Pancha Kosha

The Five Sheaths of the Human Being

by Swami Nishchalananda Saraswati
Background. In Yogic philosophy, there are various concepts which help us to understand
the nature of the human being. One such conceptual system is that of the Pancha Kosha.
Though only a concept, the Pancha Kosha ties in very nicely with the experiences which can
occur as we goes deeper in Meditation. It does not, obviously, represent an exact picture of
Reality - nor did the yogis who formulated it intend it to be. Just as a map of India is not India
itself but nevertheless helps us to explore India, so the Pancha Kosha concept is a map that
gives signposts that show us the way to explore our own Being!
Definition. The word kosha can be translated as sheath or envelope; pancha as five.
Therefore, the term Pancha Kosha can be translated as the Five Sheaths or Five Envelopes
and it refers to the five layers in the spectrum of our Being from the surface level of our
physical body to the depths of the unconscious mind.
Function. At every moment and in every situation, the Koshas determine our thoughts,
emotions, words and deeds. They perform two (seemingly contradictory) functions:
They are the vehicle and medium through which Consciousness expresses Itself in
manifestation. They are Life Fields which allow us to live.
They veil or hide the Underlying Consciousness. That is, they cover over our Essential
Being. As an analogy, consider the different layers which envelope the tender coconut; the
coconut cannot be seen (nor eaten!) unless these protective shells are removed. So it is
with the Koshas - they act as barriers. Unless they are pealed away, one cannot directly
realise the hidden Consciousness - the Core of our Being.
The Koshas correspond to the human personality. Without them, we could not live nor
express ourselves in the world; yet, at the same time, they keep us in a state of spiritual
ignorance and prevent us realising the background Consciousness.
The purpose of Yoga is to help us gradually understand and explore these different layers and
to liberate ourselves from blockages within them. In this way, we are progressively freed from
pain, fear, suffering and ignorance, thereby becoming more creative and joyful, and enabled
to express greater potential in our lives.
Summary. The five Koshas can be summarised as follows:
Kosha Translation Equivalent Name
(Sanskrit) (English) (in Western Mysticism)

Anna-maya Kosha Food-ful 1 Sheath Physical Body

Prana-maya Kosha Energy-ful Sheath Etheric Body
Mana-maya Kosha Mind-ful Sheath Lower Astral Body
or (Individual Mind)
Vigyana-maya Kosha Intuitive-ful Sheath Higher Astral Body
Ananda-maya Kosha Bliss-ful Sheath Casual Body
The Pancha Kosha concept gives the idea that the five sheaths are completely separate and
distinct from each other. This is only partly true. Starting from the Anna-maya Kosha, or
physical body, which is solid energy (remember: science tells us that matter is nothing but
1
The Sanskrit termination '-maya' means '-ful'; not to be confused with maayaa which means illusion.

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energy) all the Koshas exist at different levels of energy at increasing subtlety or vibrational
frequency. There is really only one continuum of energy.
However, there are also distinct quantum leaps in state between the Koshas. Though they
are all energy, there is a distinct phase change, for example, between the Anna-maya Kosha
(physical body) and the Prana-maya Kosha (etheric body). As an analogy, take the atomic
structure in which there are different possible electron orbits around a nucleus. With our eyes,
we only see matter as different elements. We dont see the different electron orbits, though,
according to atomic theory, scientists tell us that these orbits do exist. So it is with the Koshas
- they exist as an indivisible continuum of energy, but at certain stages - when one Kosha
changes to another - there are also phase (or orbit!) changes.
The Symbol. In Yogic symbolism, the Koshas are shown as five concentric circles, the
central circle being a circle with no radius (i.e. a dot):

Anna-maya Kosha
(physical body)

Prana-maya Kosha
(etheric body)

Mana-maya Kosha
(individual mind)

Vigyana-maya Kosha
(higher astral body)

Ananda-maya Kosha
(causal body)

diagram 1
The outside circle normally represents the most visible Kosha, the Anna-maya Kosha
(physical body), whilst the innermost circle, the dot, represents the most subtle Ananda-maya
Kosha (causal body). The reason for this is that, during Meditation, we start from the physical
body and move progressively inwards (even this term can cause confusion because we dont
really move inwards, but rather start to perceive on more subtle layers of our existence; we
use the term inwards for want of better English terminology2). The concentric circles do not
mean that the Koshas are one within the other, but rather that they are progressively more
subtle. Therefore, it would be just as accurate and meaningful to show the Anna-maya Kosha
on the inside as the dot, showing physical limitation, and the Ananda-maya Kosha on the
outside, showing its much less limited and more expansive nature.
The symbol (diagram 8 ??) also indicates the process of Yoga where a scattered personality is
gradually transformed into a state of one-pointedness and harmony as the Yogic practitioner
starts to get in touch with the potential of the more subtle Koshas.
2
In Sanskrit, precise terminology does exist; the process of moving perception inwards to deeper levels of our existence is
indicated by the word Pratyahara.

