Most of these questions are already answered in message 504 as author wishes to show here. It would
have been better if Message 504 was read before posting the above message.
Now to answer the questions part by part, author has no other method
than to cut and re-post the message 504 in parts, something against
the conditions on which it was posted by Vd Mishra. But in our forum, such freedom needs to be taken to blow away confusion.

--- In ayurvedaonline (AT) yahoogroups (DOT) com, "Yashendra Prasad"
<yashendra2@...> wrote:
> Is the mind pure and stainless and does our mind remain unaffected
by food and outside impulses ?

>Is is possible that there can be anything in this world which does not have these 3 gunas ? Is it scientifically possible ? Or it is inherent in nature and cannot be wished away ?
In other words, are the 3 gunas mankind's intellectual theory or a
fact of nature ?


Message 504:
>Cultivating the Saatvic Mind

Through centuries of observing both cosmic and human behavior,
ancient ayurvedic healers defined three basic gunas or qualities that
influence everything that happens in the macrocosm of the universe or
the microcosm of our minds. It's the quantity of these three gunas --
Sattva, Rajas and Tamas -- that ayurvedic healers believed can create
or destroy harmony in our lives<

According to above understanding of ayurveda, three Gunas are
exhibited by everything in this universe; if mind was stainless, why
the tittle "cultivating" needed? ONce this dustbin is cleared/purified, what remains below is the "pure" mind and some feel that soul is nothing but clarified mind, with no stain at all.

>While a balanced personality blends all three gunas in equal measure,
the most positive personality is that which is high on Sattva. Is it
possible to cultivate more Sattva in our lives? Certainly, says
ayurveda. If so, how? Ayurveda suggests a two-pronged approach. Pay
attention, say vaidyas, to the following:
Aahara: diet.
Vihara: activity or lifestyle.Vaidya Ramakant Mishra, renowned
ayurvedic expert and currently Director of Research and Product
Development at Maharishi Ayurveda, shares his tips on each of these
pillars.

First, his thoughts on Aahara:
He begins with the oft-quoted saying "You are what you eat."
Ayurveda, he says, believes this simple statement holds infinite
meaning and truth. To illustrate this point, healers use the example
of the elephant, the tiger and the jackal.
The elephant is a pure vegetarian. He is strong, gentle and
intelligent enough to work well in a human environment. The elephant
represents the Saatvic mind.
The tiger represents the Rajasic nature. He kills and eats other
animals, and this carnivorous nature makes him fierce and aggressive.
Restless and strong, the tiger is always on the prowl.
The jackal symbolizes the Tamasic mind. He is cunning, fearful and
lazy, shunning daylight and surviving on food left uneaten by other
animals.
Your goal, says Vaidya Mishra, should be to acquire the Saatvic
qualities of the elephant. This can be achieved by analyzing your
eating habits and improving them in keeping with these guidelines>

The above already suggests that mind is influenced by so many
things in universe. If you study Vastu shastra, Feng shui etc,
plants/trees having thorns, pictures containing war, trophies from
hunting, feed 'Rajas'. Plants bearing flowers, fruits, light colors
encourage 'satva' guna since creation is seen. Sounds of mild
animals, pet animals also feed to 'satva'. Baby in your lap, playing
with you merrily suddenly pees on your good pant. will you become
angry? Because 'satva' was dominant at that time, you will only
change the clothes and restart enjoying babies innocence. Other than food, environment, TV and Internet can also feed to alter Gunas of mind.

The triplet (Satva, Rajas, Tamas), (Kapha, Pitta, Vata) are
complimentary. The Panch mahabhutas combination which lead to Satva
are earth and water, which we know lead to creation of plant world,
on which we as well as animals depend. Without plants animal world
and humans cant survive. One can survive on fish alone, but fish also
needs water. That is the reason water is Jeevanya.


>
> Or is purity of mind is actually a state which is the aim/ the ideal
> state to be achieved? Not an existing reality.
>

Human life is gifted to us to achieve the purity. Laws of evolution
also point to the fact that universe is moving in one direction:
perfection, creation of new, improvement. Now in this process, some
dead stars, black holes may need creation as a bye-product. Universe is creating new masses at the price of some energy and increase in entroppy, a measure of increase of Tamas Guna. Let us return to message 504

<Sattva is the most superior of all gunas. Sattva in the Universe is
responsible for Creation. Inside our own self, it gives us the
ability to visualize well, think right, do good and act in accordance
with the laws of nature.

