Elusive Consciousness

Author(s): Narendra Bhandari, Surendrasingh Pokharana, Jitendra B Shah
Publisher: L D Indology Ahmedabad

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Yoga sutras of Patanjali, The Geeta and The Upanishads,
an attempt is made here to present the most representative Indian theory of personality bracketing the metaphysical differences among various systems of Indian philosophy.
Representative Spiritual Theory of Personality based on Classical Indian Wisdom:
According to Indian psychology, human personality is constituted of two elements: The Body and the 'Self. Self refers to principle of pure consciousness and 'Body' refers to the matter component of personality. Body is enlivened because of its being the abode of self.
THE BODY:
Concept of Body is also peculiar in Indian psychology, according to which each individual has three bodies:
Gross Body
Subtle Body Casual Body
1. Gross Body (Sthoola sharira)
Gross body is our physical body derived from our parents. Gross body is a part of the external material world of objects, constituted of the same elements, namely earth, water, fire, air and ether. 'Gross' denotes nothing but whatever is visible i.e. directly perceptible. (SPB 1.62). Thus, gross body, made up of flesh and bones is directly observable and it is the body with which the sciences of physiology and anatomy deal with. In Upanishadic terms, gross body can be said to be food sheath (Annamaya Kosha-Taittiriya Upanishad, 3.2.1)
2. Subtle Body (Sookshma-Sharira)
According to Indian psychology, each individual self is accompanied (enveloped) by one subtle body also, in addition to the physical body. Gross body alone is incapable of producing any experience. So, subtle body is "hypothesized" (STK. 39) Gross body and subtle body function together as a unit and thereby produce various cognitive, affective and behavioral experiences. As Swami
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