The Five Existents (Pañcabhūta)

Every science has its foundation stones, the core of its philosophy. The simpler and more universal this core gets, the more functional and reliable that science becomes. The guidelines and principles laid out by such science stay relevant forever.

The core of most Indian Sciences is the same. It is the most subtle expression of the cosmos itself. What the ṛṣīs or ancient scientists did was to explore how deep each of our senses could go in perceiving the world within and around us. We have five senses to interact with the world and they realized that these are the only tools with which we can assess our universe. All the skills we acquire or tools we build are enhancements of these senses.

What our senses interpret is called viśeṣa guṇa in Sanskrit. These are the special properties such as sound, touch, colour, taste and smell. According to Indian Philosophy, the special properties themselves are embodiments of finer properties like heat, coldness, weight, lightness, softness, roughness and so on. When we observe closely, we can see that everything, including our body, the food we eat and even the diseases we get express these properties or are made of components which express these properties. To be precise, we assume that something has a particular property from the action it does. For example, we say that a flame is ‘hot’ in property when its action is ‘heating’. Heating is the karma of the flame.

Based on similarity of actions, different properties can be compiled into groups. Each of these groups have an allegiance to one of our five senses, thus there are five such groups. Interestingly, these groups of properties are named after some basic phenomena in nature- Earth, Water, Fire, Air and Space. These names give us a quick idea on all the properties that a group may contain.

In order for us to experience any of these grouped properties, they have to exist in its perceivable form in the first place. Since these groups are perceived only when they exist, they are called bhūta in Sanskrit- meaning the existent (that which exists). As said before, there are five groups and “pañca” in Sanskrit means five, so together they are called pañcabhūta.

The table below briefly explores the pañcabhūtas and properties contained in them:

Bhūta	Properties
Earth (pṛthvī)	Heavy, hard, sluggish, stable, dense, large
Water (jala)	Liquid, unctuous, cool, sluggish, viscous, fluid
Fire (agni)	Hot, sharp, subtle, light, clear
Air (vāyu)	Light, cool, dry, minute
Space (ākāśa)	Light, minute

Pañcabhūta and the Golden Rule of Ayurveda

The pañcabhūtas combine in innumerable different ratios to create this cosmos. Their varying proportion in an object is the decisive factor on how heavy, sharp, cold, rough, soft, dense or mobile that object can be. Ayurveda says that everything that it deals with is made of the pañcabhūtās. This covers not only objects but also our food, medicines and ourselves. Even illnesses are expressed via the above mentioned ‘actions’ and they can also be interpreted in the terms of pañcabhūtas. It is observed in nature that anything is increased by adding similar things. The opposite also holds true, for example, eating nourishing and wholesome food promotes growth and maturity. Having too much of such foods makes us gain weight. Fasting and exercise bring down the body weight.

Now, this universal fact that ‘similarity increases everything and dissimilarity decreases it’ is one of the fundamental rules of Ayurveda. All treatments are ultimately focused on stopping and reversing the course of an illness by introducing factors that oppose that illness.

When we look at the pañcabhūtas, these factors are quite evident. We know that ‘heavy’ is opposite to ‘light’, ‘hot’ to ‘cold’, ‘oiliness’ to ‘roughness’ and so on. Thus, when these properties are grouped as pañcabhūtas there are similarities and dissimilarities in play as well. Earth and Water pañcabhūtas have more similar properties in common, therefore they are additive or building up in effect. Based on the same principles, we can also understand that Fire, Air and Space pañcabhūtās are not anabolic but of a catabolic or ‘breaking down’ character.

Structurally, we and the world around us are made of the five bhūtas and based on the properties they exhibit functionally, there are only two aspects to consider. One is nourishing, additive, or anabolic, the other is depleting, reducing or catabolic. This duality has been identified in various names and personifications across the philosophies and cultures around the world.

This concept of dualism is expressed in various forms throughout Ayurveda. For example, when we consider herbs and medicines, we group them based on their potency (vīrya) which are either Cooling (śīta) or Heating (uṣṇa). As you will see, the entire treatment for any condition can be grouped either into additive (bṛṃhaṇa) or reducing (laṅkhana) medications or procedures.

But Ayurveda found that interpreting the body, mind and environment using the pañcabhūtā theory was too elaborate and it would get oversimplified if brought under the concept of dualism. Besides, the mechanism that controls anabolism and catabolism is a strong decisive element when we consider physiology. So, Ayurveda came up with yet another ingenious regrouping of the pañcabhūtās which gave birth to the theory of three energies or the tridoṣa.