Though each of us is born with one or more dominating gunas, it is in
our power to increase the guna we want. How can the mind be led
toward Sattva? Vaidya Mishra's answer is simple. You train the mind
to act in accordance with the laws of nature. His tips on how to do
this are practical and logical. Among other things, Vaidya Mishra
strongly recommends the following

Sattva-building measures:
Focus on activities that bring you joy.
Do not restrain natural urges such as sneezing or yawning.
Go for walks. Retire early and make sure you get a good night's
sleep.
Be gentle and forgiving of yourself.
Practice moderation in everything-be it diet, sleep, or exercise.
Keep the company of the wise.
Fine-tune your senses, so that your indriya or senses learn to obey
your manas or mind. This will help you make healthful and happy
choices, leading to increased Sattva in your life.
Twice a day for 20 minutes, practice Transcendental Meditation(r),
which is a scientifically proven way to heighten creativity, expand
consciousness, improve relationships and increase Sattva.In
conclusion, then, the Saatvic mind always chooses those thoughts and
actions that promote fulfillment and joy. It is rich in dhi or
knowledge: it knows just What is beneficial for it. Cultivate Sattva
in your life, and you will be able to reconnect with the limitless
power of your atma or Self.>

The confusion that mind is not driven by food is because physiology
can not differentiate mind from brain. The food which turns to rasas
and other dhatus feeding mind is not establishable through any CT
scan or MRI etc. These subtle properties of mind-universe
relationship can not appeal to scientific mindset which demands a
proof for everything in terms of known or proven facts. How do we
assume the truth of CT or MRI scan, because someone established that
the picture is related to quantities we wish to understand, in terms
of known theories. If theory itself is shown wrong in future? Then
our conclusions were false and need to be abandoned. But if a theory
was totally abstract and everyone can understand its truth only by
HIS experience and not by what Todd, Dr Bhate or Vaidya mishra
states, then confusion or Tamas would not exists. For this, we must
do our own experiences. Eat every food, observe rise in pulse as
sugested earlier by this author in some messages gives only
suitability/unsuitability of food for every individual. Though ayurveda notes gunas of each food, the effect on each prakruti can not be equal. To illustrate, Kapha enhancing foods will affect Kapha dominant person 100%, Pitta dominant person 50% and Vata dominant person just 5%. This has been brought out in one post by Cybervaidya earlier. An important thing which can be inferred from this is there can be persons, highly satva dominant, who get affected by just 5% by Tamas enhancing foods. Each Individual is different, and in very cold climates, Pitta enhancing foods may not really enhance pitta beyond 5%. Many pitta enhancing medicines are taken with milk, curd, ghee+sugar to suppress their pitta nature. What does this indicate? It is net effect that matters. We have to observe restraint and balance everywhere, a quality of 'Satva' personality!

If one hears a bad news about his beloved/baby etc suddenly pulse
changes, sweat, tightness in chest, brerathing reduces/increases,
this all without a single drop of food/water, also leads to rise/fall
in pulse. Author feels rise/fall/no change in pulse indicates
pitta/vata/satva qualities of food/thoughts/scenes etc. Mind body connection is seen here. True that the intensity of change may vary from person to person. Dronacharya, who had so much satva to state thet he belonged to knowledge not knowledge belonge to him, finally could not sustain the news of Aswathama's death. We are debating whether food affects mind. Author wishes to state not only food but so many other environmantal influences like sunlight, moon phase etc affect mind. The heaviness in the stomach brings in inertia, the Tamas guna, even if you have taken only satvic food but in excess. This was the experience of author on ekadasi day few days back. So food is not the only issue. The person who takes, 'I' is also the issue. Vasana in taking it in excess was the Rajas, and it was downgraded to Tamas, at least for few hours.

Hope above clears the Rajas(egos) and Tamas(confusion) and we stop this thread.

Regards
Dr Bhate