The Functions of the Gunas
1. Bind: They constrict and restrain all living beings, causing the forgetfulness of their true nature: eternal souls, pure Being, Consciousness and Bliss. Gunas force us to plunge into the temporary illusive life of this world.
2. Create variety: Like the three primary colours – red, blue and yellow – that are the basis of all colours and sub-colours, the three gunas are the foundation of all varieties of manifestations, whose purpose is to attract our attention and keep us here in the material world.
3. Permeate: Everything in this world is in the gunas: our bodies, the air we breathe, words, thoughts, objects, etc… For example, clothing can also be in the three gunas. A dirty shirt made of artificial materials is in ignorance, whereas a clean shirt made of natural materials is in goodness. Thoughts, subconscious agendas and arrangements are also in the gunas. Lazy and aggressive thinking is in ignorance. Thoughts of various desires for food, sex, work and honour are in passion. Thoughts in goodness are calm, magnanimous, and focused on self-realization and helping others to achieve happiness. These people attract others without any special effort. Only a few moments in the presence with this kind of person, who thinks about God and service to others, will bring joy, peace of mind and tranquil breathing.
Our natural environment is also in various gunas. For example, a lake in tamas is dirty, stinky and barely worthy of being considered a lake; it is more similar to a swamp. A lake in rajas is usually in a city, surrounded by different man-made things; a place where lovers meet and modern music plays. A lake in sattva is surrounded by beautiful nature with clean water and wildlife, where one may be inspired to meditate and the air is filled with prana (living energy).
It is considered to be very difficult to overcome the gunas because everything is saturated by them; we need clear vision and consciousness to be able to see how they act and how to become free of their influence.
The guna of ignorance (tamas) is very dangerous because it is destructive from the beginning to the end. The destructive power of tamas can be compared to radiation; it is invisible yet capable of destroying the physical, psychological and spiritual aspects of our lives when we come in contact with it. If we went to Chernobyl for a holiday, we might think we were enjoying ourselves, drinking, eating, etc… but at the same time we would be completely destroying not only our own life but whatever we touch. Although we would be unaware of the effect it has, this kind of trip would bring suffering for ourselves and others, even our clothing would become contaminated.
The guna of passion (rajas) is activity performed with a goal to savour result of those actions. Karma-yoga is the method for overcoming this guna: the act of renouncing the fruits of one’s labour by offering them to God.
The guna of goodness (sattva) is any action which purifies our consciousness.
When we clearly see our current condition we can raise to the transcendental state. Therefore, it is very important to liberate from ignorance, become well-established in passion and begin acting in goodness to achieve liberation.
Questions and Answers
Replacing Ignorance with Passion
Question: What exactly does it mean to “become established in passion”?
Answer: Tamas is inertia, laziness, sleepiness and filth. It has to go away. There is a saying: “A brahman (teacher, priest) is not sorry for the time spent on cleanliness”. First of all, we need to become active and move away from apathy, to arouse curiosity and thirst for knowledge. People in rajas are very curious and active. It means to become established in passion: to replace ignorance with passion and minimize ignorance in our life to a minimum.
Disadvantages of Television
Question: What guna is watching TV?
Answer: TV is predominantly in the mode of ignorance, as it makes a person passive. To a certain degree the same can be told about computers (for the expectation when it is a part of your work). Children in particular should be protected from the virtual world of TV as it gradually saps their intelligence, and they become more dull and stupid. You will never meet a successful, active and happy person who spends more than one hour a day watching TV. One professor told me, “I got everything I have in life because I threw away my TV”. Despite this, some programs and films are in goodness and can be watched, such as those dealing with spiritual or philosophical subjects or about nature.
Chapter 2
Spiritual Life and the Gunas
“People where you live,” the little prince said, “grow five thousand roses in one garden… yet they don’t find what they’re looking for…
They don’t find it,” I answered.
And yet what they’re looking for could be found in a single rose, or a little water…”
Of course,” I answered.
And the little prince added, “But eyes are blind. You have to look with the heart.”
Each of us is engaged in various types of spiritual practices to some extent and want to progress spiritually; otherwise we would not be interested in this kind of knowledge. But we need to realize that if we are established in the lower gunas, it is practically impossible to attain higher spiritual levels, regardless of how many years we practice. This is why it is extremely important to understand the gunas.
Religious Practices in the Lower Gunas Do Not Purify
If a priest, Rabbi or Guru is not mainly in sattva, he will neither be able to progress spiritually, nor help his followers to progress. Just consider how the majority of problems and wars in this world have been started by so-called spiritual leaders who were confident that what they did was right. For example, during the Crusades the Christian preachers used theft and violence to convert others to their faith; they did not consider it sinful to throw a pagan child into a bonfire.
If we are in rajas we think, “My religion is the only right one. To bring goodness in the world means converting everyone to my religion”.
In tamas we think, “Violence is required and should be used.”
People in rajas engage in service with the purpose of gaining some result or benefit for themselves. This is why these religious practices are on the level of, “I will pray and God will help me by fulfilling my needs”. This is very common in modern society. We often come across religious symbols being sold for money, with the claim that they can bring happiness. People often come to religion for recognition, power or wealth; people organize pilgrimages to holy places so that they can become rich, establish/improve personal life and so on.
Many people believe that Paganism is another form of worship, a form of Polytheism. Yet at some point it becomes a worship for the sake of material profit – “God, send me this, or save me from that”. In the construct of this type of a mindset, if our desires are fulfilled – we say “God is good”, but if not – “God is bad” or people say that Satan has won. In some cases people ask a question, “What happened to God? What on earth is He thinking? How did He let THIS or THAT happen?” Only the sattva guna can truly inspire us to follow the path of spiritual perfection, helping us to become harmonious and balanced personalities.
A Combination of Passion