A treatise on 'self' and 'not-self'. By wilful drawing of life force by attention to outside world and its activities, we deprive our inner organs of their share of life force which shows up as disease.
Body's Pre-Image and Five Elements (CH 15, P2, Garuda Puran)
1. Garuda Puran
Background
Garuda Puran is a dialogue between Lord Vishnu and Garuda narrated by sage Suta. It
is used at funeral ceremonies and due to fear and ignorance; people do not keep it in the
house. Chapters 15 and 16 are the most wonderful part of this Puran and we deprive
ourselves of the knowledge contained therein by not reading it.
Chapter 15
Description of Rebirth after Term in Heaven
(Begetting Virtuous Children, Parts of Body, Customary and Spiritual Body
Six Chakras and Seed Sounds of Language, Stillness of Mind and Yoga)
Parts of Body and Attributes of Five Subtle Elements (Part 2)
Chapter 15 starts with the method of conceiving a meritorious and fortunate son. The
righteous son thus obtained, in his youth, reflects upon ‘self’ (soul) and ‘not-self’
(soulless).
Blessed Lord continues:
• Then he constantly strives to discriminate between the self and the not-self by
false accusation and aspersion, two sorts of arguments, he meditates upon
Brahman.
• For the understanding of the dissociation of Brahman from that with which he
is associated, I will tell you the attributes of earth etc. i.e. lifeless and soulless
five elements.
Earth, water, fire, air and ether -- these are called the subtle elements. This corpulent
body is made up of the five elements.
• O Garuda! Skin, bones, nerves (artery, ducts, veins), hair (small hair on the
body) and flesh, -- these five attributes are formed from earth element.
• Saliva, urine, sperm (semen, vital fluid), marrow (fat), and blood, -- these five
attributes are made from water element.
• Now hear the attribute of fire. Hunger (appetite), thirst (vehement desire for or
of glory, avarice), sloth (torpor, laziness, lethargy, idleness, indolence, inaction),
sleep (slumber, dream) and effulgence (Light, luster, gloss, splendour,
personality), O Garuda! These five attributes are born of fire element, as declared
by Yogins.
2. • Gathering, running, walking, contracting and expanding, -- these are declared
the five attributes of air element.
• Sound (speech), anxiety (thought, care, worry, consideration, concern, desire,
anger etc.), space (vacant, empty, void, sky, ether), delusion (ignorance,
hallucination, foolishness, bewilderment, stupefaction, fear, infatuation,
perplexity, confusion, spiritual ignorance), and indecision (uncertainty,
skepticism, incertitude, mistrust, doubt, scruple, distrust) -- these five attributes
have sprung from ether element.
[Note: Each of the above attribute (lifeless nature, not-self) draws power from its
source element (again of lifeless nature, not-self) which draws power from the
respective pranic current (life) which is a differentiated state of life force (self) as
soul entering the body at the eye center. Knowing the subtle source elements is
tattava gyan i.e. ‘knowledge of the subtle elements’ and knowing the soul is the
knowledge of ‘self’ which ultimately leads to the knowledge of Brahman, the
subtle truth and real purpose of human life.]
• Manas [(mind; function – will-thought and doubt; receiving and combining
input through sense organs from outside world and through memory from inner
store of past experience; and prepare an output for motor organs); (the seat of
Manas is the end of the throat)];
Chit [(attention – conscious faculty; function – memory and operating in tandem
with Manas); (the seat of Chit is the navel and that is why memory is active in all
three states i.e. Jagrat (wakeful), Svapana (dream) and Sushupti (dreamless, deep
sleep)];
Buddhi [(intelligence – wisdom, knowledge, intellect; function – is to determinate
and check the output from mind before passing it to ego and motor organs. It is
rarely used by ordinary persons and combined output of Manas and Chit is
passed on to Ego for execution by motor organs without any discrimination. For
ordinary persons it becomes a habit and by-passing Buddhi becomes a routine);
(the seat of Buddhi is the face)];
Ahankara [(egotism - haughtiness, boast, arrogance, conceit, vain pursuit,
affectation, empty pride, self praise, vanity, self-conceit; function – self-
consciousness and confirmation of above output with or without the check by
Buddhi to motor organs, thus making all actions binding to self because it is ‘my
I’ that authorizes final output to motor organs. It is a mute spectator and it does
not check the incoming output in case Buddhi gets by-passed); (the seat of
Ahankara is the heart and output authorized by it is passed to heart for further
execution by motor organs of the body)];
3. -- These four are the names of antahkaran or the Inner Instrument (the inner
organ or instrument of the mind the 4-petal lotus at forehead), and they are
produced together from the influence of previous births. (Antahkaran is the
human organ of thought and mental function, the mind, the heart, the
conscience; made up of subtle fields of energy above the six chakras of physical
body.)
