What Are The Gunas

What Are The Gunas – The 3 Gunas of Nature (Sattva, Rajas and Tamas)

Life happens to be a very confusing journey for many. It is made up of the dualities of nature. The forces in this lifetime, can enslave you and liberate you as well. Thus, the ancient school of philosophy, known by the name Samkhya, came up with two type of entities – Prakriti and Purusha. You can learn more about the same in the 200 hour yoga teacher training in Rishikesh.

Repeatedly, you will come across some terms, like Purusha and Prakriti, in the course of your studies. Let us find out a bit about Purusha, which is a subject. All that is known and measurable, is being labelled as Purusha. On the other hand, all those things that are not tangible, are termed as Prakriti. Prakriti is all that, you are yet to know. So, you can very well say, that Prakriti is limitless. There is a lot of scope in this sphere. The ‘Gunas’ make up the Prakriti. The three Gunas that we are going to discuss about here, are Sattva, Rajas, and Tamas. It is the play of these gunas that bring about various manifestations in the universe. No matter, whether you take up the above mentioned course, or the yoga teacher training, you will study about these in detail. But for now, we have some interesting information coming up, that will hold your interest.

The Gunas In More Detail

In the context of yoga, a basic awareness of the Gunas tells, if you are moving ahead in life, which is Sattva, or you are running in one place, like in Rajas, or whether you are losing your way, like in Tamas. Each of the Gunas have their own specific characteristics. Let us start with the Sattva guna. It mainly acts like a transparent material, which allows the light of consciousness to pass through it. It is not true enlightenment in itself, but it can show you the reality. You will be able to see beauty and balance in it. Moreover, this Guna promotes energy, contentment, and long-term health. You will be able to elevate your life, with the help of Sattva. If you head to one of the best yoga school, then you will be able to learn about the same in complete details.

The next Guna that we are going to talk about here is Rajas. It is mainly represented as the ‘energy of change’. It may also reflect as passion, pain, or desire. If it works well, you may shift gears towards Sattva, or Tamas. It mainly depends on how you take it up. It may act positively or negatively, as per the case. Joining a yoga in rishikesh can also facilitate your understanding towards the same. Rajas mainly satiates and brings happiness by coupling. It can be also termed as ‘sensory’ in nature. It binds you to the fruits of action.

Then comes Tamas, which causes ignorance, darkness and is heavy. It also means steadiness. All the foods that are governed by Tamas, are lifeless and stale. It mainly leads the incumbent to inaction. You may feel lethargic and sleepy all the time, if you are governed by Tamas.

Now, you should also understand that the three Gunas, do not work in isolation. They are constantly interacting with one another. However, their interactions are not permanent, but temporary in nature.

How Do The Gunas Work?

You can often feel the physical effects of the Gunas, while you are practicing Yoga. Although the Gunas are permanent, the effects of the Guna is transitory. You mind may go through psychological imbalances and can fluctuate quickly enough. The Guna of your mind also acts as a lens in this case. It will also tend to affect the perceptions of the world. If your mind is in a state of Rajas, then your life will be chaotic and confusing. You may have a strong tendency to react to various events in a Rajasic manner. Thus, if you are a yoga practitioner, you need to work towards self-observation. In this way, you will not react to the play of the Gunas. However, you have to develop the will power, to shift the thoughts and actions. If you are able to shift yourself from Rajas and Tamas, then you can work with a purpose towards Tamas.

However, you may still need all three Gunas, for different yogic practices. You can activate the Sattva Guna, through meditation. In this manner, you will be able to turn your mind inward. This is not the only way though. Learn about such ways in complete detail as a part of the 300 hour yoga teacher training.

Sattva Guna Elevation

If you want to increase the Sattva Guna, it means that you want a steady state if mind, in which you want to renew yourself and get over your old habits as well. You can always follow the Yamas and Niyamas, to activate the Sattva Guna. However, that is not all. There are more ways, through which you can activate the Sattva Guna.

