In Hindu tradition, a living being consists of mind, body and spirit. The Sharira Tatva (Doctrine of Three Bodies) describes the human body as consisting of three aspects and five sheaths.

The three aspects of the body:

• Sthula Sharira or the gross physical body 
• Sukshma Sharira or the subtle body 
• Karana Sharira or the causal body 

The Sthula Sharira is the gross physical body through which life is experienced. The main features of this body include birth, ageing and death. It is related to the waking state.

The Sukshma Sharira is the subtle body that houses the mind and vital energies (prana). The subtle body is said to be composed of the five elements (air, fire, water, earth and space) and made up of the five sense organs (ear, eye, nose, tongue and skin), five organs of action (hand, foot, mouth, anus and genitalia) and the vital five-fold breath (respiration, elimination, circulation, digestion and activities such as sneezing, crying, etc.) along with Manas (mind) and Buddhi (intellect). The dream state is the distinct state of this Sharira.

The Karana Sharira is the causal body that merely contains the seed of the Sthula and Sukshma Sharira, and it has no other function of its own. It is the most complex of the three bodies and is thought to be the portal to entering higher consciousness. It is identified with the deep sleeping state. 

The gross body ceases to exist when death occurs, becoming one with nature. The subtle body disintegrates when it is time to take a new birth, allowing us to develop a new personality in the new life. The causal body incarnates again and again with each rebirth, carries the imprints of our previous lives (samskaras), and disintegrates only at the time of moksha or liberation.

The Taittiriya Upanishad, a Vedic era text, probably composed in the 6th century BC, is often considered a principal Upanishad and is embedded in three chapters of the Yajurveda. In this text, we find an allusion to the principle of koshas that make up our individual ‘being’. This Upanishad expostulates that each one of us born as a human being is composed of five koshas or sheaths of consciousness which envelop the atman and act as veils of illusion, preventing us from seeing the true nature of our self. Each sheath is made up of increasingly finer shades of energy, beginning from the outermost layer of the skin to the innermost spiritual core of our being. These five layers interpenetrate each other and become progressively subtler, going from the gross and tangible to the most subtle and intangible.

It is possible to slowly and mindfully move through these five layers of illusion to realise our true essence using spiritual practices. We can only see the Annamaya Kosha as it is made up of physical matter. The other four sheaths are purely energy states, which though not visible to us in shape or form, are perceptible when we focus our attention on them. It is imperative to ensure that the five koshas are kept well-nourished as they impact our well-being during the course of our life and are believed to transport our energy to the next incarnation after the death of our physical body. 

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Annamaya Kosha

The outermost layer is the Annamaya Kosha, which means “food-body” and represents our gross physical body or Sthula Sharira. This layer comprises skin, bones, connective tissues, muscle, organs, blood, etc. It is associated with the earth element and closely relates to our body type, weight, a propensity to specific ailments, and disposition towards some kinds of food. The word “anna” refers to “food” that our body takes from the earth and eventually returns after death to become food for other organisms. This sheath is affected by the samskaras in the food we consume. The nature of this kosha is that it is mortal, and hence, it is subject to the rules of birth, decay and death. This layer is one we find ourselves preoccupied with most of the time to pursue physical gratification and enjoyment.

This kosha benefits significantly from:

• Consuming sattvic food and drink
• Practice of asana
• Any form of physical activity
• Mindful eating
• Healthy sleep habits
• Herbs and supplements
• Massage
• Natural clothing
• Maintaining a healthy inner and external environment

Pranamaya Kosha

This is the sheath of prana, the Sanskrit word for breath, life force or vital principle, that permeates reality on all levels, including inanimate objects. Prana is responsible for the movement of bodily fluids such as blood circulation, lymph and cerebral fluids and the circulation of breath through the respiratory system. This energy body that makes up our Sukshma Sharira is the first non-tangible layer we encounter, forming a bridge between the physical and energy body. We cannot see energy but can indeed perceive it in our bodies. When prana exits the body, all bodily functions stop, and cell disintegration begins.

Five types of prana, collectively known as the five vayus (winds), are described in Vedic texts.

