We teach economics as a big gospalized subject. Still we expect morality
without greed. YMS
IS GUNA DEFECT IS A SUBJECTIVE OR AN OBJECTIVE PROJECTION?
it’s both, depending on how you’re using it—but it leans subjective in most
philosophical frameworks. Let’s unpack it clearly.
1. What “guṇa defect” usually means
In Indian philosophy (Nyāya, Vaiśeṣika, Ayurveda, Yoga, Vedānta), guṇa = a
quality or attribute (like heaviness, heat, clarity, inertia, etc.).
A guṇa defect (doṣa) means a faulty, excessive, deficient, or imbalanced
quality.
2. Objective projection (yes, in one sense)
A guṇa defect can be objective when:
It refers to observable properties (e.g., excess heat causing inflammation,
tamas cusing lethargy).
There are shared criteria within a system (texts, diagnostics, causal
rules).
Multiple observers can agree on the condition and its effects.
The defect is not just in the mind of the observer—it has causal
consequences in the world.
3. Subjective projection (also yes)
The “defect” depends on value judgments (good/bad, healthy/unhealthy,
desirable/undesirable).
It’s assessed relative to context, purpose, or observer.
*The same guna is a defect in one situation and a strength in another.*
*The “defect” is projected by the evaluator’s goal, not inherent in the
guna itself.*
4. The key philosophical point Guṇas themselves are neutral.
Defect arises from:
imbalance,
misapplication,
excess/deficiency,
or mismatch with a telos (aim).
*So the projection of defect involves subjective framing, even when
grounded in objective features.*
5. Bottom line
Ontologically (what exists): gunas are objective qualities.
Evaluatively (what counts as a defect): largely subjective and
context-dependent.
Practically (medicine, ethics, yoga): treated as intersubjective—shared but
not absolute.
Guṇa Defect (Doṣa) in Sāṅkhya and Nyāya–Vaiśeṣika Philosophy
Indian philosophical systems analyze reality not merely in terms of
substances but also through qualities (guṇa) and their functional roles.
The notion of guṇa-doṣa (defect of qualities) raises a critical
philosophical question: Is a defect inherent in the guṇa itself, or is it
dependent upon context, purpose, and cognition
A. Sāṅkhya Philosophy
In Sāṅkhya, the guṇas—sattva, rajas, and tamas—are ontologically real and
constitutive elements of Prakṛti. They are not accidental attributes but
the very fabric of material existence.
Guṇas as Neutral Constituents
Each guṇa has a fixed function:
Sattva: illumination, clarity
Rajas: activity, motion
Tamas: inertia, stability
None of these is inherently defective. They are value-neutral at the
ontological level.
Defect Arises from Disequilibrium
A “defect” occurs only when there is imbalance (vaiṣamya) among the guṇas.
For example, excess tamas results in ignorance or inertia, but tamas itself
is necessary for rest, form, and continuity. Thus, in Sāṅkhya, guṇas are
not defective by nature; defect is a functional and purposive judgment.
B. Nyāya–Vaiśeṣika Philosophy
In Nyāya–Vaiśeṣika, guṇa is a distinct category (padārtha) inhering in
substances (dravya).
Guṇas as Objective Properties
Qualities such as color, taste, number, cognition, pleasure, pain, etc.,
are real, observable, and objectively existent. Guṇas themselves are not
classified as good or bad. For example, desire (icchā) or aversion (dveṣa)
are real psychological guṇas, not defects per se. Hence, Nyāya–Vaiśeṣika
also affirms the ontological neutrality of guṇas.
II. Evaluative Status of Guṇa-Defect — Contextual and Goal-Dependent
A. Sāṅkhya Perspective Teleological Evaluation
In Sāṅkhya, evaluation depends on the *system’s ultimate aim:* . Any guṇa
that reinforces identification with Prakṛti is treated as a defect. Rajas
is necessary for evolution (pariṇāma). Sattva enables knowledge. Tamas
stabilizes forms. Yet, all three become doṣas from the standpoint of final
liberation, since even sattva binds through attachment to happiness and
knowledge. Defect is not absolute but relative to spiritual progress. What
is helpful at one stage becomes an obstacle at another.
B. Nyāya–Vaiśeṣika Perspective
Epistemic and Ethical Context
Nyāya evaluates guṇa-doṣa primarily in terms of pramāṇa (valid cognition)
and pravṛtti (action). Guṇas such as faulty perception, excessive desire,
or aversion are called doṣas only insofar as they generate false knowledge
or suffering.
