What is sattva and why should it be in our home?
The great Serbian-American inventor, Nikola Tesla said:
“If you want to know the secrets of the universe, think in terms of energy, frequency, and vibration.”
A highly sensitive person, Tesla developed his greater intelligence and senses through spiritual practices and intense observation of nature. He was good friends with the great Swami Vivekananda. They often communicated to synergise their work so Tesla could mathematically demonstrate the mysticism behind yoga.
Whenever he met with people, Tesla purposely did not make physical contact with anybody. Nor did he engage in any romantic relationship as he very was protective of his own auric field. He wanted to use all his energy and focus into manifesting his visions for the greater good of humanity.
The Trigunas
Tesla’s awareness and application of energetic principles affirm the same Ayurvedic principles about the world around us: everything is energy. The universe and all beings comprise of the Trigunas (three qualities): sattva, rajas, and tamas.
The concept of the Trigunas, also known as the three primal forces of nature, is an ancient Indian philosophy that describes the fundamental qualities of existence. According to Ayurveda, everything in the universe, including human beings, is composed of the gunas. Understanding the interplay of these forces can help us navigate life’s challenges and cultivate a more balanced and harmonious way of living.
Sattva is the quality of harmony, stability, luminosity and virtue of being that awakens the soul.
Rajas is the quality of activity, distraction, and motivation that is the energetic principle behind movement and action.
Tamas is the quality of inertia, dullness, and heaviness that causes delusion, degeneration and death.
These qualities can exist predominantly to develop the elements of ether (sattva), fire (rajas), earth (tamas), or combine as air (sattva–rajas), water (rajas–tamas), and sattva–tamas.
Sattvic Living
Sattva guna promotes true health and healing through balance and living in harmony with Nature and our Higher Self. This is not always easy in a fast-paced, urban environment dominated by rajas and tamas. After all, our environment directly impacts our happiness and overall well-being.
For most of my adult life, I lived in a high-rise apartment building at the central business district, a classic rajasic environment. As a project analyst at Asian Development Bank, my work involved intensive communications, traveling, and meeting deadlines—activities considered rajasic. However, I also felt a deep connection to Nature and its soothing qualities, which aligns with sattvic energy. It inspired me to write an article for the ADB Blog, urging people to make small, positive changes to foster sattva and remember their oneness with Nature.
We transitioned to a non-corporate job and found living amongst nature with a simple lifestyle generates more sattva into our lives. We wake up to the first rays of sunrise and the sweet sound of birds in our garden. Organic, fresh-from-the-farm foods comprise our daily meals. We walk outdoors at the rice fields. Sounds from dusk to early evening lull us to sleep.
When surrounded by the qualities of light, purity, and calm, these energies and vibration naturally work its way from the outside in. They affect our mind and emotions and seep out through our thoughts, words, and actions.
Ultimately, our spirit yearns to evolve. A sattvic diet and lifestyle, environment, and dharma develops the buddhi (higher intelligence) that supports our awakening. Bringing sattvic energy into our home allows us to recharge after a busy day and to feel more calm and connected.
Bring Nature and the Five Elements Inside Your Home
Try these simple and easy ways to infuse nature and the five elements to bring more sattva in your home:
Earth. Placing fruits and some vegetables in the kitchen, dining table and breakfast nook brings colour to the space. It also encourage us to eat fresh daily, preventing us from storing produce in the fridge and forgetting them. Let Mother Nature’s sweet treats ripen naturally.
Placing potted plants, herbs, and succulents around the house provides a symbiotic relationship within the confines of our walls. Inhale oxygen from the plants, exhale carbon dioxide for the plants. Win-win.
Water. Keeping an aquarium or small fish bowl in the north or east direction of your home is considered auspicious according to Vastu, which Feng Shui derived its knowledge from. Placing the aquarium in the living room removes negativity from guests who visit your home. Watching fish removes stress and can be relaxing. Caring for fish also earns the caretaker punya (good merit).
If you travel often, recreate a small water fountain in your living room. Hearing water sounds can be soothing and calming to the mind.
Fire. This element has a special place in Ayurveda. Through fire we perceive knowledge, discern, and develop the buddhi.
Invite the warm glow of natural light in the evenings. Have dinner with candles at the center of the table. Use candles in the bedroom rather than turning on electric bulbs. Lighting ghee lamps emit sattva guna in the home and increases harmony, balance, and peace.
Air. Smudging with sage rather than spraying with canned aerosols after a good cleaning benefits the entire household. It clears the home of negativity and has been proven to remove bad particles in the air. Use only natural incense to let heavenly scents pervade your living space.
Ether. Flowers have an etheric vibratory frequency. We can adorn murthis (sacred objects and statues) with fresh flowers daily as offerings.
Sound is associated with ether and playing soft or classical music induces more calm and creativity. Hanging wind chimes or small bells by the door or window brings more happiness and positivity. Vastu and Feng Shui recommend hanging wind chimes to create sweet sounds and good vibrations that spread throughout your home.
Ayurveda and the Trigunas
Ayurveda uses the gunas to determine our psychological and spiritual state and applies them to bring us back into balance. When tamas is dominant, inertia and ignorance prevails. Rajas strengthens desire and attachment to worldly objects and success. Both qualities are disease-causing factors.
Though we need rajas in our lives to act in the world, the combination of sattva–rajas allows to fulfill our duties with the highest motivations. Refining sattva within us heals the mind, reveals Truth, and gives clarity and peace. Cultivating sattva guna is the basis of Ayurveda and all yogic practices.