The Pancha Maha Bhutas: Space Element

This essay is part of a series of writings on the topic of the pancha maha bhutas. Read our contemplations on Earth, Water, Fire , and Air  by clicking the correspondingly linked element to be re-directed. Today, in specific, we will discuss SPACE as an elemental force and cosmic principle. In Sanskrit, akasha.

Akasha, or space, is linked to the sense of hearing and sound. Of the five, this is the most subtle. Remember from previous discussions that as the energy becomes sufficiently refined, it sublimates 'upwards' to a more subtle stage of manifestation. Earth, at the base, is the densest, and as we move up from here, Consciousness becomes more subtle. Remember also that this is the description of how Consciousness descends to become the world of form and becomes different 'evolutes' of itself as it goes through various stages. The pure, undifferentiated Source energy must be configured & divided into different, distinct frequencies in order to be distinguishable from the One. We are describing, in metaphysical and esoteric terms, how the One becomes Many. These principles, from Samkhya, are the underlying metaphysics of Yoga & Tantra.

Space is seen as the first step down into elemental form. The higher and subtler principle is considered to be the ahamkara, and beyond that, the raw universal intelligence known as mahat. Ahamkara is a unique Sanskrit word that refers to the "I am - action" (aham = "I am" ; kara = "action"). This principle -- ahamkara -- is the action or creation of the supremely powerful statement : "I am". Since we are talking about sound, and sound is connected to words, perhaps it would be wise to take a moment to contemplate this.

This statement "I am" has received much spiritual scrutiny in various circles over the years. "I am _____" , or the statement of "I am" and whatever follows it, is a process by which raw cosmic intelligence becomes identified with the contents of perception attached to the "I" . This identifier of "I" creates a distinct separation between the soup of cosmic energy and the individual. According to the spiritual teachings, unless and until there is an "I", no matter how subtle this "I" may be, there can be no world of form. The world of form extends outward from this original cause. In spiritual alchemy and yoga, as we work backward from the world of form, and transcend or sublimate our energy away from the effect of the world, we return back to the cause. You may remember that yogis consider the Light to the be causal principle. We have to think carefully about these things. A distinct energy or consciousness exists "behind the scenes" so to speak, animating and giving life to all that we experience and perceive with our senses. The teaching here of "I am" and its relationship to the elements is that, without an identifier, without some point of self-reference, there can be no distinction of objects in the Universe. A useful way to interpret this is by looking at how babies develop.

As a baby is born and developing, the senses are slowly coming online and being integrated into distinguishable patterns in conjunction with the nervous system's adaptation to the world outside the mother's womb. However, before a certain age (some developmental psychologists say around 2 years), the baby's ability to discern between what is "self" and "not-self" is a blurry line; it doesn't really have a grasp yet on the world of form, as is evidenced by its ability (or inability) to interact with and manipulate the world of form. The baby is still differentiating itself from its mother and developing the self-referencing principle that we know of as "ego". There isn't a clear distinction between itself and what is actually outside of its "I am"; to the baby, everything appears to be extending out of itself, as an intermixed part of itself. And what does the baby do to get its needs met? It uses sound. Not even language-based "words", mind you, but rather simply expressions of sound and raw emotion which communicate to its world about what it might be needing. If the mother is attentive, it can interpret these signals and provide the baby what it is asking for. The baby learns, then, that sound assists it in affecting reality. This idea must be thoroughly contemplated for its significance as far as what this has meant for every single one of us -- our original learning and development at the youngest of ages, in terms of getting our needs met (and affecting reality), is connected to our expression through sound. We used our voices since before we even had "words" to DO things, or rather, to get things done. This is all pre-language and, for the most part, prior to sophisticated ego development.

The Book of John, a Biblical narration, offers a profound spiritual teaching which may be useful to bring into our contemplation:

 "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God."

