205. Gunas: Slavery to Mastery

After explaining that the three gunas (modes of nature) of satva, rajo and tamo bind the atma (soul) with the physical body, Krishna mentions about transcending these gunas to become guna-atheeth or nirgun (sans gunas). Immediately, Arjuna enquires about the signs that distinguish the person who has transcended the gunas; his conduct and how does he go beyond these three gunas (14.21).

Krishna says, “Illumination (symbolizing satva), activity (rajo) and ignorance (tamo), he hates not when present nor longs for them when absent (14.22). He who, remaining like one unconcerned, is not disturbed by gunas; who, realising that only gunas are operating throughout creation, is firm and centred in the Self” (14.23).

Firstly, this is neither attachment (raag or aasakti) nor detachment (viraag or virakti) with any manifestations of gunas. Krishna earlier used veet-raag or anaasakti to describe such an eternal state. Secondly, in a similar situation, Krishna earlier advised us to renounce hatred by inculcating the divine quality of forgiveness (16.3), but not action (karma) (5.3). Thirdly, it is about making gunas our slaves. When we need to sleep, summon tamas; use rajas when we need to do some activity; satva to learn. It is moving from a state of slavery to the mastery of gunas.

In that state, one realises that there is no karta (doer) other than these three gunas. It is the interaction between them that results in karma but not because of us or someone else.

One path is to detach karma from karma-phal (fruits of action) by realising that karma-phal depends on many factors. The second is to detach karta from karma realising that the three gunas are the real karta. Both paths lead to nir-ahankaar (sans the feeling of I am doer). One is thus centred in the Self and Krishna described them as atma-raman (union with Self) or nitya-tript (ever-content).