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In our lives, we tend to over-identify with the grosser Koshas, especially the Anna-maya
Kosha (the physical body) and the Mana-maya Kosha (individual mind). This limits our Self-
understanding. We identify with the grosser aspects of our Being, neglecting the less
discernable, and more subtle, aspects. Yoga helps us to free ourselves from this over-
identification with the more visible aspects of our Being - thereby opening our eyes to the
wider dimensions of our own existence and that of the entire universe.
Let us briefly consider the individual Koshas moving from the gross to the more subtle.
Annamaya Kosha corresponds to the Physical Body and all the organs and functions within
it. The word anna means food, implying that this Kosha is nourished by the substances and
energy found in the food that we eat.
One can find huge tracts of information on this Kosha by opening any book on human
anatomy and physiology. Besides the physical structure, it also includes muscular, nervous,
heat and bio-chemical energies.
It can be purified and rendered healthy by a whole range of methods, including a wholesome
diet, a healthy life-style and regular practice of Hatha Yoga.
Pranamaya Kosha is the Energy Sheath and is concerned with the network of vital energy
(Sanskrit, prana) which regulates the growth, shape and function of the physical body,
together the decay of cells, tissues and organs. It surrounds and inter-penetrates our physical
body and can be seen by sensitive and perceptive people as the aura.
In western mysticism, it is known as the Etheric Body - the web of energies, which underlies
our physical body. It corresponds to the 'L (= Life) Fields' first measured and so named by Dr.
Harold Burr at Yale University in the U.S. in 1935 3, and to Bio-plasmic Energy which was a
term given to it in Russia when it was first photographed in the 1940's using Kirlian
photography (named after the inventor) 4. Though science is only just discovering and
investigating this Kosha, it has been widely known and recorded by Yogis and mystics
throughout the ages and in all parts of the world.
The energy field of this Kosha differs is healthy and unhealthy organisms - that is, a disease
pattern can be seen in the energy body before it manifests in the physical body. It is
influenced by the climate, machinery, cosmic radiation, human interaction and so on. In
Canada, researchers have created energy waves which seem to interact with and radically
influence the Prana-maya Kosha, changing individual behaviour. For example, they have
managed to create waves which an anxious person would emit. On transmitting these waves
into a roomful of people, they have induced a drastic and rapid change in mood; all members
of the group tended to become depressed and uneasy.
Every thing in this universe, animate or inanimate, has an underlying energy field - a Prana-
maya Kosha. Needless to say, it is far more complex in a human being than in, say, a stone.
Energy in this Kosha is conducting through energy channels. According to Tantra Yoga texts
there are 72,000 of these channels (Sanskrit, nadi) in each human being. Connections
between points in these nadis are rather like those in an electromagnetic field - influencing
one part of the field has an instantaneous effect throughout the entire field. In the healing
science of Acupuncture, these energy channels - called meridians - are manipulated to bring
3
Refer p.142 'The Biology of Death' by Lyall Watson.
4
An excellent explanation of Kirlian Photography is given in the book Psychic Discoveries Behind the Iron Curtain by
Ostrander and Schroeder, pub. Prentice Hall.

