Sattvas is the quality of clarity, goodness, truth and perceptive awareness. Through sattvas, we can embrace the Cosmic Reality of the Self, especially in the state of the Sattvic-Sattvic state of the Chitta, which corresponds to the Self. It lies above all of the states of the Gunas through of which in the Rig Veda, the God Indra must destroy before attaining the Truth.
Sattvas itself has three portions in the Cosmos:
1. Para-Sattvas:
This is the state of Transcendental Sattvas of the Self. In this state, Sattvas implies the state of Nirguna-Brahman that lies beyond all realities and physical conceptions of Truth, and shines forth as the pure un-manifested state of blissful awareness. Goddesses such as Kali and Lalita both personify Para-sattvas with their transcendental states of higher perception, awareness and bliss.
Beings in Para-Sattvas are thus the highest forms of Brahman that manifest, such as the Primal Shakti – Durga, Kali and her avatars or Rudra-Shiva and his avatars such as Sarabheshwara and such, that must take form in order to chastise even the avatars or the greater Rakshasas. As the unmanifest state of Brahman, it must first descend into the Mahat-sattvas before transforming itself into a suitable energy for such a purpose in the lower mundane worlds.
For this, we must first purify or negate the Ahamkara or the Ego, which requires ascending the ladder of the Ahamkara from the lower Tamasic realisation, where it projects itself as the opposite of what it is (mirrors the Self), and thus many Yogis get trapped in such a state and feel they have attained the state of Atmajnana or Self-Realisation, when in fact, they have reached only the lower stages of the Ahamkara, projecting itself as the false-image (maya) or reflection. The Second stage is that of the Rajasic-Ahamkara, where one feels they are a Divine avatar and get lost in the delusional states of Rajas, which projects itself as the higher Self. The Sattvic state is that of the purified Ahamkara, which manifests as “Aham” or the state of true “I-Am” or rather, “Shivo’ham” (I am Shiva), where the highest grade Yogi accesses the higher level of Para-Sattvas.
This state is the state of the Para-Karana Sharira or the Transcendental Causal Body, the Sattvic state of the Karana Sharira, that still exists in Brahman, although in a non-dual state in so far as Consciousness goes.
2. Maha-Sattvas:
Maha-sattvas is the state of the greater Siddhas who dwell in the Mahat-region, ready to take incarnation as per the will of the Mahat-shakti. The Mahat is the Cosmic Intellect that has it’s centre in our Universe in Mercury (Budha), and why the avatars actually come from Vishnu, as he relates to Mercury. Mercury is linked both to the Moon (Cosmic Manas) with his father, Soma Atreya, and also to Jupiter (Cosmic Chitta) through his mother, goddess Tara, wife of Brihaspati. As such, Mercury brings us the great Rishis that dwell in these regions.
Maha-Sattvas is the plane of the Rishis and the Devagurus, the Gurus of the Gods and avatars.
Maha-Sattvas is the state of the purified or Sattvic Mahat-tattva, which requires transcending even the lower rajasic and tamasic levels of the Mahat, through progression of the Buddhi in Yoga. Many Yogis thus find this tough in higher states, since the Buddhi being natural intuitive wisdom, especially in it’s Rajasic state, promotes the flow of many insights and higher truths. The Rajasic Mahat connects to Brahma, and hence why the Vedas and such derive from this state, since it is the rajasic-aspect of Mahat as action (karma) and will-power (kratu) that brings these teachings forth to the lower subtle and lesser-causal worlds.
Maha-sattvas represents the state of the Mahat-Karana Sharira or the Great level of the Causal Body, the Rajasic state of the Karana-Sharira. In this state, one beholds the Causal body, but is more attuned to it in it’s higher aspect reflect the higher sattvic Mahat that flows from within the Karana itself, close to the Self, distinguished from the lower-level Buddhi of the Vijnamamaya-Kosha that belongs to the far lower Sukshma-Sharira or the Subtle-body.
3. Sattvas:
Ordinary Sattvas is just Sattvas – the purity and clarity aspect of Truth, or adoration of the Truth-principle, such as we see in Brahman-classes with rites and rituals as also in the Devas. In the ordinary sattvic-state however, it relates to the Tamasic or stagnating state of Sattvas, that even Causal to Subtle-level beings can become so obsessed with Sattvas, that it becomes their dharma and their cannot move forth. We often see this in many religions with limited Philosophies, although these form part of a more rajasic-tamasic type Sattvas, than a true inner or organic Sattvas as itself.
Sattvas itself represents the state of the ordinary Karana-Sharira or Causal body, where beings see only the Self above them, rather than beholding the two higher levels of the Maha-Sattvas and Para-Sattvas states, corresponding to the higher levels or layers of the Para-Karana and Maha-Karana Shariras of even higher beings.
The higher Devas have Causal bodies, the lower such as Gandharvas have astral bodies. Thus, on planets such as even Mercury, a Maha-Karana Planet, there exist these lower Karana or Causal body and Sukshma-Sharira or astral-body entities that cannot penetrate in the higher levels or layers of the Sattvas there, except a few by deep meditation.
On Earth, the Tamasic or Gross-state of manifestation in physical bodies, Sattvas becomes transformed into a stagnating-form or social Dharma, or a “Tamasic-tamasic” type Sattvas, reflected from the higher Devic expression. This is why humans, even advanced Yogis often only see the Karana-Sharira as the final barrier to the Self, not seeing the two higher stages of it that transform into the levels which must be accessed before attaining the Para-Sattvic state or Para-Karana Sharira in Brahman, which, to a lower-level entity or being, does appear as the Self alone, as such a limited buddhi masked by a Tamasic-tamasic or Gross-state (Shaulika) of understanding of Sattvas, cannot comprehend the Maha or Para levels of the Causal Body with their limited systems and external and higher influences (as the Devas).
For this reason, higher Yogis go beyond the ordinary worldly Sattvas, in order to penetrate the higher levels and layers of Sattvas. The Vamamarga in Tantra is an example that tried to do so, but usually ends up in not transcending the Gunas – but rather, placing such as strong Tamasic or Worldly Rajasic-Tamasic strain upon the limited human nervous system and astral body they try and comprehend, and ends up creating an almost Asura-type Vital entity instead.
Sattvas is however what holds the worldly Dharma. An example of a Tamasic-type Sattvas in the world is Gandhism and the doctrine of Ahimsa which has become so self-righteous, that it has become dulling, ignorant or destructive. This worldly or lower Sattvas of humans thus blows our or destroys our Buddhi and our Vivekagni or our fire of discrimination and replaces it with a false-sense of Sattvas or Self-righteousness – a literal adherence to Sattvas alone, based on a single teaching, book, prophet or system alone, such as we often see in Dualist Vaishnavism, in Semitic faiths such as Islam, Christianity and Judaism that have projected their own variations of the Sattvas to the world, with often disastrous results!
-By Ved Kovid, Durgadas
