Tamas

Quality of inertia, darkness, heaviness. One of the three gunas composing prakriti, associated with ignorance, resistance to change, and lethargy.

Tamas has its function: it allows rest and stability. But in excess it produces laziness, depression, confusion, and the inability to act. A tamasic mind is dull, without clarity or motivation.

The first step in yogic practice is often to reduce tamas by cultivating rajas — action breaks inertia. Then rajas refines into sattva. It’s a gradual process of progressive illumination of the mental field.