A subtle body is a "quasi material" aspect of the human body, being neither solely physical nor solely spiritual, according to various
esoteric
Western esotericism, also known as esotericism, esoterism, and sometimes the Western mystery tradition, is a term scholars use to categorise a wide range of loosely related ideas and movements that developed within Western society. These ideas ...
,
occult
The occult, in the broadest sense, is a category of esoteric supernatural beliefs and practices which generally fall outside the scope of religion and science, encompassing phenomena involving otherworldly agency, such as magic and mysticism a ...
, and
mystical teachings. This contrasts with the
mind–body dualism that has dominated Western thought. The subtle body is important in the
Taoism
Taoism (, ) or Daoism () refers to either a school of philosophical thought (道家; ''daojia'') or to a religion (道教; ''daojiao''), both of which share ideas and concepts of Chinese origin and emphasize living in harmony with the '' Ta ...
of China and
Dharmic religions such as
Hinduism
Hinduism () is an Indian religion or '' dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global p ...
,
Buddhism
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...
, and
Jainism
Jainism ( ), also known as Jain Dharma, is an Indian religion. Jainism traces its spiritual ideas and history through the succession of twenty-four tirthankaras (supreme preachers of ''Dharma''), with the first in the current time cycle bein ...
, mainly in the branches which focus on
tantra
Tantra (; sa, तन्त्र, lit=loom, weave, warp) are the esoteric traditions of Hinduism and Buddhism that developed on the Indian subcontinent from the middle of the 1st millennium CE onwards. The term ''tantra'', in the India ...
and
yoga
Yoga (; sa, योग, lit=yoke' or 'union ) is a group of physical, mental, and spiritual practices or disciplines which originated in ancient India and aim to control (yoke) and still the mind, recognizing a detached witness-consciou ...
, where it is known as the ''Sūkṣma-śarīra'' ( sa, सूक्ष्म शरीर). However, while mostly associated with Asian cultures, non-dualistic approaches to the mind and body are found in many parts of the world.
Subtle body concepts and practices can be identified as early as 2nd century BCE in
Taoist
Taoism (, ) or Daoism () refers to either a school of philosophical thought (道家; ''daojia'') or to a religion (道教; ''daojiao''), both of which share ideas and concepts of Chinese origin and emphasize living in harmony with the '' Tao ...
texts found in the
Mawangdui
Mawangdui () is an archaeological site located in Changsha, China. The site consists of two saddle-shaped hills and contained the tombs of three people from the Changsha Kingdom during the western Han dynasty (206 BC – 9 AD): the Chancellor Li ...
tombs. Although "evidently present" in Indian thought as early as the 4th to 1st century BCE when the
Taittiriya Upanishad
The Taittirīya Upanishad ( Devanagari: तैत्तिरीय उपनिषद्) is a Vedic era Sanskrit text, embedded as three chapters (''adhyāya'') of the Yajurveda. It is a '' mukhya'' (primary, principal) Upanishad, and lik ...
describes the
Panchakoshas, a series of five interpenetrating sheaths of the body. A fully formed subtle body theory didn't develop in India until the
tantric movement that affected all its religions in the Middle Ages. In Indo-Tibetan Buddhism the correlation of the subtle body to the physical body is viewed differently according to school, lineage and scholar but for
Completion stage purposes is visualised within the body.
The subtle body consists of focal points, often called
chakra
Chakras (, ; sa , text=चक्र , translit=cakra , translit-std=IAST , lit=wheel, circle; pi, cakka) are various focal points used in a variety of ancient meditation practices, collectively denominated as Tantra, or the esoteric or ...
s, connected by channels, often called
nadis, that convey subtle breath, often called
prana
In yoga, Indian medicine and Indian martial arts, prana ( sa2, प्राण, ; the Sanskrit word for breath, "life force", or "vital principle") permeates reality on all levels including inanimate objects. In Hindu literature, prāṇa is so ...
. Through breathing and other exercises, a practitioner may direct the subtle breath to achieve
supernormal powers,
immortality
Immortality is the concept of eternal life. Some modern species may possess biological immortality.
Some scientists, futurists, and philosophers have theorized about the immortality of the human body, with some suggesting that human immorta ...
