The phrase "The Age of Emotional and Feeling Symbiosis" refers to
a developmental phase in early childhood, typically the first few months of
life, where an infant is largely psychologically undifferentiated from
their primary caregiver and deeply reliant on them for emotional cues and
support. It is not a formal, universally agreed-upon "age" or distinct era
of life but a concept rooted in developmental psychology and psychoanalytic
theory.
The Concept in Psychology
The term originates from the work of psychoanalyst Margaret Mahler, who
described a "symbiotic phase" where the infant perceives no separation
between themselves and their mother. This period is crucial for healthy
emotional development and serves as a foundation for future relationships
and emotional self-regulation. The baby doesn't initially distinguish
between themselves and the caregiver, treating people interchangeably at
birth. As the infant's perceptual and processing abilities grow over the
first year, they form a powerful emotional bond (attachment) with primary
caregivers. This bond makes them sensitive to the caregiver's absence,
leading to separation anxiety around 8-10 months of age. Infants as young
as six months begin to mimic the emotions and expressions they see in
others, and caregivers' consistent and responsive reactions help the child
learn to manage tension and emotional stress. The secure base provided by a
positive symbiotic period is essential for developing trust, self-esteem,
and the ability to self-regulate emotions later in life. While a normal
and necessary part of infant development, if "emotional symbiosis" (or an
excessive interdependence) persists or is recreated in adulthood, it can be a
sign of an insecure attachment style or dependency issues. This can
manifest as a limited capacity for individuals to be aware of,
respect, and comprehend
the subjectivity and feelings of another person. Overall, "The Age of
Emotional and Feeling Symbiosis" marks a critical period where the
groundwork for all future emotional and social interactions is laid through
the intense, interdependent bond between an infant and their caregivers.
Age and the balance of emotions
With age, the quality of emotions may shift from negative in tone to
positive, but also from active to passive. The shift from negative to
positive is consistent with the age as maturity perspective. The shift from
active to passive supports the age as decline perspective. If these
generalities are correct, then they should apply to positive emotions as
well as negative emotions. We should see a shift in positive emotions from
active (excitement) to passive (serenity), as well as in the negative
emotions (from the agitation of anxiety and anger to the lethargy of
depression). In order to accurately portray the shifts in emotional tone,
age may best be considered as simultaneously indicating maturity and decline.
Some of the most developed social explanations relate to age and
depression. The middle-aged are more likely to be married and employed than
the young or the old, which helps explain the fall and rise in depression;
and the elderly are more likely to be physically impaired and have a lower
sense of control over their lives than both the young and middle-aged,
which further helps explain the rise in depression. Older age may be
associated with a shift from negative to positive emotions due to greater
maturity among older people. Age implies the summation of growth and
development. With age, people become experienced, accomplished, and
seasoned. They mature. Each human sums a lifetime of experience, composing
a self of elements arranged to function efficiently and successfully. Aging
increases practice with living. With growing insight and skill, social and
psychological traits and tendencies merge into. Aging brings decline in
addition to maturity . Older age brings decreased energy and activity,
which implies a shift from active to passive emotions. Older age is
associated with physiological decline: increasing rates of disease and
dysfunction, declining activity and peak performance, and increasing
problems with memory, attention, and other cognitive functions. Average
levels of physical and mental functions erode slowly to produce substantial
average decrements beyond.
Conceptualizing and testing emotion balance
Synthesizing the maturity and decline views of age leads to a 2 × 2
conceptualization of emotions based on the dimensions of positive–negative
and active–passive as shown below.
NEGATIVE
Passive Depression Sadness Shame
Sad, blue, lonely Embarrassed ashamed
Active Agitation Anxiety
Anger
Worried anxious, restless Angry, mad, outraged
POSITIVE
Passive Serenity Calm, contented, at ease,
happy
Active Elation Excited, overjoyed, proud
Emotions were measured by asking respondents, “On how many days in
the past 7 days have you…felt that you couldn't shake the blues (1.21),
felt sad (1.64), felt lonely (1.50) [sadness]; felt anxious and tense
(2.26), felt worried (2.82), felt so restless that you couldn't sit long in
a chair (1.52) [anxiety]; felt angry at someone (1.48), felt mad at
something or someone (1.67), felt outraged at something somebody had done
(1.50) [anger]; felt calm (4.57), felt at ease (4.55), felt contented. The
first order distinction separated negative from positive emotions. The
second dimension distinguished active from passive. A multidimensional
scaling of the emotions in the General Social Survey supported these
conceptualizations. Fig. 1 shows that the negative emotions cluster on the
left, separate from the positive, on the right. The passive emotions
cluster on the bottom; active on the top. Shame and sadness cluster
together at the bottom left of negative–passive quadrant.
