Moving through life is a process. Life brings us all kinds of energy, of direction, of activity, and non activity. Life brings us up, down and all around.
This dance of energy, of directions is described in yoga philosophy and can help us greatly to navigate life. It's the Gunas. We're always in dance between the Gunas , three of them to be exact; Sattva, Rajas and Tamas. A"Guna " is a type of energy. It's a way of describing the quality or virtue of energy. It's in literally everything, our body, our thoughts, what we eat, elements in nature, the seasons, society and politics, even art! The list could go on forever because it LITERALLY can be described in everything.
Sattva is balanced, it's harmonious nature. It holds a very positive and wise resonancy- think of water swirling in a perfect circle to make a whirl pool. Nothing is consitricting it or blocking it or causing waves to override the whirl...it's consturctive, useful, continuous and intelligent.
Rajas on the other hand is really active, firey, and chaotic in nature. It's that big log thrown into the whirl pool that's causes a new wave, or jam or confusion as to where the water should go. It's a lot of action with not to much intention. It's firey action, it serves some purpose, it gets things moving. However, it often has the resonance of pure confusion.
Tamas is the murky pond water that breeds mosquitos and flies. It's overly still and inactive. It's the darkness it's the thick mud you can't wash with or see through. It's resonance is sluggish, dark and often destructive in nature. But sometimes deep down in this murky mud a seed is sewn, and with time a bloom can come to surface, and here we have our beautiful lotus flower.
We exist whole heartedly in a dance within these gunas. If we're lucky- or perhaps I should say discerning- our inner compass is always pointed to the Sattvic qualities of life, pointed towards a state of balance and harmony: pure beingness. Whether things are overwhelming, over active and confusing (Rajasic); or Dull, depressing and heavy (Tamasic). It's the intention of returning to Sattva- returning to pure beingness that pulls us through these qualities. Sattva is what brings illumination and order to chaos , Sattva is what makes the lotus bloom, and bloom again.
Think for a moment of your own life, your goals, activities,what makes you happy and feeling stoked and BRIGHT, inside and out...Could be a sport, a food, an activity, your work... Got it? Good. Keep it. Keep doing THAT THING, the things that make you feel so gosh darn good. These things we want to stay close to because they bring out our inner best. They make us wise and discerned in certain areas of life, and more than we may realize it- they keep us balanced.
There will always be Tamasic energies and Rajasic energies around us. It's the changing seasons; way too hot in the summer -Rajas, way too dark cold and heavy in the winter- Tamas. It's relationship dynamics; firey, passionate new love affair- Rajas. Or our beloved well seasoned long term commitments that sometimes can feel stale and dull, Tamas.
Each guna has its place in life. Sometimes we need more fire and passion, Rajasic energy to feel balanced or to get things moving. Sometimes we need more stillness, and for things to slow down to feel our pure beingness and to let things settle in.
We can welcome each of these qualities of energy into our lives with discernement, with the wisdom of Sattva. We can't stop the rain from pouring or from the sun giving off too much heat. But what we can do is cultivate our brightness, our inner balance. We can stay true to the activities and practices that balance us out. That help us reflect off or lean into the Gunas that surround us.
This is what the wisdom of yoga shares with us. This is what the practice brings us. We can cultivate more fire in the body when perhaps life feels a bit too Tamasic, and alternatively take down the heat with more cooling and restorative practices when the energy is chaotic and on over drive. It's always a dance. There is no set way, the compass is always spinning and our best bet it is to continue to point it in the direction of balance and true wisdom. To keep doing the things, so we can do the thing, that make us feel bright.
With heart,
Bri Nadi