A guṇa becomes a defect not by its existence but by its function in a given
context and relative to a specific goal. Thus, guṇa-doṣa is neither purely
subjective nor purely objective; it is contextually evaluative, grounded in
objective structures yet shaped by purposive judgment.
How Economics Can Be Averse to the Moral Progress of a
Nation A Philosophical Analysis Using the Guṇa–Doṣa Framework
Economics, like guṇas in Indian philosophy, is ontologically neutral. It
concerns production, distribution, consumption, incentives, and efficiency.
However, just as a guṇa becomes a doṣa when misapplied or excessive,
economic systems and incentives can become morally adverse when detached
from ethical and teleological considerations. How economics, though not
inherently immoral, can hinder the moral progress of a nation when
evaluated solely by material criteria.
I. Ontological Neutrality of Economics
Economics, in itself, is a descriptive and instrumental discipline. It
studies:
allocation of scarce resources,
market behavior,
growth and productivity.
Like rajas (activity), economics is a means, not an end. Growth, profit,
efficiency, and competition are not moral or immoral by nature. They become
morally significant only in relation to national goals and values.
Thus, economics is not the enemy of morality per se.
II. Economics as a Doṣa: When Means Overwhelm Ends
1. Reduction of Human Ends to Material Utility
When economic success is measured exclusively by:
GDP growth,
consumption levels,
profit maximization,
human beings are reduced to consumers and producers, not moral agents. This
leads to:
erosion of dignity,
instrumental treatment of labor,
neglect of compassion and justice.
Moral progress requires character; economics focuses on output.
2. Excessive Rajas: Hyper-Competition and Moral Erosion
In guṇa terms, unchecked economics embodies excess rajas:
relentless competition,
speed over reflection,
success over integrity.
Consequences include:
normalization of exploitation,
justification of unethical practices “for efficiency,”
weakening of trust and social cohesion.
Just as excess rajas disturbs mental clarity, excess economic drive
destabilizes ethical restraint.
3. Incentivization of Vice Through Market Logic
Markets reward what is profitable, not what is virtuous. As a result:
greed becomes rational,
deception becomes “strategy,”
environmental harm becomes an “externality.”
ice is no longer seen as moral failure but as economic rationality,
transforming moral defects into competitive advantages.
4. Inequality and Moral Fragmentation
Extreme economic inequality:
weakens empathy between classes,
replaces fraternity with resentment,
normalizes injustice as inevitable.
A morally progressing nation requires shared ethical horizons; unchecked
economics produces segmented moral worlds.
5. Displacement of Ethical Authority
When economic logic dominates:
policy is justified by “market necessity,”
moral objections are dismissed as “inefficient,”
ethical deliberation is subordinated to cost–benefit analysis.
This mirrors Sāṅkhya’s insight: even sattva, when absolutized, becomes
binding. Economics, when absolutized, becomes a doṣa.
III. Loss of Teleology: The Central Problem
In both Sāṅkhya and Nyāya, defect arises when function is severed from
purpose.
Economics answers how to produce.
Morality answers why to produce.
When a nation confuses the two:
prosperity replaces virtue as the highest good,
success replaces justice as the highest value.
This is not progress, but misdirected motion—pure rajas without sattva.
IV. Economics Without Ethics: A Systemic Doṣa
Using Nyāya’s framework:
Economics becomes a doṣa when it produces false knowledge (wealth =
wellbeing).
It becomes a causal condition for duḥkha (alienation, anxiety, social
decay).
Thus, the defect lies not in economics itself, but in its unchecked causal
role in shaping national values.
Economics can be adverse to the moral progress of a nation only when it is
treated as an end in itself rather than a means. Like guṇas, economics is
neutral in essence but evaluatively defective when excessive, misaligned,
or absolutized. True national progress requires economic activity guided by
moral vision, where wealth serves character, not replaces it.
