SunCorp

The scriptures clearly define the three qualities of tamas, rajas and sattva present in all of us. Tamas is inertia or resistance to transformation. Rajas is aggressiveness, restlessness or result-oriented action. Sattva is the characteristic of purity inside us.

As human beings, all of us have this wonderful quality which gives us patience, tolerance and establishes us in a state of utter tranquillity. But our sattvic nature has been pushed to the background. That is why we make no progress in spiritual practices like meditation. Total confusion, problems and worries are the fruits of tamas. Lack of peace or a disturbed mind is the fruit of rajas. Peace, happiness and contentment are the fruits of sattva.

 Our sattvic nature is given to us in the form of energy by God Himself. It empowers us to cope with problems in a very systematic way without affecting our mental peace or depleting our humane qualities. It tunes us to Divinity and activates our Soul. Just like we preserve food using a preservative, we should preserve our minds using the energy called sattva. If we want to have unflagging inspiration, zeal, zest and dynamism, we have to soak our minds in sattva.
    

Sattva gives us the ability to remain unruffled at all times. We interact with so many people. Whatever people say, we should never allow inner peace to get destroyed. If there is a grain of sattva in us, other people’s thoughts, words and actions will bombard and kill it if we react to them. Even if somebody accuses you, keep quiet. After a while that person will realise his mistake. When we don’t react and become completely quiet inside, what comes out of us is sattva and peace. This is in the form of a vibration. We cannot see it, but we can feel and experience it. These divine vibrations are extremely powerful. They transform people and situations, as no words can.

When we don’t react, our sattva acts like a concrete wall and shields us from other people’s negative energy. If we react, all that energy will invade us in the form of vibrations. Then we will feel depressed, tired and depleted of energy. Sattva is an armour that protects us from all kinds of negative vibrations, as well as an antenna that attracts positive and divine vibrations. Physical proximity is not required for the transmission of such vibrations. They are transmitted automatically even when we think of a person. That is why, when we pray for somebody’s welfare, though that person is far away, our prayers benefit him.

We allow our sattvic qualities to drain away in so many ways — through over-reacting, indulging in negative thoughts and emotions and even through unnecessary talk and gossip. If we want to retain our equipoise, we must avoid such things. The whole point of venerating a guru or god is to increase the sattva in us. We think doing so would resolve our problems.

However, the main purpose is to increase the sattva in us. Sleep replenishes our sattva to the extent of 25 per cent. The guru rejuvenates our sattva one hundred per cent. Selfless prayer, meditation, chanting the holy names of God and spending time with evolved beings restore our sattvic qualities. We must constantly replenish this energy inside us. When we establish this quality in us, God resides in our minds. The vibrations of peace and happiness that we exude will bring contentment and serenity into the lives of all those around us.

Shenzhen, the booming mainland China area that neighbors Hong Kong, said it is considering legislation to end the free use of plastic shopping bags supplied by retailers. A ban would make Shenzhen the first mainland city to battle the rampant use of plastic shopping bags, but any curbs will face public controversy.

Shenzhen's legislative affairs office has been soliciting opinion on a revised draft of an environmental protection regulation that would end the 30-year retail practice of providing free plastic shopping bags. The draft Environmental Protection Regulation stipulates  that retailers will be fined from 5,000 yuan (US$667) to 50,000 yuan if they provide free plastic bags or fail to provide environment-friendly shopping bags or reusable baskets.

Zeng Suisheng, chief of the economic laws and regulations section of Shenzhen's legislative affairs office, said his office had posted the draft on the city's website and had written to more than 40 departments to seek opinions.

The environmental protection department has defended its proposal by listing statistics on the environmental impact of plastic bags. Retailers across Shenzhen, whose fast-growing population is estimated at anything up to 20 million, use at least 1.75 billion plastic bags each year, it said, adding that most of those bags will take more than 200 years to decompose and some never will.

"The use of plastic bags can be reduced in an efficient way with economic incentives, as consumers must bear the cost when shopping," a department statement said.

Some industry experts welcomed the proposal as a contrast to previous moves that amounted to lecturing consumers. Dong Jinshi, deputy chairman of the professional committee of plastic recycling under the China Plastic Production Industry Association, firmly supported Shenzhen's efforts.

