Tamoguna is commonly translated into English as the mode of darkness. But what does this really mean in our day-to-day lives? We often classify actions as good or bad, yet we rarely stop to ask why we behave the way we do.

Why do we sometimes act nobly and at other times fall into harmful behaviour — even when we fully understand the consequences? The answer lies in the three gunas described in the Bhagavad Gita. These three gunas-sattva (goodness), rajas (passion), and tamas (darkness) — exist within all of us in varying proportions. A person who is generally calm, composed, and virtuous has a higher proportion of sattva. Someone driven, ambitious, and restless is dominated by rajas. And one who frequently acts negligently, destructively, or ignorantly is influenced predominantly by tamas. Importantly, no one is made of only one guna. Even a noble person........

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