Shloka 46
Adhyāya 302: Guṇa-vicāra, Gati-bheda, and the Imperishable State
Yājñavalkya–Janaka
शुक्ललोहितकृष्णानि रूपाण्येतानि त्रीणि तु । सर्वाण्येतानि रूपाणि यानीह प्राकृतानि वै
śukla-lohita-kṛṣṇāni rūpāṇy etāni trīṇi tu | sarvāṇy etāni rūpāṇi yānīha prākṛtāni vai ||
白、赤、黑——此三者即三种形相（或色相）。诚然，此间一切由原质（Prakṛti）所生之相，皆摄于此三色之中。
वसिष्ठ उवाच
Educational Q&A
All material manifestations (prākṛta rūpas) can be understood through the threefold framework of guṇas—sattva (white/clarity), rajas (red/activity), and tamas (black/inertia). This provides an ethical lens for evaluating behavior and cultivating sattva.
In Śānti Parva’s instructional discourse, Vasiṣṭha explains a philosophical classification: the diversity of worldly forms and dispositions is traced back to Prakṛti operating through three primary qualities, expressed symbolically as white, red, and black.