Koshas

By Felicia M. Tomasko

When we think of our bodies, our first thoughts naturally travel to our physical self, what we can see and feel and touch. But according to yoga philosophy dating back to the ancient written scriptures, we are much more than our physical bodies. We are comprised of at least five distinct layers, called koshas.

The word kosha means sheath, and the koshas are often described as resembling the layers of an onion. Rather than one solid form, the different aspects of our being are layered, one within another like the papery peelings of an onion.  The five koshas are the five layers, coverings or sheaths that make up the combination of the physical and subtle bodies, our substance, mind, breath, energy, knowledge and experience of ultimate bliss.

The five koshas are the representations of different aspects of our full self or total body. While kosha refers to the sheath itself, maya often means illusion. It also means appearance, and it can refer to what something is made of. The appearance of these multifaceted aspects of our being strongly influence who we are.

While some authors describe the physical body as being the center of our being, others place the layer of bliss at the center of the five koshas. In either case, the order of the layers, and their relationships is the same. Additionally, it is always recognized that the most tangible of the kosha is the physical body, while the one that is the most elusive, often difficult to access, and also closest to our soul, is the kosha of bliss.

The annamaya kosha, the physical body.
The innermost layer, the most tangible of the koshas is the annamaya kosha.
The first part of this word, anna, means food, and sometimes the annamaya kosha is simply referred to as the food body. After all, it is said that we are what we eat, and from the perspective of the yogic view of the body, our body is literally made out of what we eat; the old cliché is true.

As mentioned earlier, the annamaya kosha is what we think about when we think of our bodies. It is everything physical that we can feel, touch, hear, see and taste. We most directly affect the annamaya kosha through the food we eat and what we drink, exercise and practice of asana (yoga postures) and daily routine. The annamaya kosha, being the most stable of all the bodies, can be the most resistant to change, and is the reason why yoga and Ayurveda are so concerned with diet, lifestyle and the practice of asana.

The annamaya kosha is the most solid of the five bodies, and it is the innermost of the layers. While it can sometimes feel as though we are imprisoned within the physical body, tied to the Earth, in actuality, the physical body is encased within the wrappers of the more subtle bodies. And the more subtle aspects of our self are just as real, even if not as tangible, as our physical nature.

The pranamaya kosha, first layer of the subtle body.
The next sheath touching the annamaya kosha is the sheath of the breath, or the pranamaya kosha, the body of prana, breath or energy. As we cannot see or touch the more ephemeral pranamaya kosha, it is the beginning of what we refer to as the subtle body.

While prana refers to the breath, prana is also a form of subtle energy. Through the breath, we inhale this spark of vitality.  It is said that the functions of the autonomic nervous system, just beneath our conscious control, fall under the domain of the annamaya kosha. And, indeed, it is our breath that intimately adjusts our physiological response to stress. Therefore, the practice of pranayama is one of the ways that we affect and can bring balance to the annamaya kosha. And, through pranayama, according to the sage Patanjali in the Yoga Sutras, it is possible to calm the mind, one of the aims of yoga.

The manomaya kosha.
The sheath next connected to the breath is the mind, or the manomaya kosha. The manas is the sensory and emotional mind (not the brain as a physical organ); it is the place where our thoughts, emotions, sensory perception and logical thought all originate from and reside. The mind is connected to the physical body through prana and the breath, and through the pranamaya kosha and the annamaya kosha as the nervous system and the rest of the body, is the vehicle for thoughts and emotions. The manas obtains impressions or information through the senses of the physical body.  Mind and breath are also intimately joined, as Ayurvedic physician Dr. Vasant Lad says that these two together make up what we call the astral body.

Sensory impressions serve to feed the manomaya kosha. And the digestion of the manas, our ability to process our reactions to the world around us, as well as our thoughts and dreams, is affected by not only the state of the physical body, but also by how we treat the mind itself. An excess of disturbing images or experiences, as well as trauma, , negatively affects the manomaya kosha.

One of the benefits of meditation is that it helps to rejuvenate the manomaya kosha. Pratyahara, the withdrawal of the senses, is not only the preliminary step to be able to concentrate for meditation. Pratyahara allows the busy manas to rest. Silence, or practicing fasts from disturbing images like those seen on television, also softens tension that can build up in the manas.

The vijnanamaya kosha.
We may think of the intellect as being the mind; but in yogic philosophy, the intellect and the mind are different sheaths, distinct aspects of our physiological makeup. The vijnanamaya kosha is the aspect of our mind described in Sanskrit as the buddhi. Buddhi is the reasoning, discriminating, clear illuminating light of the higher level of the mind that can see beyond the clutter of the sensory impressions.

The vijananamaya kosha is often referred to as the causal body. It is from here that karma, the laws of action and reaction emanate. Additionally, ill-health can originate here, or in one of the other layers of the subtle body, and then manifest in the physical body. For this reason, meditation and pranayama are not only important for our spiritual and psychological development, but they can be effective therapeutic tools to create wellness.

Psychology and the nature of the mind are often described in the yogic tradition as being akin to a chariot. The horses are the senses of the manas, the sensory mind (located within the manomaya kosha). The buddhi is the charioteer (located within the vijnanamaya kosha.) We may all have experienced the often capricious and changeable nature of our sensory mind. Just as a group of wild horses can run off curiously to explore something that they have seen or smelled, our sensory mind can travel headlong in the direction of curiosity, self-indulgence or self-gratification. The necessity of a strong buddhi holding the reins securely becomes obvious when we think of the power in a team of horses galloping without leadership or direction. 

Just as meditation strengthens the manomaya kosha, meditation is essential for the health and clarity of the vijnanamaya kosha. Some of the other limbs of the yogic tradition are also important. Sound, or nada yoga, also helps to awaken the light of the vijnanamaya kosha . This is one reason why we are drawn to chanting, repeating mantra (sacred syllables) or why we may feel inspired to sing in a choir.

The yamas and niyamas, the ethical precepts and individual observances described as the first two limbs of ashtanga yoga in the ancient sage Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras, are also a means by which we can strengthen the buddhi. Following these with integrity helps to develop the discriminatory and illuminating mind of higher knowledge.

Through cultivating all of these practices: asana to stabilize the physical body, 
pranayama to balance the pranamaya kosha and cultivate effective circulating of prana, pratyahara, withdrawal of the senses, dharana and dhyana, concentration and meditation, we can access the least tangible, and some may argue, most important of the koshas. This is the anandamaya kosha.

The anandamaya kosha.
Ananda means bliss and the anandamaya kosha is the sheath of bliss. It is here where we connect with the absolute, with our eternal soul or our divine nature. The anandamaya kosha is the layer of our body closest to the intangible, yet everlasting Atman, or soul. We can experience the anandamaya kosha through the final of Patanjali’s eight limbs: samadhi, the transcendent state of union with the divine. We may experience samadhi at first as merely a transitory glimpse. But it provides even a momentary experience of the bliss that is at the heart of our being. It is this bliss that is the truest measure of who we are. Even though what we see in all of our waking moments is the somewhat clumsy physical body, or annamaya kosha, wrapped within or without, (depending on your vantage point), our true nature is eternal bliss. And we access it through the discipline of spiritual practice.

Although it may be tempting at times to discount the body, all the layers of the body are important for our health and well-being, as well as providing us with the vehicle for transcendence. It is said in the Sanskrit text of the Yoga Vasishtha: “For the ignorant person, this body is the source of endless suffering, but to the wise person, this body is the source of infinite delight.”