{"id":3221,"date":"2013-07-13T01:46:45","date_gmt":"2013-07-13T01:46:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/localhost\/?p=3221"},"modified":"2013-07-13T01:46:45","modified_gmt":"2013-07-13T01:46:45","slug":"43-the-aryan-ideal-and-the-three-gunas-vol-writings-in-bengali-translation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/01-works-of-sri-aurobindo\/02-other-editions\/writings-in-bengali-translation\/43-the-aryan-ideal-and-the-three-gunas-vol-writings-in-bengali-translation","title":{"rendered":"-43_The Aryan Ideal and the Three Gunas.htm"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n\n\n
\n

\n
\nThe Aryan Ideal and the Three Gunas <\/font>
\n<\/b><\/p>\n

\n <\/p>\n

\nIn the essay entitled "Prison and Freedom"’ I have. by
\ndescribing the psychology of some innocent prisoners, tried
\nto establish that, owing to the Aryan discipline, the priceless
\nancestral legacy of inner freedom which the Indians have, is
\nnot destroyed even in prison\u2014indeed something of the
\ngodly disposition, garnered through thousands of years and
\ninherent in the true Aryan character, remains even in the
\nworst of imprisoned criminals. The main principle of the
\nAryan discipline is the sattwic temperament. He who is
\nsattwic is pure; normally all human beings are impure. This
\nimpurity is nourished and increased by the predominance of
\nrajas and the great density of tamas. The impurity of mind is
\nof two kinds. First, inertia or impurity due to lack of
\ninclination to work; this is produced by tamas. Secondly,
\nexcitement or impurity due to wrong, impulses; this is caused
\nby rajas. The signs of the mode of tamas are ignorance,
\ndelusion, crudeness of intelligence, unsystematic thinking,
\nlaziness, too much sleep, irritation owing to inertia in work,
\npessimism, despondency, fear\u2014in short, whatever nourishes
\nlack of effort. Inertia and disinclination are the results of
\nignorance; excitement and bad inclinations, of wrong knowl-
\nedge. But if the impurity of tamas is to be removed it can be
\ndone- only by the increase of rajas. Rajas is the cause of
\nimpulsion and effort and these are the first steps to detach-
\nment. He who is inert is not truly detached\u2014the state of <\/font><\/p>\n

\n‘ Included in Sri Aurobindo’s Bengali book, Kara Kahini.<\/i> <\/font><\/p>\n

\nPage-331<\/font><\/p>\n

\n

\ninertia is devoid of knowledge; and knowledge indeed is
\nthe
\npath of spiritual detachment. He who engages himself in works without desire is detached; mere renunciation of work
\nis not freedom. This is why Swami Vivekananda, noticing the
\ndeep tamas of India, used to say, "Rajas is needed the
\ncountry needs heroes of action, let the strong current impulsion flow Even if evil follows in its wake, it will be a
\nthousand times better than this tamasic inertia.<\/font><\/p>\n

\nIt is true indeed that sunk in deep tamas but using sattwa’
\nas an excuse we are pretending and boasting as being highly
\nsattwic. I notice that many people hold the view that we have
\nbeen conquered by rajasic nations because we are sattwic,
\nthat we are degraded and backward because we are spiritual.
\nThey try to prove the superiority of Hinduism to Christianity
\nby using that argument. The Christian nations believe in
\npractical results; they try to establish the superiority of a
\nreligion by showing the results it produces in this world.
\nThey say that the Christian nations are paramount in the
\nworld, therefore Christianity is the greatest religion. And
\nmany among us argue that this is wrong; it is not possible to
\ndecide upon the superiority of a religion by recounting what
\none gains from it in this world; rather its consequences in the
\nnext world should be considered; because the Hindus are
\nmore religious they are subject to a powerful and titanic
\nnation. But this argument involves a serious mistake which is
\nopposed to the Aryan wisdom. Sattwa can never be the cause
\nof downfall; indeed a nation which is predominantly sattwic
\ncannot remain bound in chains of slavery  The spiritual
\npower of the true Brahmin is the chief result’ of sattwa, the
\nprowess of the Kshatriya is the foundation of spiritual power.
\nFrom calm spiritual power, when it receives a blow, sparks of
\nthe prowess of the Kshatriya fly in all directions, everything
\ncatches fire as it were. Spiritual power cannot survive where
\nthere is no Kshatra-prowess. If there is one true Brahmin in <\/font><\/p>\n