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about a change of energy flow and therefore removal of disease and better health. These
meridians, of which more than 700 have been mapped and precisely described, conduct ki or
chi energy, which is the same as prana (life energy).
Yogic texts clearly state that our breathing acts directly on the Prana-maya Kosha. This has
been corroborated by modern scientific research using Kirlian photography. Hence
Pranayama (Yogic Breathing) improves the functioning of the Prana-maya Kosha and thereby
our overall health. All kinds of other Yoga practices also act on this Kosha, enhancing its
functioning and helping us to become more aware of it.
Manamaya Kosha is what we normally call the Individual Mind. It controls and directly
influences the Prana-maya and Anna-maya Koshas.
In western mysticism, it is known as the Lower Astral Body, the sphere of our mind which
is closely tied to the physical body (it is considered lower when compared to the Higher
Astral Body, the next Kosha, which is not limited to the confines of the physical body).
Everyone thinks - and, indeed, everyone knows that they think but the possibility of thought
nadis or pathways is yet to be considered by most of us. According to Yoga, however, thought
takes place through subtle thought-energy channels. The mapping of these thought nadis has
never been done, and is probably impossible, since they dont have physical location (i.e.
thoughts dont operate in physical space as do the nadis of the two previous Koshas). Yet
thoughts do indeed flow in the mental space (Sanskrit, chittakasha) though, ultimately, they
originate from the deeper levels of the unconscious mind represented by the more subtle
Koshas.
Patterns of thinking, attitudes and beliefs are all aspects of our personality and are embedded
blue-prints in the Mana-maya Kosha. These are all conditioned by family, social, cultural,
national and religious stereotypes. Fixed ways of thinking and rigid responses lead to most of
our emotional responses - anger, greed, jealousy and so on which are expressed through the
Prana-maya and Anna-maya Koshas. One of the purposes of Yoga is to render the Mana-
maya Kosha more fluid and harmonious so that we are less bound by stormy, and probably
inappropriate, emotions. We will still have emotions, for humans are emotional animals - and
it is emotions that add colour to our lives - but they will tend to become less disruptive.
Instead of being ruled by our unruly emotions, gradually, as the Mana-maya Kosha becomes
more balanced and concordant, the emotions become vehicles of more creative expression.
We can develop greater understanding of the Mana-maya Kosha - our own mind - by all types
of Yoga practices.
Vigyanamaya Kosha, the fourth, is the Intuitive Sheath, the source of insight and intuitive
perception. It is also the repository of transpersonal faculties such as telepathy, clairvoyance,
thought reading and other so-called psychic or para-normal phenomena.
These phenomena take place through extremely subtle pathways. They are not confined to the
individual but are located in the depths of our Being where individuality merges in the
common bed-rock of the transpersonal mind 5. Thus, the Mana-maya Kosha is the individual
mind, whereas the Vigyana-maya Kosha is the much vaster arena of mind that goes beyond
the personality.

5
This is comparable to the collective unconscious as defined by Carl Jung. However, Jung confined his
definition to the collective unconscious of humankind, whereas when I use the term transpersonal mind it
includes the collective unconscious mind of animals, plants and everything that exists.

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The Vigyana-maya Kosha is the realm of intuition, insight and creative inspiration. A
researcher, poet, or musician is trying to open up (or perhaps more exactly, re-open) channels
(nadis) of knowledge, experience and expression, which already exist in dormant form in the
cosmic mind, but which are currently inaccessible to us. Once a new channel is opened up
by one person, it then becomes easier for the rest of us to access it (remember: this is the
realm of the transpersonal - where all the personalities share with each other).
This process is well explained in the Morphogenetic Field Theory proposed by biochemist
Rupert Sheldrake 6 who studied biological systems and developed the idea of morphogenetic
fields and the theory of morphic resonance. His work shows that biological forms continually
evolve through an underlying intelligent unified life field, the morphogenetic field. This life
field automatically maintains health or seeks to return to it. This field is not only alive and
constantly unfolding, but it has what he calls morphic resonance with all other fields. That is,
it is in contact with and communicates with all other life fields. What happens to one creature
will be communicated to all other creatures through morphic resonance. What one creature
learns will eventually be transmitted to all other creatures.
New discoveries in science are based on an intuitive process which bypasses logic. All new
ways of thinking, concepts and inventions are due to the opening up of these intuitive
pathways in the Vigyana-maya Kosha.
In western mysticism, the Vigyana-maya Kosha is known as the Higher Astral Body, which
is widely associated with astral travel - that is, going beyond the limitations of the individual
mind and travelling in the different dimensions of the transpersonal mind.
We can become more aware of this Kosha - that is, awaken it - by all kinds of Yoga,
especially Meditation and Gyana Yoga (the Yoga of Wisdom).
Ananda-maya Kosha, the fifth and last of the Koshas, is the Blissful Sheath, and it relates to
the Joy that bubbles up from the depths of our Essential Being. In western mysticism, it is
known as the Causal Body, the seed of our manifest Being. It is the trap-door into the
realms of Super-consciousness and can be accessed in deep states of Meditation.
All forms of Yoga help us to get in touch with the Ananda-maya Kosha so that we experience
the thrill and bliss of Pure Consciousness. Knowing and experiencing this Kosha gives
meaning to our life and to existence.

Inter-Communication between the Koshas. The Koshas are not really separate but
inextricably tied up with each other. They are considered separate only for the sake of
explanation and conceptual understanding. Energies flow from one Koshas to another. For
example, thoughts in the Mana-maya Kosha stimulate a flow of vital energy in the Prana-
maya Kosha which, in turn, stimulate the physical body through nerve and hormonal
pathways; thoughts and perceptions in the Mana-maya Kosha express themselves in the
Prana-maya and Anna-maya Koshas as emotions; thoughts and intentions in the Mana-maya
Kosha are expressed in the Anna-maya Kosha as physical actions such as walking, talking
and writing; and intuitions in the Vigyana-maya Kosha are accompanied by a throb of joy
from the Ananda-maya Kosha and by inspired activity in the Mana-maya, Prana-maya and
Anna-maya Koshas.
The Koshas are not separate entities but are inextricably connected with each other. They are
not different but make up a spectrum of energies which comprise our whole Being, our
6
Refer to his books A New Science of Life and The Presence of the Past.

