Find Your Center.
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Get To Know Ayurveda’s Mahagunas.
This month, we focus on the binary between the energies of rajas and tamas. Everything within us and around us is made up of the three mahagunas, or energies of nature, which include rajas (movement and activity), tamas (inertia or downward movement), and sattva (balance and harmony). We hold the power of these three energies all the time, yet we are not always aware of how and why we lean into one more than the others.
With spring on the horizon, this time of year asks us to pay attention to where we’ve been placing our energy (rajas), and what this energy has helped us move toward. While positive if used mindfully, excess rajas can also lead to frustration, impatience, and overextension of the physical and mental body. Think about when you stay up too late to get everything done, or when you push yourself too hard on the mat. The result is a forced stillness, leading to tamas that must be used as recovery rather than reflection.
Alternatively, tamas is the necessary rest we take each day (sleep, specifically), but also accounts for the times when we feel stuck and unable to see a different point of view. An excess of tamas energy means that we are lacking the clarity to move forward, and might look like acting stubborn and unwilling to accept change.
Both of these energies are necessary for moving through life peacefully and productively, but we provide ourselves a much stronger backbone when we are aware of which energy we are harnessing and the “why” behind our reactions. Within our busy culture, we find a common excess in rajas, leading to disconnection and miscommunication. On the other side of the coin, you might find yourself in times where you are so overworked and overwhelmed, that you overcorrect with excess tamas; not simply resting, but resorting to mind-numbing activities that pull you further away from balance.
The ultimate goal is to reach a state of sattva, or harmony. It is through rajas that we transform and move forward. It is through tamas that we are able to rest, reflect, and understand where we’ve been. When these energies are balanced and neither is favored, we find the journey toward sattva much more attainable and sustainable.
Where are you placing your energy in these last few weeks of winter? Is there tamas left within you that is asking for more time to look within? Or is the tamas fading as you feel nature’s pull toward rajas and new life springing forth?
The more you take time to see yourself, hear yourself, and understand your reactions, the more connected you’ll feel to who you truly are. This is where harmony, sattva, is able to settle in. We are here to get to know ourselves better. We are here to know ourselves well.
