Trigunas are the three elementary qualities of nature-Sattva (stability), Rajas (exercise), and Tamas (inertia)-through which Prakriti expresses matter, thoughts, and character.
Ayurvedic philosophy affords a transparent view of how the universe comes into existence, from which the idea of Trigunas Tri which means three and Gunas which means qualities naturally arises.
In accordance with Ayurveda, in the beginning of creation there was an unmanifest state typically described as darkness. This state represents the presence of Purusha (pure consciousness) and Prakriti (primordial nature). The universe comes into being by the union of those two ideas, symbolically understood because the masculine and female facets of creation.
Prakriti expresses itself by all types of existence-gross and refined, dwelling and non-living-while Purusha gives the presence of consciousness that offers life and motion to matter.
In Samkhya philosophy, each Purusha and Prakriti are summary realities. Purusha stays unchanged, passive, and witnessing, whereas Prakriti is lively, dynamic, and constantly remodeling. From this interplay of stillness and motion, the Trigunas emerge as the basic qualities governing nature.
What are trigunas?
Prakriti expresses itself by three elementary qualities, generally known as the Trigunas or the three qualities of nature. These gunas govern how matter, power, and consciousness seem and performance within the universe.
The phrase Prakriti itself displays this threefold nature:
- Pra means Sattva Guna
- Kr means Rajas Guna
- Ti means Tamas Guna
These three gunas by no means act independently. They mix in several proportions to provide rise to the 5 parts (Pancha Mahabhutas) that kind the idea of the physique and the fabric world.
Trigunas and the 5 parts
| Triguna / Mixture | Predominant Ingredient |
|---|---|
| Sattva | Akasha (Ether) |
| Rajas | Vayu (Air) |
| Sattva + Rajas | Agni (Fireplace) |
| Sattva + Tamas | Jala (Water) |
| Tamas | Prithvi (Earth) |
These 5 parts additional mix and work together to kind the three doshas (Vata, Pitta, and Kapha), which regulate all physiological and psychological capabilities within the physique.
By these parts and doshas, the Trigunas prolong past the physique and turn out to be the refined forces that form the thoughts, behaviour, and character of a person.
Traits of the three gunas
Go searching and likewise inside your self each dwelling and non-living factor carries the affect of the Trigunas.
Motion on the planet, such because the circulation of blood or the fixed exercise in nature, happens as a result of presence of Rajas Guna, the standard of motion and movement.
When you’ll be able to decelerate or momentarily cease the fluctuations of the thoughts throughout meditation, this stillness is supported by Tamas Guna, which gives stability and relaxation.
In distinction, when the thoughts constantly jumps from one thought to a different, Rajas Guna turns into dominant.
Throughout deep meditation, when consciousness turns inward and a way of calm pleasure arises, this expertise displays the presence of Sattva Guna, the standard of stability and readability.
The Trigunas function in every single place and in any respect times-within the physique, the thoughts, and the encompassing world.
Sattva guna traits
Sattva represents a balanced state between exercise and inertia. When Sattva is predominant, the thoughts and physique operate with concord and readability.
Widespread traits of Sattva Guna embrace:
- Happiness and interior peace
- Knowledge and religious consciousness
- Compassion and kindness
- Lightness of physique and thoughts
- Self-control and focus
- Gratitude and selflessness
Sattva Guna is historically related to the color white, symbolising purity and stability.
Rajas guna traits
Rajas Guna is the standard of motion, ardour, and stimulation. It’s liable for motion, want, and alter.
Traits of Rajas Guna embrace:
- Robust needs and attachments
- Ambition and enthusiasm
- Restlessness and agitation
- Workaholic tendencies
- Anxiousness, anger, and emotional turbulence
Rajas Guna is symbolised by the color crimson, representing power and depth.
Tamas guna traits
Tamas Guna is the standard of inertia and resistance. Whereas it gives grounding and relaxation, extra Tamas results in stagnation.
Traits of Tamas Guna embrace:
- Psychological dullness and confusion
- Laziness and lack of motivation
- Ignorance and phantasm
- Attachment and heaviness
Tamas Guna is related to darkness, reflecting obscurity and inactivity.
Trigunas and character
It’s possible you’ll typically hear somebody described as having a “good” or “robust” character. In yogic and Ayurvedic thought, character is known extra deeply because the expression of the Trigunas appearing by the thoughts.
In classical philosophy, the Trigunas are the basic attributes of human existence. They form each the fabric and refined facets of an individual. Relying on their proportion, these three qualities affect how a person thinks, reacts, understands conditions, and pertains to the world.