, or
liberation
Liberation or liberate may refer to:
Film and television
* ''Liberation'' (film series), a 1970–1971 series about the Great Patriotic War
* "Liberation" (''The Flash''), a TV episode
* "Liberation" (''K-9''), an episode
Gaming
* '' Liberati ...
.
Subtle body in the Western tradition is called the ''
body of light''. The concept derives from the philosophy of
Plato
Plato ( ; grc-gre, Πλάτων ; 428/427 or 424/423 – 348/347 BC) was a Greek philosopher born in Athens during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. He founded the Platonist school of thought and the Academy, the first institution ...
: the word 'astral' means 'of the stars'; thus the
astral plane consists of the
Seven Heavens of the
classical planet
In classical antiquity, the seven classical planets or seven luminaries are the seven moving astronomical objects in the sky visible to the naked eye: the Moon, Mercury, Venus, the Sun, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. The word '' planet'' co ...
s.
Neoplatonists
Neoplatonism is a strand of Platonic philosophy that emerged in the 3rd century AD against the background of Hellenistic philosophy and religion. The term does not encapsulate a set of ideas as much as a chain of thinkers. But there are some id ...
Porphyry and Proclus elaborated on Plato's description of the starry nature of the human psyche. Throughout the
Renaissance
The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ide ...
, philosophers and alchemists, healers including
Paracelsus
Paracelsus (; ; 1493 – 24 September 1541), born Theophrastus von Hohenheim (full name Philippus Aureolus Theophrastus Bombastus von Hohenheim), was a Swiss physician, alchemist, lay theologian, and philosopher of the German Renaissance.
He ...
and his students, and
natural scientists
Natural science is one of the branches of science concerned with the description, understanding and prediction of natural phenomena, based on empirical evidence from observation and experimentation. Mechanisms such as peer review and repeatabili ...
such as
John Dee
John Dee (13 July 1527 – 1608 or 1609) was an English mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, teacher, occultist, and alchemist. He was the court astronomer for, and advisor to, Elizabeth I, and spent much of his time on alchemy, divination, a ...
, continued to discuss the nature of the astral world intermediate between earth and the divine. The concept of the astral body or body of light was adopted by 19th and 20th-century
ceremonial magicians.
The
Theosophy
Theosophy is a religion established in the United States during the late 19th century. It was founded primarily by the Russian Helena Blavatsky and draws its teachings predominantly from Blavatsky's writings. Categorized by scholars of religion a ...
movement was the first to translate the Sanskrit term as 'subtle body', although their use of the term is quite different from Indic usage as they synthesize Western and Eastern traditions. This makes the term problematic for modern scholars, especially as the Theosophist view often influences
New Age
New Age is a range of spiritual or religious practices and beliefs which rapidly grew in Western society during the early 1970s. Its highly eclectic and unsystematic structure makes a precise definition difficult. Although many scholars consi ...
and
holistic medicine
Alternative medicine is any practice that aims to achieve the healing effects of medicine despite lacking biological plausibility, testability, repeatability, or evidence from clinical trials. Complementary medicine (CM), complementary and alt ...
perspectives. Western scientists have started to explore the subtle body concept in research on meditation.
Asian religions
The
Yogic
Yoga (; sa, योग, lit=yoke' or 'union ) is a group of physical, mental, and spiritual practices or disciplines which originated in ancient India and aim to control (yoke) and still the mind, recognizing a detached witness-consciou ...
,
Tantric and other systems of
Hinduism
Hinduism () is an Indian religion or '' dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global p ...
,
Vajrayana
Vajrayāna ( sa, वज्रयान, "thunderbolt vehicle", "diamond vehicle", or "indestructible vehicle"), along with Mantrayāna, Guhyamantrayāna, Tantrayāna, Secret Mantra, Tantric Buddhism, and Esoteric Buddhism, are names referring t ...
Buddhism
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...
, as well as Chinese
Taoist alchemy contain theories of subtle physiology with focal points (
chakra
Chakras (, ; sa , text=चक्र , translit=cakra , translit-std=IAST , lit=wheel, circle; pi, cakka) are various focal points used in a variety of ancient meditation practices, collectively denominated as Tantra, or the esoteric or ...
s,
acupuncture points) connected by a series of channels (
nadis,
meridians) that convey subtle breath (
prana
In yoga, Indian medicine and Indian martial arts, prana ( sa2, प्राण, ; the Sanskrit word for breath, "life force", or "vital principle") permeates reality on all levels including inanimate objects. In Hindu literature, prāṇa is so ...
