understanding and ways of thinking.
Although we feel ourselves as free persons,
we will respond to the stimuli of the
gunas in a predictable way, as does any
person who is conditioned or addicted
to a particular behavior. Choice and free
will are there ~ if we will act with volition,
instead of automatically.
By classifying the influences on consciousness into three basic categories, the gunas
give us a very novel and interesting way of
understanding the unlimited varieties of
human consciousness. Just as the three
primary colors combine to create an unlimited variety of color, the three gunas combine
in different ways to create an unlimited
variety of influences. Thus, an unlimited
number of experiences over an immense
number of lives and an almost unlimited
number of influences of gunas combine
to create the unlimited number of personalities we find amongst human beings.
To illustrate the influences, we must look
at the gunas in more detail. The three basic
categories of the gunas are rajas, tamas,
and sattva, which can be understood by
learning of their influences. Each person
will display the qualities proportionate to
the degree that they have associated with
them previously. We will all display these
qualities to different degrees in different
situations or circumstances.
Basically, rajas brings the influence of
passion and action, and is indicated
by intense desires, great endeavor,
audacity, dissatisfaction even in gain,
false pride, desiring material progress,
the preoccupation with activity, the inability
to disentangle the senses from their objects,
an unsteady perplexity of the mind, considering oneself different and better than
others, sense gratification, a rash eagerness
to fight, a fondness for hearing oneself
praised, the tendency to ridicule others,
advertising one’s own prowess and justifying
one’s actions by one’s strength.
Tamas brings the influence darkness,
degradation, or destruction, and is indicated
by intolerant anger, stinginess, speaking
on the basis of one’s false pride and mental
speculation, violent hatred, living as a
parasite, hypocrisy, chronic lethargy, quarrel,
lamentation, delusion, unhappiness,
depression, false expectations, fear, laziness,
sleeping too much, the failure to attain, or
disappearance of, an awareness of one’s
higher (spiritual) self, and the inability to
concentrate one’s attention.
And sattva brings the influence of goodness
and the maintenance of all things. It is
uplifting by its nature. Sattva is indicated by
truthfulness, mercy, serenity, peacefulness,
tolerance, discrimination, charity, simplicity,
generosity, humility, sticking to one’s duties,
learning from the past and concern for the
future, satisfaction in any condition, freedom
from compulsive sense gratification, faith in
the spiritual master, being embarrassed at
improper action, mind and sense control,
satisfaction within oneself and detachment
of the mind and senses from matter.
The various influences of the gunas are
found in all human actions such as work,
actions, happiness, knowledge, under-