Deciphering the Nature of Good and Evil: A Modern Take

Introduction?

Every year during Diwali, there is fervor and celebrations for 3 days straight. Hindus all across the world celebrate Diwali differently - some through bursting crackers and fireworks, by performing havans and pujas (Ex: the Lakshmi-Kubera Puja for wealth), by lighting diyas (i.e. deepa's or lamps) and usually celebrate combining the above three ways. That said, Diwali- like every other festival in our culture, is unique to every region of Bharat. This is what makes Diwali vibrant and colorful not just externally, but internally as well. Yes, everyone is seen enjoying, dancing, bursting crackers, preparing fresh home cooked delicious sweets which lights up joy on everyone's faces. This ultimately results in happiness and fulfillment within. How? There's more to it than what meets the eye.

Celebrating Diwali involves praying for health, wealth and prosperity. In simple terms, this is done because Diwali signifies the victory of Good over Evil (yes, Capital G and E intended - more on that later). This is illustrated through significant events written in our ancient scriptures. Here are the three famous stories that depict this.

The one-liner Story-backed summary of Diwali

• Sri Rama (Good) wins over Ravana (Evil) and reunites with Sita Devi, establishes Vibhishana as the king of Lanka, returns home to Ayodhya to be crowned as king.

• Vamana Deva (Good) punishing (which resulted eventually his death) Bali (Evil) for his invincibility and rulership over the world.

• Krishna and Satyabhama (Good) teaming up and killing Narakasura (Evil) to restore peace and harmony at Pragjyotisha and across the world.

Why am I using upper case for the words Good and Evil? Upper casing of these words represent internal qualities/gunas (????) of one's own Self/ātma (?????) . We all have good qualities and evil ones constantly in conflict with each other. These can manifest externally to the outside world as (good and bad) actions and internally as thoughts.

What are Gunas?

According to the Hindu school of thought, gunas are qualities and/or characteristics present in nature (Prakriti). These can be living/non-living, animate or inanimate. Essentially, even the tiniest particle (Ex: an atom, molecule or cell) has a guna , or can have multiple gunas.

The Gunas

Sattva (??????) - The Element of Purity

The Sattva Guna is said to represent good things in life, and the nature of good in a broad aspect. It also associates with the present (the awakening state). Words such as peace, harmony, knowledge, purity fall under the umbrella of Sattva. And anything that has a dominance of sattva in it such as a person, animal, place or thing is said to be Satvic. Sri Rama, Vamana, and Krishna/Satyabhama from the above stories are the epitome of Satvic-ness in them (i.e. A person who is kind hearted and does good deeds for the greater good of the society).

A few examples of? the Sattva Guna in our everyday lives are:

1. A person opening the door for you while you're entering/leaving a shop.

2. Parental Qualities such as unconditional love and their display of patience while their kids throw tantrums, are fussy, or asking questions like "Why is the sky blue?" Or "Why does the train go choo-choo?"

3. Any pleasant place such as an area of worship ( a temple, mosque, church) or location ( a hill station, beach, waterfall)

4. Fresh foods such as fruits, vegetables or anything healthy cooked at home (zero to minimal processed)

Rajas (????) - The Element of Action

The Rajo Guna (Guna having Rajas) represents action or anything that is loosely related to it. Rajas is associated with the future (the realm of desire). Words such as passion, ambition, restlessness, fire, drive, hustling, stress are all high energy, fueled up states. Anything or anyone that are mostly in the high energy, moving state is said to be Rajasic.

Examples of Rajas in our everyday lives:

1. A hardworking employee of a firm who works overtime to finish tasks.

2. An ambitious yet nervous student studying for his/her final exams.

3. Spicy food made at home (containing heat, moderately processed).

4. Me enthusiastically drafting this blog post :).

Important Side Note:? Rajas can also be good and bad based on the context. Based on the above examples, studying for tests and ambition to get good grades is good. But the nervousness and stress that comes with it is bad. An employee who is hardworking is appreciated. But the stress that comes with working overtime isn't good. Action to succeed in life is necessary - but it shouldn't be detrimental to oneself.

