According to Osho, tamas, rajas, and sattva are the three gunas—basic qualities of energy that together constitute every personality. Each person contains all three; one may dominate and become the medium of expression, while the others remain latent. A single-quality expression yields inner consistency; a balanced, simultaneous play of all three (as in Krishna) creates a multicolored, paradoxical wholeness.
They are three basic qualities in everyone; one may lead at a time, but together they make your whole personality.
From the Discourses
Passages where Osho speaks to this question — each links to the complete discourse.
For if a man starts walking and cannot stop—if he forgets how to stop! He had set out to reach the goal, but on reaching he has to be able to stop; and if he forgets how to stop, and walking becomes such that even if he wishes to stop, he cannot—then even if the goal arrives, what can he do? The goal will pass him by. He will keep walking. Tamas: that which stops and makes things stop. Rajas: that which gives movement, intensity—energy in flow, like a river, like electricity. The whole world is dynamic. If things remained fixed, there could be no world. There must be movement, growth. A child is born; he will grow. If death is tamas, then life is rajas; birth is rajas. In the moment of birth the child has more rajas, less tamas. In the old, tamas increases and rajas diminishes.
Osho, you say: Dharma is one, samadhi is one, the Divine is one, but swadharmas are many. How are these two reconciled? Please clarify.
These are the three elements to which India gave these names. The West calls them electron, proton, neutron—give any names; it makes no difference. What is established is that the ultimate analysis of life falls into three forces. Hence we gave them many names. Those who thought scientifically called them rajas, tamas, sattva. Those who thought metaphorically, poetically, said: Brahma, Vishnu, Mahesh. Their work is the same. Brahma is the creative force; Vishnu sustains; Shiva destroys. Without all three, nothing can be. Electron, neutron, proton do these three jobs as well. The electron is negative—like Shiva, it negates, breaks, destroys. The proton is positive—like Brahma, it builds. The neutron is neither negative nor positive; it sustains, stands between, balances. Krishna says: within man—whatever happens, inner or outer—is play of these three forces. According to them, all occurs. One is pushed, restrained, born, dies, laughs, weeps—these are the work of the…
Question: YOU HAVE EXPLAINED TO US ABOUT THE THREE GUNAS, THE THREE BASIC FORCES OF LIFE, OF TAMAS, THE CAUSE OF INACTIVITY, INERTIA AND INDOLENCE, RAJAS, THE CAUSE OF ACTIVITY OR PASSION, AND SATTWA, THE CAUSE OF SERENITY, CALMNESS AND KNOWLEDGE. YOU HAVE ALSO EXPLAINED TO US THAT THEY EXISTED IN EQUAL MEASURE IN THE PERSONALITIES OF LAO TZU, JESUS, MAHAVIRA AND KRISHNA. IN THIS CONNECTION, IT IS REMEMBERED THAT YOU WERE A GREAT REVOLUTIONARY IN THE PAST. IN THE SOCIAL, ECONOMIC, POLITICAL AND RELIGIOUS SPHERES YOU HAD CREATED MUCH EXCITEMENT AND CONTROVERSY THROUGHOUT THE COUNTRY. FROM THIS IT APPEARED THAT YOU WERE, LIKE JESUS, ACTIVITY-ORIENTED OR PREDOMINANTLY ACTIVITY CONSCIOUS. BUT OF LATE, SINCE THE END OF 1970, YOU HAVE BEEN SLOWLY WITHDRAWING YOURSELF, AND WE HAVE A FEELING THAT YOU HAVE NOW BECOME THE EPITOME OF SERENITY. IS IT POSSIBLE TO HAVE SUCH A TRANSFORMATION?