decisions in the heat of challenging moments is what we are not taught in any of the books. And as Daniel Goleman rightly mentioned good decisions require far more than factual knowledge.

And this is nothing else but the knowledge of Self. To understand ourselves we need to

understand our emotions. Because they (emotions) are who we are. Hence, we are being rightly called as

“Emotional Beings”

Emotional intelligence is a crucial aspect of our lives that often goes

unnoticed. It is the ability to identify, understand, and manage our emotions

and those of others around us. It is a skill that enables us to navigate complex

social situations, build meaningful relationships, and make sound decisions.

However, emotional intelligence is not something that we are born with. It is a

skill that we need to develop over time, just like any other skill.

If we want to be emotionally intelligent, the basic prerequisite is emotional

vocabulary. How many emotions do we know? Most people's emotional

vocabulary is limited to a few basic emotions such as happy, sad, angry,

excited, and depressed. We need to expand our emotional vocabulary beyond

these basic emotions. For instance, did you know that there are more than a

thousand emojis on your smartphone? Each of these emojis represents a

different emotion. Understanding and using them is a great way to expand our

emotional vocabulary.

Peter and Savoy model, which came into existence in 1920, describes four

stages of being emotionally intelligent. The first stage is emotional perception,

where we perceive or get a sensation that something is changing at our

emotional level. The second stage is emotional assimilation, where we are

able to segregate exactly which emotions we are feeling. The third stage is

emotional understanding, where we are aware of how much and how fast we

are moving from one emotion to another and dealing with complex emotions

in one situation. Finally, the fourth stage is emotional management, where

after getting all the awareness about emotions, we know what to do with them

in an effective way.

However, emotional understanding is not a new concept. It has been present

in our old scriptures. For instance, the term Sthitpragnya means emotionally

stable, which is almost similar to being emotionally intelligent. The concept of

emotional stability is evident in the war of Kurukshetra when Arjun felt

overwhelming emotions seeing his cousins and Gurus in front of him and

asked Krishna to enlighten him. He could understand what he was feeling, so

he was already at stage three of the Emotional Intelligence model. He was

offered that enlightenment by Krishna to manage his overwhelming emotions.

Geeta mainly focuses on emotional management because, until that time,

how to understand those emotions was part of our knowledge.

Despite its importance, emotional intelligence is often overlooked in modern

education. With the industrial revolution, the modernization of education

began, and people started learning technical skill sets applicable in industries.

Social and emotional learning lost its ground, and success started getting

seen in terms of getting the job or moving into business based on the skill sets

and then earning money from that job and business.

But emotional intelligence is not just about building skills for our careers; it is

also about living fulfilling lives. As Daniel Goleman rightly mentioned, good

decisions require far more than factual knowledge. We need to understand

ourselves, including our emotions, to make good decisions. Emotional

intelligence helps us to do that. It enables us to make sound decisions,

navigate complex social situations, and build meaningful relationships.

The famous dialogue from the movie Deewar, "Aaj mere paas buildingen hain,

property hai, bank balance hai, bangla hai, gaadi hai, kya hai tumhare

paas…….Mere paas Maa hai," highlights the importance of emotional

connections. Selfless love gives us that emotional connection that is essential

for our success and well-being. It is true today, just as it was when the movie

was released more than 50 years ago.

Therefore, it is no surprise that the National Education Policy 2020 has

included social and emotional learning as an important aspect of education.

We now understand the importance of emotional intelligence in our lives. We

know that we need to develop our emotional vocabulary and expand our

understanding of

Emotional intelligence is a crucial skill that we all need to develop in order to

navigate our personal and professional lives. It all starts with building our

emotional vocabulary - knowing and understanding a range of emotions

beyond just the basic ones. Emotional intelligence involves the ability to

perceive, assimilate, understand, and manage our emotions effectively. While

the term 'emotional intelligence' was coined in the 1920s, ancient scriptures

like the Bhagavad Gita have long emphasized the importance of emotional

stability. Unfortunately, modern education has prioritized technical skills over

social and emotional learning. However, there is a growing recognition of the

importance of emotional intelligence, as demonstrated by its inclusion in the

National Education Policy 2020.