Pancha Bhoota - Five Elements, V_Category

Vayu – Air Element

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In the yogic tradition, we refer to air as “vayu,” which not just means air as a mixture of nitrogen, oxygen, carbon dioxide, and other gases, but as a dimension of movement. Among the five basic elements – earth, fire, water, air, and ether – which make us and everything in the universe, air is the most accessible and relatively the easiest element to gain reasonable mastery over. Hence, a large number of yogic practices are structured around vayu or air, though in the composition of the body, air makes up only a small percentage.

C_Category, Pancha Bhoota - Five Elements

Chitagni

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The second kind of inner fire is called chitagni. It is the dimension of the mind and beyond. Chitta is a dimension of intelligence within you that transcends the limitations of the physical form. Your physical form is an outcome of your genetic and your karmic memory. By contrast, chitta is a dimension of intelligence that is untainted by memory. The fire of intelligence can manifest on many different levels, the first level of manifestation being the intellect. If we look at the different fires within you, only if your digestive fire is going well, the reproductive fire will come into the act. If you are not well-fed, the reproductive instincts will disappear. Similarly, if your chitagni is not reasonably fired, your intellect will become weak and ineffective. However, if your chitagni is fired up, it will manifest itself in the form of intellect – even if you are not in a state to consciously access other dimensions of intelligence. If your chitagni is burning bright, you will lose interest in food, sexuality, and other matters of the body. It is in this context that what is unfortunately being propagated as renunciation should actually be transcendence.

J_Category, Pancha Bhoota - Five Elements

Jatharagni

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There are many dimensions of fire, within and without. Let us look at the three forms of fire that burn within us. One is known as jatharagni. Jathara means stomach or digestive process. Without a little bit of fire in your belly, you cannot digest the food that you eat. Food is functioning as fuel that you need to break down in order to release the energy that you need. If the digestive fire is well-nourished and well-supplied with fuel, it also becomes reproductive fire. Both digestion and reproduction depend on jatharagni.