Gunas?

[Tirisilex]

This is a quote from the book I am reading:

 

"Prakrti is as real and as eternal as purusa; but unlike Spirit, it is dynamic and creative. Though perfectly homogeneous and inert, this primordial substance possesses, so to speak, three 'modes of being,' which permit it to manifest itself in three different ways, which are termed gunas: (1) sattva (modality of luminosity and intelligence); (2) rajas (modality of luminosity and activity); (3) tamas (modality of static inertia and psychic obscurity). However these gunas must not be regarded as different from prakrti, for they are never given seperately; in every physical, biological, or psychomental phenomenon all three gunas exist simultaneously, though in unequal proportions (indeed, it is this inequality that permits the appearance of a 'phenomenon,' of whatever kind; otherwise, the primordial equilibrium and homogeneity by virtue of which the gunas were in perfect equilibrium would persist forever)."

 

This is from a chapter entitled Substance.. I have read this chapter over and over and I've looked online to help me understand what it is talking about.. All info online that I find covers information on the psychomental relations to the gunas. I'm trying to understand them in the Physical and biological sense.. This has left me confused since I cant find any good information on it.

 

Can someone help me?

[Yesu_Bhaktan]

 

This is from a chapter entitled Substance.. I have read this chapter over and over and I've looked online to help me understand what it is talking about.. All info online that I find covers information on the psychomental relations to the gunas. I'm trying to understand them in the Physical and biological sense.. This has left me confused since I cant find any good information on it.

 

 

Well in the physical sense we see that matter is manipulated differently according to the predominant guna that controls the mind of someone.

A builder of buildings in the mood of goodness is very likely to build a temple or church or meditation center, Something that will promote goodness, like even a park in the midst of a city.

 

A man in the mood of passion will open a bank or department store that he can profit from.

 

A man in the mode of ignorance may inherit a lot or apartment building but he will neglect it and let it run down.

 

We also see matter decaying when cut off from the influence of the spiritself. Like an animal by the side of the road or even a leaf fallen from the tree. That matter moves towards complete dis-oraganization or entropy.

 

In our own bodies we see the process of metabolism which sustains the body. Sustaining is a quality of goodness. But mixed in metabolism is anabolism which is the building up phase of the body and also catabolism which is the breaking down of the bodily cells.

 

It is all happening at once. There is constant flux and change.

 

It is also relative. A flower buds on a tree. We see passion developing it. It is sustained for sometime at the peek of it's beauty and goodness. It then falls off to the ground in time and begins to break up wilt and decay. So we see the flower petals in tamas lying on the ground. But in that decay those molecules are being liberated from the flower form and are being taken up by the roots of other nearby plants both building them up and sustaining them.

 

Another angle is that material bodies take on their forms and funtions according to the combination of gunas that control the mind of the person seeking rebirth into the gross physical world.

 

In fact this whole universe is formed according to the subtle desires of the inhabitants coming to reside here.

 

I don't look to try and analyze this stuff too closely. One can get lost doing that. But just noticing things as they come up inspires a sense of awe towards Krsna. That is its real value otherwise it is just a fantastic light show.

[Jahnava Nitai Das]

I think if you read Bhagavad Gita chapters 16 and 17 and first half of 18 it will give a good picture of the gunas and their nature.

 

You can read it online here:

 

http://www.bhagavad-gita.us

 

[Tirisilex]

I'm still lost.. are you saying like sattva will be more prevailent in a statue of the Buddha and tamas would be like a unmarked small rock? Raja would be like a television? Or the clouds in the sky?

[Yesu_Bhaktan]

Tirisilex,

 

I can't read all the variants. To me it is most bewildering. This whole universe is a phantasmagoria of an ever changing array of different combinations.

 

The important thing is to maintain our association with sattva through our diet and habits and acquire a simple understanding of how the gunas funtion. JNdas has referred you to above sections of the Gita. Check those out.

 

The objective is to see Krishna as the controler of the moods. That is seeing in sattva.

