A Bit of an intro.
According to yoga,
individual consciousness is a partial expression of cosmic
consciousness.
Cosmic consciousness and individual
consciousness are one.
Only subjectivity separates them. it is out of Consciousness that the ultimate reality of which mind and matter proceed.
consciousness exists in everything, from minerals to man.
the human body is the most highly evolved Of all existing bodies that express themselves
through behavior. It is
capable of self-expression and the realization of Truth beyond the realm
of sensory perception. With the help of memory, imagination and
intuition, the human organism can understand laws inherent in nature and
use them for its growth and development.
When consciousness
desires expression as an organism, it needs tools to control and work
with the physical body.
Annamayi Kosha (Sheath of Matter)
The main centers of
consciousness in the human body are in the
brain and the spine.
The cerebrospinal system is the first part of the
organism to be developed after conception.
From it the entire bodily
form comes out. This system is a great generator of electrical energy
that is constantly supplied to the internal organs by a network of
nerves that serve as connectors.
The functiong of the entire human body
is controlled by the cerebrospinal system, and the psychic centers are
located in it.
Inside the big company
of the body there is a branch, a side office, in which mind is the boss.
Mind has a practical tool in the body which is the brain. Brain uses
breath, and breath uses nerves, and nerves are dealing with the five
sense organs (eyes, ears, nose, tongue, and skin), and the five work
organs (anus, genitals, legs, hands, and vocal chords).
So the
combination of brain, breath, nerves, sense organs, and work organs form
a unit inside the body which is working with the mind.
Pranamayi Kosha (Sheath of Vital Air)
Prana or energy is the
moving force.
This sheath of Vital Air
supplies energy to the whole system and keeps it alive.
Prana refers not
only to the flow of oxygen but to all components of life force.
This
energy enters each and every cell and each and every pore.
Breath is the
physical counterpart of the mind. All neuromotor activities, all
sensory and motor functions of the body, are performed with the help of
the breath.
Breath provides the pranic force to the organism. This
pranic force, working as the Air element, creates movement, pulsation,
vibration and life. The science of controlling prana is known as
pranayama, a branch of Hatha Yoga. By mastering prana one can master the
mind. By practicing pranayama, the breath becomes calm, images do not
disturb the mind, and the internal dialogue stops
Manomayi Kosha (Sheath of Mind)
Mind
is the tool of consciousness that enables us to perceive the world and
process the incoming information. The world exists in front of us,
because of our five senses. There are organisms without brain and eyes
and ears, only tactile sensation is there through the skin. If you touch
them, they react. Even though they have no brain these organisms have
perception of the world because they have mind. Most of the time, people
think that mind is the functional aspect of brain, however, mind and
brain are two different things.
Mind is using brain as tool. Mind is
pervaded in everything, it's in every cell, everywhere, it has no
specific seat. It's not the same as god, but it has similar character
being present everywhere.
Mind is the greatest
obstacle in the way of systematic thinking. It jumps from one point to
other point by finding similarity in that point. Anything which is
similar immediately reminds the mind of something else, and from this
field he jumps into some other field, and then he starts talking about
something else and the whole point is being lost. Most of the time only
one is dominant and that is mind. But sometimes ego is also very
dominant. And intellect is only in the beginning, when you start, at
that time it comes and tries to show you how to go, but after that,
mostly it is the mind which takes the lead.
Ego, mind, intellect,
and the self (together 3 of 5 koshas), travel from one body to other
body, from one life to other life, as long as there are attachments,
likes and dislikes, ego continues for the fulfillment of desires.
Vigyanamayi Kosha (Sheath of Ego and Intellect )
Within the 5 koshas
division of our psychology, around the sheath of Bliss is sheath of
Knowledge, that combines ego and intellect. Ego
is the tool of consciousness which links all events in life together.
Ego is the illusion that I exist as a separate individual being, it is
false identification.
Ego is the one which assumes the responsibility
for the body. Ego says, "This body is mine". When the body breathes, he
says, "I am breathing". And if you close his nose then he says, "You are
suffocating me, I am dying". Ego is very sensitive and the fear of
death is always there. Ego takes a name, and becomes Mr. such and such
and it interacts with others.
Whatever you experience
in this life or in past lives, and whatever information you got from
your parents, from your society, from the race, from the country to
which you belong, all that information combined together becomes
intellect.
It gets a part of the genetic information from seven
generations of the father, and seven generations of the mother.
Intellect carries with it the past and the present, and also speculates
about the future. Intellect helps ego with advice and comments but the
final decision comes from ego. Ego can say, "I like it" and although
intellect may disapprove ego may decide "O.k., I don't believe that this
is right, but I don´t want to follow all these rules and regulations,
I'll break the law".
Strong attachments and
the struggle for survival increase the ego. In modern schools there is
competition all the time. Who does it first? Who is the best? Ego always
tries to say, "I am better than you", "I am holier than you". In
ancient days they had an education system that did not let the ego grow
beyond a particular limit. The child had to go and live with the family
of a teacher as a member of the family (gurukul). The wife of the
teacher was responsible for providing all food, and nobody was allowed
to bring other food. And parents were not allowed to bring gifts in
order to treat all pupils equal, and make them feel that everyone is
equal.
Anandamayi Kosha (Self seated in Sheath of Bliss)
The human consciousness is folded in these five layers, or sheaths, (koshas)
around the central point, containing the self (chitta). The self is
enveloped in the sheath of bliss.
Both the self and the bliss are not
experienced although they are always there, and always protected from
all sides. Nothing is disturbing to the self, because nothing is real for
the self.
The self is the truth, and truth is never changing. Whatever
else is happening, is all changing every minute.
The self knows this is
not real, this is ever changing, this is illusion.
in other words, the self is watching the movie that you THINK you're in. ;)
NAMASTE
