Sattva, Rajas & Tamas
According to Ayurvedic teachings, the primordial powers of the three Gunas, also called the Trigunas, are older than our universe and are a part of the process of creation. The Gunas: Sattva (harmony), Rajas (activity), and Tamas (passivity), are integral to all things, including all forms of life.
In human beings, they shape the psychological characteristics of the mind and determine temperament, character and disposition. Similar to the Doshas, everyone has their own individual Guna-mix. Knowing your predominant Guna brings more self-understanding.
The Mental Quality Sattva
Sattva is the principle of purity. It strives for conscious awareness and constancy. Human desires that arise from Sattva are marked by unselfishness and by the search for knowledge and inner peace.
The constitution of Sattva is gentle and modest, sensitive and understanding. It seeks harmony and equilibrium and is cautious with itself and with others. Sattva can be associated with equanimity, friendliness and cheerfulness.
The Mental Quality Rajas
Rajas is the principle of activity and passion. It seeks motion and development. Human desires that arise from Rajas are often self-centered and seek satisfaction.
The constitution of Rajas is dynamic and productive, ambitious and industrious. If an excess of Rajas is present, it makes a person dissatisfied, selfish and aggressive. Creativity is transformed into manipulation, courage is transformed into ruthlessness, and pride becomes arrogance.
The Mental Quality Tamas
Tamas is the principle of passivity or inertia. It does not seek goals, but rather restfulness and a state of not knowing. Tamas does not give rise to any clear desires, and instead these are often taken from the surrounding environment.
The constitution of Tamas is patient and enormously resilient. If an excess of Tamas is present, the state of not knowing is transformed into delusion, tolerance becomes insensibility, and resilience is expressed in a negative lifestyle with depression.
Of the three primordial forces, Sattva is the protective guardian of the universe. Rajas is the creator that sustains the processes of creation. Tamas is the destroyer that creates room for the new. The forces of these Trigunas represent the great cycle of life, from the beginning to the end, and the process of renewal inherent in every animate and inanimate object. A plant needs Tamas to survive in the earth, Rajas to grow upward, and Sattva to unfold its flowers.
