Pancha MahaBhutas

We are going elemental in November, as we explore the Pancha (five) Maha (divine) Bhutas (elements.)  These five elements are the fundamental building blocks of all of creation. They flow from the most subtle state (Akasha) to the densest (Earth) and are said to build on each other as they form to create everything within us and around us.

Akasha: Symbolic and Sensory Connections of Space/Ether

·       Hand connection: The middle finger is used to connect us to Akasha.

·       Sensory property: Akasha is associated with sound, the first sensory quality to emerge in the elemental sequence, making ears the corresponding organ.

·       Chakra: Akasha is represented by the throat chakra.

Akasha—space or ether—is said to be the primordial substrate and container for all the other bhutas. It represents boundless potential and expansive awareness, offering space for non-attachment and accommodation. Unlike the other bhutas, which offer some form of resistance, Akasha is entirely free of impediment. This openness allows it to hold the other four dynamic elements.

Vayu: Symbolic and Sensory Connections of Air

·      Hand connection: the index finder is used to connect to Vayu.

·      Sensory property: Vayu builds off Sound and adds Touch, making the skin it’s corresponding organ.

·      Chakra: Vayu is linked to the heart chakra.

Vayu, often referred to as Air, is the first element that is “born” from Akasha.  Although it is often translated as Air, it is the engine element that creates movement.  Consider it as the force that acts whenever there is direction, speed, contraction, expansion, or flow.  While Vayu moves it creates an element of resistance, unlike Akasha’s freedom from obstacles. It is the foundational energy for our nervous, muscular, digestive and respiratory systems. In the subtle body Vayu manifests as Prana, our life force energy.

Agni: Symbolic and Sensory Connections of Fire

·      Hand connection: the thumb connects us to Agni.

·      Sensory property: Agni develops off Sound and Touch while adding Form/Color, making the eyes it’s corresponding organ.

·      Chakra: Agni is linked to the Naval Chakra.

Agni (Fire/Light) represents the universal principles of transformation, heat, light, and metabolic energy. As it formulates from Vayu’s motion it adds the capacity of conversion, the cosmic energy that changes one substance to another - as an example food into living tissue or fuel into energy.  As it adds form and light we can hear the sound of a fire, while feeling it’s heat and seeing it’s shape and colors. 

Apas: Symbolic and Sensory Connections of Water

·      Hand connection: the little finger connects us to Apas.

·      Sensory property: Apas develops off Sound, Touch, Form/Color while adding Taste, making the tongue it’s corresponding organ.

·      Chakra: Apas is identified by the Sacral Chakra.

Apas (Water) represents the universal properties of fluidity, purification, water, cohesion.  It is Apas that binds us together with the fluids that lubricates our joints and adheres our cells together.  From the subtleness of Akasha, the element of Vayu creates something we can feel, Agni creates something we can see and Apas creates a density that we can taste.  On the metaphysical plane Apas creates attraction and cohesion which forms a resistance in the form of push/pull. 

Prithvi: Symbolic and Sensory Connections of Earth

·      Hand connection: the ring finger connects us to Prithvi.

·      Sensory property: Prithvi develops off Sound, Touch, Form/Color, Taste while adding Smell, making the nose it’s corresponding organ.

·      Chakra: Prithvi is identified by the Root Chakra.

Prithvi (Earth) brings us to the densest of the bhutas.  Prithvi’s universal properties are solidity, stability, structure, and physical manifestation.  Born out of Apas, as it cools and condenses it solidifies into tangible matter.  This anchor of creation becomes the final step from cosmic consciousness into physical being. As the final element it is the only one to carry all five senses, sound, touch, sight, taste, and smell, in it.  The earth element is our connection to survival, safety, and our ancestral roots.  When Prithvi is balanced, you experience physical strength, robust immunity, deep resilience, and stable body weight.

As we approach our Yoga practice from a wholistic viewpoint, our awareness of the Pancha MahaBhutas can help us to bring a sense of harmony, equanimity and balance to the practice.  Notice when you need to back away or increase Agni (fire) to help transform the energy or posture in a pose.  Recognize where you may be blocking the flow (Apas) of energy in your sequences.  Are you feeling stuck energy?  Ask how Vayu can help move it or Apas can create more flow/lubrication in your tissue.  You get the idea.  Throughout class begin to be very aware of Akasha, the space of full potential with no attachment.