Have you ever paused and thought why is it that some of us are always full of energy, up for almost everything, while some of us are lazy, find excuses or procrastinate. There might be some innate body philosophy behind it. Something similar, rather a strong resemblance to the Doshas (Pitta, Kapha & Vat) are the three Gunas or qualities present in us.
- Sattva Guna: a person with sattvic bent of personality believes in every religion, is peaceful and intelligent by nature and possesses an abundance of knowledge. People of this orient are considered to be good and resourceful teachers. However, Sattva tends to bind a person with attachment to happiness.
- Rajas Guna: people high on the Rajas quotient are quite aggressive, intelligent and are attached to activity. It is rare that a Rajas person will sit idle. With a fire in their bellies, the young and aspiring minds want to achieve the best of everything.
- Tamas Guna: carelessness, non-responsiveness, killing time are few of the characteristics which can be identified with Tamasic Guna. People of this nature are attached to lethargy and dullness.
Interestingly, the Three Gunas cannot exist in isolation by themselves – they co-exist. So, there are days when we feel super energetic or just don’t want to leave that bed. Some days are pure peaceful and relaxing.
The existence level of these Gunas also gets affected by the food we consume. Sattvic diet (quite prevalent in India) is typically balanced on spices, light and clear. Rajasic food is high on oil and spices whereas the Tamasic food has a sedative effect on our body and mind (cooked food kept overnight before consumption)
There are many schools of thought on the three types of food which categorize most of the foods and fruits under either of the three. I recommend consulting a Doctor / Diet Expert before bringing any major changes to your diet.
