The Three Gunas (Gunatraya Vibhaga Yoga)

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11. When at every gate in this body there shoots up wisdom-light, then it may be

known that Sattva is predominant.

 

12. Greed, activity, the undertaking of works, unrest, desire - these arise when

Rajas is predominant, O lord of the Bharatas.

 

13. Darkness, heedlessness, inertness and error - these arise when Tamas is

predominant, O descendant of Kuru.

 

14. If the embodied one meets death when Sattva is predominant, then he attains

to the spotless regions of the knowers of the Highest.

 

15. Meeting death in Rajas, he is born among those attached to action; and dying

in Tamas, he is born in the wombs of the irrational.

 

16. The fruit of good action, they say, is Sattvic and pure; while the fruit of

rajas is pain and ignorance is the fruit of tamas.

 

17. From Sattva arises wisdom and greed from Rajas; heedlessness and error arise

from Tamas and also ignorance.

 

18. Those who follow Sattva go upwards; the Rajasic remain in the middle; and

the Tamasic, who follow in the course of the lowest guna, go downwards.

 

19. When the seer beholds not an agent other than the gunas and knows Him who is

higher than the gunas, he attains to My being.

 

20. Having crossed beyond these three gunas, which are the source of the body,

the embodied one is freed from birth, death, decay and pain and attains the

immortal.

 

to be continued...