Tamas (????) - The Element of Darkness

Tamas represents darkness or broadly any action/quality that is detrimental or considered bad.? Tamas is associated with the past or a state of rest.? Words such as abuse, laziness, lethargy, heaviness, murder, inattentiveness etc fall under this umbrella. Anything or anyone that possess detrimental qualities is termed Tamasic. Ravana, Bali and Narakasura from the above stories are Tamasic people.

Examples of Tamas in our everyday lives:

1. Sleeping/oversleeping even though we aren't tired (laziness)

2. Continuously complaining/being pessimistic about problems in life (whether small or big).

3. Acts of abuse(manipulation, cursing etc) on oneself or their loved ones.

4. Being jealous about others achievements (on the contrary - being proud of them is a Satvic quality that is very good to have!).

5. Ultra processed food such as fast food, anything high in sugar, refined etc.

As you might have guessed by now, the peaceful Satva is the most desirable quality one aims for, fiery? Rajas is needed to succeed in life, and the dangerous Tamas is the one we should be wary of.

Does that happen in real life? Of course not! While we all wish to have good in our life, the actions we perform are far from that, making the Satva guna unattainable for most of us.

We would need to examine further and see how these three gunas function in a day of an average human version.?

?Note: I’m assuming this person in this story has a 9-5 job. But even if you don't, it applies universally to everyone since we’re talking about gunas of a person and this story is to illustrate the interchanging nature of them.

A Day in the Life of Satva, Rajas, and Tamas

To see how the gunas are a part of us, we have to first identify basic activities that everyone does, whether that's a student in college or a working professional with two kids. These activities are (mostly) performed by everyone [subject to change based on one’s daily routine] feel free to introspect and explore the nature of other activities considering your personal lifestyle. Please note, as mentioned earlier - the gunas are both internal (as Satvic/Rajasic/Tamasic thoughts) and are materialised externally (as Satvic/Rajasic/Tamasic actions).??

Activities

The activities numbered 1 -3 are classified as Morning, 4 - 6? as Afternoon and Evening, 7 - 10 as Night

1. A person wakes up
2. Gets ready for the day ahead ( brushes, showers and eats breakfast)
3. Goes to work (commutes)
4. Works/ Goes to school? ( role-specific work, attend meetings with higher officials and subordinates)
5. Travels back home
6. Goes to the gym/ Works out
7. Does household chores - optional ( cleans the house, washing the dishes etc)
8. Spends time with family ( parents, wife, kids etc)
9. Works/ Studies a bit more - optional ( could be ad hoc office work, or a side hustle,finishing up a college assignment, or learning a new skill)?
10. Sleep

Involvement of the Gunas?

The Morning

• When we wake up, we either wake up fresh, in a state of urgency, or we wake up groggy and tired. The situation of one waking up fresh is Sattvic , the state of rushing out of bed when the alarm goes off is Rajasic, and waking up feeling groggy which (most of the time) leads to snoozing the alarm (especially on the weekend) is Tamasic.
• Getting ready for the day is mostly Rajasic in nature as one is active throughout the process. However, to dissect this section of the day further, if one wakes up fresh - the series of actions one does to get ready will be balanced, joyful and calm - striking a perfect balance of Sattva and Rajas. This combination in the modern day is any action done with a balanced and calm mind. On the contrary, if one wakes up in a state of high urgency (which most of us do), we tend to do the same actions in a state of constant stress engulfing ourselves in a do-or-die situation - this is a combination of Rajas and Tamas. This, if continued long term, is detrimental to the body and mind.
• The act of commuting to work is dominantly Rajasic, just like getting ready since it involves action. As seen in the previous section, there can be a combination of gunas as well. Travelling can be Sattvic + Rajasic when one is enjoying his/her commute. An example of this can be while listening to their favorite playlist while traveling. It can be Tamasic + Rajasic when one is upset, while traveling. An example of this can be a heated arguement with a partner or with one’s parent(s) at the beginning of the day.?

The Afternoon and Evening?