The Trigunas do not stay fastened. Their dominance modifications with bodily situation, psychological state, life-style, and setting. Fashionable research have additionally noticed that inherited guna tendencies can shift underneath psychological, social, and environmental influences, thereby affecting behaviour at a given time.
Because the proportion of Sattva, Rajas, and Tamas rises or falls, corresponding modifications seem in character traits, attitudes, and patterns of behaviour. Thus, character is just not static—it’s a dynamic reflection of the Trigunas at work.
How trigunas form character
Any bodily, psychological, or psychological change in a human being has its foundation within the 5 parts that compose the physique. These parts are skilled by the 5 senses, which constantly collect info from the exterior world.
The sensory impressions collected by the senses go inward first to the thoughts, then to the mind (Buddhi). At this stage, the impressions are interpreted and modified in keeping with the dominant Guna current at that second.
For that reason, the Guna turns into the ultimate influencing issue within the formation of character.
Each particular person perceives experiences by a way of I or ego (Ahamkara). This ego acts as a modifier, colouring notion and response. As illustrated earlier, the Trigunas function by this ego precept and decide how ideas, feelings, and reactions take form.
In the end, what emerges from uncooked sensory enter is recognised as an individual’s character, and it displays the Triguna or mixture of Trigunas that’s dominant at a given time.
The individual with sattva guna
Sattva means purity and readability. When Sattva Guna is dominant, it displays a character that’s naturally inclined in the direction of stability, consciousness, and moral dwelling. This high quality helps kindness, care, and a honest reference to increased values, giving rise to a Sattvic character.
Sattva Guna is current in a wholesome proportion when an individual reveals the next qualities:
- Psychological power and stability
- Respect for lecturers and guides (Gurus)
- Non-violence in thought and motion
- Kindness and goodwill in the direction of others
- Self-control and self-discipline
- Curiosity in meditation and self-reflection
An individual with dominant Sattva Guna performs work and duties with calmness and readability, clearly distinguishing between what’s fascinating and undesirable. Selections are guided by understanding slightly than impulse.
As Sattva will increase, one turns into extra drawn in the direction of love, compassion, kindness, and lasting happiness. This balanced state helps each psychological and bodily well-being and is historically related to good well being and concord.
Classical texts additional describe seven sorts of Sattvic personalities, based mostly on refined variations inside Sattva itself.
The individual with rajas guna
An individual dominated by Rajas Guna is pushed by want, motion, and attachment to outcomes. Such people are energetic and impressive, however robust self-interest can typically make it troublesome to obviously distinguish between proper and fallacious. This sample of behaviour is named a Rajasic character.
Rajas Guna is current in a balanced proportion when an individual reveals the next qualities:
- Enthusiasm and drive
- Deep involvement in work
- Dedication and dedication
- Restlessness and fixed exercise
- Robust sense of individuality
- Want for achievement
The time period Rajas refers to ardour and motion. It lies between Sattva and Tamas and acts as a catalyst or bridge between the 2. By Rajas, the soundness of Tamas is remodeled into motion, and the readability of Sattva is expressed by effort. On this approach, Rajas helps motivation, creativity, change, and purposeful motion.
When Rajas Guna turns into imbalanced, its extreme dominance can result in agitation, anger, nervousness, impatience, and an unhealthy attachment to outcomes.
The individual with tamas guna
Tamas means darkness and heaviness. It represents a psychological state marked by phantasm, ignorance, dullness, and inactivity. When Tamas Guna is dominant, it offers rise to a Tamasic character, typically expressed by selfishness, lack of sensitivity, indifference, and a pessimistic outlook.
When Tamas begins to scale back and transfer in the direction of stability, constructive modifications will be noticed, comparable to:
- Well timed and restful sleep
- A extra balanced strategy to meals
- Larger openness in the direction of others
- An appreciative and receptive perspective
- Rising concern for the well-being of others
- Willingness to behave and supply assist
When Tamas Guna is imbalanced or extreme, it could result in short-lived pleasure looking for, materialism, possessiveness, confusion, and damaging tendencies. Such a state retains the thoughts trapped in inertia and prevents readability and progress.
A e-book
A classical reference to this understanding is discovered within the e-book Dhanwantri: A Full Information to Ayurvedic Life, written by Harish Johari, the place people are categorised into seven character sorts based mostly on the dominance and mixture of the Trigunas.