[Gauracandra]

To me the three modes of material nature are a great prism for analyzing everything in the world. You can look at the reactions of an activity to help determine what mode it is in. Here is how I'd break it down:

 

Tamasic - Mode of ignorance. This involves activities, or items that involve destruction, pain, instability. Has no creative capability. In terms of movement things spiral down.

 

Rajasic - Mode of passion. This involes items or activities that are very turbulent, can have both creative functions but with great costs or effort, often have no creative results, have negative side effects. In terms of movement think of a wave that occilates up and down.

 

Satvic - Mode of goodness. These are items or activities that are creative, generate good works in the world. There is a permanence and stability. In terms of movement this would be a gently sloping curve upwards.

 

Now lets get to some practical examples. The most obvious one is food:

 

1)Tamasic foods are foods created through pain and suffering (usually of animals). So meat is tamasic. Because it comes from pain it also results in pain. Thus you will find many medical studies that have shown a correlation between meat eating and cancer.

 

2) Rajasic foods are described as very salty, bitter, or hot and inflame one's passions. Garlic is considered rajasic. It creates foul smelling bodily odor (I don't think those who like garlic even disagree on this) but it does have some creative health functions (lowering cholesterol I believe) but also might lead to ulcers, bad breath, and smelling bodily odor. I think alcohol would go under this category. You take a fruit (which is satvic) and ferment it (ie. decay it) and drink this decayed fruit juice. This inflames one's passions (one gets easily agitated, goes from happy highs at a party to headaches the next morning) but it may have some benefits (like lowering cholesterol) along with its side effects.

 

3) Satvic food are those that prolong health, give one energy, and are created with as little violence as possible. Examples would be fruits (like pomegranites that have lots of anti-oxidants) or nuts (like almonds that also have plenty of anti-oxidants) or vegetables (like green leafy veggies that fight cancer) or grains (which give energy).

 

From this analysis we can see that tamasic food born of violence, being decaying flesh, lead to suffering (poor health). Rajasic foods can have some benefits but also lead to more swings in reactions. Satvic foods lead to permanence and health.

 

The three modes can be used to look at all sorts of things. Take investments. Pure gambling would most likely be considered Tamasic (perhaps with some Rajasic qualities) as you are pretty much sure to lose your money. Perhaps Rajasic investing would be something like the stock market, where you must ride out the waves of the market, rising and falling. You can make money, but it is very turbulent. While perhaps satvic investments would be those investments with a physical asset under possession such as real estate or gold. In this case the stability (a feature of satvic activities) of physical ownership of an asset would be better than virtual ownership of an asset (a stock). This is just my thinking.

 

Now lets look at entertainment. Tamasic would be that which glorifies the worst elements of society (maybe like a horror film) - maybe like Friday the 13th. Rajasic might have lots of death also but in the end the good guys win (so you have ups and downs) - perhaps a Clint Eastwood western. Satvic entertainment would cause the mind to contemplate higher things, noble activities - maybe Schindler's List.

 

Or clothing. Dirty clothing is tamasic (torn clothes, unwashed). Clothing that perhaps is clean, but is overly complicated or is meant to inflame the passions (showing off the body) would be rajasic (mini-skirts). Clean, simple clothing like a skirt for a woman, or slacks for a man would be in the mode of goodness.

 

Or energy. I'm not sure what a tamasic energy source would be but I would imagine it gives very little energy but lots of pollution. Rajasic would include oil which gives lots of energy but lots of environmental degradation. Clean, renewable energy sources like wind power, which don't harm the environment and have permanence would be energy in the mode of goodness.

 

Essentially the idea is that the ideas an individual or society accepts will manifest themselves outwardly in a physical sense. Food, entertainment, clothing, architecture, art, etc... can all be looked at based on the qualities they exhibit.

[Guest guest]

Goodness sends the soul upward.

Darkness sends the soul downward.

Passion sends the soul in circles.