• Prana-Vayu translates as “inward moving air,” is the fundamental energy in the body that directs the four other vayus.
• Apana-Vayu is a downward and outward flow of energy in the body. It is responsible for elimination, and its mental function is related to the ego.
• Samana-Vayu is the equalizing air that governs digestion, absorption and assimilation of all substances – food, air, experiences, emotions, and thoughts. 
• Udana-Vayu is the ascending air thatchannels the flow of prana from lower to higher parts of the body.Its action is metabolization. It governs speech and expression.
• Vyana-Vayu is the diffusing air whose movement is outward. It governs circulation on all levels and is pervasive and expansive. It is responsible for the distribution of the movement of all substances throughout the body and assists the other vayus with their functions. This vayu’s action is circulation.

Timothy Burgin writes that “Each vayu governs a specific area of the body and ideally functions in harmony with each other. Their subtle energetic movements affect and influence our physical, emotional and mental health and wellness. If a vayu becomes imbalanced, it can create disharmony through the whole energetic system of the body or can negatively affect its associate chakra or the organs linked to its location.”

The pranamaya kosha benefits from:

• Fresh air
• Sunlight
• Foods are high in prana
• Pranayama
• Meditation
• Mudras
• Rituals
• Chakra Visualization

Manomaya Kosha

This is the sheath of the mind and includes our emotions, feelings and workings of the nervous system. It involves processing inputs through our five senses and responding to them reflexively without conscious application of focus. Our thoughts, fantasies and daydreams constitute this kosha as they are all methods of making sense of the outside world. On the most basic level, we are talking about perceptions, images and emotions, but at a deeper level resides our prejudices, preconceived notions and beliefs that we absorb over a lifetime. 

This kosha benefits from:

• Mantra japa
• Meditation
• Kirtan
• Satsang

Karen Bullen says: “We tend to have the most imbalance in our Manomaya kosha; through the powerful practice of mantra, we can work beyond the gross layer of the body and into our mind-body.”

Vijnanamaya Kosha

This is the sheath of wisdom or the psyche. Sensory perceptions coming from the Manomaya Kosha are processed here, and meaning is imbued into them with awareness, insight and consciousness. Here, we make choices about every aspect of our lives based on our experiences so far. This sheath can be seen as the one housing our intelligence as we engage in activities that help us gather wisdom by way of conscious awareness.

This kosha benefits from:

• Chakra visualisation
• Meditation
• Yantra gazing
• Seva (service to others)

Anandamaya Kosha 

Among the five sheaths, the Anandamaya Kosha reflects the divine consciousness and its state of satchidananda (eternal bliss). This is the sheath of bliss as we move from conscious awareness to pure bliss. In this sheath, there is nothing but sheer joy and utter contentment. There are no mortal fears or base emotions such as anger, jealousy and insecurities.

This layer is the closest to the intangible and immortal atman. We can access this layer through dedicated spiritual practice.

The fact that each of the koshas is suffixed with the word “maya” (illusion) points to their illusory nature. They may appear to separate us from the divine consciousness, but that is illusory. The Vedic texts have left us a clear message that even though we point out all these differences, we are not separate from the Divine.

To understand the development of the process by which energy condenses from the unmanifest to the gross physical form of the human body, we can think of the Anandamaya Kosha as ether or space, Vijnanamaya Kosha as air, Manonmaya Kosha as steam, Pranamaya Kosha as water and Annamaya Kosha as ice. Just as it is more difficult to give shape to ice than to water (as ice is solid and water as a liquid takes on the shape of its container more readily than ice), the more ephemeral the various sheaths become as we move towards the higher realms.

Sally Kempton says: “When you know how it feels to be fully present in your physical sheath, rather than floating through life dissociated from it, you will find yourself more centred and sane, less prone to accidents, and more intuitively tuned in to which foods and activities nourish the body. When you can touch the subtle power of expansion and healing in the vital energy sheath, you can move stuck energy, release your own vitality, and connect to the energy in nature and others. When you acknowledge your mental sheath, you can note the effect of certain thoughts and step out of the trance-like states that arise when you blindly accept thoughts and emotions. Access your wisdom sheath, and you’ll find that you have more clarity and intuition to keep your life on track. And each time you get in touch with the bliss sheath, you fall into the fundamental goodness of life.”

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