The Three Energies (Tridoṣa)

Indian philosophy states that the cosmos is constantly passing through three stages: creation (sṛṣṭi), maintenance (sthiti) and destruction (saṃhāra). On close observation of ourselves, we can see that this is the entire life process or metabolism in a nutshell. So, this play of pañcabḥutās and their interaction with increasing and decreasing factors can be further explained from the perspective of creation, maintenance and destruction.

Based on this observation, Ayurveda envisioned the three bio-energies. Together, these energies are called the tridoṣas. If you are familiar with Ayurveda, you may have already heard about them. The tridoṣas are Vāta, Pitta and Kapha. Let’s talk briefly about them, starting with Kapha.

Kapha

Everything has a certain mutual attraction. This is what keeps things together in our body. Ayurveda identifies this bio-energy of cohesion as Kapha. The more the Kapha doṣa, the greater is the compactness, heaviness, stability and sturdiness. When Kapha decreases, weakening traits like lightness, dryness, roughness, looseness and instability increases. Based on this, we can conclude that Kapha is nothing but a term given to Earth and Water bhūtās combined.

Pitta

Pitta can be considered as the bio-energy of transformation. It manifests as heat. This is the agent that ensures conversion of one thing to another. Life is sustained by a series of chemical reactions. All such reactions involve energy or heat exchange and Pitta is that energy. Just like temperature that decides on whether water should be a solid, liquid or gas, Pitta in the body affects the cohesion imparted by Kapha on nutrients and body tissues and enables transformation from one to another. As Pitta is fiery, the predominant bhūta of it is Fire.

Vāta

Now, we arrive at Balance and Harmony. Without this, life itself will cease. Both the energies of cohesion (Kapha) and transformation (Pitta) cannot act on their own. There should be another energy that is initiating it, mobilizing it, maintaining and stopping it. This is Vāta, the energy of control. Vāta initiates all movements in the body. Respiration, pulsation, sensory activities, motor activities are all under its command. The bhūtas that are the lightest and the most subtle are Air and Space and these are the ones in Vāta.

As mentioned earlier, we or the food and medicines and even diseases can be evaluated in terms of pañcabhutās. Ayurveda merges that idea into the Tridoṣa Theory. So, when evaluating a person, assessing a disease and considering a diet or treatment, Ayurveda uses the language of the three bio-energies – Vāta, Pitta and Kapha.

The Seven Tissues (Dhātu)

Did you know that our body loves talking to us? Right from the moment when we become self-aware till we actually stop existing, the body never stops talking to us. It doesn’t matter to it whether we are awake, busy or asleep, it just keeps doing it.

So, how does our body talk to us? Through the tissues. And, how do we understand what it is saying? With our five senses. Hearing a gurgling sound from the tummy, feeling a rough patch of skin on the back, seeing a colour change on the nails, tasting bitterness in mouth while feverish, realizing that the sweat is stinking etc., all these are examples of communication between us and our body. Most often, we end up sick when we stop listening or responding to this conversation.

What we are trying to explain is that the tissues are the medium through which our innate life force strives to keep us alive. Vāta-Pitta-Kapha function via these tissues. Everything that the doṣas want to express is expressed via the tissues or via the by-products and wastes of it. Body, as per Ayurveda, is a conglomeration of doṣas, dhātus (the tissues) and malās (the wastes). Not a thing more or a thing less.

Based on similarity of features and functions, Ayurveda observes that we have seven types of tissues in our body. In general, anything that bears, holds, maintains or imparts shape to the body is a dhātu or tissue in Ayurveda.

Please keep in mind that the following terms may not be the exact correlation of similar terms we have in modern anatomy. But these terms are however used for the sake of translation.

The seven dhātus

1. rasa (the essence of food)
2. rakta (blood)
3. māṃsa (flesh)
4. medas (fat)
5. asthi (bones & cartilages)
6. majja (bone marrow)
7. śukra (reproductive tissues)

Rasa is the first body fluid formed from the nutrients (āhāra rasa). A well-formed rasa-dhātu brings a sense of satisfaction and proper nourishment to the tissues formed next.

Rakta enlivens us. Sufficiently oxygenated blood, transporting optimal amounts of the materials reflects in healthy skin colour and lustre.

Māṃsa acts as a plastering material in our body, especially around bones. It gives structure and shape as well. A healthy māṃsa-dhātu is essential for our physical strength.

Medas is not just stored energy, it binds the tissues together and acts as a lubricant. It is also responsible for fixedness of body parts.

Asthi keeps the body upright and within the frame. It bears the body’s weight as well.

Majja is considered as any soft tissue inside of a hard covering. The unctuousness, immunity and filling of bony cavities are done by this tissue.

Śukra is the collection of tissues responsible for procreation. It also gives libido, strength and immunity.