The prediction of emotion balance proceeds in three steps. The
first model includes age with adjustment for gender and race. The second
model adds education and household income, which could mediate age's
influence on emotions, and the third model adds the subsequent potential
mediator: perceived powerlessness. Table 1 shows the prediction of positive
vs. negative emotion balance and Table 2 shows active vs. passive emotion
balance. Researchers tend to think in terms of categories, but it proved
helpful in interpreting age patterns of distress to understand the
dimensions underlying these categories. We have tried to reduce a larger
number of categories to a smaller number of essential dimensions. In
predicting depression, for example, we are predicting a category defined by
the intersection of two underlying dimensions – negative and passive. If
depression is higher among older people than among the middle-aged. Emotional
symbiosis is when an individual has the limited capacity to be aware of,
respect, appreciate, and comprehend the subjectivity of another, occurring
in a relationship often characterized by excessive interdependence, where
individuals are deeply reliant on each other for emotional support and
validation.
Controlling emotions involves mindfulness (noticing feelings
without judgment), breathing exercises, and creating a pause between
triggers and reactions to choose a thoughtful response, alongside long-term
strategies like journaling, exercise, good sleep, challenging negative
thoughts, and seeking therapy for deeper issues, all to build
self-awareness and regulation skills. Symbiosis theory describes close,
long-term interactions between different species, primarily categorized as
mutualism (both benefit, like clownfish & anemone), commensalism (one
benefits, other unaffected), and parasitism (one benefits, one harmed). A
key related theory, Endosymbiotic Theory (or Symbiogenesis), explains that
complex eukaryotic cells evolved from simpler prokaryotes merging, where
mitochondria and chloroplasts were once free-living bacteria engulfed by
host cells, creating vital organelles with their own DNA. However,
symbiosis is not restricted only to mutually positive interactions; it can
be one-sided (commensalism) benefitting only one of the partners while not
affecting the other one, or parasitic with negative impact on the other
partner while the other one benefits. Emotional intimacy is a deep sense of
closeness and connection where you feel safe, understood, and accepted to
share your innermost thoughts, fears, and feelings with someone, fostering
mutual trust, support, and vulnerability without fear of judgment, forming
the bedrock of strong relationships. It's about being truly seen and known,
allowing you to be your authentic self and feel securely bonded, distinct
from physical intimacy but enhancing it. Emotional detachment may not be as
outwardly obvious as other psychiatric symptoms. Patients diagnosed with
emotional detachment have reduced ability to express emotion, to empathize
with others or to form powerful emotional connections. Patients are also at
an increased risk for many anxiety and stress disorders.
The 5 Stages of Detachment
Stage One: Acknowledgment.
Stage Two: Self-Inquiry.
Stage Three: Processing.
Stage Four: Creative Action.
Stage Five: Freedom.
Hence B G said: Verse 2.47 - The Foundation of Detachment
"You have a right to perform your duty, but you are not entitled to the
fruits of action. Never consider yourself the cause of the results of your
activities, and never be attached to not doing your duty." - Lord Krishna
कर्मण्येवाधिकारस्ते मा फलेषु कदाचन।मा कर्मफलहेतुर्भूर्मा ते
सङ्गोऽस्त्वकर्मणि॥
You have a right to perform your duty, but you are not entitled to the
fruits of action. Never consider yourself the cause of the results of your
activities, and never be attached to not doing your duty.
Verse 2.48 - Equanimity in Action
"Perform your duty equipoised, O Arjuna, abandoning all attachment to
success or failure. Such equanimity is called yoga." - Lord Krishna
योगस्थः कुरु कर्माणि सङ्गं त्यक्त्वा धनञ्जय।सिद्ध्यसिद्ध्योः समो भूत्वा
समत्वं योग उच्यते॥
This doesn't mean becoming emotionless. It means not letting emotions
control you. You still feel joy in success, disappointment in failure. But
these feelings pass through you like clouds through sky, without disturbing
your inner stability.
