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Esoteric models for mankind

This section covers models from classical Vedic scriptures, and also some of the New Age chakra models.  The basic mody-mind-spirit is a fundamental model of the human condition that goes back thousands of years.  Recall the three parts of the brain in the Framework as you read this section.  There may not be a 1:1 mapping, but there seems to be a pattern.

Body, Mind, Spirit

This is where we start to depart from accepted scientific fact.  The next simplest model of a "human" is:

Spirit
Mind
Body

The body refers to the physical body described above.  The Mind includes the thinking parts we are all familiar with - reasoning, logic, memory, consciousness, dreaming, intelligence, etc.  A slightly more complete model may be:

Spiritual Body / Soul
Thinking/Mental Body
Emotional Body
Physical Body

Science say that emotions and thoughts are purely the action of electrical impulses in the brain and chemical (hormonal) changes in the bloodstream.  Spiritual people and mystics, on the other hand, will say that the electrical impulses and chemical changes result in the physical body from activity in the non-physical (subtle) body surrounding the familiar physical body.  Hindu teachings describe three bodies in this fashion:

Causal
Subtle (or Astral)
Physical

The subtle body includes the emotions and mental bodies.  The Causal body is said to hold the ideas or blueprint, which contains the range of activity that can take place in the subtle world.  All activity is said to come from the subtle world.  It moves the physical body (which is dead and lifeless without the enlivening energy of the subtle realm).  Similarly, the Causal body is still and unmoving, holding the scope and ideas through which the subtle activity explores. The causal body is the DNA of the astral body. The same life force moves a human and a frog, but the imprint in the causal body determines how the life-force shapes the subtle body and hence the creation of the physical body.

Seed Atoms

In Egyptian teachings there are said to be 3 seed atoms. These are subtle atoms, part of the soul, but centred in the following areas of the physical body. At death these seed atoms remain with the soul and are used as the seeds when beinning the creation of a new personality. I see a correspondence between these teachings, and the simple models above.


Hindu terminology

Hindu teachings provide more insite into the composition of the Physical, Astral and Causal worlds. The subtle body which accompanies the sould after death consists of:

Classical Hindu teachings encourage the student to overcome the 5 sheaths or koshas.   (Reference:  Self-Knowledge of Shankaracharya, by Swami Nikhilanananda, Sri Ramakrishna Math, 7th Edition, 1987). These sheaths separate the individual soul from its divine source. Compare these with the Universe 5-layer models, and with the Kriya model below.

  1. Annamayakosha - gross physical sheath.  Overcoming the identification with the physical body.
  2. Pranamayakosha - sheath or prana or vital life force (sometimes called the "breath", not be confused with breathing).  Identification with the energy of the living body.
  3. Manamayakosha - sheath of the mind.  Identification with the environment, with ideas of "I", "you", "his", "mine", etc.
  4. Vijnanamayakosha - sheath of the buddhi or intelligence.  Identification with thinking "I do", "I know", "I am".
  5. Anandamayakosha - sheath of bliss.  Identification with pleasure and rest.

The path to realisation - mergence with the Atman - involves overcoming attachment to these 5 koshas. 

7 Planes Model

The following picture is taken from the Rosicrucian site. I also reproduced this in the Universe model page. As well as being a model of the Universe, it is also a model for the bodies of each person - the physical world, emotional (desire) world, thought or mental world, and higher planes of experience.

 7 layer model

Rays & Chakras

Chakras are wheels of energy, or force centres.  All the ancient teachings describe 7 major energy centres in the body.  Indeed, the chakras are so fundamental to so many teachings, it is hard to see how they are not taught in modern western schools - for example Acupuncture, a recognised form of medical treatment, is based on knowledge of the chakras and nadis (nerve endings) and nerve currents in the body.  There are actually many chakras - each nerve ending is a chakra.  There are important chakras in the centre of the hands, feet, knees, shoulders, etc.  There are probably about 20 important ones, but the 7 most frequently taught are:

# Location Hindu name Gland Colour
7 Crown Sahasrara Pituitary Violet / White
6 Brow Ajna Pineal Indigo
5 Throat Vishuddi Thyroid Blue
4 Heart Anahata Thymus Green / Pink
3 Solar Plexus Manipura Pancreas Yellow
2 Sacral Svadisthana Genitals, kidneys Orange
1 Base Muladhara Adrenals Red

The chakras are described as spinning wheels of energy projecting outside the body where they join up with the surrounding energy field just a few centimetres away from the surface of the body.  The first 6 chakras face forwards, forming a spinning cone, entering the body with a point about 3 mm in diameter.  The 7th chakra points upwards.  The chakras are enlivened by the pranic force flowing through the body.  

I have read about attempts at trying to measure the energy with scientific instruments, but to the best of my knowledge the pranic force and chakras cannot be measured with scientific instruments.  The chakras distribute the energy via the associated glands and physical nerve channels throughout the body. Don't get too caught up with the colours - they really just indicate different level of vibration.

