A Holistic Framework for Ethics

Shiv Talwar

Abstract

This article focuses on an ontological model of human beings highlighting the origin of the moral predicament.  It develops an ultimate ethic and challenges human beings to achieve it as the source of meaning in life.  It then suggests a model of human development, which may lead to an achievement of the ultimate ethic.  The framework for ethics in the article is based on the Sankhya philosophy of sage Kapila and related thinking from the Indian philosophical tradition.

Introduction

As social beings, people generally are aware of the way they relate to one another.  Human beings naturally consider moral values in daily lives, which subjects them to a pair of strong forces that pull them in opposite directions either towards or away from ethics.  The force pulling away from ethics seems stronger and immediate.

Value concepts such as "good", "evil", “right”, “wrong”, “ should", "shouldn't", "ought", "ought not”, etc. have occupied humankind's attention since the beginning of time.  Ethics is the systematic study of principles defining the nature of such concepts.

Determining the value or worth of a concept or object involves estimation.  Any estimation must be based on a frame of reference, or viewpoint.  We can determine the worthiness of a deed only when we consider in a certain perspective.  Without that perspective, the worthiness of a deed, act, or idea is indeterminate.

In order to study ethics, it is therefore important to focus on the frame of reference that determines the worthiness of mores of human behavior.  Who is a human being?  What is the nature of a human being?  Where do human beings come from and what is their destination?  What is the relationship of an individual with other individuals?  What is the purpose of an individual's life?  Why do we want to be good and avoid evil? 

A coherent discipline of answering such questions provides the perspective necessary to consider the worth of human behavior. 

This article focuses on one such perspective, based on the Sankhya philosophy[i] of sage Kapila and related thinking from the Indian philosophical tradition, in order to answer the following questions:

1.      What is the source of the ethical imperative?

2.      What makes the humankind behave unethically?

3.      What is the ultimate in ethical behavior?

4.      How can humankind be ethical in the ultimate sense?

It may be of interest to note the historicity of the Sankhya philosophy.  The earliest known references to this doctrine appear in the Upanishads, the Indian scriptural literature, representing the earliest attempts of humankind to develop philosophic explanations of the universe. The Upanishads are known to be pre-Buddhist in chronology, although scholars are divided about the exact date of their composition.

Infinite Cause and Infinite Result

Considering the completeness, perfection, and infinity of the universe, a sage exclaimed[2]: "That is perfect.  This is perfect.  From perfection, only perfection can result.  A part of something perfect is also perfect and so is what remains."

The word "That" here means the same as the Transcendent, or the Universal Principle.  These terms denote the Ultimate Reality of the entire universe.  Everything -- all entities, all beings, all emotions, and all ideas -- in the entire universe can be explained and understood, without recourse to any other entity, in terms of the Universal Principle.  At the same time, there is nothing -- no entity, no being, no emotion, and no idea -- in the entire universe in terms of which the Universal Principle can be explained and understood.  Terms such as the Transcendent, the Universal Principle, and the Universal Spirit are analogous.  The universe is considered to be a manifestation of the Transcendent, also variously referred to as God without, or simply God, or Brahma (literally that which bursts forth in the form of the universe; and defined as that which gives rise to the universe, supports it, and reabsorbs it[3]) – the Ground of the Universe.

The word "This" is used to denote the universe in all its diversity.  It also means the Immanent.  The Immanent, the immanent self, and the individual spirit are terms used analogously to denote the ultimate reality of the individual.  Everything, all emotions, and all ideas of an individual can be explained and understood, without recourse to any other entity, in terms of the Immanent.  At the same time, there is nothing, no emotion, and no idea of the individual in terms of which the Immanent can be explained and understood.  The individual is considered to be a manifestation of the Immanent, also variously referred to as God within, sakshi (witness), or the essence of the individual soul (atman).