Verse 2.70 - The Ocean of Tranquility
"A person who is not disturbed by the incessant flow of desires - that
enter like rivers into the ocean, which is ever being filled but is always
still - can alone achieve peace, and not the man who strives to satisfy
such desires." - Lord Krishna
आपूर्यमाणमचलप्रतिष्ठं समुद्रमापः प्रविशन्ति यद्वत्।तद्वत्कामा यं प्रविशन्ति
सर्वे स शान्तिमाप्नोति न कामकामी॥
Desires will come - for success, recognition, comfort, relationships.
That's natural. The question is: do you chase every desire like a thirsty
person in the desert? Or do you remain like the ocean - acknowledging
desires without being controlled by them?
Verse 3.19 - Action Without Attachment
"Therefore, without attachment, perform always the work that has to be
done, for man attains the highest by doing work without attachment." - Lord
Krishna
तस्मादसक्तः सततं कार्यं कर्म समाचर।असक्तो ह्याचरन्कर्म परमाप्नोति पूरुषः॥
Verse 4.20 - Freedom in Action
"Having abandoned attachment to the fruits of action, ever content,
depending on nothing, he does not do anything though engaged in activity."
- Lord Krishna
त्यक्त्वा कर्मफलासङ्गं नित्यतृप्तो निराश्रयः।कर्मण्यभिप्रवृत्तोऽपि नैव
किञ्चित्करोति सः॥
Verse 5.10 - The Lotus Leaf Principle
"One who performs his duty without attachment, surrendering the results
unto the Supreme Lord, is unaffected by sinful action, as the lotus leaf is
untouched by water." - Lord Krishna
ब्रह्मण्याधाय कर्माणि सङ्गं त्यक्त्वा करोति यः।लिप्यते न स पापेन
पद्मपत्रमिवाम्भसा॥
Verse 6.4 - The Stages of Detachment
"When a man is not attached to sense objects or to actions, having
renounced all thoughts of the world, he is said to have attained yoga." -
Lord Krishna
यदा हि नेन्द्रियार्थेषु न कर्मस्वनुषज्जते।सर्वसङ्कल्पसंन्यासी
योगारूढस्तदोच्यते॥
Notice the progression: first, non-attachment to sense objects (what we
experience), then non-attachment to actions (what we do), finally
renouncing all mental entanglements. This isn't about becoming a robot.
It's about ultimate freedom.
Verse 12.13 - Compassionate Detachment
"One who is not envious but is a kind friend to all living entities, who
does not think himself a proprietor and is free from false ego, who is
equal in both happiness and distress - such a devotee is very dear to Me."
- Lord Krishna
अद्वेष्टा सर्वभूतानां मैत्रः करुण एव च।निर्ममो निरहङ्कारः समदुःखसुखः क्षमी॥
Verse 13.9 - The Anatomy of Detachment
"Detachment from son, wife, home and the rest; constant equanimity in
desirable and undesirable happenings." - Lord Krishna
असक्तिरनभिष्वङ्गः पुत्रदारगृहादिषु।नित्यं च समचित्तत्वमिष्टानिष्टोपपत्तिषु॥
This doesn't mean becoming indifferent to family wellbeing. You still act
to help, guide, protect. But you do so from a place of strength, not
desperate attachment. Like a lighthouse - steady and helpful regardless of
the storm.
The word "constant" is key. Anyone can feel detached when things go well.
Real detachment maintains itself through all circumstances. It becomes your
default state, not something you scramble to find during crisis.
Verse 14.22 - Transcending the Three Modes
"He who seated like one unconcerned is not moved by the modes of nature,
who remains firm and never wavers, knowing that the modes alone are
active." - Lord Krishna
उदासीनवदासीनो गुणैर्यो न विचाल्यते।गुणा वर्तन्त इत्येव योऽवतिष्ठति नेङ्गते॥
Verse 15.5 - Freedom from Delusion
"Those who are free from false prestige, illusion and false association,
who understand the eternal, who are done with material lust, who are freed
from the dualities of happiness and distress - such unbewildered persons
attain the eternal realm." - Lord Krishna
निर्मानमोहा जितसङ्गदोषा अध्यात्मनित्या विनिवृत्तकामाः।द्वन्द्वैर्विमुक्ताः
सुखदुःखसंज्ञैर्गच्छन्त्यमूढाः पदमव्ययं तत्॥
Verse 18.49 - The Perfection of Renunciation
"He whose intellect is unattached everywhere, who has subdued his self,
from whom desire has fled - he attains the supreme perfection of freedom
from action through renunciation." - Lord Krishna
असक्तबुद्धिः सर्वत्र जितात्मा विगतस्पृहः।नैष्कर्म्यसिद्धिं परमां
सन्न्यासेनाधिगच्छति॥
Key Takeaways on Detachment from the Bhagavad Gita
After exploring these profound verses on detachment, let's crystallize the
essential wisdom that Lord Krishna offers for our daily practice and
spiritual growth.