The Wastes (Mala)

What relevance do wastes have? Well, in Ayurveda, as long as body wastes are within the body or part of the body, they are its integral part, as they too have specific functions. Evaluation of wastes is pivotal in Ayurveda diagnosis. Therefore, an Ayurveda physician may ask you extensive questions regarding body wastes.

The three main body wastes are:

1. Faeces (purīṣa)
2. Urine (mūtra)
3. Sweat (sveda)

Purīṣa is the formed stool. Believe it or not, it has a capacity to support our strength which is evident when we do an extensive enema or have severe diarrhoea. When the bowels are completely evacuated, we collapse. In this regard, faeces also maintains normalcy of Vāta and Pitta.

Mūtra is responsible for maintaining optimal hydration by eliminating excess wetness entering the body via food and drinks.

Sveda not only relieves excess moisture, it ensures health of the skin, its ‘oiliness’ and maintenance of body hair.

It is the method of Ayurveda to define things based on their properties (guṇa) and functions (karma). The bio-energies, tissues and wastes contribute to the properties of our body. These components have their designated functions too. Our body is naturally shaped and behaves in a particular way as a result of these collective properties and functions expressed by the bio-energies via the tissues. This collection of properties and functions is what defines us as individuals and it defines our ‘nature’ which is called Prakṛti in Ayurveda. This is a fundamental and very important concept that decides even the Ayurvedic management which you are about to receive.

The Nature (Prakṛti)

As Ayurveda became more and more popular, the concept of Prakṛti started to get special attention. Ayurveda physicians began using checklists and would score them to find out their patients’ Prakṛti. Today, many people live in a notion that Pṛakṛti is just a test (a parīkṣa) which is done to find out what is wrong with them. At MAYA Ayurveda, we handle it a bit differently. We pursue the true objective of Prakṛti.

The simplest translation of the term Prakṛti is ‘nature’. It is our natural state. Your Prakṛti is ‘normal’ and unique to you and your mother’s Prakṛti will be ‘normal’ and unique to her. For this reason, even the twins with the most similar features and habits are still two different people. Remember, Prakṛti is not just about body. It is not ‘body-type’.

Imagine Prakṛti as a mould into which our existence was poured in the moment we were conceived within our mothers. From that moment on, our body and mind show the characteristics of the mould. It becomes our character. It is impossible to break or reshape it. If you attempt that, you will stop being you. So, whenever we are exposed to things that are not in tune with our ‘nature’, our body and mind are not happy. First, they might ignore or adjust to the change. But if the derangement persists, they start to respond to it as an attempt to bring back normalcy. It is only when they begin to fail at this task that we become unwell. At this point the Vikṛti or the derangement from our natural state dominates. Treatment is nothing but winning over this derangement and gaining back Prakṛti. In order to understand what is abnormal, we need to first figure out what exactly is ‘our normal’. This is why an analysis of Prakṛti is crucial.

Like everything else in Ayurveda, Prakṛti is also expressed in the language of tridoṣās – the three bio-energies. As mentioned earlier, same as everything else in the cosmos, we too are made of the five existents (pañcabhūtās- Earth, Water, Fire, Air and Space) and tridoṣas are fundamentally a rearrangement of the pañcabhūtas. So, when we are conceived in our mothers’ womb, the pañcabḥutas keep multiplying in a specific sequence during our growth and differentiation. Consequentially, we, as a one-of-a-kind component of the cosmos, have a certain signature ratio of the pañcabhūtas. Hence, we have a unique quantity and quality of the respective bhūtas. Based on this, our physical attributes and mental characteristics show traits of the bhūtas predominant in us. Since bhūtas are rearranged as tridoṣas, these physical and mental traits are also categorized based on Vāta Pitta and Kapha.

As a benchmark, the characteristics of Vāta Prakṛti, Pitta Prakṛti and Kapha Prakṛti are elaborately detailed in Ayurveda. But in real world scenario, we may not come across a person who shows traits of one Prakṛti alone. Ayurveda says a Prakṛti showing traits of all doṣas in equilibrium is the perfect Prakṛti. But this also is extremely rare to come by. Most often what we find is a predominance of two doṣas.

Interestingly, the properties and actions attributed to a doṣa are reflected in the corresponding Prakṛti as well. This way, we can identify high Vāta if a person’s skin is naturally dry and rough. If someone is short-tempered by nature, that could be due to the Pitta predominance in that person’s Prakṛti. If your friend gains weight easily and finds it difficult to lose it, that person may be high Kapha.

Prakṛti evaluation is a mandatory step before taking Ayurveda’s help. Though a lengthy procedure, it is very interesting and may give us a chance to retrospect on how exactly our own body and mind work.