The Sanskrit word guna (guṇa) has the basic meaning of "string" or "a single thread or strand of a cord or twine". In more abstract uses, it may mean "a subdivision, species, kind", and generally "quality". The Sanskrit language ( , for short ) is an old Indo-Aryan language from the Indian Subcontinent, the classical literary language of the Hindus of India[1], a liturgical language of Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism, and one of the 23 official languages of India. ...

In Classical literature

In Classical literature (e.g. Mahabharata, Bhagavata Purana and Bhagavad Gita), a Guna is an attribute of the 5 elements (each with an associated organ): Mahabharat redirects here. ... The Bhagavata Purana (sometimes rendered as Bhagavatha Purana), also known as the Srimad Bhagavatam, written c. ... Bhagavad Gīta भगवद्गीता, composed ca the fifth - second centuries BC, is part of the epic poem Mahabharata, located in the Bhisma-Parva chapters 23–40. ...

1. ether has sound (shabda) for its Guna (and the ear for its organ).

2. air has tangibility and touch for its Gunas (and the skin for its organ).

3. fire has shape or colour, tangibility, and sight for its Gunas (and the eye for its organ).

4. water has flavour, shape, tangibility, and taste for its Gunas (and the tongue for its organ).

5. earth has all preceding Gunas, plus its own peculiar Guna of smell (and the nose for its organ).

Chinese Wood (木) | Fire (火) | Earth (土) | Metal (金) | Water (水) Hinduism and Buddhism The Pancha Mahabhuta (The Five Great Elements) Vayu/Pavan (Air/Wind) Agni/Tejas (Fire) Akasha (Aether) Prithvi/Bhumi (Earth) Ap/Jala (Water) Aether (also spelled ether) is a concept used in ancient and medieval science as a substance. ... Bat ears come in different sizes and shapes The ear is the sense organ that detects sound. ... Layers of Atmosphere (NOAA) Air redirects here. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Epidermis (skin). ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Flame. ... A human eye. ... Impact of a drop of water. ... For other uses, see Tongue (disambiguation). ... Adjectives: Terrestrial, Terran, Telluric, Tellurian, Earthly Atmosphere Surface pressure: 101. ... Human nose in profile A typical bulbous human nose Anatomically, a nose is a protuberance in vertebrates that houses the nostrils, or nares, which admit and expel air for respiration. ...

In Samkhya philosophy

In Samkhya philosophy a Guna is one of three "tendencies": tamas, sattva, and rajas. These categories have become a common means of categorizing behavior and natural phenomena in Hindu philosophy, and also in Ayurvedic medicine, as a system to assess conditions and diets. Guna is the tendency of the mind and not the state. For instance, Sattva guna is that force which tends to bring the mind to purity but is not purity itself. Similarly Rajas is that force which tends to bring the mind to perform some action but is not action itself. Samkhya, also Sankhya, (Sanskrit: सांख्य, IAST: Sāṃkhya - Enumeration) is one of the schools of Indian philosophy. ... Hindu philosophy - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ... Ayurveda (आयुर्वेद Sanskrit: ayu—life; veda—knowledge of) or ayurvedic medicine is a more than 2,000 year old comprehensive system of medicine based on a holistic approach rooted in Vedic culture. ... In nutrition, the diet is the sum of food consumed by a person or other organism. ...

• Sattva (originally "being, existence, entity") has been translated to mean balance, order, or purity. This typically implies that a person with more of Sattva has a positive or even orderly state of mind. Such a person is psychologically kind, calm, alert and thoughtful. Compare also the bodhisattvas in Buddhism. Indologist Georg Feuerstein translates sattva as "lucidity".

• Rajas (originally "atmosphere, air, firmament") leads one to activity. This type of activity is explained by the term Yogakshem. Yogakshem is composed of two words: Yoga and Kshem. Yoga in the present context is acquiring something that one does not have. Kshem means losing something that one already has. Rajas is the force that creates desires for acquiring new things and fears for losing something that one has. These desires and fears lead one to activity. (Rajas is etymologically unrelated to the word raja.) Feuerstein translates rajas as "dynamism".

• Tamas (originally "darkness", "obscurity") has been translated to mean "too inactive", negative, lethargic, dull, or slow. Usually it is associated with darkness, delusion, or ignorance. A tamas quality also can imply that a person has a self-destructive or entropic state of mind. That person is constantly pursuing destructive activities. Feuerstein translates tamas as "inertia".

