Our subtle architecture

Examining what we're made of

Following my previous post, which explored the spiritual dimension to life and touched upon the spiritual or subtle body, I thought I’d go into more detail in this post.

Out of all the spiritual traditions out there, I find the eastern framework to be the most comprehensive and detailed when it comes to describing our subtle architecture, so I will use that as a frame of reference and list Western equivalents, notably from Greek and later, Christian thought.

For this, I have to introduce you to the concept of sheaths, which denote layers of the body-soul complex going from the gross physical all the way to our innermost core, our divine soul, made in God’s image.

The best metaphor for the layering of the sheaths is that of an onion, with the outermost sheath being the physical body and each inner sheath more subtle than the outer one it follows, until you get to complete non-physicality.

The above image may look like an onion at first glance, which it is, but it is also so much more. What you see above is the energetic blueprint, what Oxford biologist Dr Rupert Sheldrake calls the morphogenetic field, in its simplest, purest form, upon which all living things are constructed.

Modern science can only see, study and experiment on the outermost layer, the physical body. Yet, that is only a tiny portion of what we’re made of, a fact we are all subconsciously or intuitively aware of, yet, due to conditioning by materialist institutions, especially through education and media, we simply ignore the greater part of our make-up.

Let me prove it to you.

Imagine the first (or last) time you were really, truly in love. Recall the emotions you felt, what they were exactly and note them in your mind (for instance, a feeling of warmth, contentment, happiness, etc…).

Take yourself back to that time and really be there, be present. Now feel those same emotions resurface again, thinking of your beloved and how you felt about them.

Now, note where you felt those emotions, physically, within your body and point to the exact spot in your body where you feel love.

Let me guess, you are pointing at your sternum in middle of your chest, correct?

And what is that thing you’re pointing at? The heart, you say?

Except it isn’t, is it? I don’t know when was the last time, that you looked at an anatomy book, but the heart is located a couple of inches to the left and slightly below the sternum. So, when you say you feel love in your heart and point to a non-existent organ in your sternum, what’s going on?

Well, my friend, you have stumbled upon one of the subtle organs of the body, which according to science, does not exist, yet we can all feel it deep within us, as our inner core, where our innermost self, the seat of our consciousness is located. Other such subtle organs exist, which you are subconsciously aware of, if you ever felt a lump in your throat, cold feet before a big decision, or knots in your stomach.

These organs, which don’t really have a name in western thought, are as real as your physical ones, but they’re made of stuff that is too subtle to be detected by the physical senses and by extension, scientific instruments, which are designed to extend the scope, resolution and power of the physical senses.

Though I have an interest in physics, I’m not a physicist, so I wouldn’t venture as far as to form hypotheses regarding what these subtle organs, and by extension, subtle bodies are made of. However, if you want to do some digging of your own, looking into the latest research on Dark Matter and the fifth state of matter, which is liquid light, would be good places to start. For instance, see the articles below:

https://interestingengineering.com/science/information-fifth-state-of-matter

https://bigthink.com/surprising-science/new-breakthrough-allows-scientists-to-create-liquid-light-with-ease/

In any case, discovering the scientific basis of subtle bodies will be a task for future physicists, not us, we only need to concern ourselves with the philosophical, spiritual and health implications.

With this in mind, let me list the five subtle sheaths of the body, starting from the outermost layer, the one we are all the most familiar with.

1. The physical body

This sheath is the outermost one, made of gross physical matter. The Greeks, especially Plato, called it Soma. This is the sheath we shed when we die and depending on your belief system, the one we reacquire upon rebirth or resurrection. In the grand scheme of things, it really is little more than a change of clothes, we wear for a short while, whilst our primary form is the sheath that follows this one in subtleness.

2. The energy or breath sheath

Also called Pneuma in Greek, this sheath is made of the vital spirit or breath force that animates all living things, the breath of life that comes directly from God. Adam was animated into life from gross, dead matter, when the creator breathed life into him. This is the sheath that contains all the subtle organs I mentioned, like the energetic heart, which feels love.

3. The mind sheath

This subtle sheath is strongly linked to the breath or energy sheath, it encompasses the mind, emotions, thoughts, perception and cognition. The Greek word for it is Psyche, however, unlike the modern concept of psyche, this Psyche is closer in meaning to the Christian concept of the soul. Imagine it as a lower resolution blueprint of the physical body, where our cognitive processes, perceptions, thoughts and emotions are stored, energetically. To truly understand it, you have to move away from the materialistic notion, that all these processes of the mind are generated, processed and stored by the brain only, nothing else. Intuitively, we know this is untrue as we can feel these processes occurring all over the body. The mind is not confined to the brain or even the physical body, we all know this, but we choose to ignore it, mostly due to our materialistic conditioning.