, vayu,
ch'i, ki,
lung
The lungs are the primary organs of the respiratory system in humans and most other animals, including some snails and a small number of fish. In mammals and most other vertebrates, two lungs are located near the backbone on either side of ...
). These invisible channels and points are understood to determine the characteristics of the visible physical form. By understanding and mastering the subtlest levels of reality one gains mastery over the physical realm. Through breathing and other exercises, the practitioner aims to manipulate and direct the flow of subtle breath, to achieve supernormal powers ''(
siddhi
In Indian religions, (Sanskrit: '; fulfillment, accomplishment) are material, paranormal, supernatural, or otherwise magical powers, abilities, and attainments that are the products of yogic advancement through sādhanās such as meditati ...
s)'' and attain higher
states of consciousness,
immortality
Immortality is the concept of eternal life. Some modern species may possess biological immortality.
Some scientists, futurists, and philosophers have theorized about the immortality of the human body, with some suggesting that human immorta ...
, or
liberation
Liberation or liberate may refer to:
Film and television
* ''Liberation'' (film series), a 1970–1971 series about the Great Patriotic War
* "Liberation" (''The Flash''), a TV episode
* "Liberation" (''K-9''), an episode
Gaming
* '' Liberati ...
.
Hinduism
Early
Early concepts of the subtle body (
Sanskrit
Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural diffusion ...
: ''sūkṣma śarīra'') appeared in the
Upanishads
The Upanishads (; sa, उपनिषद् ) are late Vedic Sanskrit texts that supplied the basis of later Hindu philosophy.Wendy Doniger (1990), ''Textual Sources for the Study of Hinduism'', 1st Edition, University of Chicago Press, , ...
, including the ''
Brhadaranyaka Upanishad
The ''Brihadaranyaka Upanishad'' ( sa, बृहदारण्यक उपनिषद्, ) is one of the Principal Upanishads and one of the first Upanishadic scriptures of Hinduism. A key scripture to various schools of Hinduism, the ''B ...
'' and the ''
Katha Upanishad''. The ''
Taittiriya Upanishad
The Taittirīya Upanishad ( Devanagari: तैत्तिरीय उपनिषद्) is a Vedic era Sanskrit text, embedded as three chapters (''adhyāya'') of the Yajurveda. It is a '' mukhya'' (primary, principal) Upanishad, and lik ...
'' describes the theory of five
koshas or sheaths, though these are not to be thought of as concentric layers, but interpenetrating at successive levels of subtlety:
* The ''anna-maya'' ("food body", physical body, the grossest level),
* The ''prana-maya'' (body made of vital breath or
prana
In yoga, Indian medicine and Indian martial arts, prana ( sa2, प्राण, ; the Sanskrit word for breath, "life force", or "vital principle") permeates reality on all levels including inanimate objects. In Hindu literature, prāṇa is so ...
),
* The ''mano-maya'' (body made of mind),
* The ''
vijñana-maya'' (body made of consciousness)
* The ''ananda-maya'' (bliss body, the subtlest level).
Subtle internal anatomy included a central channel (
nadi). Later Vedic texts called
samhita
Saṃhitā literally means "put together, joined, union", a "collection", and "a methodically, rule-based combination of text or verses".[brahmana
The Brahmanas (; Sanskrit: , ''Brāhmaṇam'') are Vedic śruti works attached to the Samhitas (hymns and mantras) of the Rig, Sama, Yajur, and Atharva Vedas. They are a secondary layer or classification of Sanskrit texts embedded within ...]
s contain a theory of five "winds" or "breaths" (''vayus,
prana
In yoga, Indian medicine and Indian martial arts, prana ( sa2, प्राण, ; the Sanskrit word for breath, "life force", or "vital principle") permeates reality on all levels including inanimate objects. In Hindu literature, prāṇa is so ...
s''):
* ''Prāṇa'', associated with inhalation
* ''Apāna'', associated with exhalation
* ''Uḍāna'', associated with distribution of breath within the body
* ''Samāna'', associated with digestion
* ''Vyāna'', associated with excretion of waste
Later
A millennium later, these concepts were adapted and refined by various spiritual traditions. The similar concept of the is seen as the vehicle of consciousness in later
Samkhya
''Samkhya'' or ''Sankya'' (; Sanskrit सांख्य), IAST: ') is a dualistic school of Indian philosophy. It views reality as composed of two independent principles, '' puruṣa'' ('consciousness' or spirit); and ''prakṛti'', (nature ...
