goodness.passion, and darkness

October 16, 2005

Dear Violet,

In chapter 14 of the Bhagavad-Gita it says:

5. The primary qualities of goodness, passion, and darkness, arising from nature, bind the eternal soul to the body.

6. The quality of goodness is purity, which brings illumination and well-being. Goodness binds the self with attachment to happiness and learning.

7. The quality of passion is desire, born of attraction and longings. Passion binds the self with attachment to work.

8. But the quality of darkness is ignorance, which deludes all beings. Darkness binds the self with forgetfulness, laziness, and sleep.

9. Goodness attracts one to happiness, passion to work, and darkness covers knowledge and attracts one to forgetfullness.

10. Sometimes goodness prevails over passion and darkness, sometimes passion dominates goodness and darkness, and sometimes darkness overwhelms goodness and passion.

11. When the light of understanding radiates through all the doors of the body, know that goodness prevails.

12. Greed, hard work, ambition, dissatisfaction, and craving arise when passion dominates.

13. depression, laziness, forgetfulness, and delusion arise when darkness overwhelms.

14. A soul who passes from this world under the infulence of goodness attains the pure realms of the enlightened.

15. The soul who passes away in passion is reborn among those attached to work, and one who dies in darkness is born into the animal kingdom.

16. The fruit of work in goodness is purity and more goodness. The fruit of passion is unhappiness, and the fruit of darkness is ignorance.

17. From goodness is born knowledge, from passion comes greed, and darkness brings forgetfulness, delusion, and ignorance.

18. Those situated in goodness rise upward, those in passion stay in the middle, and those ruled by darkness, lowest of all, sink downward.

19. One who sees no other performer at work than these primary qualities, and knows what lies beyond them, attains my nature.

20. The soul who rises above these three qualities of the body is freed from birth, death, old age, and their distress, and tastes the nectar of eternal life.

Arjuna said:

21. What are the signs and behavior of one who has risen above the three qualities, Lord, and how does one transcend these three?

The Blessed Lord Said:

22. One who is not averse to illumination, hard work, or delusion when they are present, nor desires them when they are absent....

23. Who is detached, undisturbed by the different qualities, firm in the knowledge that the qualities alone are active...

24. Who is centered on the self, equal to happiness or distress, to earth, stone, or gold, to the desirable or the undesirable, to praise or blame....

25. Who is unaffected by honor or dishonor, neutral among friends and enemies, who gives up all selfish endeavors - such a person, Arjuna, is said to have transcended the qualities of nature.

Violet, I can understand rising above passion and darkness but is Krishna saying to rise above goodness also? And do we stay in reincarnations of our past understandings as our soul reincarnates? That is of the three mentioned above? I don't believe we incarnate into the animal kingdom. As you stated Animals, birds, fish and insects also have freedom; but these are impelled by their bodily senses at the promptings of appetite and pleasure. A person would not be very different from them, if he were as free to act as he is free to think; he too would be impelled only by his bodily senses at the promptings of lust and pleasure. Maybe what is meant is when we are in darkness, and not drinking in the spiritual teachings, we do not rise much above the animal kingdom?

I am just seeking clarifications on this.

This also makes me think of the balance you describe. When we reach a balance as you describe, maybe we have risen above these three qualities?

Thanks so much Violet,

Chuck