• The act of working/going to classes in college or school is dominantly Rajasic Just like the previous two, this activity can be Satvic + Rajasic ( working/studying with a calm mind) or Tamasic + Rajasic? (stressed out because of working/studying).
• The dominant guna(s) most of the time while travelling back home is Rajas and Tamas. This is because most of us are tired after a long day of work/long day of classes, this inertia coupled with the action of travel drains us even more.? And we travel back upset. Being Satvic is possible during this time when we are contented, satisfied or happy at work or have a positive outlook of life in general. This is very rare to see amongst the general population nowadays.?
• Working out / going to the gym is Rajasic since we are expending energy to build our body.?

Night

• One may end up cleaning the house or doing household chores. If done so, then this act is Rajasic. However, if someone ends up leisurely watching TV, the news, doomscrolling on Instagram or YouTube - this is considering Tamasic because we are being lazy and are not doing anything productive.?
• Spending time with family is perhaps the only part of the day when the Satva guna is dominant as this is the most looking-forward-to event that one awaits during the day. It brings one happiness when we spend quality time with our loved ones.
• One may work on other projects/ study for upcoming exams during the late evening part of the day. The dominant guna is Rajas ( paired with Satva or Tamas based on one’s internal thought patterns/outlook)
• Sleep can either be predominantly Satvic,Rajasic,or Tamasic based on the cumulative actions performed or how your outlook was. Sleep can be Satvic when you’re happy/ your day was fun and/or have a positive outlook inspite of a really bad day, Rajasic when your mind is racing/have ideas about XYZ? at 200 kilometres per hour, or Tamasic if you are upset or sad about XYZ. That said, Sleep is probably the most important part of the day- much more important than the act of waking up in my opinion. Why because the act of sleeping recharges the body and gives us the opportunity to start afresh, a calm and happy mind hile going to sleep gives rise to Satva as soon as we wake up (Remember to go sleep satisfied regardless of whatever happened during the day - yep, the billion dollar idea can wait).?

Conclusion

As you can see over the course of an entire day, we see the play of all the gunas. At times, we are Satvic, other times Rajasic, and as the day winds down Tamas emerges. We wake up feeling one way, act with another frame of mind, and sleep thinking about everything that happenedc cumulatively.?

The takeaway here is balance of the three gunas. Yes, it is given Rajasic qualities of action, effort and ambition are essential without which we cannot see progress in the society. While it is important to keep in mind that Tamasic nature in the form of entertainment such as playing video games, and watching your favorite actors movie once in a while is a good way to counter excessive Rajas. Above all, having Satvic thoughts, actions, or the outlook that represent peace and tranquility while performing simultaneous actions of Rajas or Tamas ( i.e. being content while doing any action) is of prime importance.?

How do we cultivate Sattva in such a fast-paced world? We can do this by observing oneself during regular intervals of the day. A simple task such as observing our breath for 5 mins with your eyes closed can help us pause, reflect and do the right thing in the right frame of mind. One can do it in between work, at the start of day or even before going to sleep. It wont be easy, but with practice things will start to get better. As a famous quote reads - “ The journey of a thousand miles starts with one step”. And that one step is what we need to make consistently. And festivals such as Diwali give us the opportunity to be Satvic and perform Satvic actions, which in turn makes us stay away from Tamasic or harmful actions.?

May this Diwali bring light and joy and give you the strength to cultivate Sattva every single moment!?

Sri Krishnarpanamastu!

?References

1. The Three Gunas of Nature Primer: https://www.ekhartyoga.com/articles/practice/the-play-of-the-three-gunas
2. Books: Mahabharata Unravelled - I, Mahabharata Unravelled - II, and Ramayana Unravelled by Ami Ganatra
3. Youtube Playlists/Videos:

• Bhagavad Gita and Hanuman Chalisa playlists by Om Dhumatkar : https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLSyEwewdBy3IHzoPkem_yDPNgYawvNB80 , https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLSyEwewdBy3JDr5OdDG43N3TRG-cIupox , https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLSyEwewdBy3LDIPdW67GmXCSErx1kPcJh
• Video by Bhavesh Bhimanathani : https://youtu.be/ff1bONh_spE