,
Vedanta
''Vedanta'' (; sa, वेदान्त, ), also ''Uttara Mīmāṃsā'', is one of the six (''āstika'') schools of Hindu philosophy. Literally meaning "end of the Vedas", Vedanta reflects ideas that emerged from, or were aligned with, ...
, and
Yoga
Yoga (; sa, योग, lit=yoke' or 'union ) is a group of physical, mental, and spiritual practices or disciplines which originated in ancient India and aim to control (yoke) and still the mind, recognizing a detached witness-consciou ...
, and is propelled by past-life tendencies, or ''
bhavas''. Linga can be translated as "characteristic mark" or "impermanence" and the Vedanta term
sarira as "form" or "mold". ''Karana'' or "instrument" is a synonymous term. In the Classical Samkhya system of
Isvarakrsna (ca. 4th century CE), the ''Lińga'' is the characteristic mark of the transmigrating entity. It consists of twenty-five
tattvas from eternal consciousness down to the five organs of sense, five of activity (''buddindriya'' or ''jñānendriya'', and ''karmendriya'' respectively) and the five subtle elements that are the objects of sense (''
tanmatras
Tanmatras (Sanskrit: तन्मात्र = tanmātra) are rudimentary, undifferentiated, subtle elements from which gross elements are produced. There are five sense perceptions – hearing, touch, sight, taste and smell – and there are f ...
'') The ''Samkhyakarika'' says:
The classical
Vedanta
''Vedanta'' (; sa, वेदान्त, ), also ''Uttara Mīmāṃsā'', is one of the six (''āstika'') schools of Hindu philosophy. Literally meaning "end of the Vedas", Vedanta reflects ideas that emerged from, or were aligned with, ...
tradition developed the theory of the five bodies into the theory of the
koshas "sheaths" or "coverings" which surround and obscure the self (
atman Atman or Ātman may refer to:
Film
* ''Ātman'' (1975 film), a Japanese experimental short film directed by Toshio Matsumoto
* ''Atman'' (1997 film), a documentary film directed by Pirjo Honkasalo
People
* Pavel Atman (born 1987), Russian hand ...
). In classical Vedanta these are seen as obstacles to realization and traditions like Shankara's
Advaita Vedanta
''Advaita Vedanta'' (; sa, अद्वैत वेदान्त, ) is a Hindu sādhanā, a path of spiritual discipline and experience, and the oldest extant tradition of the orthodox Hindu school Vedānta. The term ''Advaita'' ...
had little interest in working with the subtle body.
Tantra
In
Tantra
Tantra (; sa, तन्त्र, lit=loom, weave, warp) are the esoteric traditions of Hinduism and Buddhism that developed on the Indian subcontinent from the middle of the 1st millennium CE onwards. The term ''tantra'', in the India ...
traditions meanwhile (
Shaiva
Shaivism (; sa, शैवसम्प्रदायः, Śaivasampradāyaḥ) is one of the major Hindu traditions, which worships Shiva as the Supreme Being. One of the largest Hindu denominations, it incorporates many sub-traditions rangi ...
Kaula Kaula may refer to:
People
* Prithvi Nath Kaula (1924–2009), Indian librarian
* William J. Kaula (1871–1953), American watercolor painter
* William M. Kaula (1926–2000), Australian-born American geophysicist
Other uses
* USS ''Kaula'' (AG- ...