This passage sums up the entirety of the mystical science of sound and the descent of Spirit into form. Sound initiates the form that Light will take. For the baby above, Light is pouring into the crown of her head through the fontanel and animating her existence. That Light must come into configuration through various structures in the body and mind, just as the Light descends into the Elements. As the baby distinguishes herself from the world "outside", sound is the first activity which affects the world outside. If the passage of Light through the baby is unobstructed by excessive self-identity, the primal biology of the baby is driving the expressions of the baby from a place of pure innocence. Once the ahamkara, or "I am action" is sufficiently established, and the baby has a distinguishable self that seems separate from the world (and the "Mother"), this "I am" action can begin to explore different levels of manipulation to the world of form. This is the birth of selfishness -- where expressions not related to the immediate & pure biological needs can be explored. Now, the self-referencing locus of Consciousness can begin its grand adventure. The personality structure starts to form; likes & dislikes, preferences & aversions begin to take shape and the individual karma of that soul starts to shape his/her own destiny.

.... but what of the sound? We must look towards where the Light is coming in.

Even though our fontanels have sealed up long ago as that soft spot covering our brain has become more solidified, we still receive a steady stream of Light from above and beyond -- cosmic intelligence descending in a perpetual stream through our crown and continually animating our human functions. Yes, we have a biological machine complete with chemistry and interacting elemental forces within us, but that Light -- the causal principle -- that force coming from somewhere is like the primal electricity powering the whole situation. Obviously we are more than just a bag of bones and blood and flesh, and although some scientists posit that Consciousness emerged from biology, the yogis and mystics experienced the reality of the situation -- that our bodies and minds and biology and life experience actually emerge out of Consciousness. We are all plugged into the Source, at all times, and when that stream of Light cuts off, our animated existence as a "self" in this world of "form" suddenly dissolves ... that separate but unique divine spark that we call the Soul submerges back into its origin (the true "Mother"). There is a hidden clue in this for the yogi and meditator.

So if we emerge out of Consciousness, and sound seems to be the first elemental force on its step down into manifestation, what does that mean for us in our quest for understanding this element and our relationship to it?

As I spoke to early, sound gives form to Consciousness. Just as the ego creates a sort of locus around which perception can attach itself -- the "I am" activity as the self-referencing principle -- words start to inform the identity of what is outside of itself. Please do not think in terms of words spoken in any particular language. There is a universal language alluded to here; it is the language of the mystic which we must begin to grasp. An analogy may be useful:

When I look outside of myself, I am seeing a world that appears "out there". But, just like a baby, in order to learn to interact meaningfully with the world, I need to attach meanings to the objects I will interact with. Self and object must have a distinction otherwise I remain floating in the bliss of undifferentiated awareness. The birth of duality happens precisely because I have created definitions or meanings of all the things that I can perceive with my senses. My very experience of life is created out of the stories that I tell myself about what this is, or what that is, and so on. The entirety of existence, as I know it, is distinguishable and separate enough from my sense of self so that I can interact with it. This is all based on the mystical science of sound. Why? Sound occurs at various level of vibration -- the thoughts in my mind are aspects of sound. So when I use my thoughts to create the world around me (by attaching meaning), what I am doing is utilizing this principle of sound to construct the world of form. Remember: sound in-forms the Light and gives it structure to become. "In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God."

The capital-W "Word" points to something here. What IS that "supreme meaning maker" within us? Who, or what, decides what meaning to assign to the world "out there"? If we understand that we are responsible for creating our perceptions, and thereby the meanings attached to our perceptions, and thereby influencing how we experience and respond to the life "out there", then we are well on our way to understanding the path of liberation.

The yogis had a phrase which may be relevant to you now: nivritti marga. The "un--fluctuating path". There is a belief that is backed by methods of yogic concentration which we are introduced to in the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, that if one is to contemplate any object for long enough and with enough focus and concentration, they will penetrate through to the essence of that object and reveal the essential nature of Being. What Patanjali is suggesting is that, since Consciousness is beneath and behind every form, if we are to become fully absorbed in a form, we will realize & experience the formlessness behind it. The Nature of the Universe, according to the yogis, is that our world as we know it is one great act of concealment by Shiva, the Supreme Principle. That the Light hidden behind and within all things obscures itself; furthermore, it is said this obscuration or concealment is for one sole purpose -- lila. The "divine play". Basically, God has hidden Itself in the world of form to play a game of cosmic hide and seek. Contemplate on that for a moment.

