Essays on the Gita

468 <strong>Essays</strong> on the Gitadharma or inferior law of Nature is replaced by the immortaldharma of the spirit; there is the experience of a free immortalaction, a divine illimitable knowledge, a transcendent power, anunfathomable repose. But still there remains the question of thetransition; for there must be a transition, a proceeding by steps,since nothing in God’s workings in this world is done by anabrupt action without procedure or basis. We have the thing weseek in us, but we have in practice to evolve it out of the inferiorforms of our nature. 4 Therefore in the action of the modes itselfthere must be some means, some leverage, some point d’appui,by which we can effect this transformation. The Gita finds it inthe full development of the sattwic guna till that in its potentexpansion reaches a point at which it can go beyond itself anddisappear into its source. The reason is evident, because sattwais a power of light and happiness, a force that makes for calmand knowledge, and at its highest point it can arrive at a certainreflection, almost a mental identity with the spiritual light andbliss from which it derives. The other two gunas cannot getthis transformation, rajas into the divine kinetic will or tamasinto the divine repose and calm, without the intervention ofthe sattwic power in Nature. The principle of inertia will alwaysremain an inert inaction of power or an incapacity of knowledgeuntil its ignorance disappears in illumination and its torpid incapacityis lost in the light and force of the omnipotent divine willof repose. Then only can we have the supreme calm. Thereforetamas must be dominated by sattwa. The principle of rajas forthe same reason must remain always a restless, troubled, feverishor unhappy working because it has not right knowledge; its nativemovement is a wrong and perverse action, perverse throughignorance. Our will must purify itself by knowledge; it must getmore and more to a right and luminously informed action beforeit can be converted into the divine kinetic will. That again means4 This is from the point of view of our nature ascending upwards by self-conquest,effort and discipline. There must also intervene more and more a descent of the divineLight, Presence and Power into the being to transform it; otherwise the change at thepoint of culmination and beyond it cannot take place. That is why there comes in as thelast movement the necessity of an absolute self-surrender.