,
Kashmir Shaivism
Kashmir Shaivism or Trika Shaivism, is a nondualist tradition of Shaiva-Shakta Tantra which originated sometime after 850 CE. Since this tradition originated in Kashmir it is often called "Kashmiri Shaivism". It later went on to become a pan- ...
and Buddhist
Vajrayana
Vajrayāna ( sa, वज्रयान, "thunderbolt vehicle", "diamond vehicle", or "indestructible vehicle"), along with Mantrayāna, Guhyamantrayāna, Tantrayāna, Secret Mantra, Tantric Buddhism, and Esoteric Buddhism, are names referring t ...
), the subtle body was seen in a more positive light, offering potential for yogic practices which could lead to liberation. Tantric traditions contain the most complex theories of the subtle body, with sophisticated descriptions of energy
nadis (literally "stream or river", channels through which ''vayu'' and ''prana'' flows) and
chakra
Chakras (, ; sa , text=चक्र , translit=cakra , translit-std=IAST , lit=wheel, circle; pi, cakka) are various focal points used in a variety of ancient meditation practices, collectively denominated as Tantra, or the esoteric or ...
s, points of focus where nadis meet.
The main channels, shared by both Hindu and Buddhist systems, but visualised entirely differently, are the central (in Hindu systems: ''
sushumna''; in Buddhist: ''avadhuti''), left and right (in Hindu systems: ''ida'' and ''pingala''; Buddhist: ''lalana'' and ''rasana''). Further subsidiary channels are said to radiate outwards from the chakras, where the main channels meet.
Chakra systems vary with the tantra; the ''
Netra Tantra'' describes six chakras, the ''Kaulajñana-nirnaya'' describes eight, and the ''Kubjikamata Tantra'' describes seven (the most widely known set).
Modern
The modern Indian spiritual teacher
Meher Baba stated that the subtle body "is the vehicle of desires and vital forces". He held that the subtle body is one of three bodies with which the soul must cease to identify in order to realize God.
Buddhism
In
Buddhist Tantra, the subtle body is termed the "innate body" () or the "uncommon means body" (''asadhdrana-upayadeha''),
or , rendered in Tibetan as ''traway-lu'' (transliterated ''phra ba’i lus''). The subtle body is sometimes known as , the “body made of mind” and is the means for synchronising the body and the mind, particularly during meditation.
The subtle body consists of thousands of subtle energy channels (
nadis), which are conduits for energies or "winds" (
lung
The lungs are the primary organs of the respiratory system in humans and most other animals, including some snails and a small number of fish. In mammals and most other vertebrates, two lungs are located near the backbone on either side of ...
or
prana
In yoga, Indian medicine and Indian martial arts, prana ( sa2, प्राण, ; the Sanskrit word for breath, "life force", or "vital principle") permeates reality on all levels including inanimate objects. In Hindu literature, prāṇa is so ...
) and converge at
chakras
Chakras (, ; sa , text=चक्र , translit=cakra , translit-std=IAST , lit=wheel, circle; pi, cakka) are various focal points used in a variety of ancient meditation practices, collectively denominated as Tantra, or the esoteric or ...
.
According to Dagsay Tulku Rinpoche, there are three main channels (''nadis''), central, left and right, which run from the point between the eyebrows up to the crown chakra, and down through all seven chakras to a point two inches below the navel.
Lati Rinbochay describes the subtle body as consisting of 72,000 channels, various winds and a white and a red drop whilst a further very subtle body is a wind abiding in a drop at the centre of the heart chakra. The central channel is then described as being squeezed by two channels that encircle it at each chakra and thrice at the heart chakra, ensuring the winds do not move upward or downward until death.
Buddhist tantras generally describe four or five chakras in the shape of a lotus with varying petals. For example, the
Hevajra Tantra (8th century) states:
In the Center .e. chakraof Creation t the sexual organa sixty-four petal lotus. In the Center of Essential Nature t the heartan eight petal lotus. In the Center of Enjoyment t the throata sixteen petal lotus. In the Center of Great Bliss t the top of the heada thirty-two petal lotus.
In contrast, the historically later
Kalachakra tantra
''Kālacakra'' () is a polysemic term in Vajrayana Buddhism that means "wheel of time" or "time cycles". "''Kālacakra''" is also the name of a series of Buddhist texts and a major practice lineage in Indian Buddhism and Tibetan Buddhism. The ta ...
describes six chakras.
