If you would prefer to listen to this post I’ve also recorded it so you can kick back and relax your eyes. Listen here.
So having unveiled the Five Koshas (or sheaths, or layers or veils). We’ll take some time to contemplate the first layer. But first a quick overview of the them.
So Kosha is an incredible map laid out by the yogis in the Upanishads, specifically in the Taittiriya (Tay-Triya) Upanishad.
And what are the Upanishads?
The message that I’ve heard many times over is that at a certain point in history, human consciousness started to decline very rapidly. And as it started to decline, people started to struggle to interpret the Vedas.
What are the Vedas?
They a large body of religious texts originating in ancient India. Composed in Vedic Sanskrit, the texts constitute the oldest layer of Sanskrit literature and the oldest scriptures of Hinduism. There are four Vedas: the Rigveda, the Yajurveda, the Samaveda and the Athar-va-veda.
And so the teachings of the Vedas (Body of knowledge – Ayurveda comes from this, yoga comes from this) – at a certain point in history – people started to really struggle to interpret them.
So a group of Rishis (A Rishi is an Indian seer or hearer and revealer of divine knowledge) came together, and they wrote what are now known as the Upanishads.
And the Upanishads were kind of like a condensation or a re-emergence of the knowledge of the Vedas. And so one of the specific Upanishads lays out the knowledge of the Kosha’s. “And that’s what we’re exploring – Pancha Kosha.”
So the first thing to understand is what is Kosha? What is this layer, this sheath that we’re talking about? And basically, you can view it as your five bodies.”
So each of us in the Upanishadic thought have these five bodies, these five layers of our being. And often then are illustrated like little Russian dolls where four dolls fit within the one big doll.
So many of us have our awareness stuck in that big, thick, dense layer of the physical body and so the Koshas allow up so understand and provide a road map for better understanding who we really are when we peel back the layers.
I want to also make mention that all these layers are relevant in our experience. All of the layers are a part of our human experience as spiritual beings. OK – just want to make that clear.
In this contemplation, we’ll explore the first Kosha but I’ll provide an overall framework so we know where we’re heading with this.
So briefly the Five Koshas are Anamya Kosha, Pranamaya Kosha, Manomaya Kosha, Vijnanamya Kosha and Anandamaya Kosha.
Ans they translate to:
Physical Body, Energy Body, Mind/Emotional Body, Intuitive Body and the Bliss Body.
And so the purpose is to understand all of these bodies and the wholeness of this human experience. A knowledge of this framework can lead to less suffering, can lead to more freedom and the ultimate reality that we are all from the same source and that we will all one day return to that same source and that we’ve each been gifted these bodies that we have to live life, to play to express and to play out our Dharma. This is why we are here – we each have something unique to offer. There is no one else on this planet who can offer what you can in your own unique way.
That overall understanding that I mentioned about totality and oneness and coming from the same source – this is our bliss body, Atman, our soul- this is what the yogis practiced and dedicated their lives to understanding.
I believe the point is not to transcend the body to get there. I believe the point is to ulitilse all of our layers to realise our own dharma and to awaken ourselves to whom we really are. And actually to really live out our Dharma, we need these physical bodies.
Let’s take a moment to lean into the names in Sanskrit and what the words break down into.
So we have the body itself, for example ‘Ananda Maya Kosha’
Ananda means Bliss
Maya often refers to Illusion. And often when you’ll hear the five bodies as being an illusion but I want to steer away from that. It actually means ‘that which consists of’
So Maya and then Kosha being a layer or a sheath that consists of a certain thing.
And we could also say that it’s a layer of illusion, a layer that is less clear than the soul. But I really tend to stay away from that. I’ll steer away from that because it can be a little bit confusing being like, Oh, is my body just an illusion?
No, it’s very real. Your body is real in this human experience. Your mind is real.
Your energy is real. All of that is very real. So, yeah I don’t think it’s helpful to think of them as illusions.
So – the first layer, the Physical Body or Anamaya Kosha.
So, Anah, means food. And in my kitchen at home I have a little picture of ‘Annapurna’ – the gooddesss of food and nourishment.
So with this in mind, Anamayya Kosha, layer is the food layer. Because our bodies are made up of food. We are what we eat? Or with this new knowledge we could perhaps change that saying to ‘part of who we are is what we eat’.
And, you know, the Tantric view of the physical body is so beautiful. The Yogic view of the physical body is so beautiful.
