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The living entities conditioned by material nature are of various types. One is happy, another is very active and another is helpless. All these types of psychological manifestations are causes of the entities' conditioned status in nature. How they are differently conditioned is explained in this section of the Chapter.
 
The living entities conditioned by material nature are of various types. One is happy, another is very active and another is helpless. All these types of psychological manifestations are causes of the entities' conditioned status in nature. How they are differently conditioned is explained in this section of the Chapter.
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सत्त्वं रजस्तम इति गुणाः प्रकृतिसंभवाः । निबध्नन्ति महाबाहो देहे देहिनमव्ययम् ॥१४- ५॥
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सत्त्वं रजस्तम इति गुणाः प्रकृतिसंभवाः । निबध्नन्ति महाबाहो देहे देहिनमव्ययम् ॥१४.५॥
    
Material nature consists of three modes - goodness, passion and ignorance. When the eternal living entity comes in contact with nature, he becomes conditioned by these modes.
 
Material nature consists of three modes - goodness, passion and ignorance. When the eternal living entity comes in contact with nature, he becomes conditioned by these modes.
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The Gunas - sattva, rajas and tamas - which are born of Prakrti, bind fast in the body the immortal, embodied soul. SN
    
Because living entities have different kinds of bodies in terms of the different aspects of nature, they are induced to act according to that nature. This is the cause of the varieties of happiness and distress.
 
Because living entities have different kinds of bodies in terms of the different aspects of nature, they are induced to act according to that nature. This is the cause of the varieties of happiness and distress.
    
=== सत्त्वम् ॥ Sattva ===
 
=== सत्त्वम् ॥ Sattva ===
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The nature of Sattva and the way it binds:
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तत्र सत्त्वं निर्मलत्वात्प्रकाशकमनामयम् । सुखसङ्गेन बध्नाति ज्ञानसङ्गेन चानघ ॥१४- ६॥
 
तत्र सत्त्वं निर्मलत्वात्प्रकाशकमनामयम् । सुखसङ्गेन बध्नाति ज्ञानसङ्गेन चानघ ॥१४- ६॥
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The mode of goodness, being purer than others, is illuminating and it frees one from all sinful reactions. Those situated in that mode become conditioned by a sense of happiness and knowledge.
 
The mode of goodness, being purer than others, is illuminating and it frees one from all sinful reactions. Those situated in that mode become conditioned by a sense of happiness and knowledge.
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Of these, sattva, being stainless, is luminous and healthful. It binds by creating attachment to happiness and attachment to knowledge. SN
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Stainless - because through sattva one can destroy the deluding power of maya.
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Luminous - On account of its purity, sattva is the perfect mirror to reflect spiritual bliss.
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Healthful - of the nature of peace and serenity.
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A man under the influence of sattva becomes attached to happiness and knowledge. Happiness and knowledge are attributes of mind, which is a form of matter. They belong to the category of the object and pertain to kshetra (8.6). The Self, which is of the nature of freedom and totally unattached, becomes bound by identification with matter. This is how sattva binds a soul to the world. SN
    
The effect of developing the mode of goodness in the material world is that one becomes wiser than those otherwise conditioned. A man in the mode of goodness is not so much affected by material miseries and he has a sense of advancement in material knowledge. This sense of happiness is due to understanding that, in the mode of goodness, one is more or less free from sinful reactions.
 
The effect of developing the mode of goodness in the material world is that one becomes wiser than those otherwise conditioned. A man in the mode of goodness is not so much affected by material miseries and he has a sense of advancement in material knowledge. This sense of happiness is due to understanding that, in the mode of goodness, one is more or less free from sinful reactions.
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=== रजः ॥ Rajas ===
 
=== रजः ॥ Rajas ===
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The nature of rajas and how it binds:
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रजो रागात्मकं विद्धि तृष्णासङ्गसमुद्भवम् । तन्निबध्नाति कौन्तेय कर्मसङ्गेन देहिनम् ॥१४- ७॥
 
रजो रागात्मकं विद्धि तृष्णासङ्गसमुद्भवम् । तन्निबध्नाति कौन्तेय कर्मसङ्गेन देहिनम् ॥१४- ७॥
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The mode of passion is born of unlimited desires and longings and because of this, the embodied entity is bound to material fruitive actions.
 
The mode of passion is born of unlimited desires and longings and because of this, the embodied entity is bound to material fruitive actions.
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Know that rajas is the essence of passion and the cause of thirst an attachment. It binds fast the embodied soul by attachment to action. SN
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It is thirst and attachment that impel a worldly person to action. Thirst is directed to an object not yet attained and attachment to what has already been attained. SN
    
When the mode of passion is increased, one develops the hankering for material enjoyment. And enjoy sense gratification. As long as there is hankering, one has to work hard towards fulfilling them. Therefore, it is clearly stated here that a rajasika person becomes associated with the frits of his activities and gets bound by them.
 
When the mode of passion is increased, one develops the hankering for material enjoyment. And enjoy sense gratification. As long as there is hankering, one has to work hard towards fulfilling them. Therefore, it is clearly stated here that a rajasika person becomes associated with the frits of his activities and gets bound by them.
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=== तमः ॥ Tamas ===
 
=== तमः ॥ Tamas ===
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The nature of tamas and how it binds:
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तमस्त्वज्ञानजं विद्धि मोहनं सर्वदेहिनाम् । प्रमादालस्यनिद्राभिस्तन्निबध्नाति भारत ॥१४- ८॥
 
तमस्त्वज्ञानजं विद्धि मोहनं सर्वदेहिनाम् । प्रमादालस्यनिद्राभिस्तन्निबध्नाति भारत ॥१४- ८॥
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The mode of darkness, born of ignorance, is the delusion of all embodied living entities. The results of this mode are madness, indolence and sleep which bind the conditioned soul.
 
The mode of darkness, born of ignorance, is the delusion of all embodied living entities. The results of this mode are madness, indolence and sleep which bind the conditioned soul.
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And know further that tamas is born of ignorance and that it deludes all embodied creatures. It binds fast by inadvertence, indolence and sleep. SN
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Ignorance is the veiling power of Maya. The other power of maya is the projecting power, which functions mainly through rajas. Maya is armed with these two powers.
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Under the influence of tamas one become inattentive, slothful and inert. SN.
    
The mode of ignorance is just the opposite of the mode of goodness. In the mode of goodness, by development of knowledge, one can understand what is what but under the spell of the mode of ignorance, instead of making an advancement, one becomes degraded. The mode of ignorance is defined as.  
 
The mode of ignorance is just the opposite of the mode of goodness. In the mode of goodness, by development of knowledge, one can understand what is what but under the spell of the mode of ignorance, instead of making an advancement, one becomes degraded. The mode of ignorance is defined as.  

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