"Shenzhen City should urgently investigate and pilot the use of plastic bag substitutes and ensure a stable supply of reliable, reasonably priced substitutes. Shenzhen could pave the way for other Chinese cities in tackling white pollution," he said, using the term increasingly used to refer to the problem of waste plastic bags and foam plastic food containers.

The free distribution of plastic bags, which was introduced in Guangdong province in the early 1980s, is taken for granted by many customers as a convenience retailers are supposed to offer. A woman surnamed Zhang, shopping at Wanfeng supermarket in Futian district, said she would be unable to carry home her groceries if the supermarket did not give free bags.

Ding, another resident, described the city's move was aimed merely at attracting attention. "Shenzhen is a city with a fast-moving lifestyle. Who do you think will carry a basket for shopping? It will be unimaginable to go to work by metro while bringing a basket along," he said.

Mainland Chinese are increasingly concerned about rising prices, with higher cost of food stuffs helping inflation rise this year to 4.4% through October, when cooking oil was costing at least a third more than a year earlier. One shopper, who gave his name as Zhong, questioned why the city authorities were insisting on doing something that would further add to costs. "Why not let the business operators offer degradable bags?" he asked.

One posting on Tencent.com, a leading Internet portal, said the government should not just impose fines but should spend more to encourage the public to use fewer plastic bags or shift to environment-friendly substitutes.

Even so, in a survey of 1,786 people jointly carried out last week by the Social Surveys Center of China Youth Daily and the press center of popular Internet portal Sina.com, 74% of the respondents supported Shenzhen's plan and favored the paid use of plastic bags in their localities. About 93% said they were willing to shoulder inconveniences to protect the environment, while 51% recommended incentives to get people to switch, instead of imposing fines.

Some retailers in Shenzhen have started to prepare for the charges. Chen Songmei, manager of the cashiers' section with the Caifu shop of Xinyijia General Merchandise Chainstore, said charging for shopping bags would improve environmental protection awareness. He was confident Xinyijia's sales would not be affected by charging for shopping bags, as the law would apply to the entire retail sector. "Consumers will not stop shopping just because they will have to pay extra for carrier bags," he said.

Yu Qiuhua, publicity manager of Tianhong chain store, said the group's stores had been giving away free degradable plastic bags since 1994 and had distributed about 100,000 cloth bags free of charge each year. The chain had no immediate plan to charge for the degradable bags, which are more expensive than the plastic ones given out by most stores.

Zeng Suisheng, chief of the economic laws and regulations section of the legislative affairs office of Shenzhen City, said he was surprised by the strong public response to the proposal. Most of the e-mails and letters his office had received supported the bag plan, he said.

"The white pollution caused by excessive use of plastic bags will be solved permanently only if society can reach a consensus, and the government, business operators and consumers must make concerted efforts," said Zeng.

He said that no other details - such as the proposed cost of each bag, or how the costs would be shared among the government, businesses and the public - were available at the moment.

"We will work closely with other government departments and adjust the draft after considering public opinions and suggestions," he said. "The government should bear greater responsibility, but Shenzhen people should also abandon unhealthy habits, such as using plastic bags."

CHOOSE RECYCLED PAPER. Choosing paper with high "postconsumer" recycled content - at least 30 percent for copier paper - means less virgin pulp is used and more waste is diverted from landfills. (Products marked with "post-industrial recycled content" are less beneficial, since the term refers to waste generated in production that never reached consumers and that manufacturers already reuse in order to save money.) For every 40 standard boxes of copier paper made from 100 percent post-consumer material, an office can save 24 trees, 7,000 gallons of water, 4,100 kilowatt hours of electricity, and 60 pounds of air pollution, according to the National Resources Defense Council.

TURN OFF THE LIGHTS. At 30 percent of total energy consumption, according to the US Department of Energy, lighting is a big chunk of energy use in a typical office building. Rejiggering a building's overall lighting design to include more natural daylight, more efficient lamps, timers, and occupancy sensors are a few of the big-ticket ways companies can help decrease their use. But simply turning lights off at night could go a long way, too, toward changing both behavior and energy bills. It worked at Breakstone, White & Gluck, a law firm in Boston where motion detectors and energy-efficient bulbs were installed, and where lawyers and other staff, as well as the late-night cleaning crew, are encouraged to turn off lights. The result? A 10 percent drop in energy use, reflected on the monthly utility bill. "Most of these changes can be done for pennies," says David W. White Jr., a partner in the firm and president of the Massachusetts Bar Association, who is also launching the Lawyers Eco-Challenge in January, a statewide competition to see which firm can operate the most eco-friendly office.

