All of us have all three gunas; it is their relative strength that makes the difference. Tamas is the state of ignorance, inertia and indifference. Rajas is desire-driven, frenzied activity that arises from selfishness and ego. Sattva is the pristine state of calm that comes from contemplation and absorption on the higher. In sattva, the mind is calm, intellect sharp and actions brilliant.
As long as you are under the influence of the three gunas you are bound to the world. However, you do not belong to the gunas and their manifestations. You are Divine. Understand how the gunas function. Declare war on tamas. Refine rajas. Nurture and cultivate sattva.
In tamas, the best qualities get shrouded and your inherent talent lies dormant. Rajas is a state of mental agitation brought about by greed, craving and lust. Incessant desire-driven activity and the resultant turbulence in the mind make for mediocrity. Sattva is tranquillity of mind when you function at your best, a state that all executives, sportspersons and professionals in every field of activity strive for – being in the ‘zone’, performing at peak levels. However, nobody knows how to achieve it, much less remain in this superlative state of being.
Sattva surfaces in the mind between 4 and 6 am. Rajas, activity, manifests between sunrise and sunset. All indulgence, tamas, begins with sundown. The first step to spiritual development is to encourage sattva by rising early, dedicate actions to a higher goal and stifle tamas by going to bed early. Gunas manifest only when the environment is conducive. Modern life encourages late nights – tamas. No attempt is made to cultivate the finer aspects of life. Thus whatever little sattva you may have is being destroyed. Ancient India promoted sattva through exposure to ethics and aesthetics – spiritual input, good literature, classical music, fine arts... It refined rajas by instilling spirit of service and sacrifice in people.
The four castes were designed to help people understand the guna-mix within and choose a vocation that best suited their nature. A brahmana was predominantly sattvika and took to the fields of philosophy, music, research, pure science, and teaching. A kshatriya was largely rajasika and was warrior, ruler, administrator. The trader had less sattva and more tamas. The shudra was mostly tamasika by nature and was best suited for manual labour. Each was encouraged to strive for spiritual growth through his respective field of endeavour. Society was led by brahmanas, men and women of wisdom, not the wealthy. Every king had an in-house sage who would be consulted on important matters.
The relative strengths of the gunas determine the environment one goes to after death. A sattvika person is born in a spiritual family where his sattvika content blossoms in the ambiance of purity and tranquility. Pure sattva catapults him to the state of Realisation. The rajasika one is born among people who are attached to action. He gets further ensnared in the world. The tamasika one is born to dull, foolish people. It is only the sattvika person who makes progress. The rajasika one moves within a narrow band while a tamasika person goes downhill.
Life’s mission is to go beyond the three gunas and get liberated from the traumatic cycle of birth, death, decay and sorrow. You are born in the world only to attain Immortality.
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