The three modes of the material nature
The following is a very nice little story that describes the three modes of material nature. Once there was a thief assisted by two friends who were also thieves. The three decided that they would rob a person. So they waited in the forest next to a path. Then, when one traveler was passing by, the three thieves jumped out, caught him and dragged him inside the forest.
One of the thieves said: “Let’s take everything he has and then let’s kill him, so that he cannot say anything about who robbed him.”
The other thief said: “You know I don’t think it is a good idea to kill him. We will unnecessarily bloody our hands. We should just tie him to a tree here. We will go away and he will die by himself.“
The others said, “Ok let’s do that.” So they tied him to a tree with ropes and took all his belongings and than they went away. After traveling for some time, the third robber changed his mind and went back. He untied the robbed man. Then he told him:
“Listen. You go this way. That way you can go back to the city and you will be safe. I did not want you to die here, tied to a tree.”
Then the man said: “Oh, you are such a nice fellow. You saved my life. Of course first you robbed me but now you are saving my life. So why don’t you come with me? I’ll get you a job in the city. I‘ll help you to get settled.”
The robber then said: “Sorry. I cannot go with you, because I am a thief. If I go to the city, they will catch me and put me in jail. So you go alone and get saved and I’ll stay here with my robber friends.”
The explanation of the story is that the robber who wanted to kill the person immediately was in ignorance. He did not care about anything. Just kill him; let’s just get it done.
The robber in passion was always calculating: “Oh, let’s do it this way; that way; but always in my interest.”
And the robber who was in the mode of goodness, he thought: “Let’s take his money, but let him go. Let’s not harm him.”
Another analogy can be made by comparing the three modes of material nature to chains. If you are chained up in the mode of goodness, your chain is made of gold. In the mode of passion your chain is made of copper. In the mode of ignorance your chain is made of iron. But actually it does not matter what the chain is made of. If you are chained, then you are not free. Even if you are chained by a chain of gold, you’re still chained and you are not free. Somebody may very proudly announce: “I am chained by gold! And you fools, you are chained by iron!”; but what does it change?
According to the Vedic tradition, the healing circle is synonymous with consciousness in the mode of goodness. The mode of goodness is part of the Vedic description of how everything in this world is divided into three modes of nature. The three modes of material nature control the living entities to a certain degree according to the activities in their past lives. These influences – ignorance, passion and goodness – are mentioned again and again. They produce all kinds of natures and behaviors in humankind. We can compare them to the three primary colors (red, blue and yellow), and when they are mixed together all other colors can be created. It is in the mode of goodness that living entities can get clarity about their position in this material world. And it is by mixing with activities and influences from the lower modes that we enter into diseased conditions. But the mode of goodness is also not perfect. That is why the evolution of consciousness goes far beyond of just being a good person in this world. The healing circle draws all the best qualities from everyone, who is progressing seriously on this mystical path.
Even when you are in the mode of ignorance and passion, still there are choices to be made. The principle choice is, whether you are willing to move towards the mode of goodness or not. In the graphics, these three modes of nature appear as three circles, but in the practical life, obviously they intermingle. (See CD35)