In
Vajrayana
Vajrayāna ( sa, वज्रयान, "thunderbolt vehicle", "diamond vehicle", or "indestructible vehicle"), along with Mantrayāna, Guhyamantrayāna, Tantrayāna, Secret Mantra, Tantric Buddhism, and Esoteric Buddhism, are names referring t ...
Buddhism, liberation is achieved through subtle body processes during
Completion Stage practices such as the
Six Yogas of Naropa.
Other traditions
Other spiritual traditions teach about a mystical or divine body, such as "the most sacred body" (''wujud al-aqdas'') and "true and genuine body" (''jism asli haqiqi'') in
Sufism
Sufism ( ar, ''aṣ-ṣūfiyya''), also known as Tasawwuf ( ''at-taṣawwuf''), is a mystic body of religious practice, found mainly within Sunni Islam but also within Shia Islam, which is characterized by a focus on Islamic spirituality ...
, the
meridian system in
Chinese religion, and "the immortal body" (''soma athanaton'') in
Hermeticism.
Western esoteric tradition
The ''body of light'' is elaborated on according to various
Western esoteric,
occult
The occult, in the broadest sense, is a category of esoteric supernatural beliefs and practices which generally fall outside the scope of religion and science, encompassing phenomena involving otherworldly agency, such as magic and mysticism a ...
, and
mystical teachings. Other terms used for this body include ''body of glory'', ''spirit-body'', ''radiant body'', ''luciform body'', ''augoeides'' ('radiant'), ''astroeides'' ('starry' or 'sidereal body'), and ''celestial body''.
The concept derives from the philosophy of
Plato
Plato ( ; grc-gre, Πλάτων ; 428/427 or 424/423 – 348/347 BC) was a Greek philosopher born in Athens during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. He founded the Platonist school of thought and the Academy, the first institution ...
: the word 'astral' means 'of the stars'; thus the
astral plane consists of the
Seven Heavens of the
classical planet
In classical antiquity, the seven classical planets or seven luminaries are the seven moving astronomical objects in the sky visible to the naked eye: the Moon, Mercury, Venus, the Sun, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. The word '' planet'' co ...
s. The idea is rooted in common worldwide religious accounts of the
afterlife
The afterlife (also referred to as life after death) is a purported existence in which the essential part of an individual's identity or their stream of consciousness continues to live after the death of their physical body. The surviving es ...
in which the
soul's journey or "ascent" is described in such terms as "an ecstatic, mystical or out-of body experience, wherein the spiritual traveller leaves the physical body and travels in their body of light into 'higher' realms."
Neoplatonists
Neoplatonism is a strand of Platonic philosophy that emerged in the 3rd century AD against the background of Hellenistic philosophy and religion. The term does not encapsulate a set of ideas as much as a chain of thinkers. But there are some id ...
Porphyry and Proclus elaborated on Plato's description of the starry nature of the human psyche. Throughout the
Renaissance
The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ide ...
, philosophers and alchemists, healers including
Paracelsus
Paracelsus (; ; 1493 – 24 September 1541), born Theophrastus von Hohenheim (full name Philippus Aureolus Theophrastus Bombastus von Hohenheim), was a Swiss physician, alchemist, lay theologian, and philosopher of the German Renaissance.
He ...
and his students, and
natural scientists
Natural science is one of the branches of science concerned with the description, understanding and prediction of natural phenomena, based on empirical evidence from observation and experimentation. Mechanisms such as peer review and repeatabili ...
such as
John Dee
John Dee (13 July 1527 – 1608 or 1609) was an English mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, teacher, occultist, and alchemist. He was the court astronomer for, and advisor to, Elizabeth I, and spent much of his time on alchemy, divination, a ...
, continued to discuss the nature of the astral world intermediate between earth and the divine. The concept of the astral body or body of light was adopted by 19th-century
ceremonial magician
Éliphas Lévi,
Florence Farr and the magicians of the
Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, including
Aleister Crowley.
Western syncretic tradition
Theosophy
In the 19th century,
H. P. Blavatsky
Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, uk, Олена Петрівна Блаватська, Olena Petrivna Blavatska (; – 8 May 1891), often known as Madame Blavatsky, was a Russian mystic and author who co-founded the Theosophical Society in 1875 ...
founded the esoteric religious system of
Theosophy
Theosophy is a religion established in the United States during the late 19th century. It was founded primarily by the Russian Helena Blavatsky and draws its teachings predominantly from Blavatsky's writings. Categorized by scholars of religion a ...