\nPage-332<\/font><\/p>\n

\n

\nthe land he can create a hundred Kshatriyas. The cause of
\n1 the downfall of this country is not an excess of sattwa but
\nwant of rajas and a preponderance of tamas. Owing to the
\nlack of rajas, the sattwa inherent in us becomes weak and
\nconcealed in tamas. Along with laziness, delusion, ignorance, disinclination, pessimism, despondency and lack of
\ndynamic effort, the sad condition and degradation of the
\ncountry become worse. This darkness was thin and rare at
\nfirst; however, in course of time it gradually became so
\ndense, and we, sunk in the obscurity of ignorance, became so
\nutterly devoid of high aspiration and great endeavour, that in
\nspite of the advent of great men sent by God, that darkness
\nhas not dissipated entirely. Then the Sun-god decided to save
\nthe country through the impulsion roused by rajas: <\/font><\/p>\n

\nIt is true that tamas tends to disappear when rajas is
\nroused and powerfully active. On the other hand, there is the
\ndanger of demoniac qualities like licentiousness, evil impulses, complete lack of restraint, etc. If the force of rajas
\noperates under its own momentum for the sole satisfaction of
\nlarge assertive inclinations for the fulfilment of wrong ends,
\nthen there is enough reason for apprehension. Rajas cannot
\nendure long if it goes along its own path without any control; <\/font><\/p>\n

\nennui follows, tamas appears, as the sky, instead of becoming clear, is overcast and becomes devoid of the movement
\nof air after a storm. This was the fate of France after the
\nrevolution. There was in that revolution a frightful manifestation of rajas and at the end of it, a resurgence of tamas to
\nsome extent, then another revolution, followed by tiredness,
\nloss of force and more degradation\u2014this is the history of
\nFrance during the last century. Whenever there arose in the
\nheart of France a sattwic inspiration born of the ideal of
\nliberty, equality and fraternity, rajas tried to fulfil its own
\ntendencies after gradually becoming predominant and
\nturning itself into a demoniac mode opposed to sattwa. <\/font><\/p>\n

\nPage-333<\/font><\/p>\n

\n

\nConsequently, as a result of a reappearance of tamas,
\nFrance, having lost its former force, is in a sad and desperate
\nbut uncertain state like Harishchandra who stood neither in
\nheaven nor on earth. The only means of avoiding such a
\nresult is to engage powerful rajas in the service of sattwa. If
\nthe sattwic disposition is roused and becomes the guide of
\nrajas, then there will be no danger of the re-emergence of
\ntamas, and uncontrolled force, being disciplined and con-
\ntrolled, can do the country and the world a great deal of good
\naccording to high ideals. The means to rouse sattwa is the
\nspiritual temperament\u2014to renounce selfish interests and
\ndeploy all one’s energies for the good of others\u2014to make
\nthe whole of life a great and pure sacrifice by surrendering
\noneself to the Divine. It is said in the Gita that sattwa and
\nrajas when together suppress tamas; sattwa alone cannot
\nconquer tamas. This is the reason why God has in modern
\ntimes spread the force of rajas all over the land after rousing
\nthe religious spirit and the sattwa inherent in us. Great souls
\nand religious leaders like Rammohan Roy have ushered in a
\nnew age by reawakening sattwa. In the nineteenth century
\nthere was not the same awakening in politics and society as in
\nreligion. The reason was that the field was not ready. That is
\nwhy there was no crop though plenty of seeds were sown. In
\nthis also can be seen how kind and pleased with India God
\nhas been. An awakening caused only by rajas cannot be
\nenduring or completely beneficial. It is necessary to rouse
\nthe spiritual force to some extent in the mind and heart of the
\nnation. It is because of this that the current of rajas was
\narrested for so long. Owing to this, the tendency towards an
\nuncontrolled enthusiasm does not cause much alarm, since
\nthis is the play of rajas and sattwa; whatever excitement
\nthere is in this will soon be controlled and regulated. Not by
\nany external power but by the inner spiritual force and the
\nsattwic disposition will this be conquered and disciplined. <\/font><\/p>\n

\nPage-334<\/font><\/p>\n

\n

\nWe can only nourish that sattwic temperament by spreading the religious spirit. <\/font><\/p>\n