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perceptions and our capacity to act in the world. They comprise our personality and yet they
reach out far beyond our personality; they enable us to reach out and touch the world at
large, including its multifarious beings.

Who am I in Relation to the Koshas?

The question Who am I? is the central question of life. When we know the answer then all
our activities become significant and purposeful; otherwise life is a dreary monotonous series
of events. This question may be asked in relation to each of the five Koshas and, in it itself,
constitutes a part of Gyana Yoga the profound and transformative practice of reflection.
Let us consider the five Koshas one after the other and our self-identification with them:
Annamaya Kosha. Certainly the physical body is an essential part of our personality -
without it we would not be able to live or even function in the world. But am I only the
physical body? From the day of our birth we are conditioned to believe that we are almost
exclusively the physical body. We are told that we were born on a certain day, that we look
like our mother or our father, that we are handsome, cuddlesome etc. We accept this without
question: physical identification is firmly established and remains generally unquestioned
throughout our lives.
Yoga reminds us that our physical body is constantly changing. Science tells us that all the
molecules and substances of the body are completely replaced every seven years. Moreover,
the body undergoes a constant change of appearance from childhood through to old-age. Yet,
despite all this physical change, the sense of I doesnt change. Why?
We speak of the body as my body, my face and so on - which suggests, deep down, that
we know that these parts of the physical body belong to us, but that we are not essentially
these parts of the body nor the body as a whole. The body is not I but something that
belongs to the I.
Therefore, the physical body is not the essential I but rather an instrument and vehicle for
acting in the world. Though we should take care of it (and Yoga helps us do this), we need
not totally identity with it. In fact, if we are to go deeper in our wisdom and understanding,
we should not totally identify with the physical body.
Pranamaya Kosha. Vital energy sustains the physical body but it is in a constant state of flux
sometimes we have more, sometimes less, energy. Our emotions and state of health are
constantly changing. Yet, despite this continuous fluctuation, there remains a constant and
permanent sense of I.
Therefore, the vital or etheric sheath also cannot be the Essential I. There is something in
the background that remains constant and observes this constant flux of energies and moods.
Manamaya Kosha. The human mind is always changing. It is as fickle as a kitten and as
unstable as a dew drop in a hurricane. Yet, if we are alert (and Yoga helps us to become more
alert), we can easily observe these constant mental changes. Many meditational techniques,
such as Antar Mouna, are designed specifically to develop our capacity to observe and
witness our mental patterns and fluctuations. Surely that which can be observed cannot be the
Essential. I - for one can only observe something which is exterior to oneself!
Therefore, the Mana-maya Kosha or individual mind, no matter what we feel and how
attached we may be to our intellectual prowess, is not the Essential I. There is something in

6
the background which is able to observe. This something - the Essential I - is beyond even
our individual mind.
We say my mind which again suggests, deep down, that we do not consider our mind as
the Essential I. Therefore, we need not over-identify with our mind, but rather seek to
understand it.
Vigyana-maya Kosha and the Ananda-maya Kosha. These two Koshas are more nebulous
in terms of identification. Even intuitive flashes and flushes of joy are experiences which
are still peripheral to the core of our Being. These experiences happen to us, which, in itself,
suggests that they are still not the Essential I.
Beyond the Koshas. According to Yoga, the Essential I, or the SELF (Sanskrit, Atma) lies
beyond the five Koshas, which, as the name sheath suggests, envelope our Essential Being.
Therefore, if we want a deeper understanding of our own Being and the purpose of life, we
should, without accepting any stereotyped answers, reflects deeply on the existential
questions: Who am I? We should not accept seemingly obvious answers, but go deeper
and deeper, until we find the answer in its pristine glory.
Yoga helps us to awaken understanding of the five Koshas and to get more intimately in
touch with them. Eventually, and this is the deepest purpose of Yoga, we realise That which
is beyond all five Koshas - the Essential I. Then our life resonates with Joy and Meaning.
The impossible becomes possible. We awaken from the dream-like state that we mistakenly
take as normal life.
Once you realise that the personality is merely a shadow of Reality but not Reality itself,
you cease to fret and worry,. You agree to be guided from within and life becomes a journey
to the Unknown.
Nisargadatta Maharaj