72. Prisioner of Perceptions

Krishna says that “Those sammohit (hypnotised) by the gunas (qualities or characters) of nature are attached to the functions of the gunas; one with perfect knowledge should not unsettle the ignorant whose knowledge is imperfect” (3.29).

Apart from being the real karta (doer), gunas have the ability to hypnotise and cast a spell on us that makes us forget our true nature. We remain spellbound until we realise that we are under their spell.

Krishna talks about the ignorant and the wise. The ignorant are under the hypnotic spell (maya) of gunas and feel that they are karta (3.27). They want to achieve, be important, get noticed and fight for entitlements. Simultaneously, they take others in the family, workplace and society to be karta and expect them to behave or perform as per their expectations. This results in perpetual guilt, regret, anger and misery.

The second stage is awareness which comes with a time lapse following an incident. This time lapse can be a few moments, years, decades or even lifetimes. Incidents can be words we speak, desires we are gripped with, decisions we take or the karmas we perform, due to the spell of gunas on us.

The third stage of awareness is realising in the present moment itself that gunas are interacting with gunas and we are not karta (3.27). It is the art of observing blissfully.

The ignorant too would reach the state of awareness as per their own nature (swa-dharma) in due course of time and hence Krishna advises the wise to wait without unsettling the ignorant.

Under the hypnotic spell of the gunas, each of us carries a different perception of the world we live in, and the ignorant remain prisoners of these perceptions. Wisdom lies in transcending the perceptions accumulated over a lifetime.


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