The sage experienced the unity of the Immanent and the Transcendent and expressed it forcefully in the verse translated above.  He sees the Immanent as an immutable part of the Transcendent, perfect just as the Transcendent, complete just as the Transcendent, and infinite just as the Transcendent.  It is the nature of infinity that any part of infinite is infinite, and what remains is also infinite.  Similar is the case with perfection.  Any part of a perfect entity is perfect, and what remains is also perfect.  And so is the case with completeness or wholeness as well.  The Transcendent is infinite, perfect, complete, and whole.  The Immanent is the same in all aspects as the Transcendent.  It is infinite, perfect, complete, and whole as well.  The Immanent being the same as the Transcendent does not take away from the Transcendent in any way whatsoever.  On the contrary, it emphasizes the infinity of the Transcendent that remains infinite even after manifesting Itself as an infinite number of diverse beings in the universe, each with an infinite Immanent at its core and as its cause.

The universe also alluded to as "This" in the verse translated above, through which the Transcendent manifests Itself, is infinite, perfect, complete and whole also, just as the Transcendent is infinite, perfect, complete and whole.  After all, infinity cannot express itself through what is finite; perfection cannot express itself through what is imperfect; and completeness or wholeness cannot express itself through what is incomplete or less than whole.  The universe is infinite in size, infinite in diversity, and infinite in beauty.  It is an infinite system that is perfect, whole, and complete.

The cause is the same, then why diversity?  Maybe, the appropriate question to ask would be - "Can there be manifestation without diversity?" Can you imagine a universe without diversity?  Will the universe be a complete and whole system with no diversity?  Will it be a perfect system?  What happens to infinity with only one kind of being in the universe?  There is no purpose and no meaning in manifestation without diversity; there is no manifestation without diversity.  Diversity is essential for the universe and there can be no universe without it.

Manifestation and not Creation

Why do we use the word manifestation and not creation?  We do so because the word creation implies the existence of two ultimate realities - the creator and some other entity comprising the raw material with which creator creates.  If that is the case, the Transcendent cannot be the only ultimate reality of the universe, since the ultimate reality must also be absolute, and absolute, by definition, must be one.  Thus, the Transcendent is not said to create, but appear Itself as the diverse entities that constitute the universe.  It would not be appropriate to describe the process as creation when the creator and the material with which to create are one and the same.

Process of Manifestation

1.      Spirit and Energy

The most basic and fundamental manifestation of the one and only Universal Principle is its presentation as two principles - purusha and prakriti, roughly translated as pure consciousness and primordial nature, or spirit and energy (Figure 1 – Manifestation).  The word purusha implies an attractive force that holds infinitesimally minute particles together.  It also implies awareness, or pure consciousness.  We shall use the term Consciousness Principle to express the entire meaning of the term purusha.  The term prakriti implies energy.  It also implies primordial nature.  Similarly, we shall use the term Natural Principle to express the entire meaning of the term prakriti.  Both purusha and prakriti are infinite, perfect, complete and whole.

2.    Eight fold Nature

Manifestation as diverse entities is the nature of the Natural Principle.  The attractive force of the Consciousness Principle assists in individuation of the Natural Principle by holding the primordial nature together as individual entities.  Fundamentally, the Natural Principle manifests itself as eight tattvas (elements) of nature - bhumi (earth), jala (water), agni (fire), vayu (wind), akasha (vibration energy), mana (mind stuff), ahamkara (stuff of personality), and buddhi (stuff of intellect).  The eight tattvas are listed in order of increasing subtlety, the first element being the least subtle and the last as the subtlest.  It is relevant to mention here that the subtle has the capacity to permeate and impregnate the less subtle and the gross, but not vice versa.

The term tattva is a loaded term.  This term is loosely translated as element.  Literally it means that-ness, the essential quality of an object which distinguishes it from objects of another class[4].  It also means a principle or a function embodied in a class of objects represented by the object.  The term bhuta is sometimes used in stead of the term tattva. 

