72. Prisioner of Perceptions
K rishna 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...