Annamaya Kosa
Kamamaya Kosa
This layer is possessed also by animals and even trees.
When this layer dominates, there is no sense of I. When this kosa
is operative the mind is in a state of
waking consciousness.
The functions of this layer are associated with citta.
Manomaya Kosa
1) There are two types of memory,
cerebral and extra cerebral. The former is primarily from the current
lifetime, and is stored in the brain cells
of the annamaya kosa. Many things are remembered directly by this layer
of the mind, and are retrievable under
hypnosis, i.e. they are not filtered the
way conscious perception is.
Extra cerebral memory comes from past lives, but must also have
a component that is being stored in this lifetime. It is usually
only consciously accessible to very young children. Since this layer
of the mind does not survive death, the extra cerebral memory must
be held by the atimanas kosa, e.g. the
samskaras.
2) Most thinking goes on in this layer (contemplation), including
reasoning, logical thought, and problem solving. It handles daily
life, information, management, and computation. It is also involved
with philosophy.
When one is deep in this layer, the indriyas may be closed off,
e.g. deep absorption in a problem, and it may generate pictures that
cause motor responses, without external stimulus.
3) This level of mind experiences
pleasure and pain. It is thus involved with experiencing the
reactions of past actions.
4) Dreaming occurs in this layer
of the mind, when the kamamaya kosa (the conscious mind) is not
operating, as it is related to memory. But this would be only
ordinary dreams? There are also dreams which access higher levels?
Most of the functions of this layer are associated with the
aham, though the actual storage
of memories must be a citta function.
Atimanas Kosa
This is the first level of causal mind. When the lower functions
of mind are suspended in meditation, there is nothing to separate
the unit causal mind from the Cosmic causal mind, except the seeds
of past samskaras.
This is the level of intuition and
creative insight. It can also influence dreams, often providing images
which are the solutions to long contemplated problems. When the cruder
levels of mind are still then this layer can be experienced directly,
as in clairvoyant work. This level may
also be accessed in hypnosis, or concentrated gaze on a flame, crystal
etc., i.e. skrying. In this case much of what is accessed is the
reflection of ones own samskaras. In
clairvoyant reading etc. one works from a
centered, `neutral' stance at the
sixth chakra.
This level of mind first expresses the samskaras, and the desire
for sadhana. It resonates with natural settings and devotional music.
The functions of this layer are associated with aham and
mahat.
Vijinanamaya Kosa
The vijinanamaya kosa has two primary functions: 1) viveka,
or discrimination, and 2) vaeragya, or non-attatchment.
- Viveka: Discrimination is the faculty of discerning what
is Eternal and what is not. This is the main function of
the buddhi, which is part
of ahamtattva.
- Vaeragya: Non-attachment can only be
attained after Viveka has awakened. It is not properly thought
of as renunciation. It arises from an attraction to the Supreme,
rather than a repulsion from the worldly. It arises from seeing
all this finite world as the manifestation of the Infinite. Then
love for the finite and love for the infinite merge. This is
different from renunciation. In fact an overly developed
repulsion for the physical during life prevents proper
rebirth after death.
The functions of this layer are associated mainly with
mahat?
Hiranmaya Kosa
Establishment in this kosa on a universal basis
is described as Savikalpa Samadhi.
When the samskaras are exhausted it
can merge in Bhrama which is
Nirvikalpa Samadhi.
This kosa is the first expression of
mahatattva.It is only separated from the Atman by a thin veil.
In Ananda Sutram 3-1, it is stated that the kamamaya kosa is the
crude mind, the manomaya kosa is the subtle mind, while the atimansas,
vijinanamaya and hiranmaya kosas together form the `causal [or astral,
or unconscious mind]'. It is only the layers of the causal mind that
survive the death of the physical body. The annamaya kosa is called the
crude body, while the other five kosas make up the subtle body.
The process of purifying and perfecting the kosas is the true
subject of Yoga and of Tantra. This is called
sadhana. In all beings the kosas are also being purified
by natural processes, though at a slower
rate.
In the Mind of the Cells there are presented these levels of mind:
The intellectual mind, the emotional mind, the sensory mind, and the
physical mind. These might correspond with the first 3-4 kosas. In this
case the emotional mind would correspond with the limbic brain, as in
Didi's presentation.
When the mind turns towards the supreme and experiences bliss it
can rise above the samskaras, i.e. above the atimanas kosa.
This includes the cellular minds, the group minds of the organs,
and the overall physical mind of the body.
In Reiki Fire [RF] (based in part on Osho Rajneesh's philosphy)
a discription of seven layers of mind is given as follows:
