In chapter 14 of the Bhagavad Gita, Lord Krishna tells Arjuna how the three gunas — sattva, rajas and tamas — keep the atma bound to samsara, said Valayapet Ramachariar in a discourse. The Lord says that what He is now going to tell Arjuna is uttamam jnanam — the best form of knowledge. Not only should we acquire knowledge of the gunas, but we must also be devoted to God to attain moksha. Those who have knowledge of the gunas and worship Him become like Him, in the sense that they are not born during creation — na upajAyante. Nor do they lose their jnana at the time of pralaya — na vyathanti. The Lord has already spoken about prakrti and purusha. So, we should view this knowledge of the gunas together with that. So, knowledge of prakrti, purusha and gunas gives liberation from births and deaths. “Such atmas become similar to Me,” says the Lord. They do not attain onement with the Supreme One. The distinction between jivatmas and the Paramatma is not lost, even when the jivatmas reach Sri Vaikuntha.
Just as a seed is planted in the Earth, the Lord plants a jiva in Prakrti. Prakrti is the place where the jiva has experiences according to its karma. This applies to all, whether it is Brahma or a blade of grass. Lord Krishna is responsible for all births. In this sense He is the father, for He is the One who plants the jivas on this earth. Every birth is according to the jivatma’s karma, and for each of these births Lord Krishna is the father. Sattva, rajas and tamas cannot be understood by observation. Can we tell if something is poisoned just by looking at it? Only when the effects of the poison begin to show up in a person who consumes it do we realise that the food was poisoned. In the same way, we can understand the three gunas only from the effects they manifest.
