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The ancient Yogic tradition says that we have five bodies, or “koshas”:
- Physical body – Annamaya kosha: This is the densest aspect of our being, and consists of a complex combination of cells, tissues, organs and systems. Pain and physical illnesses manifest on this level. The physical body can embed in itself memories that last for numerous years, preventing us from overcoming past situations. We need to learn how to relax, purify and heal.
- Energetic body – Pranamaya kosha: Also called the bio-energetic aura. This body is made of the subtle energy of life, called Prana or Chi. It contains the life-force in our body that strongly correlates with the breath and subtle anatomy such as chakras and meridians. It nourishes the physical structure with the energy and information that is necessary for its harmonious development, which is why illnesses can be detected at this level well before they manifest at a physical level. The chakras will strongly influence our perceptions and determine the quality of our experiences in life.
- Emotional body – Manomaya kosha: Also known as the astral body or the inferior mental body. This is the level of processing thoughts and emotions. It is frequent to have unprocessed impressions in the mind. The refinement of our emotions will allow us to experience the world in a very different way. When we sleep, we often leave the physical body and enter into the astral, however - unless trained to do so - we are usually unaware during those experiences.
- Mental body – Vijnanamaya kosha: Also called the superior mental body. This is the intellectual aspect of the mind with the capacity for discriminating, evaluating and deciding. It does not refer to normal thinking but to the superior activity of the mind which takes place in abstract mental processes, intuitions and meditations. It enables us to establish a direct connection with inner vision and a deeper truth, reaching profound understanding.
- Bliss body – Anandamaya kosha: This is the most subtle of the five bodies and comprises the peace, overwhelming happiness, ecstasy and pure love, which naturally resides at the centre of our being. Experiences regarding this elevated level appear in deep states of communion with the ultimate Reality. It is the last veil that covers the true “I”, (“Atman” in Sanskrit), the divine essence of any human being.
Bliss body – Anandamaya kosha
| The Inner Self | This is the most subtle of the five bodies and comprises the peace, overwhelming happiness, ecstasy and pure love, which naturally resides at the centre of our being. Experiences regarding this elevated level appear in deep states of communion with the ultimate Reality. It is the last veil that covers the true “I”, (“Atman” in Sanskrit), the divine essence of any human being. "You are not just a drop in the Ocean. You are the entire Ocean in a drop." - Rumi |
| The Universe | |
| Yamas and Niyamas | |
| Consciousness | |
| Awakening |
Being Awake means that our Conscience is free, the Ego is no longer ruling our lives and we are in a constant state of mindfulness and awareness.
That is actually the natural state of our being, in which there is ecstatic happiness, unconditional love and absolute peace. And it is not external to us, we only need to become aware that we are all that already.
It is said that the average human being holds 3% Consciousness. The other 97% are dominated by our Ego.
That means that most of our existence is not free, but rather conditioned by our psychology, the society we live in, the way we grew up, and all sorts of other factors.
It also means that the reality that we see and experience is very far away from the reality of our inner Self which is based on the supreme values. And because there is such a distance between both realities, that causes discomfort, unhappiness and suffering. And because the nature of our ego is to compensate for the reality of our inner Self not being present, it starts to get us to fill our lives with many external things, to keep the mind occupied and offer it relative happiness. But that happiness was not founded on the Essence but on the circumstances that surrounded us (e.g. watching a TV series, eating at a fancy restaurant), so as soon as the circumstances are finished we look to repeat or replace them. And we can live our whole lives doing that, and still get to the end of it without having found lasting happiness, because we have always looked for it outside, rather than inside ourselves.
With time and effort, we can start to center ourselves in Consciousness, and notice how our actions slowly cease to be ruled by the ego.
According to the Gnostic teachings, this happens in 3 phases:
- Our actions are run by ego. Our Consciousness isn't even active enough to be aware of it.
- Our actions are still run by our ego. But we are aware of it.
- Our Consciousness determines our actions, and the ego has no place any more.
When the Conscience becomes free, we start the process of Awakening.
Our external Universe is merely a reflection of our internal one.
Have you ever noticed how people who feel sad tend to perceive the world as sad, and people who feel happy tend to perceive the world as happy? The facts of the outside world are nor happy or sad, they are neutral. It is our perceptions that give it the flavour that it then has to us, and qualify it as happy or sad. That means that by changing ourselves, we actually change the world, because it is a reflection of what's inside of us. And that explains why nothing changes until we change, and everything changes once we've changed.