• Ears (sense of hearing), skin (sense of touch), eyes (sense of sight), tongue (sense
of taste) and nose (sense of smell) are the organs of perception (five sense
organs).
[Ears and sense of hearing are produced from good (sattvic) attribute of ether
element; skin and sense of touch from air element; eyes and sense of sight from
fire element; tongue and sense of taste from water element; and nose and sense
of smell from earth element respectively.]
• Mouth (power of speech), hands (power of manual skill), and feet (power of
locomotion), genital organ (power of reproduction) and rectal organ (power of
excretion) are the organs of action (five motor organs).
[Mouth and power of speech are produced from activating (rajasic) attribute of
ether element; hands and power of manual skill from air element; feet and
power of locomotion from fire element; genital organ and power of reproduction
from water element; and rectal organ and power of excretion from earth element
respectively.]
[The gross (tamasic) attribute present in the five elements produces the
physical atoms of the body.]
[Note: Each of the above organs of perception (lifeless nature, not-self) and that
of action (lifeless nature, not-self) draws power from its source element (again of
lifeless nature, not-self) which in turn draws power from respective pranic
current (life) as differentiated form of life force (self) of soul. Therefore, soul is
the sustaining power of body on which depends the survival and proper
functioning of all inner organs.]
[This life force is further diffused by us to outside world by attention. If the
diffusion of life force to the outside world is more, then inner organs of the body
are bound to suffer. Disease is the sign that our willful drawing of life force by
attention to the outside world is more and the inner system is getting deprived of
its proper share to maintain a healthy body. One of the early sign is
constipation which means excretory system is not getting necessary power to
drive out excreta from the body.]
4. • ik (the quarters, ten directions), Vāyu, Arka (the sun), Varuṇa, Aśvini evas,
Agni, In ra, Upen ra, Mṛṭyu (the God of death), Prajāpaṭi, the Moon, Vishṇu
the four-faced Brahma and Śambhu (Śiva) are the presiding deities of the
organs of sense and action.
Table: Organs and Presiding Deity
Sense Organ Deity Motor Organ Deity Antahkaran Deity
Ear Dik Speech Agni Manas – Chit Moon
Skin Vayu Hands Indra Buddhi Brahma
Eyes Arka Legs Upendra Ahankara Sambhu
Tongue Varuna Anus Mrtyu
Nose Asvini Devas Sex Organs Prajapati
[The cosmic powers, Fire, Wind, Sun, Space, Vegetation, Moon, Death, and Water (each
of which is created from a corresponding function of the ideal Man) are in themselves
powerless. They sink back into the primitive waters, and suffer hunger and thirst; they
must have a home in the real Man in order to be satisfied and active. The forces of
Nature exist only through and in the human subject). – Aitareya Upanishad]
• Ida (the left hand nadi), Pingala (the right hand nadi), and thirdly Sushumna (the
central nadi); and also Gandhari (to left eye), Gajajihva (to right eye), Pusa (to
right ear), Yashasvini (to left ear), Alambusa (to mouth), and Kuhu (to genitals),
and Sankhini (to rectal), the tenth as well -- are situated in the interior of the
body, and are the ten principal Nadis (the inner nerve system or channels for the
vital breath).
• Prana, Apana, Samana, Udana, and Vyana; and also Naga, Kurma, Krikala,
Devadatta and Dhananjaya are ten forms of vital breath.
• In the heart, Prana; in the anus, Apana; in the navel, Samana; in the region of
the throat, Udana; and distributed all over the body, Vyana.
Table: Five major Pranas and their functions
Prana Seat and Field of Activity Function
Prana From the heart to the Main function – respiration.
throat It governs speech and the vocal apparatus as well
as the respiratory system and the muscles engaged
in it. It helps in swallowing and regulates the body
temperature.
It is golden in colour, light in weight and has an
upward movement.
Hiccough, asthma, cough, pain in the head, the
ears, and the eyes; these and other various kinds of
diseases are generated by the disturbance of the
breath.
5. Apana From the navel to the Main function – elimination.
soles of the feet It governs the functions of the kidneys, the colon,
the rectum, the bladder and the genitals.
It eliminates stool, urine, semen, and menses.
It helps in the process of childbirth.
It is characterized by heaviness and has a
downward movement.
It is yellow in colour.
When this energy is not regulated one feels lazy,
dull, heavy and confused.
Samana From navel to the heart Main function – digestion and assimilation.
