Chapter 18: Moksha-sannyasa-yoga: / Verse 36

Having defined the triple causes of action as knowledge, knowable and knower (18.18), Krishna went on to explain knowledge, action and actor, classifying each of these three into sāttvika, rājasa and tāmasa (18.20-28). Thereafter he said that intelligence and will also fall into three kinds (18.29), detailing the three types in each (18.30-35). He now elucidates the three kinds of happiness, sukha. Imagine how much the discussion means in providing insight into the subtle modifications and workings of what we simply refer to as the mind and the intelligence!

The analysis makes one greatly enlightened about the assorted qualities and functions the same inner personality embodies. This should enable one to know of what kind he is, and how to improve and enrich himself. Surely, this is an extraordinary psycho-intellectual analysis, a unique science and art, revealing the invisible inner personality of the human, making the spiritual student a master in dealing with himself and becoming what he aspires to be.

Krishna now adds that happiness (sukha) too is sāttvika, rājasa and tāmasa, as are the other five he listed. Needless to say that a discreet seeker and yogic student should strive unquestionably for sāttvika happiness. It can be had only with sufficient discrimination and dedicated effort. When gained, it has the power to terminate unhappiness of all kinds for ever.

It may seem like poison at first, but in the end it will be like nectar. Sāttvika happiness results when intelligence reflects and radiates the inmost Self. It is fully experiential unlike heaven and the like, which cannot be experienced while living. Self-contemplation holds the key to unalloyed happiness.

How does sāttvika happiness seem like poison at first? A point to be studied and understood well by the seeker! Unlike non-humans, human beings enjoy lavish freedom of thought, speech and sharing, and hence they excel in amazingly plural ways of being good and helpful as well as bad and hurting. Non-humans have a certain nature each, and they conform to it exclusively. They display the real beauty of existence, especially in the background of huge lush green forests they live in.

Humans verily embody all the tendencies of non-humans, leading to unpredictable chaos, confusion and violence, warranting adequate check and balance. This leads to enforcement of law and order, something absent in the non-human domain.

This apart, to improve quality and refinement of life, practices like sensory moderation, mental sublimation, etc. are necessary. But people always take to these with unwillingness and unpleasantness. They crave for unrestricted, unbridled enjoyment, corroding the senses, adversely affecting the upkeep of the body.

Real joy and freedom in any field is obtained only by undergoing rigorous discipline and self-restraint. However distasteful the disciplines may appear initially, once they are undergone properly, the mind is sure to feel stronger, happier and integrated. Disciplines are extremely important for one’s inner growth and enrichment.

Sāttvika sukha is not generated by the senses. So, it does not make the mind scattered or outgoing. It comes from expansion, purification and elevation of the mind. It is in the nature of a placidity that arises when the mind and intelligence are in touch with the inmost being (ātmabuddhi- prasādajam).