The first five of the eight tattvas form a group called panch-bhutas (group of five elements).  Science studies the world of these five elements.  The world of these five elements is supposed to encompass the entire world of sense perception, and is referred to as the objective or the phenomenal world.  Each one of the five tattvas is supposed to represent a class of objects related to a respective perceptive sense and a sense organ as follows[5]:

1.      Bhumi (earth) is related through the sense of smell with the nose;

2.      Jala (water) is related through the sense of taste with the tongue;

3.      Agni (fire) is related through the sense of sight with the eyes;

4.      Vayu (wind) is related through the sense of touch with the skin; and

5.      Akasha (vibration energy) is related through the sense of hearing with the ears.

The last three, although they too are manifestations of the Natural Principle, are too subtle to be lumped with the first five, or to be studied using the scientific method.  The world of these three tattvas is called the subjective world and is beyond perception by sense organs.

Further diversity is only due to the interplay of these eight basic natural elements and the Consciousness Principle.

3.      The Three Bodies

Each animate being in the universe is endowed with three bodies.  The physical body comprised of the group of five gross natural elements.  The subtle body is comprised of the group of three subtle natural elements in addition to software for the cognitive senses, active senses, and involuntary automatic processes of the physical body.  The causal body is comprised of a division of the Consciousness Principle (Remember a part of infinity is also infinite).  The causal body impregnates and activates the subtle body which, in turn, permeates and activates the gross physical body.

Purusha (the Consciousness Principle), being the subtlest manifestation of the Universal Principle, impregnates and activates buddhi, ahamkara, and mana of the subtle body.  In addition, it activates the software for the involuntary automatic processes of the physical body.  Physiological processes such as breathing, reflexive, and instinctive responses are some examples of such involuntary automatic processes.

Activated buddhi is capable of considered thought in the light of Purusha.  If the nature of the physical body permits, thought waves of the activated buddhi are communicated to the ahamkara.  Instinctive needs of the physical body are being communicated to ahamkara at all times.  The nature of physical bodies, with one and only one exception of the human body, does not permit communication of thought waves of the buddhi to ahamkara leaving it to be guided by physical instincts alone.  Ahamkara, activated by the thought waves of the buddhi, or by the instinctive needs of the physical body, in turn, permeates and activates mana.  Mana, in its activated state, communicates with the software of the active and cognitive senses setting physical activity in motion.

The subtle body thus activated permeates and activates every cell of the physical body.  It must be noted that limitations of the physical body may permit only partial functioning and expression of the subtle body.

The causal body, without which there is no life, shines completely through the subtle and the gross bodies and is not affected by them at all, but the nature of the gross body determines the extent to which the subtle body may express itself in a gross body!  All beings, except the human being, are endowed with gross bodies that do not permit the subtle body to express itself completely.  Beings other than humans have physical bodies that cannot comprehend the dictates of the buddhi in favor of natural instincts of the physical body, which in turn depend upon the attributes of the physical body itself.

Process of Dissolution

The universe dissolves into the Universal Principle at the time of its demise in a process, which is the reverse of the manifestation process (Figure 2 – Dissolution).  The physical body dissolves into five of its component elements and the subtle body into three of its component elements.  The eight natural elements were born of prakriti (energy), and they dissolve back into it.  Prakriti and Purusha then join and become one infinite Universal Principle.

Attributes

Diversity appears through differences in gunas - properties or attributes inherent in an entity.  Attributes appear when the Natural Principle expresses itself as an individual entity.  Individuation and attribution happen simultaneously.  Individuation also results in finiteness, limitations, and a propensity for change.  Finiteness and limitations result from the loss of infinity; and propensity for change results from the loss of eternity as the infinite and eternal Universal Principle manifests as individual beings.

Different finite individual entities, bestowed with different inherent attributes, look, feel, act, behave, smell, taste, etc. differently.  In addition, Time changes attributes of individual entities adding to their diversity.  The Natural Principle is the source of all attributes which are present in it, in such a perfect balance as to make it appear without attributes.  It uses attributes to differentiate one manifested entity from the other.  If it does not do so, there is no point in manifestation.  The universe would be devoid of purpose and meaning in the absence of diversity.