They say that your body is an altar. Your body is a place of worship for the divine. It’s perfect as it is. And gosh my own journey with this has been long and arduous and I’m still in progress but these notions, philosophies and ideas help so much. I am so grateful for these philosophies.
And to know that my body is a sacred place.
You don’t need to go and visit a sacred temple or a sacred site. You don’t need to do the pilgrimage because it already exists within you. And your body is a reflection of the universe, the microcosm of the macrocosm, which is incredible. So take a moment to let that sink in. Your body is a universe.
So this first layer, the Anamaya Kosha, your physical body, you can already imagine what it consists of. There’s your skin and your eyes and your organs and your nervous system and your endocrine system and your respiratory system. There’s so much involved in that layer.
It’s kind of the densest layer, meaning that it has the most to it.
And when we speak of this being the first layer, does that mean it’s the first layer closest to the soul or the first layer outside of the soul? No – it’s the farthest away from.
If we’re looking at the analogy of the Russian Dolls, it’s the biggest one.
And so if the way to that teeniest little Russian doll in the centre (your soul) is through the body (not over it – and we don’t want to smash it) it’s through the body.
And through is to experience it fully:
To look after it
To nourish it
To move it
To hydrate it
To regulate it (and I categorise regulation through the nervous system, the endocrine system, digestion – all of it)
But let’s highlight one thing in order to peel away this layer and have more revealed:
May it be a goal to strengthen the parasympathetic response, which is the relaxation response. We want to, in order to move beyond the body, relax.
And it’s really that simple. You know lean into that concept of EASE being our new norm, our baseline so that when stress (which is normal) comes up, we can better manage it and process is.
And so the physical body (Anamaya Kosha) is important. We want to take care of it but to remember that we are not just the physical body.
I mentioned before that our understanding of the kasha’s allows us to have more freedom, less suffering. Well if we understand that we are not just this body then the notion of annihilation someday (death) is not to frightening because we know that we return to the same source that we came from; the bliss body – oneness – unity – God.
That fear of death is the number one road block to spiritual fitness as it brings up so much.
If we have this fear of death, it means that we’re trapped in our physical body. And so to move beyond that fear, we have to move beyond our physical body. And to do that, we to learn how to relax.
And the more that we relax, the more information from the other bodies that we begin to receive.
But it’s common to just be trapped on the physical plane, in the physical realm and live in that world of fear, which we’re seeing just everywhere at the moment. It’s just like everyone is afraid of everything because their little mortal physical bodies may perish someday.
And so yeah, it really comes down to that. Once you understand these teachings, once you experience them more than anything, that’s what jnana is, it’s the experiential knowledge, then we can move beyond fear. And so the word we use to describe this is called Asta.
And I love this word. So let’s look at it – and hopefully experience it.
Asta means a feeling of bodylessness, but it’s actually the same as the feeling of health. Right? Think of a point in time where you felt at peak fitness or peak health.
For me (aroha share…)
There’s this like lightness.
If you’ve ever done Yin Yoga or Restorative Yoga before or Yoga Nidra (anything really gentle and restorative) you’ve probably felt Asta. Or even after a Vinyasa class when you’re lying in Savasana and you feel like you’re floating on a cloud – Asta.
And that is what allows you to move beyond your physical body.
So – this week’s contemplation is around the Physical Body and your relationship with it.
Specifically – and I’m going to say these next questions slowly so that you can either let them sink in or write them down as journaling prompts to get real/to get honest. And I understand that some of these questions could be triggering so please know that they are not intended to de-rail you or have you think you’re going to fail moving through this physical level of existence. Any reaction is just another opportunity to awaken and evolve. We must feel something to free it.
How do you perceive the body?
Are you content with your body?
Do you accept your body?
Do you love your body?
Do you nourish it regularly?
Do you hydrate well?
Are you looking after your nervous system?
Are you prioritising ease?
Today I asked my body what she needed,
Which is a big deal
Considering my journey of
Not Really Asking That Much.
I thought she might need more water.
Or protein.
Or greens.
Or yoga.
Or supplements.
Or movement.
But as I stood in the shower
Reflecting on her stretch marks,
Her roundness where I would like flatness,
Her softness where I would like firmness,
All those conditioned wishes
That form a bundle of
Never-Quite-Right-Ness,
She whispered very gently:
Could you just love me like this?