Detachment is not indifference - It means engaging fully with life while
remaining free from the anxiety of results. You act with complete
dedication but without desperate clinging to outcomes.
Focus on action, not results - You have control over your efforts but not
over outcomes. This simple shift eliminates most stress and anxiety from
life.
Equanimity is true yoga - Maintaining inner balance through success and
failure, praise and criticism - this steady state of mind is the real
spiritual practice.
Desires are like rivers flowing into the ocean - Let them come and go
without disturbance. You don't need to suppress desires, just don't be
controlled by them.
Detachment enhances love - When you drop possessiveness, relationships
flourish. True love gives space and freedom, not emotional dependency.
Act like the lotus leaf - Be fully engaged with the world while remaining
unstained by it. Let experiences flow through you without leaving binding
impressions.
Your true nature is beyond the modes - You are not your moods, thoughts, or
temporary states. You are the unchanging witness of all these passing
phenomena.
Each step brings immediate relief - You don't have to wait for complete
enlightenment. Every act of letting go brings more peace and clarity right
now.
The highest achievement is already within - Detachment doesn't add anything
new - it reveals your inherent freedom that was always present but hidden
by attachments.
K Rajaram IRS 231225
On Tue, 23 Dec 2025 at 06:15, Markendeya Yeddanapudi <
[email protected]> wrote:
>
>
> --
> *Mar*
>
> The Age of Emotional and Feeling Symbiosis
>
>
>
> During the days of complete freedom to nature, when the troposphere was
> not diseased by diverse pollutions and poisonings, when nature was free and
> healthy, every organism lived as a macro being as a part of the one single
> organism, the Biosphere. Just like a bacterium in you whose life is
> guaranteed by the systems of your body, every organism basked in total
> faith, as it was taken care of by the diverse happy and symbiotic systems
> of nature. Nature was mainly organic and the emotional needs of every
> organism were met instantly, as the response to needs was reflexive in
> nature. No organism suffered from emotional pain. Pent up feelings and
> emotions were not possible. The inhalation and exhalation of every organism
> carried the smell based messages which every organism inhaled and
> responded. Rapture was the basic emotion.
>
> There was no status ladder among the organisms of the Biosphere.
>
> Even today, with all the pollutions and poisonings of the troposphere, in
> isolated pockets of free nature, one can experience the rejuvenating
> service of nature. The fundamental, basic, bedrock and foundational feature
> of nature is helping and enabling symbiosis and not murderous antibiosis.
> Your body is not constituted for disease. Similarly nature also evolves in
> symbiotic health. Nature needs health and freedom to give you freedom and
> health. Today we are actually suffering from the tentacles and shackles of
> pollution, which simply does not chain but actually removes the very
> natural functioning of your limbs.
>
> The rays of the Sun, the electromagnetism ubiquitous in the whole universe
> can create only health. The photons photon-synthesize health and rapture.
> They do not have special regard for the Human, and God is not favoring only
> the human by residing only in the pineal gland of the human.
>
> God has not created feelings-less and emotions-less machines as the
> organisms of the Biosphere. He never expected humans to nail frogs and
> other animals to wooden boards, cut their entails and know their
> engineering structures. Gods Engineering is emotional, not feelings less
> mechanical.
>
> A machine is an artificial and harmful intrusion into nature’s symbiosis.
> Today we are filling nature with machines obstructing nature from its basic
> activity. We are fast approaching the violent repair mechanism of nature.
> We have to create freedom to nature.
>
> We have to do time travel, travel back in time to the days of freedom to
> nature, to get back our own macro body, now maimed by technology. Every
> University must immediately start a ‘Free Nature Park’ without human
> tampering so that every organism gets its macro body. The local Biospheres
> can be enabled to become single organisms.
>
> As it is the dismal science has taken us into the situation where there
> are no jobs. There are millions of jobs in reviving and curing nature.
> Ecology must be given chance and economics has to be ended. And the Ecology
> shall not be Cartesian Ecology.
>
> YM Sarma
>
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