\nI have already said that one of the means of increasing
\nsattwa is to devote all one’s powers to the good of others.
\nAnd there is plenty of evidence of this spirit in our political
\nawakening. But it is difficult to maintain this spirit. It is
\ndifficult for the individual, more so for the nation. Selfish
\ninterest, unnoticed, gets mixed up with the good of others
\nand if our understanding is not very pure, we may fall into
\nsuch delusion that we may seek only our own selfish ends in
\nthe name of service to others and thus submerge the good of
\nour fellow-beings, our country and humanity and yet not
\ndetect our mistake. Service of God is another means of
\nincreasing sattwa. But even in that case good may turn into
\nits opposite. There may gather in us sattwic apathy towards
\nworks after we have achieved the joy of nearness to God. We
\nmay turn our back to the service of our distressed land and
\nhumanity. This is the bondage of the sattwic temperament.
\nJust as there is rajasic egoism, so also there is sattwic egoism.
\nJust as sin binds men, so does virtue. There cannot be
\ncomplete freedom unless we surrender ourselves to God,
\nbeing fully free from desire and giving up egoism. In order to
\nrenounce these two harmful things, we must have pure
\nunderstanding. To attain mental freedom after eschewing
\nthe idea that the body and the spirit are the same is the stage
\npreceding the purification of understanding. When the mind
\nbecomes free, then it becomes subject to the soul. After that,
\nconquering the mind and with the help of the understanding,
\nman can to some extent be free from selfishness. Even then it
\ndoes not cease altogether. The last selfishnes is the desire for
\nspiritual liberation, the wish to be rapt in one’s own delight
\nforgetting the misery of others. Even that has to be given up.
\nIts antidote is to realise and serve Narayana in all creatures; this is the perfection of sattwa. There is still a higher state <\/font><\/p>\n

\nPage-335<\/font><\/p>\n

\n

\nthan this, and that is to take refuge in God utterly by
\ntranscending sattwa and going beyond the modes of Nature.
\nThe Gita describes one who is beyond the modes thus: <\/font><\/p>\n

\n <\/p>\n

\nā<\/font><\/i>nyam gunebhyah kartāram yadā drastāmupaśyati, <\/i><\/font><\/p>\n

\ngunebhyaśca param vetti madbhāvam so’dhigacchati. <\/i><\/font><\/p>\n

\ngunānetdnatītya trīndehī dehasamudbhavān,<\/i><\/font><\/p>\n

\n janmamrtyujarāduhkhairvimukto’mrtamaśnute. <\/i><\/font><\/p>\n

\nprakāsam ca pravrttim ca mohameva ca pāndavct,<\/i><\/font><\/p>\n

\n na dvesti sampravrttāni na nivrttāni kānksati.<\/i><\/font><\/p>\n

\n udāslnavadāsīno gunairyo na vicālyate,<\/i><\/font><\/p>\n

\n gunā vartanta ityeva yo vatisthati nengate.<\/i><\/font><\/p>\n

\n samaduhkhasukhah svasthah samalostāśmakāncanah,<\/i><\/font><\/p>\n

\n tulyapriydpriyo dhirastulyanindātmasamstutih<\/i><\/font><\/p>\n

\n mānāpamānayostulyastulyo mitrāripaksayoh, <\/i><\/font><\/p>\n

\nsarvārambhaparityāgī gunātītah sa ucyate. <\/i><\/font><\/p>\n

\nmām ca yo’vyabhicārena bhaktiyogena sevate, <\/i><\/font><\/p>\n

\nsa gundnsamatītyaitān brahmabhuyāya kalpate.1<\/i> <\/font><\/p>\n

\n <\/p>\n

\n"When the soul becoming a witness sees the three modes
\nthat is God’s Power of the three modes as the sole doer of al
\nworks and also knows the Lord who is even beyond the
\nmodes and is the mover of Shakti, then he attains the status
\nand nature of the Divine. The embodied soul then transcends the three modes born of the two types of body,’
\nnamely, the gross and the subtle, and becoming free from birth and death and decay and suffering enjoys immortality. ‘
\nHe does not abhor knowledge produced by sattwa or impulsion caused by rajas or the clouding of the mind and body
\ncreated by tamas, resulting in sloth, torpor and delusion; he
\nremains steadfast like one seated high above maintaining
\nequilibrium in face of the appearance and disappearance of <\/font><\/p>\n