The Sanskrit word guna (guṇa) has the basic meaning of string or a single thread or strand of a cord or twine. In more abstract uses, it may mean a subdivision, species, kind, and generally quality. In Classical literature In Classical literature (e. ... In Buddhist thought, a bodhisattva (Pali: bodhisatta; Simplified Chinese: , Traditional Chinese: ; pinyin: púsà; Japanese: 菩薩 bosatsu; Korean: ë³´ì‚´ bosal ; Tibetan changchub sempa (byang-chub sems-dpa); Vietnamese: Bồ Tát; Thai: พระโพธิสัตว์) is a being who is dedicated to assisting all sentient beings in achieving complete Buddhahood. ... Buddhism is a dharmic, non-theistic religion, which is also a philosophy and a system of psychology[]. Buddhism is also known as Buddha Dharma or Dhamma, which means the teachings of the Awakened One in Sanskrit and Pali, the languages of ancient Buddhist texts. ... Indology is a name given by indologists to the academic study of the history, languages, and cultures of South Asia. ... Dr. Georg Feuerstein (born 1947) is a well-known German-Canadian Indologist, and a Western authority on Yoga. ... Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ... The Sanskrit word guna (guṇa) has the basic meaning of string or a single thread or strand of a cord or twine. In more abstract uses, it may mean a subdivision, species, kind, and generally quality. In Classical literature In Classical literature (e. ... A Raja (Sanskrit ) is a king, or princely ruler from the Kshatriya / Rajput lineages. ... Dynamism is a term coined by libertarian pundit Virginia Postrel to describe her social philosophy that embraces cultural change, individual choice, and the open society. ... In Hinduism and Budhism, Tamas, or tamo-guna, is the lower of the three gunas. ... Fatigue is a feeling of excessive tiredness or lethargy, with a desire to rest, perhaps to sleep. ... The principle of inertia is one of the fundamental laws of classical physics which are used to describe the motion of matter and how it is affected by applied forces. ...

In Nyaya philosophy

In Nyaya philosophy, twenty-four Gunas are enumerated as properties or characteristics of all created things. Nyaya (pronounced as nyα:yə) is the name given to one of the six orthodox or astika schools of Hindu philosophy - specifically the school of logic. ...

1. rūpa, shape, colour;

2. rasa, savour;

3. gandha, odour;

4. sparśa, tangibility;

5. saṃkhyā, number;

6. parimāṇa, dimension;

7. pṛthaktva, severalty;

8. saṃyoga, conjunction;

9. vibhāga, disjunction;

10. paratva, remoteness;

11. aparatva, proximity;

12. gurutva, weight;

13. dravatva, fluidity;

14. sneha, viscidity;

15. shabda, sound;

16. buddhi or jñāna, understanding or knowledge;

17. sukha, pleasure;

18. duḥkha, pain;

19. icchā, desire;

20. dveṣa, aversion;

21. prayatna, effort;

22. dharma, merit or virtue;

23. adharma, demerit;

24. saṃskāra, the self-reproductive quality;

In Grammar

In Sanskrit grammar, guṇa is a technical term referring to the vowels a, e, o, i.e. the full grade ablaut stages (see Ashtadhyayi). The Sanskrit language ( , for short ) is an old Indo-Aryan language from the Indian Subcontinent, the classical literary language of the Hindus of India[1], a liturgical language of Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism, and one of the 23 official languages of India. ... In linguistics, the term ablaut (from German ab- in the sense down, reducing + Laut sound) designates a system of vowel gradations in Proto-Indo-European and its far-reaching consequences in all of the modern Indo-European languages. ... The Ashtadhyayi (Ạṣtādhyāyī, meaning eight chapters) is the earliest known grammar of Sanskrit, and one of the first works on descriptive linguistics, generative linguistics, or linguistics altogether. ...

References

• The Ayurveda Encyclopedia by Swami Sada Shiva Tirtha

See also

• Maya

// Maya may refer to: The Maya, Native American peoples of southern Mexico and northern Central America Maya peoples, the contemporary indigenous peoples Maya civilization, their historical pre-Columbian civilization Mayan languages, the family of languages spoken by the Maya Yucatec Maya language, specific and most widespread Mayan language, frequently referred...

External links

• Gunas - a table of correspondences, based on Bhagavad Gita and Bhagavata Purana, Vaishnava Vedanta tradition Java applet
• Gunas - a study based on Bhagavad Gita and Bhagavata Purana, Vaishnava Vedanta tradition
• Tour of Vedic universe - humans and gunas, Vaishnava Vedanta tradition
• Gunas Gunas from Spiritual Glossary