, which attempted to restate Hindu and Buddhist philosophy for the Western world. She adopted the phrase "subtle body" as the English equivalent of the Vedantic ''sūkṣmaśarīra'', which in
Adi Shankara
Adi Shankara ("first Shankara," to distinguish him from other Shankaras)(8th cent. CE), also called Adi Shankaracharya ( sa, आदि शङ्कर, आदि शङ्कराचार्य, Ādi Śaṅkarācāryaḥ, lit=First Shanka ...
's writings was one of three bodies (physical, subtle, and causal). Geoffrey Samuel notes that theosophical use of these terms by Blavatsky and later authors, especially
C. W. Leadbeater
Charles Webster Leadbeater (; 16 February 1854 – 1 March 1934) was a member of the Theosophical Society, Co-Freemasonry, author on occult subjects and co-initiator with J. I. Wedgwood of the Liberal Catholic Church.
Originally a pr ...
,
Annie Besant
Annie Besant ( Wood; 1 October 1847 – 20 September 1933) was a British socialist, theosophist, freemason, women's rights activist, educationist, writer, orator, political party member and philanthropist.
Regarded as a champion of human ...
and
Rudolf Steiner (who went on to found
Anthroposophy), has made them "problematic" to modern scholars, since the Theosophists adapted the terms as they expanded their ideas based on "psychic and clairvoyant insights", changing their meaning from what they had in their original context in India.
Post-theosophists
The later theosophical arrangement was taken up by
Alice Bailey, and from there found its way into the
New Age
New Age is a range of spiritual or religious practices and beliefs which rapidly grew in Western society during the early 1970s. Its highly eclectic and unsystematic structure makes a precise definition difficult. Although many scholars consi ...
worldview
and the human
aura
Aura most commonly refers to:
* Aura (paranormal), a field of luminous multicolored radiation around a person or object
* Aura (symptom), a symptom experienced before a migraine or seizure
Aura may also refer to:
Places Extraterrestrial
* 1488 ...
. Other authors treated the subtle body in varying ways.
Max Heindel divided the subtle body into the
Vital Body made of Ether; the
Desire body, related to the
Astral plane; and the
Mental body.
Barbara Brennan's account of the subtle bodies in her books ''Hands of Light'' and ''Light Emerging'' refers to the subtle bodies as "layers" in the "Human Energy Field" or aura.
Fourth Way
Subtle bodies are found in the "
Fourth Way" teachings of
Gurdjieff and
Ouspensky, which claim that one can create a subtle body, and hence achieve post-mortem immortality, through spiritual or yogic exercises. The "soul" in these systems is not something one is born with, but developed through esoteric practice to acquire complete understanding and to perfect the self. According to the historian Bernice Rosenthal, "In Gurdjieff's cosmology our nature is tripartite and is composed of the physical (planetary), emotional (astral) and mental (spiritual) bodies; in each person one of these three bodies ultimately achieves dominance."
The ultimate task of the fourth way teachings is to harmoniously develop the four bodies into a single way.
Meditation research
Western scientists have started to explore the subtle body concept in relation to research on meditation. The subtle body model can be cross-referenced onto modern maps of the
central nervous system
The central nervous system (CNS) is the part of the nervous system consisting primarily of the brain and spinal cord. The CNS is so named because the brain integrates the received information and coordinates and influences the activity of all p ...
, and applied in research on meditation.
See also
*
Saṃbhogakāya
*
Spirit body (Mormonism)
References
Citations
Works cited
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Other sources
* Thelemapedia. (2004).
Body of Light''
Further reading
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External links
Unbalanced Flows in the Subtle Body: Tibetan Understandings of Psychiatric Illness and How to Deal With It
{{DEFAULTSORT:Subtle Body
Buddhist philosophical concepts
Eastern esotericism
Esoteric cosmology
Hindu philosophical concepts
Samkhya
Tantric practices
Theosophical philosophical concepts
Vitalism
Yoga