Soul and body in Hinduism
Soul and body in Hinduism
This is a collection of articles archived for the excellence of their content. |
Eternal Soul, Mortal Body
Sri Chinmoy, The Soul Is Eternal And The Body Is Mortal Nov 28 2016 : The Times of India
The body is mortal, while the soul is eternal. What is the importance of having a body?
The soul is eternal and the body is perishable, true. Know the supreme importance of three things: first, the embodiment of Truth; second, the revelation of Truth; third, the manifestation of Truth. It is on earth and through the physical body that the soul can manifest its own divinity which is infinite peace, infinite light, infinite bliss. The earth is the field of manifestation and at the same time, this earth is the field of realisation.God-realisation can be achieved only here on earth and not in other spheres, not on other planets, not in other worlds. So those who care for God-realisation have to come into the world. The soul has to accept the body because the body is necessary for the manifestation of the soul's divinity.
On the one hand, when the soul leaves the body, the body cannot function; the body dies. On the other hand, when the soul wants to manifest, it has to be done in the body, with the body. So if we want to negate the body, destroy the body, what can the soul do? It has to leave the body. But if we want to achieve something here on earth, then it has to be done with the conscious help of the body. The body is the instrument of the soul. The Katha Upanishad says: “The soul is the master, the body is the chariot, the reason or intellect is the charioteer and the mind, the reins.“ The body needs the soul, the soul needs the body. For realisation of the highest and deepest Truth, the body needs the soul; for the manifestation of the highest and deepest Truth, the soul needs the body.
What is the difference between body-reality and soul-reality?
Once Troilanga Swami was walking along the street near an Indian king's palace. When the king heard that Troilanga Swami was nearby, he himself ran out and brought him into the palace. The master was naked, so the king's attendants put very nice, expensive clothes on him and they fed him delicious food. The king and his party had a long conversation with the master, although ordinarily he was a man of few words.
When Troilanga Swami left the palace to go back to his cottage, three hooligans attacked him and took away all the expensive robes that had been given to him by the king. The guards arrested the hooligans. Then they begged Troilanga Swami to come to the king's palace once again, and he agreed.
When the King was about to punish the hooligans Troilanga Swami said, “No, do not do that. To me there is no difference whether i have the clothes or not. My soul is not affected at all when i do not have any clothes. Long before you gave me clothes, i had my soul inside my body, and this is the only real thing. What shall i do with the things that do not fulfil any need of my soul?“
The body-reality needs decoration, ornamentation and embellishment for its satisfaction. The soul-reality needs only its oneness with infinity's immortality for its eternal satisfaction. (`The Wisdom of Sri Chinmoy', MLBD.)
What Binds The Soul To the Body?
GS Tripathi, November 29, 2018: The Times of India
What Is It That Binds The Soul To Body?
Indic philosophy associates each body with the eternal soul. The Bhagwad Gita says, the soul is not cut by weapons, burnt by fire, dissolved by water or blown away by air. Just as a human being abandons a torn cloth and wears a new one, so does the soul; the soul abandons the worn out body and takes a new one, when the body dies. What binds the soul to the body?
Soul is not a physical entity, like the body that has five elements; earth, water, air, fire and space. Earth represents the solid state of matter; water the liquid state; air the gaseous state; fire is energy; and space is where these elements operate. According to laws of physics, both matter and energy are indestructible and inter-transferrable. Thus when death comes, matter and energy are transferred to the surroundings, and the body does not remain as it remained before. A dead body does not have a soul.
How does a living body embed a soul? Since different people behave differently, what has the soul to do with it? Since the soul is not a physical concept, the binding cannot be physical. Since it is the binding of a non-physical soul to the physical body, the mechanism should be a judicious mix of both physical and non-physical means.
Since different bodies behave differently, there cannot be a unique or universal mechanism to describe the binding.
On the non-physical part, we can classify the binding broadly as saatvik, rajasik and tamasik. If saatvik, then the body shows saatvik characteristics – purity, illumination, rigidity and elasticity – depending on the circumstances, but not influenced by these, for the body controls these. If the binding is rajasik, it shows dynamism (motion), energy and strength, but controlled by these.
All these traits have a motive behind them. The tamasik binding is the least strong. Here, the body shows inertness, darkness and weakness – love for excessive mundane pleasures is the characteristic. Although these bindings are non-physical, their manifestations in the body, are physical. Thus there is a connection between spiritual forces and physical manifestations.
These are the three spiritual states of the body. Just as matter and energy undergo transformations, these spiritual states can also undergo transformations. By diligence and practice, a tamasik body can acquire rajasik and saatvik states. Similarly, the saatvik and rajasik states can also be downgraded to a tamasik state, if the internal strength of body and mind wanes.
In addition to physical states, the body has two other important elements – mind and ego. Ego is a negative quality for all states. But mind can be both positive and negative. A positive mind elevates the state and a negative mind degrades it.
Strength and characteristics of a binding depend on the strength and characteristics of mind and body. An illumined mind is responsible for a saatvik state. Similarly an impure mind reflects a tamasik state. But keeping the mind under control is the toughest thing in the world. Nobody has complete control, but the effort for complete control itself can bring about the necessary changes in the nature of the binding.
Both spirit and matter control life. The quality of life depends on both. But no quality is permanent; it undergoes transformations. It is good; for change is the law of nature.
