The Mahābhūtas (five main elements)—Introduction

The five main elements—

1. air,
2. space,
3. fire,
4. water and
5. earth

Evolve out of the five subtle elements. i.e.

1. Śabda,
2. Sparśa,
3. Rūpa,
4. Rasa and
5. Gandha.

Earth rises from the smell, from taste water, from colour fire, touch gives rise to air and sound to ether. These are Viśeṣas. The gross elements which overflow in Sattva like vāyu, ākāśa, tejah, āpah, pṛthvi are calm pleasant and in glee. The components which go along with Rajas are subjected to riot, misery and unstability. Those which go along with Tamas are delusion, dejection and slackness.

In the Śāntiparva of the Mahābhārata also the Mahābhūtas are described. Space originated first from the everlasting and imperishable matter. Then from space wind was born and wind gave birth to light. Light in turn generated water. The universe and its paraphernalia come from water. The components which are formed or originated from eternal are one but are considered different, like the waves of the ocean. The five gross elements represent everything in the universe, what is mobile and immobile and creation and destruction. All the existent things present in this universe have all these five elements. But these five elements are not uniformly distributed to all things; it is so that unequal distribution is used to serve different purposes. The space occupies every gap. Each and every sense organ consists in space. Ether is said to have sound as its attributes and is accepted by the one knowing the science of elements^[1]. Extension, capacity of being enclosed, absence of refuge, power of being unmanifest, capacity for modification, incapacity for resistance, the sense of hearing of the human body are supposed to be the properties of space. The five elementary entities have fifty properties as the essence.^[2]

Ether gives rise to sound and earth has all dense matter as its attribute. Life originates from wind; taste from water; form is of light; essence of feet is wind. Wind is for vital airs. The attributes of wind can be said as the essence of touch and touch is the attribute of wind. The properties of wind which has its attribute as touch are numerous, for e.g. either heat or cold, helps speech make one independent, strength, celebrity, power to discharge power to lift other objects and breathe, which is the essence of life and birth. The attribute of heat and form of various colours is the digestive fire in the stomach, light that manifests all things and body’s heat and light of eyes. Fire has innumerable properties. Some of them are irresistible energy in flammability, heat, capacity to soften, light, sorrow, disease, speed, fury and upward motion. The properties of water are to make solution and make all kinds of liquid matter. Water consists blood, marrow and others which are cool in essence. Another attribute of water is taste which is the sense of tongue. The other properties regarding water are coolness, taste, moisture, liquidity, capacity to congeal and power to melt all earthly products, the solid substances, almost all, belonging to earth like bones, teeth, nails, beard, hair on the body, nerves, sinews and skin. Smell is an attribute of earth, which actually belongs to the organ nose. Some of the important properties of earth are as follows_ immobility, weight, hardness, productiveness, scent, density, capacity to absorb all sorts of scents, cohesion, habitability etc. Patience is said to be the attribute of mind. In short it can be said that all elements partake the attributes of one another. In all living creatures, the supplementary entities exist. The ancient sages and Ṛṣis have said or rather predicted that the five elements and its qualities emanate and their effects from or belong to them.^[3]

The creatures and everything are the gift of these five elements which are primal. As the innumerable waves which arise and merge into ocean, so is the case of the great elements which result in the life of creatures and then these creatures resolve in to the elements. This can be compared to the appearing and disappearing of the tortoise legs. It can be concluded thus that everything mobile or immobile things in the universe are the essence of these elements. The infinite variety of creatures resolve in to the elements when destructed so also at the time of creation they take new form and originate from the elements. The great elements are earth, wind, ether, water and light and they cause creation and destruction. The virtues found in the living bodies are the amalgamation of these five elements which in turn merge in to the supreme soul. This cyclic process of being created and destructed and combining with the elements goes on and on.

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

antarātmakamākāśaṃ tanmayaṃ śrotramindriyam | tasya śabdaṃ guṇaṃ vidyānmūrti-
śā?[º]vidhānavat || Mahābhārata XII, 252-3.

[2]:

Mahābhārata XII, 255–7, 8.

[3]:

gandhaścevendriyārtho'yaṃ vijñeyaḥ pṛthivīmayaḥ |
uttareṣu guṇāḥ santi sarvasattveṣu cottarāḥ || Mahābhārata XII, 252 -9.