These seven sorts are:
- Folks with dominant Sattva Guna
- Folks with dominant Rajas Guna
- Folks with dominant Tamas Guna
- Folks with a Sattva–Rajas Guna mixture
- Folks with a Sattva–Tamas Guna mixture
- Folks with a Rajas–Tamas Guna mixture
- Folks with balanced Gunas (Sattva–Rajas–Tamas in concord)
This classification highlights an important precept: the Trigunas by no means exist in isolation. They at all times operate collectively, typically influencing and competing with each other. At any given time, the dominant Guna determines behaviour, tendencies, and character expression.
By this stage, chances are you’ll already recognise which Guna or mixture of Gunas most intently displays your personal nature.
This naturally results in an necessary query:
How can we consciously work with the Trigunas inside ourselves for our personal well-being and for the advantage of others?
How one can stability the trigunas in every day life
The Gunas usually are not bodily substances, but their presence is clearly recognised by three facets of human behaviour:
- Motion we carry out
- Intention behind the motion
- Response to its consequence
By changing into conscious of those three, one can consciously work in the direction of balancing the Gunas inside.
Motion and intention
All motion is universally engendered by the attributes (gunas) of primordial nature (prakriti). A person whose self is deluded by egoity thinks, “I’m the doer” – Bhagavad Gita 3:27
Each motion begins with an intention. To recognise the Guna influencing an motion, it’s useful to mirror on two questions:
- Why I’m doing this? (Intention)
- How I’m doing this ? (Manifestation)
At sure phases of life, an motion might come up from a Sattvic intention, whereas its execution might carry Rajasic or Tamasic qualities.
For instance, an individual might steal to offer for his or her household. On this case, the intention (supporting family members) might comprise Sattva, however the methodology of motion is Tamasic. Because of this, Tamas turns into the dominant Guna.
By fastidiously observing each intention and motion, one can start to grasp which Guna is prevailing and the way it could also be refined.
Response
The response to the results of an motion performs a vital position in shaping one’s interior nature. What we dwell upon after appearing is what continues to develop inside us.
Returning to the identical instance, if the individual displays upon the act of stealing with regret, sorrow, or interior battle, this response signifies the presence of Sattva throughout the intention. Such contemplation, although troublesome, holds the potential to regularly remodel Tamasic tendencies into readability and consciousness.
Thus, by aware remark of motion, intention, and response, the Gunas will be understood, regulated, and introduced into higher stability.
Rajas Guna: A step from tamas to sattva
Many individuals naturally intention to extend Sattva Guna, associating it with purity and religious progress. In doing so, they typically overlook the significance of sustaining a balanced state of all three Gunas. The yogic strategy is to not favour one high quality excessively, however to permit every Guna to operate in concord.
An extreme rise in Sattva might result in refined religious satisfaction. Extreme Rajas can lead to greed, restlessness, and overwork, whereas dominance of Tamas offers rise to ignorance and inertia. Due to this fact, stability not suppression is the important thing.
The sensible methodology is to first remodel Tamas into Rajas, after which regularly refine Rajas into Sattva.
Tamas to Rajas
When Tamasic qualities comparable to laziness, dullness, low temper, nervousness, or irritability dominate, the treatment lies in motion and engagement.
This shift will be supported by:
- Practising bodily yoga asana
- Conserving the corporate of constructive and lively folks
- Travelling or altering environment
- Consuming mild and nourishing meals
These actions assist carry power from inactivity to exercise, permitting Rajas Guna to switch stagnation.
Rajas to Sattva
When exercise, enthusiasm, and restlessness enhance, it signifies the predominance of Rajas Guna. At this stage, power is obtainable however requires refinement.
To information Rajas in the direction of Sattva, one might have interaction in:
- Meditation and inward reflection
- Studying and examine of uplifting information
- Selfless or charitable actions
- Observance of moral disciplines such because the Yamas, which assist regulate extra power
By these practices, stressed exercise is regularly remodeled into readability, stability, and interior stability.
Conclusion
The idea of the Trigunas Sattva, Rajas, and Tamas affords a transparent framework for understanding how nature, thoughts, and character operate. These three qualities usually are not fastened traits, nor do they exist in isolation. They constantly work together, rise, and fall, shaping behaviour, notion, and interior tendencies at each stage of life.
By consciousness of the Gunas, one begins to recognise the forces behind ideas, actions, and reactions. This understanding doesn’t intention to suppress any high quality, however to deliver them into stability. Tamas gives stability, Rajas allows motion, and Sattva affords readability. When harmonised, they help bodily well-being, psychological readability, and religious progress.
By observing every day actions, intentions, and responses, and by adopting acceptable yogic practices, it turns into attainable to regularly refine the Gunas. On this approach, the knowledge of Trigunas serves not solely as a philosophical idea, however as a sensible information for dwelling with consciousness, stability, and interior concord.