\n <\/p>\n

\n‘ The Gita, Chap. XIV, Verses 19, 20 22, 23, 24, 25, 26.
\n<\/i> <\/font><\/p>\n

\nPage-336<\/font><\/p>\n

\n

\nthe three modes which cannot disturb him and firm because
\nall these are the modifications born of the intrinsic character
\nof the modes. He to whom happiness and unhappiness, the
\npleasant and the unpleasant, praise and blame are the same,
\ngold and mud are both like a piece of stone, who is calm and
\nquiet and unshaken within himself, to whom honour and
\ninsult are alike and friend and enemies are equally dear, who
\ndoes not do anything by his own initiative, but does all works
\nsurrendering them to the Divine and only under His inspiration, is described as one above the modes. He who worships
\nMe by the yoga of faultless love and devotion becomes fit to
\nattain the Brahman by going beyond the three modes." <\/font><\/p>\n

\nThough this state beyond the gunas is not attainable by all,
\nit is not impossible for the pre-eminently sattwic man to
\nachieve the state preceding it. The first step to that is to give
\nup sattwic egoism and to see in all action the play of the
\nDivine’s Power of the three gunas. Knowing this, the sattwic
\ndoer, renouncing the idea that he is the doer, does all his
\nworks surrendering himself to God. <\/font><\/p>\n

\nWhat we have said about the gunas and the transcendence
\nof them is the fundamental teaching of the Gita. But this
\nteaching has not been widely accepted. Till now what we
\nhave known as the Aryan education has been mostly the
\ncultivation of the sattwic temperament. The appreciation of
\nthe rajasic mode has come to an end in this country with the
\ndisintegration of the Kshatriya order. And yet there is a
\ngreat need for the rajas-force in national life. That is why the
\nattention of the nation has again been drawn to the Gita. The
\nteaching of the Gita, though based on the ancient Aryan
\nwisdom, goes beyond it. Its practical teaching is not afraid of
\nthe rajas quality, there is in it the way to press rajas into the
\nservice of sattwa and also the means of spiritual liberation
\neven through the path of works. How the mind of the nation
\nis being prepared for the practice of this teaching I could first <\/font><\/p>\n

\nPage-337<\/font><\/p>\n

\n

\nunderstand while in jail. The current is still not clean but
\ncontaminated and impure; but when its excessive force slows
\ndown a little, then there will be the action of the pure Energy
\nin it. <\/font><\/p>\n

\nMany of those who were accused with the same offence as
\nmyself and were in jail with me have been acquitted as not
\nguilty. Others have been convicted as being involved in a
\nconspiracy. There is in human society no graver crime than
\nkilling. The personal character of the man who commits
\nmurder in the interests of the nation may not be blackened.
\nBut that does not lessen the gravity of the crime from the
\nsocial point of view. It must also be admitted that there is as
\nit were a blood-stain on the mind, an invasion by cruelty, if
\nthere is an impression of killing on the inner being. Cruelty is
\na quality of the savage; it is the chief among those charac-
\nteristics from which mankind is becoming free in the evolution of its upward march. A dangerous thorn will be up-
\nrooted from the path of the ascent of humanity if we can
\nrenounce it completely. If we assume the guilt of those who
\nhave been accused, it must be understood that it is only an
\nexcessive but temporary and uncontrolled manifestation of
\nrajas-force. There is in them such hidden sattwic force that
\nthis temporary lack of discipline is not a cause for alarm. <\/font><\/p>\n

\nThe inner freedom I have mentioned before was a natural
\nquality of my companions. During the days we were lodged
\ntogether in a big verandah, I observed with great attention
\ntheir conduct and psychological dispositions. Apart from two
\nof them, I never saw even a trace of fear in the face or speech
\nof anyone. Almost all were young men, many mere boys.
\nEven strong-minded people were likely to be quite upset at
\nthe thought of the dire punishment to be given to the accused
\nif found guilty. But these young men did not really hope to
\nbe acquitted at the trial. Especially, on observing the fright-
\nful paraphernalia of witnesses and written evidence at the <\/font><\/p>\n

