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Akosha (alsokosa;Sanskritकोश,IAST:kośa), usually rendered "sheath", is a covering of theAtman, or Self according toVedantic philosophy. The five sheaths, summarised with the termPanchakosha, are described in theTaittiriya Upanishad (2.1-5),[1][2] and they are often visualised as the layers of an onion.[3] From gross to fine they are:
The five sheaths summarised with the termPanchakosha are described in theTaittiriya Upanishad (2.1-5).[2]
Panchakoshas are divided in three bodies:[4]
Theatman is behind thePanchakoshas. According to Vedanta the wise person, being aware of the subtle influences of the five elements within eachkosha, ever discerns theSelf amidst appearances.
This is the sheath of the physical (body) self, the grossest of the fivekoshas, named from the fact that it is nourished by food. Living through this layer humans identify themselves with a mass ofskin,flesh,fat,bones, andfeces, while the human of discrimination knows oneself, the only reality that there is, as distinct from the body. The physical body is formed of the essence of food. Birth and death are the attributes of theAnnamaya kosha.
Anna means matter,annam literally means food;Taittiriya Upanishad calls food the medicament of all.[5] The gross body which is matter-born and matter sustained and transient and subject to perception is theAnnamayakosha whose origin is food eaten by parents. It is visible, dependent and impure. It is not theatman because it did not exist before its origination and ceases to exist once it is destroyed. It is subject to origination and destruction every moment. It is theanatman because it is not in the beginning and at the end, is non-existent also in the present. It does not know itself. The deluded mind that does not inquire considers hisatman to be this body orkosha. Such a person cannot enjoy bliss.[6]
Pranamaya means composed ofprana, the vital principle, the force that vitalizes and holds together the body and the mind. It pervades the whole organism, its one physical manifestation is the breath. As long as this vital principle exists in the organisms, life continues. Coupled with the five organs of action it forms the vital sheath. In theVivekachudamani it is a modification ofvayu or air, it enters into and comes out of the body.
Pranamayakosha, separate from and subtler thanAnnamayakosha, pertains to theSukshma sarira, it is the sheath of the vital airs completely enclosing and filling theAnnamayakosha. ThePrana in combination with the five organs of action constitutes thePranamayakosha. TheAnnamayakosha is an effect of thePranamayakosha.[7] TheAnnamayakosha gets life by thePrana entering into it and engages in all kinds of action.Prana is the life of beings and the Universal life. Whatever happens in theAnnamayakosha is wrongly identified as belonging to theatman by reason of its being pervaded by thePranamayakosha which is effect ofVayu, and totally unaware and dependent.[8]
Manomaya means composed ofmanas ormind. The mind, along with the five sensory organs, is said to constitute themanomaya kosa. Themanomaya kosa, or "mind-sheath" is said more truly to approximate to personhood thanannamaya kosa andpranamaya kosha. It is the cause of diversity, ofI andmine.Adi Shankara links it to clouds that are brought in by the wind and again driven away by the same agency. Similarly, man's bondage is caused by the mind, and liberation, too, is caused by that alone.
Manomayakosha belongs to theSuksma sarira. It is the "self" havingPranamayakosha as its body.[9] The organs of knowledge and the mind form thiskosha which is the cause of the sense of the "I" and of the "mine" and of the varying conceptions. It creates difference of names etc., because organs of knowledge are dependent on and determined by the mind which is of the nature of determination and doubt. It is powerful because bondage and liberation depend on the mind which producing attachment binds a person and which by creating aversion for them liberates them from that self-made bondage. It pervades thePranamayakosha. It is the sacrificial fire, the five organs are the priests who pour into this fire the oblations of sense-objects, which fire fuelled by variousvasanas burns out the world created and expanded by the mind that when fouled byrajas ("projection") andtamas ("concealment") superimposes thesamsara but when free ofrajas andtamas can bring about the state of being established inBrahman.[10]
Vijñānamaya means composed ofvijñāna, or intellect, the faculty which discriminates, determines orwills.Chattampi Swamikal definesvijñānamaya as the combination of intellect and thefive sense organs. It is the sheath composed of more intellection, associated with the organs of perception. Sankara holds that thebuddhi, with its modifications and the organs of knowledge, form the cause of man'stransmigration. This knowledge sheath, which seems to be followed by a reflection of the power of thecit, is a modification ofprakrti. It is endowed with the function of knowledge and identifies itself with the body, organs etc.
Vijnanamaya kosha also belongs to theSuksma sarira and pervades theManomayakosha that pervades thePranamayakosha which pervades theAnnamayakosha.Buddhi with its organs of knowledge and its actions having the characteristics of an agent is theVigyanakosha, the cause ofsamsara. It has the power of reflection of thechaitanya which it accompanies as a modification ofPrakrti (avidya) and characterised by knowledge and action and always identified with the body, organs etc. Thiskosha is endowed withjnana and to it belong the waking and dream states and the experiences of joy and sorrow. Being very luminous in close proximity of theParamatman deluded by whichupadhi it is subject tosamsara, thisatman which is compacted ofvigyanana and shining in the heart near thepranas being immutable becomes a doer and enjoyer in the midst of theupadhis. Its "jivabhava-existential-character" i.e. Jivahood, persists so long as there is delusion as it is born ofmithyajnana. Thoughavidya is beginningless it is not eternal.[11]
Anandamaya means composed ofananda, orbliss; it is the subtlest of the fivekoshas. In theUpanishads the sheath is known also as thecausal body. In deep sleep, when the mind and senses cease functioning, it still stands between the finite world and the self.Anandamaya, or that which is composed of supreme bliss, is regarded as the innermost of all. The bliss sheath normally has its fullest play duringdeep sleep: while in the dreaming and wakeful states, it has only a partial manifestation. The blissful sheath (anandamaya kosha) is a reflection of the Atman which is truth, beauty, bliss absolute.
Anandamaya kosha is the last layer and it is the closest layer to the Atman. It is a modification ofavidya and appears as a reflection of theatman compacted of absolute bliss. It is fully manifested in the dreamless deep sleep. It is not theatman because it is connected withupadhis ("limitations") and a modification ofPrakrti as an effect of good deeds.[12]
Ātman can be identified only by negation of theanatman. ThePanchkoshas areanatman that hide theatman, thesekoshas or sheaths are required to be systematically removed. Their removal brings to fore a void which void is also required to be removed. After removal of the five sheaths and the resultant void through the process of negation, what remains is theAtman; and then the non-existence of all the modifications beginning with theahamkara is self-witnessed, the self that witnesses is itself the supreme Self.[13]These five sheaths envelop theatman or "Self".
TheVedanta conceives the expression of the gross universe possible by traversing through all these stages of emanation from the cloud ofMaya covering the face ofBrahman toSthula bhutas or gross matter with all its multifarious aspect including gross energy.[14]Badarayana, drawing attention toPāṇini’s grammar (V.iv.21), explains that the suffixmayat as inAnnamaya (made of food),Pranamaya (made of vital air) etc., besides conveying the meaning "made of" has also the sense of abundance and plenitude as well[15] for which reason it is repeatedly said -Brahman is the Blissful (Anandamaya) Self.
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