The Transcendent is in itself without any attributes.  And the Consciousness Principle in itself is without any attributes.  They transcend all attributes.  They are beyond change as they are eternal.  They are without limitation of any kind, whatsoever.  Individuation, attribution, limitation, change, and finiteness are in the realm of the Natural Principle alone when it manifests itself as individual entities. Attributes apply to the realms of both objective and subjective, since the eight tattvas of the Natural Principle underlying both of these realms.

Although the Consciousness Principle is beyond attribute, it is identified by sat (eternity), chit (consciousness), and anand (bliss).  These three are known as Its basic nature and not attributes, as attributes change in time while the basic nature stays the same.  This differentiation is necessary, as the Consciousness Principle is changeless whereas the Natural Principle is subject to incessant change.

In addition to the obvious physical attributes of look, feel, smell, taste, etc. inherent in an entity, there are three subtle attributes that are present in different proportions in different entities.  The concept of these subtle attributes is easily understood if we recall that the various entities in the objective world are mere manifestations of consciousness and energy.  The subtle attributes reflect the state of energy (gati - movement, or change) inherent in the entity.  They represent how different entities react to change depending upon the type of movement in the minutest of particles that comprise the entity.  Forces of change in the universe result from the interaction of individual entities in the universe.  Every finite entity changes as a result of these forces.  But the way the forces of change affect different entities is different.  Observing the phenomenon of gati (motion, or change) in the universe, sages describe these subtle attributes as follows:

1.         Tamas or tamo guna: Inertia and ignorance are the keywords used to describe this attribute.  This attribute is possessed by entities that are highly resistant to change.  The rate of change in entities with dominance of this attribute is either so slow that they seem not to change at all, or they may change state beyond recognition under extreme conditions.  Tamasic entities are more like things than beings, as they appear lifeless because of their static nature.  This attribute characterizes darkness, ignorance, sloth, and lack of knowledge and awareness.

At the subjective level[6], ignorance, delusion and contrary knowledge feed tamas. Tamas, in turn, results in lack of motivation, lack of ambition, apathy, neglect, sloth, sleepiness, and similar tendencies that lead to further ignorance, delusion and contrary knowledge.  A tamasic human being is thus caught in a vicious circle of ignorance, delusion and sloth.

2.        Rajas or rajo guna: Desire and activity are the keywords used to describe this attribute.  This attribute describes instability.  Change is rapid, but the effect of change is unpredictable.  The entities with rajas as the dominant attribute can be said to be in a state of unstable equilibrium.  Their behavior is rather unpredictable.  This attribute is accompanied by lack of peace, disorder, confusion, agitation and volatility.

At the subjective level, attachment and desire are the cause of rajas. Rajas, in turn, results in greed, ambition, motivation that cause activity, and sensual enjoyment leading to further attachment and desire.  A rajasic human being is thus caught in a vicious circle of attachment, desire, activity, and its fruit.

3.        Sat or sato guna: Light and cognition are the keywords used to describe this attribute.  This attribute describes the state of stable equilibrium resulting in the light of knowledge and understanding.  Change happens in an orderly manner.  Every effect is proportional to and consistent with its cause and, therefore, predictable.  Peace, quiet and order prevail.  There is no resistance to change and change causes no confusion.  Agitation and volatility are completely absent where this attribute predominates.  This attribute is characteristic of light, knowledge and consciousness.  There is absence of darkness, ignorance, sloth, and confusion in entities where sato guna is the dominant attribute.

At the subjective level, cognition, knowledge and understanding feed sat. Sat, in turn, leads to lack of ill will and evil feelings, peace, painlessness, and feelings of happiness leading to further knowledge and understanding.  This too is a vicious circle of feelings of peace and happiness, knowledge, and understanding.