\nPage-338<\/font><\/p>\n

\n

\ncourt, people not versed in law would have easily formed the
\nidea that even the innocent could not find a way of escape
\nfrom that net. Yet instead of fear or despondency on their
\nfaces there were only cheerfulness, the smile of simplicity
\nand discussion about their country and religion, with forget-
\nfulness of their own danger. A small library grew up as
\neveryone in our ward had a few books with him. Most books
\nin the library were religious\u2014the Gita, the Upanishads, the works of
\nVivekananda, the life and conversations of Ram-Krishna, the Puranas, hymns, spiritual songs, etc. Among
\nother volumes were the works of Bankim, patriotic songs,
\nbooks on European philosophy, history and literature. A few
\nof the men practised spiritual disciplines in the mornings,
\nsome used to read books, still others used to chat quietly.
\nOccasionally there were roars of laughter in the peaceful
\natmosphere of the morning. If the court was not in session,
\nsome slept, a few played games\u2014it might be anything,
\nnobody was attached to a particular one. On some days, a
\nquiet game with people sitting in a circle, on others, running
\nand leaping; there was football for a few days, though the
\nball was made of a unique material; blind man’s buff was
\nplayed on some days, on others a number of groups were
\nformed for lessons in ju-jitsu, high and long jumping or for
\nplaying draughts. Except a few reserved and elderly people
\neverybody joined in these games at the request of the boys. I
\nobserved that even those who were not young had a childlike
\ncharacter. In the evenings there were musical soirees. Only
\npatriotic and religious songs were sung; we used to sit around
\nand hear Ullas, Sachindra, Hemdas, who were experts at
\nsinging, sing. For the sake of amusement, Ullaskar sang
\ncomic songs or did acting, ventriloquism, miming or told
\nstories about hemp addicts on some evenings. Nobody paid
\nany attention to the trial but all passed the days in religious
\npursuits or in just being gay. This unperturbed disposition is <\/font><\/p>\n

\nPage-339<\/font><\/p>\n

\n

\nimpossible to one used to evil actions; there was not the
\nslightest trace in them of harshness, cruelty, habitual evil-
\ndoing or crookedness. Laughter, conversation or play, all
\nwas joyful, sinless, full of love. <\/font><\/p>\n

\nThe result of this freedom of the mind began to show itself
\nsoon. The perfect fruit can be obtained only if the spiritual
\nseed is sown in this kind of field. Pointing at some boys Jesus
\nsaid to his disciples, "Those who are like these boys will
\nattain the Kingdom of God." Knowledge and delight are the
\nsigns of sattwa. They alone have the capacity for yoga who
\ndo not consider misery as misery but are full of joy and cheer
\nin all situations. The rajasic attitude does not get any
\nencouragement in jail and there is nothing there to nourish
\nthe tendency to worldly pleasures. Under these circum-
\nstances, since there is a dearth of things to which it is used
\nand in which its rajas can be indulged, the demoniac mind
\ndestroys itself like a tiger. There follows what the Western^
\npoets call ”eating one’s own heart." The Indian mind when,
\nin seclusion, though there be external suffering, turns
\nthrough an eternal attraction to God. This is what happened
\nwith us too. A current, I do not know from where, just swept
\nus all. Even people who had never taken God’s name learnt
\nto practise some spiritual discipline and realising the grace of
\nthe most Gracious became steeped in Joy. Those boys
\nachieved in a few months what yogis take a long time to
\nattain. Ramakrishna Paramahamsa once said, "What you are
\nseeing now is really nothing\u2014such a flood of spirituality is
\ncoming into this land that even boys will attain realisation
\nafter three days’ sadhana." To see these boys was not to have
\nany doubt about the truth of this prophecy. They were as it
\nwere the manifest precursors of that spiritual flood. The
\nsattwic waves overflowing the prisoners’ docks swept over
\nall, except four or five persons, with great joy. Anyone who
\nhas tasted that once cannot forget it nor can he acknowledge <\/font><\/p>\n

\nPage-340<\/font><\/p>\n

\n

\nany other joy as comparable. This satwic temperament is
\nindeed the hope of the country. The ease with which
\nbrotherliness, self-knowledge and love of God possess the
\nIndian mind and express themselves in action is not possible
\nin the case of any other nation. What is necessary is the
\nrenunciation of tamas, the control of rajas, and the manifestation of sattwa. This is what is being prepared for India in
\naccordance with God’s secret purpose. <\/font><\/p>\n

\nPage-341<\/font><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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