Am I this physical body ?
Am I the physical body? Or do I have a physical body? These are 2 subtly different questions. The first question implies I am identical (non-different) with the body. The second implies I am different from the body. Just because I have something, does not mean I am that thing. For example – If you say “I have a car”, does that mean you can say “I am a car”? No. The car and I are separate things, and I possess the car. This is true. Similarly “I have a body” does not mean “I am the body”. The body and I are separate things, I am not the body, but I do possess a body. This is how the Vedanta teaching starts to reveal that I am not the physical body.
So if I am not this physical body (called ‘Sthula Sharira’ or Gross body), then what exactly is this physical body? What is it made of? Why do I have this particular body and not another? What is this physical body’s purpose? What is its nature? The author of Tattvabodha (a Vedanta text) proceeds to brilliantly answer each of these questions in turn:
1) What is this physical body made of?
The physical body is made of matter. In fact, not only matter (atoms), but the space they occupy and the heat they generate to maintain body temperature. All these physical factors which make up the body are summarised in Vedanta as the ‘5 gross elements’: Space (the space the body occupies), Air (Oxygen, etc), Fire (body temperature), Water (H2O in all cells), Earth (e.g. minerals, etc). This is the same as what science tells us – Our body is nothing but matter, which you ate in the form of food and that same food-matter becomes your physical body.
Ok…Is the food you ate dead or alive? Even if it was alive, once you’ve eaten it, it is very much dead/inert/insentient. Just like the table in front of you is dead. The table isn’t walking and talking and consciously interacting with its environment, like your physical body is. So we call the table as ‘dead’ or ‘inert’ (jada). Whereas your physical human body does not seem inert, it seems very much alive (chetana).
Given this, here’s a puzzling question for you: If the cause which makes up your physical body (i.e. 5 elements) is dead then surely your physical body should also be….dead/inert? Cause is dead, therefore the effect is dead? Hmmm. Vedanta answers: Yes – this logic is certainly correct. Therefore Vedanta concludes: the physical body by itself is in fact dead/inert!
Your next question will naturally be: then why do physical bodies seem alive? Humans, animals, plants, bacteria – all of these physical bodies move and interact with things around them – they are alive, not dead?! Vedanta replies: True – but due to the presence of what, are these physical bodies alive? It is not purely the presence of the physical body that makes them alive, as the physical body is made of dead matter. Therefore it must be due to the presence of something else other than the physical body that makes them alive. What is that ‘something else’? Vedanta answers: The subtle body (Sukshma Sharira), which is not a physically perceptible thing (indriya agochara) and consists of 17 parts. We will explain this further in future classes.
2) If all the bodies are made of the same inert raw material (5 elements), then what is the cause of all the different types of physical body? E.g. male body, female body, healthy body, sick body, plant body, animal body, human body, etc. Why is a human a human and a plant a plant?
It is all governed by the Law of Karma, Vedanta (tattvabodha) answers. There are 2 key laws we need to understand here:
– Law 1: Everything that happens (an effect) has a cause behind it. There are no accidents. E.g. If I see a tree (an effect), I know there must have been a cause for that tree to be there – the seed.
– Law 2: The nature of the effect will depend on the nature of the cause. E.g. If I see a Mango tree, I know there must have been a seed before. But what type of seed? A coconut seed? No – a mango seed. So the effect is in keeping with the cause (yatha karma tatha shrutam).
So applying these laws, if we see different physical bodies (effects), we know there must have been different causes for each body. What different causes? Law of Karma speaks of Good Karma (punya) & Bad Karma (papa) as the cause. A human body is considered to be the product of a lot of punya as we have the unique ability to gain enlightenment – an animal or plant cannot learn Vedanta and gain this, hence those bodies are considered to be the product of more papa. We all have different mixtures of punya (good karma) and papa (bad karma) when born. See more on the law of karma here: http://advaita-academy.org/blogs/law-of-karma-rebirth-getting-away-with-murder/
3) What is the purpose of the physical body?
The body’s purpose is to be a place for the experience of pleasure and pain (Sukha-Duhka-adi bhoga-ayatanam). This body is required to interact with the world and experience it. And only through this body can we experience both pleasure and pain, according to our efforts and our previous Karma Phala (punya/papa).
4) What is the nature of this physical body?
The body is that which is endowed with the 6 types of modification (shadvikaaravat): 1 – It exists in seed form in the womb. 2- It is born. 3- It grows. 4- It transforms. 5 – It decays. 6- It dies.
All physical bodies are subject to 1-6. Whether it is a saint’s body or a criminal’s body. These are the facts of life – our bodies will eventually grow old, weak, and die. This is totally natural. It is the nature of the body to do so. Therefore, knowing this fact, we should happily accept a fact as a fact. This is wisdom. Non-acceptance of facts causes a lot of mental pain. (Gita 2.11: na anushochanti panditah)
1-6 are called ‘modifications’ (vikaara). Therefore birth and death are just modifications. Birth is not really the creation of something new, nor is death the ultimate destruction of something. Just like the ‘birth’ of a clay pot is just the shaping of the lump of clay by the potter. No clay has been created, it was already there as lump. And ‘death’ of the clay pot is merely the breaking of the pot form. The clay has not been destroyed, it has been modified into another form (smashed pieces of clay.). Nothing can be created nor destroyed. Science confirms this too.
This is the description of the physical body, which I am not.
Om Tat Sat.
Aditya.