Cause and Effect

Another reason for diversity is the process of cause and effect.  Forces of change resulting from the interaction of different entities are causes that inevitably give rise to their effects.  Thus, the objective universe is constantly subjected to causes and effects, which in turn become causes for further effects.  There is a continuous chain of causes and effects infinitely complicated by the three gunas in myriad combinations determining the manner in which entities react to causes.  Although the relationship between causes and effects may generally be too complex for human intellect to understand, their systematic study in certain objective fields such as science, medicine, etc., by trained minds is known to prove beneficial to human beings.

Human Beings

Of all the diverse animate beings in the universe, human beings form a class in themselves.  They represent an optimum manifestation of the Universal Principle, being endowed with a physical body that provides the toolkit necessary for exploiting the full potential of the subtle body.  The human physical body provides the medium necessary for communicating the considered thought from the buddhi to the ahamkara along with the uncontrolled instinctive demands of the physical body.  Purusha does not exercise control over instinctive demands against overindulgence, this function being allocated to the ahamkara driven by the thought process of the buddhi (Figure 3 – Human Being).

Adult human beings with healthy physical bodies have the necessary physical medium to permit the thought waves of the buddhi to be communicated to the ahamkara, or let it be fully guided by natural instincts.  The extent to which ahamkara is affected by considered thought depends upon its current state, and the state of the physical body.  When a human being is born, ahamkara is completely controlled by natural instincts.  In time, the state of the physical body develops and a human being starts to collect experience.  Memories of the prior experience determines the state of ahamkara, which determines the extent to which considered thought of the buddhi is permitted to be passed on to mana to activate the body and the senses.  This activity leads to further experience, which determines the next state of ahamkara.  Proper human development depends upon the healthy development of the physical body, and the development of ahamkara conducive to the considered thought of the buddhi to primarily be passed on to the mana.

Mana is the controller of active and cognitive senses through which physical action is consummated.  Input to the mana controls how it directs the physical body to behave.  Thus, this input is the key for ethical human behavior.  Whether this input primarily results from considered conclusions of the thought process of the buddhi, or from instincts of the physical body determines the ethical quality of human actions and behavior.

Thus far, we have mentioned the thought process of the buddhi in the light of Purusha alone.  The reality of the functioning of the subtle body in humans is more complicated.  Human actions and behavior results in feedback to the mana by the cognitive senses.  This feedback is primarily in the form of pleasure or pain resulting from physical activity motivated by the current state of the mana.  This feedback is recorded as an experience by the ahamkara.  Ahamkara uses this experience to filter and interfere with the pure thoughts of the buddhi in the light of Purusha alone.  In addition, it feeds its recorded experiential data and physical instinctive demands as input to the buddhi to shape the thoughts communicated back to ahamkara as the considered thoughts of the buddhi guided by Purusha alone.  This meddling and interfering by ahamkara in the pure thought process of the buddhi in the light of Purusha alone complicates the ethical situation enormously.

Full human development is characterized by the ahamkara being primarily excited by the thought process of the buddhi in the light of Purusha.  Ahamkara thus excited activates the mana, which, in turn, controls the senses governing human activity.  In this state, ahamkara does not ignore physical instincts but refuses to be blinded by them.  In fact, it manages instinctive matters of the physical body in such a manner as to optimize total health and happiness (mental, physical, and spiritual) in a sustainable fashion.

Other Beings

Just like human beings, other beings also have a physical body, a subtle body, and a causal body.  One major difference between human and other beings is that, in other beings, their physical bodies do not provide the medium to communicate the considered thoughts of the buddhi to the ahamkara (Figure 4 - Animal Being).  The ahamkara only receives the physical instinctive demands as input.  They are filtered through the body of prior experiential data and the result passed on the mana for further physical activity.  To guard against overindulgence by the physical body, the causal body directly exercises control over the instinctive demands.