Further teachings from the Yoga Sutras suggest to us that if we do not become aware of our essential nature, we become identified with the contents of our mind. Consciousness then takes the form of the objects we are aware of, but we lose connection with the source of our awareness. The difficulty in yogic meditation is that we must work backwards through layers of density to arrive at the subtlest of all principles -- the Light Itself. Each step of the way is filled with perils and dangers of falling back down into the world of maya. Without sufficiently distinguishing the Source of Consciousness from the world, we become thoroughly convinced that the illusion which we perceive with our senses its actually what's really going on. This is why one of the results of Yoga is the ability to distinguish everything that IS Soul versus everything that is NOT Soul. The yogi, upon his or her arrival home at the completion of the journey, whose individual spark of life as the jivatman (individual soul) merges back with the paratman (supreme soul), realizes & furthermore experiences the distinction between Self and Other as self-created. The so-called "Supreme Meaning Maker" has been encountered. As the yogi descends back into the world of form, a new realization has dawned or awakened within them, and the pathway of the Light from above and beyond can flow with a little less interruption via the self-identity. With time and practice, the ego becomes sufficiently purified and the Light flows without obstruction. The biological forms in which the Light is contained and channeled -- the body and mind and personality structure -- become more like the temporary vehicles and house for the Spirit that they are. The personality has become less identified with the illusion and has been put into a more aligned relationship with its Creator. Unless and until this spiritual path is experienced by the individual, book learning & theoretical knowledge will remain insufficient.

Hence, the yogi is made aware of the journey home, and actively begins embodying these principles and activities so as to separate themselves and untangle themselves from the illusory creations of the mind and ego. The final result of this process is the liberation of one's soul from the bondage of its karma. Although the karma will continue to play out, there is less of an investment or entanglement of the mind into its manifestations. Simply put, the path becomes clear and all that is left to do is walk, and experience, and enjoy. In Tantra, a word they use to describe the ultimate fruit of the path is this: bhoga -- meaning "enjoyment". That's right, life is meant to be enjoyed, despite the perhaps depressing news that it is a complete and total illusion and fabrication of the mind. This is not meant to a be a teaching that leads to a descent into nihilism, although this can happen if a person is introduced prematurely to the highly advanced spiritual teachings of Advaita Vedanta (literally: "not two", as in, the teachings of non-duality). When we realize that there is just One Consciousness here, manifesting in a variety of forms, concealing Itself and playing hiding and seek so that It can delight in the discovery of Itself, over and over again, we have two options of what to do with this wisdom: 1) We can have fun and try not to be a burden on anyone, knowing that pain we inflict on the "other" is pain inflicted on ourselves, in truth .... OR... 2) We can descend into despair and hopelessness that nothing matters since its all an illusion anyways, and we give up trying to contend with the forces of non-being which want to drag us down. Although this is starting to become a tangent for a future essay, I think you can see what I'm pointing to...

The yogi chooses the path of purifying their heart (and bodymind) so that the reflection of the One Light of the Supreme Creator can shine through and be reflected in everything and everyone, and especially from within. This is no easy choice and, as mentioned above, the path is filled with perils and pitfalls. As we make the ascent back to the Source, we encounter a wide variety of obstructions in the form of impurities in the bodymind. These impurities are like disharmonious sounds in the cosmic symphony. By learning to become more harmonious within ourselves and our surroundings, we gradually merge back into the Origin and become an integrated part of the Whole. We become a clear instrument and allow ourselves to be played by all of Creation.

Space is the element which provides the container within which form can arise. This essay deals with how to create form meaningfully inside of the space that is given, working via sound, according to the cosmic principles and laws governing our existence. We are working with Consciousness, the most subtle and yet powerful of forces. I hope that this essay has inspired your contemplation on these matters as you continue to pursue a life of meaning, joy, and purpose.

GI