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The soul experiences a unique spiritual state in between the fall from the state of *samyaktva* (right faith) to the state of *mithyatva* (false faith). This is also evident from our practical experience that when a certain advanced state falls to a certain degraded state, a unique situation arises in between.
The third *gunasthan* (stage of spiritual progress) is the name given to the soul's mixed state, where it has neither *samyak drishti* (right faith) nor *mithya drishti* (false faith), but oscillates between the two. Therefore, its intellect is not independent, and it is *sambehashol* (confused), meaning it accepts everything that comes before it. In other words, it neither knows *tattva* (truth) as a separate entity nor can it fully understand the true nature of *tattva*.
A soul that is progressing can move from the first *gunasthan* directly to the third *gunasthan*, and a soul that is regressing can also fall from the fourth *gunasthan* to the third *gunasthan*. Thus, the third *gunasthan* is the resting place for both progressing and regressing souls. This is the special characteristic of the third *gunasthan* compared to the second *gunasthan*.
The above-mentioned states of the soul, along with their sub-categories, are classified in the scriptures as three states for embodied souls: (1) *bahiratma* (external soul), (2) *antaratma* (internal soul), and (3) *paramatma* (supreme soul).
In the first state, the true and pure form of the soul is extremely...