Thus, the subtle body deprives the ahamkara of the considered thought process necessary for free will.  Bodily activity is motivated totally through involuntary automatic responses modified only by prior experience.  In the absence of free will, other beings do not carry the responsibility for their actions.  Their actions, being directly controlled by the causal body, are not a matter of their choice.  Thus, activities of beings other than human beings are not subject to the confines of ethical considerations.

The Human Dilemma

The dilemma of following the dictates of the thought process of the buddhi in the light of Purusha or uncontrolled instinctive and natural demands of the physical body results in an imposition of a sense of human responsibility.  This sense of responsibility results from the free will of the ahamkara to accept one of the two available choices or to moderate between the two. 

Human beings are responsible beings because of the free will with which they are endowed.  They can think.  They can consider alternatives.  They can choose from various possible ways of acting and thinking.  That gives them the distinctive feature putting them in a class by themselves.

When an ahamkara allows uncontrolled instinctive demands of the physical body alone to control the mana (either by shutting out or stifling the dictates of considered thought), the individual human being is said to be totally body conscious.  The source of the human's identity in that state is primarily his physical body.  The light of the Consciousness Principle is totally ignored.  Buddhi becomes dormant as if it is nonexistent.  Since the physical body is limited, the human's vision becomes limited.  All of the actions of such a human being are like those of an animal being whose connection between the buddhi and ahamkara is non-existent.  There is not much of a difference between such a human and an animal.  All the actions of such a human being are divisive in nature, as such a being perceives the body as of prime importance, distinct and unconnected with any other entity in the universe.  The only relations are those connected with the body.  Obsessive bodily concerns remain the only driving force.

When an ahamkara somehow attains a state in which the instinctive needs of the physical body are totally ignored and only the considered thought of the buddhi in the light of purusha is communicated to the mana, the human being loses individuality in the infinity of the Consciousness Principle.  In that state, the being becomes all infinity, eternity, consciousness, and bliss.  The physical and subtle bodies cease to be significant, as the components of the Natural Principle alone are the cause of individuation.  The existence of this state can only be in concept rather than reality.  One can at best get momentary glimpses of such a state, but once such a state is experienced even for a split second, sages say that it is easy for the rest of the life to be guided primarily by the infinity of purusha shining through the buddhi.

When an ahamkara allows primarily the considered thought of the buddhi in the light of purusha to be communicated to the mana (with due regards to the dictates of the instinctive needs of the physical body), the human being attains an optimum state consistent with universal consciousness without losing individuality.  In this state, ahamkara manages instinctive matters of the physical body in such a manner as to optimize total health and happiness simultaneous with attaining identification with the Consciousness Principle, which is infinite, eternal, conscious, and blissful.  Human actions are then guided primarily by universal rather than individual considerations.  One sees oneself more as a part of a universal whole rather than a separate divided and unconnected individual.

The Ultimate Ethic

The ultimate ethic, thus, is to achieve a state of being that allows human actions to be guided primarily by the considered thought of the buddhi in the light of purusha, with due regard to the instinctive needs of the physical body.  Such a state is achieved when a person chooses to identify with the infinity of purusha rather than the limitations of the individual body.  In practical terms, such an individual is guided by the principle of oneness, not only spiritual oneness but material also, that is reflected in the following moral imperative[7]:

·        Good is what makes for unity or oneness; and

·        Evil is what makes for separateness or division.

On the other hand, consider a person who identifies completely with the instinctive needs of the body alone.  Such a person’s viewpoint is going to be extremely limited since the body that is the source of his motivation is extremely limited.  The needs of this individual’s body will be above the needs of every other body.  The deeds of this individual will be divisive due to the perceived supremacy of the individual.