*Moral progress is not anti-economic; it is anti-reductionist.*
* Adopted from Amartya Sen, ARTHA SASTRA AND TIRUKKURAL PORULADIKARAM AS *
*அருளில்லார்க்கு* *அவ்வுலகம்* *இல்லை* *பொருளில்லார்க்கு*
*இவ்வுலகம்* *இல்லாகி* *யாங்கு**. (**௨௱௪௰௭** - 247) *
*Arulillaarkku Avvulakam Illai Porulillaarkku*
*Ivvulakam Illaaki Yaangu*
*aruḷillārkku avvulakam illai poruḷillārkku*
*ivvulakam illāki yāṅku.*
*This world is not for the poor, Nor the next for the unkind.*
*பொருள்* *இல்லாதவர்க்கு* *இவ்வுலகத்து* *வாழ்க்கை* *இல்லாதவாறு* *போல*
*உயிர்களிடத்தில்* *அருள்* *இல்லாதவர்க்கு* *அவ்வுலகத்து* *வாழ்க்கை*
*இல்லையாம்**. (**௨௱௪௰௭**)*
*Hindi (**हिन्दी**)*
*प्राप्य* *नहीं* *धनरहित* *को**, **ज्यों* *इहलौकिक* *भोग* *।*
*प्राप्य* *नहीं* *परलोक* *का**, **दयारहित* *को* *योग* *॥** (**२४७**)*
*Telugu (**తెలుగు**)*
*ఇహము* *ధనములేక* *నింపొందగాఁలేము*
*పరము* *కరుణలేక* *బడయలేము**. (**౨౪౭**)*
*Malayalam (**മലയാളം**)*
*ഇഹത്തിൽ* *ധനമില്ലാത്തോർക്കാനന്ദം* *നഷ്ടമായപോൽ*
*ജീവകാരുണ്യമില്ലാത്തോർക്കില്ല* *സൗഖ്യം* *പരത്തിലും** (**൨൱൪൰൭**)*
*Kannada (**ಕನ್ನಡ**)*
*ಹಣವಿಲ್ಲದವರಿಗೆ* *ಈ* *ಲೋಕದ* *ಸುಖವು* *ಲಭ್ಯವಾಗದಿರುವಂತೆ** (**ಪ್ರಾಣಿಗಳಿಲ್ಲ**) *
*ಕರುಣೆ* *ಇಲ್ಲದವರಿಗೆ* *ಮೇಲು* *ಲೋಕದ* *ಸುಖವೂ* *ಲಭ್ಯವಾಗುವುದಿಲ್ಲ**. (**೨೪೭**)*
*Sanskrit (**संस्कृतम्**)*
*वित्तहीनो* *न* *लभते* *इहलोके* *यथा* *सुखम्।*
*परलोके* *न* *लभते* *दयाशू****न्य**: **सुखं* *तथा॥** (**२४७**)*
* K RAJARAM IRS 26126*
On Mon, 26 Jan 2026 at 09:00, Markendeya Yeddanapudi <
[email protected]> wrote:
> We teach economics as a big gospalized subject.Still we expect
> morality without greed.
> YMS
>
> On Sun, Jan 25, 2026 at 6:53 PM Seshadri Vellimedu <[email protected]>
> wrote:
>
>> Earning money Vs Morality.
>> Morality takes the back seat.
>> As shown by Dr Sundar, Thanks.
>>
>> On Sun, 25 Jan 2026 at 15:24, Dr Sundar <[email protected]> wrote:
>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Sirs
>>>
>>> Gutkha, pan masala, cigarettes, beedis, alcohol — all officially stamped
>>> “injurious to health.”
>>> Scientific proof, warning boards, scary images, solemn voices are afloat
>>> . Tamil nadu Govt itself has its own factory manufacturing under "Tasmac"
>>> no 1 revenue inflow mechanism to Govt and to Ministers
>>>
>>> they are manufactured enthusiastically, sold conveniently, and taxed
>>> gratefully.
>>>
>>> Isn’t this like telling a child:
>>> “Don’t eat this — it is very bad for you.
>>> Like cradling the child
>>> and pinching it too.
>>>
>>> One innocent senior-citizen question:
>>> Is this how nations across the world practice hypocrisy — saying one
>>> thing loudly, and doing the opposite very efficiently?
>>>
>>> Warm regards,
>>> Namaskaram
>>> *"KNOW THYSELF .*
>>> *SELF KNOWLEDGE IS REAL KNOWLEDGE.*
>>> *ALL OTHER KNOWLEDGE IS IGNORANCE AND THEY ARE NO KNOWLEDGE " *
>>> *~~~ Bhagavan Ramana*
>>>
>>>
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>>>
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>> <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/society4servingseniors/CAOB%2BDpaFBhexh5o-w4-CbzOq3DFRNPyWFEP1ChuKzZCA3OuJ8Q%40mail.gmail.com?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer>
>> .
>>
>
>
> --
> *Mar*
>
> --
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