The first way by which, you can increase your Sattva Guna, is by eating well. If you eat too spicy or pungent foods, you will notice that, aggressiveness becomes a part of your nature. They reflect the characteristics of the Rajasic personality. When you take heavy meals with alcohol, you lead to lethargy. It can also make your mind dull and slow. Then you start reflecting the qualities of a Tamasic person. Thus, this means, that if you want to increase the Sattva Guna in your journey as a yogi, you need to rely on Sattvic food.
Apart from ingesting fresh foods, you must inculcate healthy eating habits as well. Always go for fruits, vegetables, and the likes, washed well. Hygiene is also very important here.
You can also include some of the digestive herbs and rhizomes in your food, like ginger and turmeric. Sattvic food helps you to walk on the lines of Ahimsa, where you do not harm anyone.
You should also remember to keep your surroundings clean. When the surroundings are clean, you are uncluttered. The mind also resonates the same tidiness and you can think more clearly.
If you are a working person, pursuing monetary goals, you also need to achieve a state of balance. Stay away from activities like watching horror movies, or binging, and partying too much. Instead of these, you can go to a yoga course, to spend your time.
You should also keep company of good people. Stay conscious of the people, whom you interact with, on a daily basis. Always spend time with peace-loving people.
You must also make it a point to wake up early, and stop later night work. Try to wake up in the Brahma Muhurta, and practice yoga, so as to stabilize your mood.

How To Reduce Rajas?

It is true that, all the three Gunas are required in yoga. So, if you are a practicing yogi, you must ensure to reduce the Rajas, and balance it with the two other Gunas.

Here are a few ways, to reduce Rajas.

You can practice a few restorative poses. They have the best calming mechanism, and can be therapeutic as well. They also counter the effect of the dynamic poses. In order to reduce Rajas Guna, you should add a few restorative poses to your practice. Also, when you do a deep backbend, always practice a forward fold. It mainly neutralizes the effect, and makes you balanced.
Cool down, by practicing Pranayama. However, in this case too, there are breathing techniques that elevate the heat in the body, and there are breathing techniques which lower the heat. You can try out Shitali Pranayama and Shitkari Pranayama, in this context. There are certain deep breathing exercises, which you can practice as well. They include Anulom Vilom and Nadi Shodhana.
You should also bring some balance in your eating habits. Foods that are pungent and spicy, can elevate your Rajas Guna. So, you should avoid such foods. Also stay away from oily and fried foods. This will help you to bring down the effects of Rajas, slowly. Eat more dairy-based foods, fruits, as well as vegetables instead.
You must also take adequate rest. Sleep on time, and early. Try to wake up early as well. 8-9 hours of sleep is extremely beneficial for you.
You must stay away from noise and disturbance. Try to listen to soft, soulful music.

How To Balance Tamas?

So, by now, you probably know that you need to maintain a balance between all the three Gunas. The higher state of Sattva is the most desirable of the lot. Tamas can make you careless, lazy, revengeful, and lethargic. However, it does have some positive qualities as well. It makes you grounded and relaxed as well. Everybody needs some silent moments in their lives. You can bring in some activities in your life, to balance the Tamas with the other Gunas.

You can add Vinyasa yoga practice to your sessions. Schools like Hrishikesh Yoga School will teach this form of yoga as well. These asana can invigorate your body and soul. Moreover Vinyasa can add more motion to your practices. You can reduce Tamas Guna, by following a few basic principles. You can do Surya Namaskara, due to its flowing nature. It also balances the Tamas Guna.
You should practice more Forward bending poses, instead of backbends. They tend to be more relaxing in nature. However, if you are in need for some extra energy, you must do backbends.
You must lessen the time of relaxation in poses like Savasana.
You must learn how to regulate your breath, through Pranayama. Bhastrika and Kapalbhati are two of the breathing techniques, which can help in controlling the Tamas Guna.
You can also practice Anulom Vilom, if you are always feeling angry.
Moreover, you must engage in meditation, in which you are constantly in motion. Yoga in itself, is a moving meditation. However, there are other forms as well, like walking meditation that can help you.
Tamas can make you lethargic, so it will be better, if you do not sleep for long hours. You can take short naps, instead. If you sit in the same practice for a long time, it can also increase your Tamas. So, always be on the move.
Today, most people are dependent on entertainment modes like TV, web series, and video games. You can stay away from all such sluggish modes, by indulging in some nature walks and adventure activities.
Additionally, you must change your diet as well. You ought to stay away from heavily-processed foods, like cheese, and also stay away from alcohol. You must not eat fermented foods as well. Avoid eating stale food, too.
Go out in nature and engage yourself in activities like Gardening. It will surely help you.

So, this is the evolution of the body and mind, through the various Gunas. You must acquire different sorts of experience in your life. However, always maintain that a heightened Sattva Guna is the best for you. Additionally, you must make the yogic texts like Bhagavad Gita a part of your life. You can learn about the Vedic scripts and texts at the school in Rishikesh. Hrishikesh Yoga School is one of the finest schools, where you can enhance your life path. Tread carefully and get the best knowledge from the eminent professionals. You will be guided in terms of your body and mind. Gain experience in the practices and also get to teach the others.