Suka replied: — Void of Gunas, without beginning, without manifestation, beyond Prakriti, Bhagavân pervades and permeates the Gunas of His Mâyâ. Hence His seeming relations. Satva, Rajas and Tamas are not His Gunas, but they are the Gunas of Prakriti. These attributes or tendencies of Prakriti do not all prevail at one and the same period; but they have got their periods of increase and decrease. (That is, since the beginning of the universe, the general tendency which guides all beings is different at different times. Thus at the very outset there was inertia, Tamas. This inertia was got over by Rajas, which predominated in the Prajâpatis, and the life-forms appeared on the globes. There was Tamas again in the mineral kingdom, which had to be conquered by Râjasic activity. And Rajas was in full swing till humanity reached a certain stage. Then Satva manifested itself for the evolution of men. The spiritual regeneration will be brought about by the ever increasing prevalence of Satva). When Satva prevails, Bhagavân favours the Devas and Rishis. When Rajas prevails, He favours the Asuras. When Tamas prevails, He favors the Yakshas and Râkshasas. He follows in fact the periodic tendency. It is Kâla (Periodicity) that now brings up Satva. So the Lord seems to favour the hosts of Devas, in whom Satva prevails. He also seems to put down the hosts of Asuras, who are opposed to the Devas being full of Rajas and Tamas. It is also to favour the Asuras that He kills them. For we have seen above, how the gate-keepers of Vishnu became Hiranyâksha and Hiranyakasipu by the curse of the Kumâra brothers. They had to become Asuras for three successive births. In the second birth, they became Râvana and Kumbhakarna, when they were killed by Râma. In their last birth, they became Shishupâla and Danta-vakra, when they were killed by Sri Krishna. Then they became finally liberated and restored to their place in Vaikuntha. (The Spiritual ascent commenced finally on the appearance of Sri Krishna. It was to prevail for the remaining life period of the universe. The Asuras had done their work by this time, and therefore they finally returned to Vaikuntha). THOUGHTS ON THE ABOVE. The Daityas and the Dânavas are both called Asuras. But there is a radical difference between the two classes.