Changes

sarvayoniṣu kaunteya mūrtayaḥ saṁbhavanti yāḥ । tāsāṁ brahma mahadyonirahaṁ bījapradaḥ pitā ॥14.4॥</blockquote>This emphasizes that created beings are produced from the union of Purusha and Prakriti. And the Supreme Being not only unites Prakrti and Purusha to cause the birth of created beings at the beginning of a creation cycle, but is also the ultimate cause of every birth that takes place on the earth.<ref name=":2" />

sarvayoniṣu kaunteya mūrtayaḥ saṁbhavanti yāḥ । tāsāṁ brahma mahadyonirahaṁ bījapradaḥ pitā ॥14.4॥</blockquote>This emphasizes that created beings are produced from the union of Purusha and Prakriti. And the Supreme Being not only unites Prakrti and Purusha to cause the birth of created beings at the beginning of a creation cycle, but is also the ultimate cause of every birth that takes place on the earth.<ref name=":2" />

== त्रिगुणाः ॥ Trigunas<ref name=":1" /> ==

== त्रिगुणाः ॥ Trigunas ==

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.

Living entities vary in their psychological manifestations. This is a result of their conditioned nature. The following section of the chapter explains how living entities are differently conditioned.<ref name=":1" /> It says, <blockquote>सत्त्वं रजस्तम इति गुणाः प्रकृतिसंभवाः । निबध्नन्ति महाबाहो देहे देहिनमव्ययम् ॥१४.५॥<ref name=":3" />

सत्त्वं रजस्तम इति गुणाः प्रकृतिसंभवाः । निबध्नन्ति महाबाहो देहे देहिनमव्ययम् ॥१४.५॥

sattvaṁ rajastama iti guṇāḥ prakr̥tisaṁbhavāḥ । nibadhnanti mahābāho dehe dehinamavyayam ॥14.5॥</blockquote>Meaning: The Gunas Sattva, Rajas and Tamas, born out of the Prakrti, bind the great eternal embodied one within the body.<ref name=":2" />

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.

So, when the eternal living entity ie. Purusha comes in contact with the material nature or Prakrti consisting of the three modes or gunas viz. Sattva, Rajas and Tamas, all the resultant creations become conditioned by these gunas giving rise to the varieties in actions and emotions.<ref name=":1" />

 

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.

=== सत्त्वम् ॥ Sattva ===

=== सत्त्वम् ॥ Sattva ===

The nature of Sattva and the way it binds:

Of the three gunas, Sattva is illuminating on account of its purity and propagates well-being. It enjoins one with happiness and knowledge.<ref name=":1" /><blockquote>तत्र सत्त्वं निर्मलत्वात्प्रकाशकमनामयम् । सुखसङ्गेन बध्नाति ज्ञानसङ्गेन चानघ ॥१४.६॥<ref name=":3" />

 

 

Sattva (14.6) is believed to be the pure quality of a mind which brings happiness, knowledge and wisdom in an individual. ([https://dharmawiki.org/index.php/Trigunas_(%E0%A4%A4%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%B0%E0%A4%BF%E0%A4%97%E0%A5%81%E0%A4%A3%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%83)#.E0.A4.AE.E0.A4.A8.E0.A5.8B.E0.A4.A6.E0.A5.8B.E0.A4.B7.E0.A4.BE.E0.A4.83_.E0.A4.B0.E0.A4.9C.E0.A4.83_.E0.A4.A4.E0.A4.AE.E0.A4.83_.E0.A4.9A_.E0.A5.A5_Rajas_and_Tamas_as_doshas Trigunas article])

 

Amongst these, sattva guṇa, the mode of goodness, being of pure quality, is illuminating and full of well-being. It binds the soul by creating attachment for a sense of happiness and knowledge. ([https://dharmawiki.org/index.php/Sattva_(%E0%A4%B8%E0%A4%A4%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%A4%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%B5%E0%A4%AE%E0%A5%8D)#.E0.A4.AD.E0.A4.97.E0.A4.B5.E0.A4.A6.E0.A5.8D.E0.A4.97.E0.A5.80.E0.A4.A4.E0.A4.BE.E0.A4.B5.E0.A4.B0.E0.A5.8D.E0.A4.A3.E0.A4.BF.E0.A4.A4.E0.A4.83_.E0.A4.B8.E0.A4.A4.E0.A5.8D.E0.A4.B5.E0.A4.97.E0.A5.81.E0.A4.A3.E0.A4.83.E0.A5.A5_Sattva_according_to_Bhagvad_gita Sattva article])

 

 

 

 

 

 

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.

tatra sattvaṁ nirmalatvātprakāśakamanāmayam । sukhasaṅgena badhnāti jñānasaṅgena cānagha ॥14.6॥</blockquote>It is interesting to note here that on account of its purity, sattva is described as the perfect mirror to illumine and reflect knowledge that is the cause of spiritual bliss.  

However, the sense of advanced happiness in conditioned life makes one bound by the mode of goodness and as long as there is an attraction to work that way, they have to take some type of body in the modes of nature. Thus, there is no likelihood of liberation or of being transferred to the spiritual world. One becomes repeatedly entangled in the same disadvantages of birth and death. But, due to the illusion of the material energy, one thinks that that sort of life is pleasant.

So, a person under the influence of sattva becomes attached to happiness and knowledge that are attributes of mind, a form of matter. This identification with matter binds the free and totally unattached Self. And that is how sattva guna binds one to the world.<ref name=":2" />

=== रजः ॥ Rajas ===

=== रजः ॥ Rajas ===