Soul & Monad

Teachings through Alice Bailey (channeling Djwhal Khul, the Tibetan) describe the creation of monads from the three prime rays of the Divine Creator.  These monads are like divine sparks of the creator, and are our true higher selves.  White light (the creator) is composed of three primary colour (Red, Blue and Yellow) - these colours combine to create all other colours, and perfect combination of the three gives rise to pure white light. To experience creation in the lower planes, each monad puts out 12 souls.  These souls in turn put down 12 personalities which are able to experience life in the 3rd dimension, which is the physical world we find so familiar.

The physical body is composed of solids, liquids, and gases as described above.  The etheric double (made up of the higher physical ethers, plus lower astral and mental bodies) is the personality.  The personality over many lives with physical bodies is providing experience back to the soul, which in turn is proving experience back to the monad.

This is where the 144,000 chosen ones came from.  1000 monads (I think this is figurative, rather than an actual number), each with 12 soul extensions each with 12 personality extensions.  In chapter 2 of "A Complete Ascension Manual", Dr Joshua David Stone describes all this in greater detail.  It seems that the number of 12 is approximate, not exact.  Each soul does not necessarily have 12 personalities in manifestation on the planet at once.  Soul mates and Twin Flames are when two personalities from the same soul in physical bodies at the same time meet up - it is said to be a very joyful meeting.  It is more common for personalities from the same monad, but different soul groups to meet (a bit like cousins).  The chances of two personalities meeting from the same soul or monad are fairly small unless Karma is playing some part in creating the event!

The soul or oversoul, and monad, are usually depicted as stars above the head of the physical body.

Chart of Your Divine Self

summitlight.jpg (18987 bytes) The picture opposite comes from The Summit Lighthouse (Elizabeth Claire Prophet).  The chart shows a number of the concepts introduced above. 
  • The higher radiant light is the Monad
  • The soul below (Christ consciousness)
  • The personality at the bottom clothed in the violet flame. 
A silver chord connect the hearts of the three bodies, and the white dove is shown descending from the Monad.  See teachings on the Ascended Masters web site.

 

Alice Bailey - 7 Rays

The 7 rays appeared first in the Alice Bailey books (eg Initiation, Human and Solar, see http://www.theosophiabooks.com/bailey.htm), and Joshua David Stone in "The Complete Ascension Manual" describes them in summarised form.  The teaching is that in the beginning when the monads where created as individual sparks of God, they were from the three primary rays.  The rays are energies which radiate from God, and give particular aspects/attributes/colours to the monad, soul and personality.  Each monad, soul, personality, mental and emotional body, are governed by a particular ray.

Three primary rays:

Rays of attribute:

Each person is affected by rays at the level of monad, soul, personality (ego), mental, emotional and physical body.  A 5th ray personality may become a scientist or researcher, but the affect of the other rays on the mental and emotional bodies will affect the sort of scientific work or research - for example, a 2nd ray emotional body may turn the person towards medicine, whereas a 5th ray mental body may lean towards an academic life in University.  An understanding of the rays will help considerably in understanding a persons personality.  The rays affecting each person are:

Few people will be aware of their soul or monad energy, and hence will be unaware of the rays governing them at these deeper levels.

According to Alice Bailey/Joshua David Stone the 6th ray (responsible for the predominance of Christianity in the west over the last 2000 years) is receding, and the 7th ray is taking over.  The affect of the 7th ray on the planet can be seen through the rise of large corporations (the organisational aspect of the ray) the world over.  The 1st ray is not currently in manifestation on this planet.

Towards the latter part of the 20th century, an additional 5 rays are now supposed to be influencing the planet.  The following table summarises the rays and their characteristics.

Ray Colour Characteristic Development Plane Chakra
I Red Will, power Raja yoga Divinity Crown
II Blue Love/wisdom Raja yoga Monad Heart
III Yellow Active intelligence Analytical thought, philosophy Spirit, atman Throat
IV Emerald Green Harmony Intensity of struggle Intuition Base of the spine
V Orange Concrete knowledge Exactitude in action Mental plane Third eye
VI Indigo Devotion Bhakti yoga Emotional plane Solar plexus
VII Violet Ceremonial magic Ceremony, observances Physical plane Sacral
VIII Seafoam Green Higher cleansing      
IX Blue-green Joy, attraction of the body of light      
X Pearlescent Soul merge      
XI Pink-orange Bridge to the New Age      
XII Gold Christ consciousness      

 

Kriya model from Lahiri Mahasaya

The following diagram came from Lahiri Mahasaya, appearing in the book by Paramahansa Hariharananda "Kriya Yoga".  See also my section on Kriya Yoga.

Gross body - "M".  Made up of the five senses-organs (ears, skin, eyes, mouth, nose) and five senses (hearing, touching, seeing, tasting, smelling), five gross elements (ether, air, fire, water, earth), five organs of work (voice, hands, legs, genitals, rectum), manas (connects lower mind to senses), Buddhi or intellect, Ahankara or ego (seat of self-consciousness), and Chitta (mind stuff, usually recognised through restlessness).

Astral body - "U".  Shown in the diagram by 6 circles.  The description at the side of the circles show the awareness possible with increasing levels of consciousness. 

Causal body - "A".  Awareness at the state of Samadhi.

 chitta.gif (6365 bytes)

 

© In the Light, 17 September, 2009 , Disclaimer, Son of Suckerfish drop-downs from HTML dog