The basis of the ultimate ethic lies in the mistaken worldview that sees diversity alone where there is also the unity of the Universal Principle.  “Empirical thought, failing to grasp the ultimate reality, distorts it or cuts it up into parts and presents them as distinct from one another.  Evil is due on the practical side of this mistaken view of Reality as finiteness is on the theoretical side.^[8]”

Human Journey Towards The Ultimate Ethic

How can human kind be ethical in the ultimate sense as envisaged in this article?  An answer is indicated by examining the concept of attributes discussed earlier in this article.  Attributes apply to the entire domain of the Natural Principle which comprises both the objective and the subjective worlds.  In the matter of human beings, the physical gross body is subject to attributes, and the subtle body comprised of mana, ahamkara, and buddhi is also subject to attributes.  In the human context, we are primarily concerned with the attributes of the subtle body.  Although attributes of the physical body cannot be totally ignored, attributes of the subtle body can usually alter those of the physical body provided the physical body is healthy and free from disease.  An unhealthy and diseased physical body can be a real hurdle in human development.

Tamas is characterized by lack of motivation and ambition, apathy, neglect, and sloth.  A tamasic human being is caught in a vicious circle of delusion, sloth, and sleepiness.  It is easy for the body to get used to sloth and sleepiness.  They become a cause of bondage that hinders human development and keep the human being focused primarily on the body.  Such a person has a very narrow worldview, and a value system that is totally materialistic and body centered.

Rajas is characterized by greed, worldly ambition, motivation, activity, fruit of activity, attachment and desire.  A rajasic human being is thus caught in a vicious circle of attachment, desire, activity, and its fruit.  Actions and their fruit cause further desire and greed and a longing to hold on to the hard-earned fruit of actions.  Fruit of actions and their attachment become a cause of bondage that keeps the human being incessantly involved in listless activity.  Thinking is seldom tried.  Understanding remains confused.  Value system and worldview are unclear and doubts abound.

Sat is characterized by cognition, knowledge and understanding. Sat leads to lack of ill will and evil feelings, peace, painlessness, and feelings of happiness and well being.  Worldview and value system are clear, though conviction may not be firm enough to always act in accordance with the worldview.  There is a degree of smugness and superiority due to the knowledge and understanding that the person has amassed.  This person remains attached to the feeling of peace, happiness, and well being that continues to bind the person to his own limited concerns.  This too is a vicious circle, although an enviable one.

It is only when a person has developed to merit the attribute of sat that the person can experience glimpses of the state where the intellect is guided by the infinity of the immanent subtle body shared by the entire universe.  It is only then that a person realizes oneness with the entire universe and develops conviction in the Universal Principle that enables compatible behavior.

We have seen that the three attributes, related with the subjective and the objective worlds, are all limiting to some degree, tamas being the most limiting and sat being the least.  One must learn to transcend the tamas into the being the least.  One must learn to transcend the tamas into the rajas, transcend rajas into sat, and then transcend even sat to connect with the infinity of the Immanent, and through the Immanent connect with the infinity of the Transcendent Universal Principle (Figure 5 – Human Development).  At that stage, a person is totally unattached with limiting personal concerns and totally attached with the universal.  The person’s behavior then is totally guided by oneness.  Oneness becomes a nature.  Divisive behavior is totally ousted.

The human development model in Figure 5 is a practical model.  Although everyone has a dominant attribute, nature has assured that no person is totally trapped into it.  From time to time, every person experiences each of the other attributes as well.  With awareness that is the gift of the Immanent sitting in the subtle body, the person experiences the superiority of one over the other and adopts the superior one as the dominant attribute.  In this process, a person is fully capable of transcending all the way from tamas to rajas, from rajas to sat, and from sat to personal experiences of infinity of the Immanent.  Education helps in the process, as do learning, study, introspection, and meditation.

Conclusions

This article studies a perspective of the human ethics primarily from the point of view of the Sankhya philosophy of sage Kapila.  It develops a model of the human psyche to investigate the source of the ethical dilemma. 

This article indicates that human beings have two opposing and inescapable directions in life.  One is called bhoga. This word implies enjoyment of life and gathering of a variety of sense experiences in the process.