This quiz asks nine short questions about everyday tendencies, such as how you meet unkindness, how you take on a job and how you spend free time, and shows which of the three qualities of mind your answers lean towards: sattva, rajas or tamas. Every answer stands for one quality from a list in the Sushruta Samhita, and the result shows which one, so that you can see how it was reached.
It is a reflection on a traditional idea. It is not a judgement of character and it cannot tell you anything about your mental health.
How it works
Ayurveda describes the mind as having three qualities. The Sushruta Samhita, Sharira Sthana 1, lists the marks of each. In Kunja Lal Bhishagratna’s English translation of 1911, where the passage is paragraph 19, the sattvika mind is marked by forbearance, truthfulness, spiritual knowledge, intellect, memory, comprehension, the absence of hostility and doing good without regard to the reward; the rajasika mind by a roving spirit, vanity, untruthfulness, a lack of clemency, pride, overconfidence, desire, anger and excitement; and the tamasika mind by despondency, a clouded intellect, lethargy in action and sleepiness. The list also names faith in God and piety under sattva and their absence under tamas; the quiz leaves those out, as matters of personal belief. Four more marks in the list are not used by any answer: a judicious regimen of diet under sattva, much pain and misery and noncomprehension under rajas, and stupidity under tamas. The first is about diet rather than a habit of mind, and we did not find a plain everyday question for each of the other three that did not repeat a mark already used. The words are Bhishagratna’s.
Each of the nine questions has three answers, one for each quality. Which listed quality an answer stands for is our own reading of the list, and the result table shows it for every answer you give. You need to answer at least 7. The percentages are the share of your answers that pointed to each quality. One quality leads when it is 14 points or more ahead of the next, the result is even when the highest and lowest are within 12 points, and otherwise two lead. These cut-offs are our own, the same as in the prakriti quiz, and are not from a text.
Reading the result
A result such as “leaning towards rajas” describes how you answered nine questions on a given day. It does not say what kind of person you are. The tradition describes every mind as having all three qualities in changing proportions, and the Ashtanga Hridayam, Sutrasthana 1.21, names only rajas and tamas as the doshas of the mind, so sattva is the quality the tradition treats as healthy. Rajas is also the energy of doing things, and tamas also the quality of rest; the tradition does not ask anyone to be without them.
If the result surprises you, answer again on a calmer day, or ask someone who knows you well how they would answer for you.
Where traditions differ
The Charaka Samhita, Sharira Sthana 4.36 to 40, describes the mind as of three kinds, sattvika, rajasika and tamasika, and says each has innumerable varieties. It describes sixteen of them, seven sattvika, six rajasika and three tamasika, named after gods, sages, demons, animals and plants, and says these are given only in brief. This quiz does not try to place you among the sixteen. Other traditions, such as the Bhagavad Gita, describe the three qualities in their own words, and the lists do not match item for item. The quiz follows the Sushruta Samhita’s list alone.
What it does not do
It does not diagnose, it names no condition and it suggests no treatment, herb or practice. Questions about low mood, energy and sleep are part of the traditional list, but a quiz cannot tell ordinary tiredness from depression or another illness. If you have felt low, hopeless or flat for two weeks or more, are sleeping much more or less than usual, or find it hard to cope, please talk to a doctor. If you have any thoughts of harming yourself, contact emergency services or a crisis line now: in India, call 112, or Tele MANAS on 14416. The stress page describes how the tradition talks about the mind, and the medical disclaimer explains the limits of this site.
Frequently asked questions
↳ What are sattva, rajas and tamas?
They are the three qualities of the mind in Ayurveda: sattva is clarity and goodness, rajas is activity and desire, and tamas is heaviness and inertia. The Sushruta Samhita, Sharira Sthana 1, lists the marks of each.
↳ Is it bad to have a rajas or tamas result?
No. The tradition describes all three in every mind. The Ashtanga Hridayam calls rajas and tamas the doshas of the mind, but rajas is also the energy to act and tamas the capacity to rest. The result describes answers, not worth.
↳ Can my result change?
Yes. It reflects how you answered on one day, and the tradition says the balance of the mind changes with circumstances, company and how we live. Many people get a different result on a calmer or a harder day.
↳ Is this the same as the prakriti quiz?
No. The prakriti quiz looks at the bodily doshas, vata, pitta and kapha. This quiz looks at the three qualities of the mind, a separate scheme with its own vocabulary.
↳ Why does the quiz leave out belief in God?
The Sushruta Samhita's list includes faith and piety, but they are matters of personal belief, and a quiz on a public site should not score them. Four other marks in the list are not used either: a judicious regimen of diet, much pain and misery, noncomprehension and stupidity. The result table shows which mark each of your answers stands for.
↳ Can this quiz tell me if I am depressed?
No. If low mood, flatness or sleep changes last two weeks or more, please talk to a doctor. In a crisis in India call 112, or Tele MANAS on 14416.