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Chapter 14: The three quality states

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praveen

Life is a dream
Staff member
(Every individual is the mixture of goodness, emotion and delusion. His personality
Is determined by which of these predominates and is noticed. To merge with the infinite and attain immortality, one has to transcend these three quality states.)

The Lord said:-

I would tell you again about that knowledge,
Which is the highest among all knowledge,
Knowing which the sages attain supreme salvation.

Those who follow this knowledge,
And have attained my supreme nature,
Are not born at time of the creation,
And also never die at the time of deluge.

Oh descendent of Bharatha, the great nature,
Is my place of creation and I place the germ in that,
And from that are created all beings and things.
(The trigger mechanism is kept by the Lord and this makes nature to act.)

Oh Arjuna, in whichever wombs, whatever is born,
For all of them mother is the great nature,
And I am the seed giving father.

Oh great warrior, the three qualities,
Which are called as Sathwa, Rajas and Thamas*,
Are born of nature and bind tightly that Nature,
Which is changeless, in to this body.
*Good, emotional and base qualities respectively.

Oh sinless one, of them the quality of Sathwa,
Is resplendent because of its nature of purity,
And its freedom from evil and it binds the embodied self,
By its attachment, to happiness and knowledge.

Oh Arjuna, on the other hand the quality of Rajas,
Is of the form of emotion and creates in the self,
The sources of desire and attachment,
And binds the embodied self by, attachment to action.

Oh Arjuna, The quality of Thamas is created by ignorance,
And creates in all embodied beings, delusion,
And binds it, using sleep, laziness and madness.

Oh Arjuna quality of Sathwa leads you to happiness,
Quality of Rajas to work with attachment,
And the quality of Thamas, weakens wisdom,
And leads you to the sense of delusion.

Oh Arjuna, Sathwa tries to rise you up,
Overpowering Rajas and Thamas,
Rajas overpowers Sathwa and Thamas,
And Thamas overpowers Sathwa and Rajas.
Note: all of them are present in every one but one dominates

When you see the sparkling light of wisdom,
Manifesting through all sense openings,
This should make you realize that,
The quality of Sathwa predominates.

Oh Arjuna when the quality of Rajas predominates,
You would see greed, restlessness, activity,
Lack of peace, attachment and desire.

Oh son of Kurus, When Thamas predominates,
Ignorance, laziness, inadvertence and delusion,
Come up to the fore and are noticed.

If the embodied self attains death,
When quality of Sathwa predominates,
He would reach the divine worlds,
Meant for pure and great beings.

If the embodied self attains death,
When the quality of Rajas predominates,
He is born among those who are attached to work,
And when Thamas predominates,
He is born among irrational people.

They say that virtuous actions lead
To the quality of Sathwa and purity,
the result of quality of Rajas is sorrow,

And the result of quality of Thamas is ignorance.

While wisdom is born out of quality of Sathwa,
Greed is born out of the quality of Rajas,
And ignorance, delusion and inadvertence,
Are only born out of the quality of Thamas.

While those with quality of Sathwa go to higher spheres,
Those with the quality of Rajas are in middle spheres,
And those with the baser quality of Thamas,
Travel to the lower spheres.

When the one who sees, does not see,
Another one who does action other than qualities and,
Realizes that which is beyond the states of qualities,
He eventually attains my being.

He crosses these three qualities,
Which made the embodied self,
And attains that great state and
Travels beyond birth, death and old age,
And attains the state of immortality.

Arjuna asked:-

How do we recognize the one?
Who has transcended these three qualities?
How does he behave and,
How does he cross these qualities?

The God said:-

Oh Pandava, the transcended one does not hate,
The light of the mind due to Sathwa,
The state of activity due to Rajas,
The state of delusion due to Thamas,
When these properties come up,
And he does not feel sorry when they cease.

He who appears indifferent and unconcerned,
Who is not rocked by these three qualities?
Who is stable in knowing that only qualities function?
Who is steady and stable?
Who considers pain and pleasure alike?
Who abides within his own self?
Who considers stone and gold is of equal worth,
Who considers “like” and “dislike” as same,
Who is courageous in his stability?
Who considers praise and blame as similar?
Who considers honor and dishonor as equal?
Who has same attitude towards friend and foe,
And renounces all actions started by him,
Is called the one beyond the effect of qualities.

The one who serves me with stable devotion,
Easily crosses the effect of qualities,
And becomes suitable for becoming the Supreme Being,
For am I not the embodiment of that Brahmam,
And also the gateway for immutable immortality,
And matchless and absolute joy.

Thus ends the fourteenth chapter of Bhagawad Gita,
Which is the essence of all Upanishads,
Which is the science of the eternal and yoga,
And the dialogue between Krishna and Arjuna,
Which is called “The three quality states.”
 
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