Nothing can be defined as such — this is an accepted fact in all sciences. No disease can be defined by itself; nor can any emotion be described as such — without explaining its symptoms and expressions. So too, no gunas can be defined directly. In the following stanzas we find descriptions of a mind under the influence of each of these gunas, by enumerating the type of emotions that are aroused in it, and its peculiar and distinct behaviours. This symptomatic description is, no doubt, more helpful to us, the seekers, because each of us can observe and analyse the types of emotions and thoughts arising in our mind-intellect equipments and determine what type of guna is governing us at any given time.

BECAUSE OF ITS STAINLESSNESS, SATTWA IS LUMINOUS — When Sattwa comes to dominate as the most important influence in our thought-life, because of its purity, it is ever luminous — it has neither the dull-colour of Rajas, nor the dark impurities of Tamas. Under the Sattwa-influence, the mind is steady, reflecting ever faithfully, the Consciousness, the Self.

FREE FROM EVIL i. e. HEALTHY — Evil tendencies must rise in the mind long before the action expressing the same is committed in the world outside; as the thought, so the actions. Thus the evil starts germinating in the mental life. We call that an evil whereby we try to satisfy the appetites of the flesh, the selfish agitations of the mind and the ego-centric desires of our head. Ego-centric self-gratification is the womb from which all evils are born. Such low impulses and confusions can arise only when the mind is under the influence of Rajas and Tamas. Therefore, what is meant here is, Sattwa is free from all evils, as it is relatively free from Rajasic agitations or Tamasic darkness. Though Sattwa is thus the most divine mental attitude, still it binds us and acts as a limitation on our divine nature.

SATTWA BINDS BY ATTACHMENT TO ‘HAPPINESS’ AND ‘KNOWLEDGE’ — When the mind is purified from all its agitations (Rajas) and the intellect is cleansed of its agitations (Rajas) and the intellect is cleansed of its low passions and criminal lusts (Tamas), no doubt, the personality becomes purified, experiencing a greater share of inward peace and happiness and enjoys a greater share of subtle understanding and intellectual comprehension. But even these can create a bondage on the freedom of the Absolute Self. A gold-chain, if sufficiently strong can also bind as any iron-chain. “Goodness,” though it gives us freedom from all vulgarities, can also shackle us within its own limitation! A perfect one, absolutely free, is bound neither by goodness, nor by evil.

Consciousness, the All-pervading Principle of Awareness, expressed as the Self, in each one of us, does not directly comprehend any object or idea in the world outside. What we generally understand as intelligence is the Eternal Light of Consciousness, reflected in our mind-intellect-equipment. Naturally therefore, the capacity to perceive the world intelligently, differs from person to person because in no two of us the inner equipments can be the same.

The reflection in a reflecting medium, will depend entirely upon the cleanliness and steadiness of the medium. If the mind is clean and the intellect steady, a more efficient intelligence is manifest. Thus, whenever a given mind is in an inspiring and creative mood, it is actually intelligent and it is capable of taking longest flights into the realms of wisdom. On all such occasions of vast knowing and deep understanding, the inner equipment is under the influence of Sattwa, wherein the agitations, created by Rajas, and the murkiness, created by Tamas, do not express themselves.

Sattwa also binds the Infinite to Matter through the attachment to ‘knowledge’ and ‘happiness’. When once one has experienced the thrilling joys of creative thinking and the inspiring life of goodness and wisdom one gets so attached to them that one will thereafter sacrifice anything around in order to live constantly that subtle joy. A true scientist, working self-dedicatedly in his laboratory; a painter working at his canvas in his shabby studio, pale with hunger and weak with disease; a poet hunted out from society, living in public parks, seeking his own joys in his own visions and words; martyrs facing cruel persecutions; politicians suffering long years of exile; mountaineers embracing death — are all examples of how, having known the subtler thrills of a higher joy, when the bosom is inspired with Sattwa, the individual becomes as much bound with attachment to them as others are to their own material joys and possessions.

NOW THE DIAGNOSIS OF ‘RAJAS,’ WHEN IT COMES TO PLAY ITS HAVOC IN THE HUMAN BOSOM:

Tatra, among them, among sattva etc.;-the characteristics of sattva itself is being stated first-sattva, nirmalatvat, being pure like a crystal stone;is prakasakam, an illuminator; and anamayam, harmless. Anagha, O sinless one; badhnati, it binds. How? Sukhasangena, through attachment to happiness. Bringing about the association of happiness, which is the object, with the Self, which is the subject, in the form of the idea, ‘I am happy’, is certainly an unreal contact with happiness. This as such is nescience, for the quality of an object cannot belong to a subject. And it has been said by the Lord that all the qualities, from ‘desire’ to ‘fortitude’ (see 13.6), are, indeed, of the field, which is the object. Therefore, it is certainly through nescience, which is an attribute [In reality, though nescience has no connection with the Self, yet, since there is none other with which it can become associated and since it has no independence, therefore the Commentator imagines it as an attribute of the Self.] of the Self and has the characteristics of non-discrimination between object and subject, that sattva apparently brings about the association with happiness, which is not the Self. It makes (the Self) attached, as it were; [Here Ast. adds ‘asangam saktam iva, (makes) the Unattached attached, as it were’.-Tr.] makes one not possessed of happiness as though possessed of it! Similarly, it binds also jnana-sangena, through attachment to knowledge. [Jnana, derived in the sense of ‘that through which one knows,’ means an instrument of knowledge, and not Consciousness. (S.: Knowledge arising from the study of the import of various scriptures; or, jnanam, means the scriptures, through which the supreme God is known and which leads to devotional practices, but not to steadfastness in (the absolute) Brahman.] Because of its concomitance with happiness, knowledge here is an attribute of the internal organ, the field, but not of the Self. Were it an attribute [If knowledge were a natural attribute of the Self, then there can be no question of the latter again becoming bound through association with the former.] of the Self, there could be no contact (between it and the Self), and ‘bondage’ would become illogical. Association with knowledge etc. should be understood in the same sense as with happiness.