Subtle Body

Alternate human physiological system
that exists on a different plane than
gross matter, but has certain correspondences with the anatomy of the material
body. Different parts of the subtle body
contain the microcosmic forms of the
deities Shiva and Shakti, the bipolar
forces believed to be the powers behind
the cosmos. The subtle body is thus
based on the principle of the homology,
or essential similarities, of macrocosm
and microcosm, a fundamental Hindu
idea since the time of the Upanishads.
The Sanskrit texts describing the subtle
body assume that there are different
planes of reality, and thus that the subtle
body actually exists, but given the network of symbols associated with it, one
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Subtle Body
need not accept its literal reality for it to
be religiously meaningful.
The subtle body is visualized as a set
of six psychic centers (chakras), running
roughly along the course of the spine:
the muladhara chakra at the base of the
spine, the svadhishthana chakra in the
genital region, the manipura chakra in
the navel region, the anahata chakra in
the heart region, the vishuddha chakra
in the throat region, and the ajna chakra
is in the forehead between the eyebrows.
Associated with each of these chakras is
an elaborate symbolic system: All six can
be seen as symbols for a human physiological capacity; the first five are associated with one of the subtle elements
(tanmatras), and the sixth with thought.
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Subtle Body
Vishnu, surrounded by worshipers, wielding Sudarshana, his discus weapon.
The lotus petals on each chakra contain
a letter of the Sanskrit alphabet, thus
encompassing all sacred sounds. Some
models of the subtle body are even
more developed, with each chakra
associated with a certain color and a
certain presiding deity.
These centers are capped at the top
of the head by the “thousand-petaled
lotus” (sahasradalapadma), which is
the abode of Shiva in the human body.
Connecting all of the centers are three
vertical channels (nadi)—the ida nadi
on the left, the pingala nadi on the
right, and the sushumna in the center.
Coiled three times around the muladhara chakra is the kundalini, the latent
spiritual force in all human beings.
This is considered an aspect of the universal Shakti, or feminine divine
power, but in most people is regarded
as dormant, symbolized by its coiled
state. The separation of Shakti and
Shiva at the opposite ends of the subtle
body also symbolizes the ordinary person’s unenlightened state, since enlightenment transcends this duality, and the
two deities are united and identical.
The subtle body is a fundamental
aspect of tantra practices and some
forms of yoga. In the types of yoga that
focus on the subtle body, including
kundalini yoga, the ultimate aim is to
awaken and straighten the kundalini,
moving it up the sushumna through
the chakras to the abode of Shiva.
Since the kundalini is nothing but raw
energy, the process must be carefully
controlled to prevent the aspirant from
unleashing uncontrollable forces, and
manuals warn against doing this without being under the supervision of a
spiritual teacher (guru). The union of
Shiva and Shakti in the aspirant’s body
mirrors the action of these divine
forces in the macrocosm, and with this
union the aspirant gains bliss and final
liberation of the soul (moksha). For further information see Arthur Avalon (Sir
John Woodroffe), Shakti and Shakta,
1959; Philip S. Rawson, The Art of
Tantra, 1973; Swami Agehananda
Bharati, The Tantric Tradition, 1977; and
Douglas Renfrew Brooks, The Secret of
the Three Cities, 1990.