It governs all the metabolic activity engaged in
digestion.
It nourishes the whole body and gives glowing
health to it.
It is white in colour and cool in nature.
Udana From the throat to the It keeps the body lifted upwards.
head It helps in vomiting.
It governs the use of our special senses. It is green
in colour.
By regulating this energy the body can be made
very light.
Vyana Pervades the whole body Main function – circulation.
It governs the relaxation and contraction of all
muscles, voluntary and involuntary, as well as the
movement of the joints and the structures around
them.
It co-ordinates all activities of the nervous system.
It helps in maintaining co-ordination and balance.
It is sky-blue in colour.
• Belching (eructation, bellowing) is Naga; opening (of eyes), blooming,
expanding is Kurma; the cause of appetite, hunger is Krikala; Yawning is
Devadatta and all-pervading is Dhananjaya, it does not leave even the corpse.
[Prana is an auto-energizing force which creates a magnetic field in the form of the
Universe and plays with it, both to maintain, and to destroy for further creation. It
permeates each individual as well as the Universe at all levels.
It acts as physical energy, mental energy, where the mind gathers information; and as
intellectual energy, where information is examined and filtered. Prana also acts as sexual
energy, spiritual energy and cosmic energy.
All that vibrates in this Universe is prana: heat, light, gravity, magnetism, vigor,
power, vitality, electricity, life and spirit are all forms of prana. It is the cosmic
6. personality, potent in all beings and non-beings. It is the prime mover of all activity. It is
the wealth of life.
The prana never goes to sleep, just as the heart never stops beating. The prana is
regarded as the watchman of the body. The prana is characterized by the property
of rajas or restlessness. One cannot make it keep quiet even with effort. The body which
is of the nature of tamas is made to move by the rajas of the prana. The prana incites the
senses to activity. Because of its rajasic nature, it does not allow either the body or the
mind to remain in peace.
Prana and chit are in constant contact with each other. They are like twins. Prana
become focused where chit is, and chit, where prana is. When you are troubled,
restless, or confused, you have more prana outside the body than within. When you feel
unwell; the quality of prana and its density within the body is reduced.
It can also show as a lack of drive or motivation to do anything; you are listless or
even depressed. We may suffer from physical ailments when prana is lacking in the
body. On the other hand, the more peaceful and well-balanced we are, the less our prana
is dispersed outside the body. And if all the prana is within the body, we are free of these
symptoms.
If prana does not find sufficient room in the body there can be only one reason: it is
being forced out by willful drawing of life force (prana) by attention to outside world
and its activities.
Our state of mind is closely linked to the quality of prana within. The more content a
person is and the better he or she feels, the more prana is inside. The more disturbed a
person is, the more prana is dissipated and lost.
Whatever happens in the mind influences the breath; the breath becomes quicker when
we are excited and deeper and quieter when we relax. In order to influence our prana we
must be able to influence the mind. Our actions often disturb the mind, causing prana to
exude from the body.]
[Muktiko-Upanishad: Advice of Lord Rama to Hanumana: Māruṭi, the Munis know
that as Vāsanā which is manifested through the consciousness of objects, which is of
the nature of the object itself, and which is the cause of the origination and
absorption of Chiṭṭa.
This excessively fluctuating Chiṭṭa is the cause of birth, dotage and death, due to the
identification of itself with objects practiced firmly (for a long time).
Like the analogy of the seed and the tree, the vibration of Prāṇa arises through Vāsanā
and (vice versa) the Vāsanā through the former—these forming the seed of Chiṭṭa.
To the tree of Chiṭṭa, there are two seeds: the vibration of Prāṇa and Vāsanā. Should
either of them perish, both perish soon.]
7. • The body gets nourishment which is obtained by eating mouthfuls of food.
The air called Vyana carries the essential part of food in all the Nadis.
• Food after eating is split into two by that air. Having entered near the anus it
separates the solid and liquid portions, placing the water over the fire, and the
solid over the water, The Prana positioned under the fire, inflames it slowly. The
fire, inflamed by the air, separates the substance from the waste. The Vyana air
makes the essence go all over, and the waste, forced through the twelve
gateways, is ejected from the body.
• Ears, eyes, nostrils, tongue, teeth, navel, nails, anus, generative organs, head,
trunk, hair -- are called unclean places.
• Thus the airs, having their power from the self, perform their own functions,
affecting people, just as does the rising of the sun. (It is the ‘self’ that should be
known while in human body, thus the righteous son reflects.)
This, in brief, is the description of corporeal body which is ‘not-self’. Blessed Lord
then continues with the description of customary and cosmic form of man.