GO ENERGY STAR. The Energy Star rating is best known in the context of home appliances like dishwashers and refrigerators. Yet, approved office equipment uses up to 60 percent less electricity than standard copiers and the like, automatically switches into power-conserving mode when not in use, and can save bundles on energy bills. Go to energystar.gov for lists and rankings of computers, printers, and even water coolers.

MAKE MACHINES LAST. Eking out one more year from existing equipment will cut back tremendously on hazardous e-waste, save money, and can significantly reduce energy consumption. Other solutions, such as switching from individual desktop computers to machines that run off of central servers, can also help businesses cut back. (Laptops also use less power, but are more expensive to buy and have shorter life spans.) "If your office can't save one-quarter of the energy it's using, you're not trying," says Cambridge-based consultant Mark Ontkush, founder of New View Data Solutions in Belmont, which specializes in green computing and energy efficiency.

KNOW - AND USE - YOUR BENEFITS. Some companies offer incentives for going green on the job and at home. Household and personal-care products manufacturer Seventh Generation of Burlington, Vermont, for example, offers employees $5,000 toward purchasing a hybrid car, another $5,000 for energy-efficient home improvements, and $500 for installing upgraded appliances. Environmentalism is in the company's DNA, but it's also good for business, says spokeswoman Chrystie Heimert - employee turnover is extraordinarily low. Whether your employer's best offer is telecommuting or a T pass, take advantage of it.

STOP USING STYROFOAM. Expanded polystyrene, commonly known as styrofoam, developed a bad reputation in the 1980s when it was made using chemicals that damaged the atmosphere's ozone layer. Safer options have since been substituted, but styrofoam is still made from petroleum, is rarely recycled, takes hundreds of year to degrade, and can endanger wildlife. If your company has a cafeteria, talk with managers and enlist your colleagues to get styrofoam cups, plates, and containers taken out of the inventory or, at least, added to recycling programs. Your next crusade for the caf: insisting upon reusable plates, cups, and utensils.

BREATHE BETTER. The air inside buildings is typically at least two to five times more polluted than that outside and can cause headaches, fatigue, nausea, asthma, and other irritations, according to the EPA. The culprit? Furniture, carpeting, paints, and cleaning products - especially when coupled with poor ventilation - that give off harmful gases. Considering that people spend about 90 percent of their time indoors (another EPA figure), better building design and maintenance can positively affect our health. "Proper indoor air quality can improve worker health and productivity," says Douglas Kot, an architect and consultant with the Green Building Roundtable, a nonprofit consultancy in Boston. "And that's good for business."

FIND A GREENER GIG. You don't have to switch careers entirely to have an impact - just think creatively. "If you want to be a green professional, learn about marketing, finance, biology, or whatever, then apply your environmental passions to that arena," advises Joel Makower, executive editor of GreenBiz.com, a Berkeley, California-based news website, and author of several books on sustainable business. "If you approach it that way, the opportunities are endless."

Show them the money. Since ecological rewards don't always motivate higher-ups but cost-cutting measures do, frame your suggestions for saving the planet around saving money by using fewer resources. Drink at the sink. According to the Container Recycling Institute, Americans used nearly 30 billion single-use plastic water bottles in 2005, and, despite being recyclable, the majority wound up in the trash - at a rate of about 845 bottles each second. Shut down at night. It's a myth that leaving a computer on overnight is more efficient than rebooting in the morning. Use EPEAT, the Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool (epeat.net). It's an online guide to greener computers and can help purchasers evaluate, compare, and select machines based on environmental attributes. BYO. Bringing your lunch from home helps cut down on waste related to disposables and packaging, and not driving your car to a restaurant saves carbon emissions, too. Get matching donations. Does your company offer to match your charitable contributions? Find out if the environmental organization of your choice could benefit.