8(b). The Five Mental Sheaths or Pañca-kośās

The Taittirīya-upaniṣad asserts the famous doctrine of five kośas or five sheaths or pañca-kośas (material, vital, mental, intellectual and spiritual). In Bhṛguvalli, Bhṛgu approaches his father, Varuṇa to know Brahman. Varuṇa points out that Brahman, the first principle, is the eminent cause of sṛuṣti, stiti and laya; and the whole universe has emanated from it. From the pure consciousness emanated space with time. From the ether emanated air, from it fire, from it water, from it the earth and from it the food. All the living beings have arisen from food. This is the first of the evolutes, Annamayakośa. From matter arises life, prāṇa, the vital sheath or prāṇamayakośa. All living beings are enclosed within the life sheath in the Manomayakośa, the mental sheath. Manas is the organ of perception, memory, understanding etc.

Perception and memory give rise to the modification of the mind, the saṃskāras.

“This is finer than the vital air sheath. This, identified with the mind, feels the diversity of ‘I’ and ‘You’. It plays a predominant role in the function of knowing. It serves as the instrument in the process of knowing. It applies itself to the study of sciences. It assimilates all knowledge. It exacts in knowing which is the result of its application stained by passion, greed and lust. It creates bondage and, freed of them; it shows the way to liberation. The purification of the mind is the goal of spiritual discipline. This sheath also cannot be the Atman, because it is endowed with a beginning and an end, and is subject to change. It belongs to the category of the object”.^[1]

Within this mental sheath in the Vijñānamayakośa includes the intelligence sheath.

There is a difference between mental and intelligence sheaths. The mental sheath, at the perceptual and memory level, is common to human beings and animals, birds etc., whereas the intelligence sheath is the intellectual and the rational processes which differentiate between the animal and the human behaviour and between the human beings at different stages in this life. Manomayakośa or mental sheath is characterized by egoism, memory and imagination but vij ñānamayakosa is characterized by discrimination, discernment and determination. Within this vij ñānamaya is the Ānandamayakośa- the sheath of bliss. This is characterized by love, delight and bliss. The individuals are free from the notions of egoism and sense of agency.

At this level the individual is close to the level of pure consciousness.

“According to this theory five sheaths have to be removed one by one after recognizing each of them to be the non-self. Nothing that substantiates such mechanical concepts of the Self can be found in these parts of the Upaniṣad. The five contexts cited here only indicate different stages in the inwardness of the enquiry. What is visualized at each stage is correct in that context, and is not stated to be nullified by the later vision. In reality, the interiorization of self-enquiry is not amenable to such mechanical divisions. These five stages only represent certain cognizable instances or sections in the process of the interiorization of the enquiry.”^[2]

In the Taittirīya-upaniṣad the mind is symbolized as the Brahman, since from the mind all are born. And it is the role of mind in knowing Brahman. Having been born they are sustained by the mind and they move towards the mind and merge with the mind.

Knowing this, Bhṛgu approaches his father Varuṇa and makes the request to know about Brahman:

mano bahmetivyajānāt manasohyeva khalhimānibhūtāni jāyante | manasājātāni jīvanti manaḥ yantyabhisaṃviśantīti tadvijñāya punarevavaruṇaṃ pitaramupasasāra adhīhi bhagavobrahmeti | tāṃ hovāca tapasā brahma vijijñāsasva tapo brahmeti sa tapo'tapyata satastaptvā || ^[3]

In her study of the T. Up. Dr Meena states that:

“The main purpose of describing these kośas is to impart the knowledge of Brahman, which is one’s inmost self, just as the end of a branch of a tree is first shown with a view to pointing out the moon over against it. But one’s senses are playing with their objects of the outer world. And one’s mind is fully tainted with the tendencies and impressions of past mundane experiences, so without a visible symbol one cannot fix one’s mind in the Brahman.”^[4]

According to the Bṛhadāraṇyaka-upaniṣad manas has been considered as an organ of perception. Mind and intellect are the instruments of perception. In the dream state jīva creates a world by his mind and moves in that, as he pleases. In the dream state all sensing powers are located in the manas only. In this Upaniṣad there is an inseparable relationship shown among Atman, prāṇa and senses. Prāṇa stands for life breath as well as for manas.

Manas or citta forms the bridge between the external and internal worlds:

tasya vā etasya puruṣasya dve eva sthane bhavata idaṃ ca, paralokasthanaṃ ca sandhyaṃ tṛtīyaṅ svapnasthanaṃ tasminsandhye sthane tiṣṭhannate ubhe sthane paśyatīdaṃ ca paralokasthanaṃ ca atha yathākramo'yaṃ paralokasthane bhavati tamākramamākramyobhyān ānandāṃśca paśyati sa yatra prasvapityasya lokasya sarvāvato mātrāmapādāya svayaṃ vihatya svayaṃ nirmāya svena bhāsā svena jyotiṣā prasvapityatrāyaṃ puruṣaḥ svayaṃ jyotirbhavati || ^[5]

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

Dr. Meena. D. Pathak., A Study of Taittirīya Upaniṣads.-P-7

[2]:

Swami Muni Narayana Prasad, The Taittirīya Upaniṣads.-P-101

[3]:

T.Up.-3.4.1

[4]:

Dr. Meena. D. Pathak., A Study of Taittirīya Upaniṣads.-P-7

[5]:

Bṛhadāraṇyaka-upaniṣad -IV.3.9