For instance, where do brilliant ideas come from? Since we can remember, artists have depicted inspiration and ideas as a non-linear (takes no time at all) cognitive process, that occurs outside of the physical body, specifically in the space above the bulb of the head. In modern depictions, we usually see a lightbulb going off above the head, such as below:

We all know this, yet, again, we choose to ignore this intuitive, ancient knowledge.

What is this light, that suddenly flashes right above our head, suddenly providing clarity, inspiration or a brilliant idea, where none could be found before?

Depending on the philosophical framework you want to use, it can be described as the manifestation of a Platonic idea into concrete, everyday physical reality, through the Psyche sheath of the subtle body. Or, if you want to use a Christian philosophical framework, it is the light of heaven descending on a mere mortal, giving them a glimpse of mini-enlightenment, the light of God shining inspiration on them for a brief moment. All artists, scientists, writers, poets, etc… are familiar with this flash of inspiration, its brilliance and the illumination it provides. It’s what makes a brilliant or bright human (notice the language!) stand out from someone who is dark, dim or dull. This flash of genius is what brilliant people live for, it is why they are compelled to write, create, invent. For a brief moment, they are in communion with God and are given a small glimpse of the boundless bliss and knowledge that only heaven possesses.

The difference between an artist / scholar / writer / poet / musician and a saint or mystic is this:

The former experience this divine illumination for brief periods or flashes, in connection with their work. The latter are in constant communion with God, the light of God shines on them always, furthermore, the light of God also shines from their heart on everyone around them, as that is where the seat of the soul is located and where they have achieved union with the absolute, our creator. For this reason, saints, mystics and other illuminated souls are traditionally depicted with a halo of light around them. So are angels and other divine beings, for the difference between a saint, a mystic and a divine being, a denizen of heaven, is merely the degree of their illumination and their closeness to God. We know of mere mortals who have achieved the highest degree of illumination through their pious life and the grace of God. The prophet Enoch, who now sits on God’s side as the angel Metatron, is one such example. I won’t go into the nature of grace here, but suffice to say, it is a prime component of divine illumination.

In any case, if you want to further examine evidence, in the scientific sense, that the mind is not the body and in no way confined to the brain, I’d suggest reading Rupert Sheldrake, as well as Michael Talbot’s The Holographic Universe.

4. Wisdom sheath

This sheath is even more subtle, than the mind sheath. Building on the theme of inspiration I wrote about in the previous section, the Wisdom Sheath represents higher knowledge, including discernment and wisdom, especially in the spiritual sense. Called Nous (intellect) in Greek Philosophy and the Rational Soul in Christian Theology, it is that inner part of us (again, not confined to the brain in any way), which does our rationalising and discerning for us, especially in terms of grasping and understanding divine truths and concepts. It is also where divine illumination is realised by the mind and formed into concrete understanding, concepts and words, so it can be expressed through language.

5. Bliss sheath or Eudaimonia

This sheath is the innermost one, the very seat of our soul, centred on the heart, the energetic or subtle organ located in the sternum I wrote about at the beginning of this piece. The bliss sheath is the divine part of us, that which God created in his own image. In non-dual philosophies, union with the divine can be achieved by returning this bliss sheath to its true source, the creator. St Theresa of Avila used a similar metaphor to describe the subtle architecture of the soul to the one I am using here, though she used the metaphor of a castle, within which there are seven mansions, through which we must progress, with the seventh mansion, the innermost sanctum of the soul being the one where we can experience divine union or “spiritual marriage”, as she called it. I will quote a few passages from her work, “The Interior Castle” to illustrate what I mean:

"The soul is fully awake as regards God, but wholly asleep as regards things of this world and in respect of herself."

"It is a union so intimate and complete that nothing can ever disturb or divide it; the soul remains constantly in a state of profound peace and joy, experiencing an unshakable sense of God’s presence within her.

"The soul is completely melted away and liquefied in the presence of God... It does not know what to do except to love."

I would like to draw parallels with Advaita Vedanta (vedic nondualism) philosophy here as that particular branch of philosophy goes into considerable detail as to what union with the Godhead (called Brahman in that tradition) entails. What St Theresa describes above are called Samadhi states in AV philosophy, with a gradation going from lower, to higher or ultimate Samadhi states. However, rather than list complicated Sanskrit phrases few people have ever heard of, let us use the English equivalents from Christian Mysticism. In the first quote, St Theresa talks about Mystical Union or Unio Mystica, where there is a loss of self-consciousness and a deep sense of oneness with God. She also refers to this state as divine marriage, for very good reason, as the sense of oneness, contentment, love, joy and bliss experienced can only be compared to the happiest moments of married life, where everything comes together and two souls are united in bliss and love, multiplied by infinity.

The second quote refers to the Beatific Vision, normally an experience granted to the blessed in heaven, but saints and mystics have experienced glimpses of it, according to their own writings.

The third quote, or state of divine union, St Theresa describes, can be called Rapture or Ecstasy. The Sanskrit term is Nirvikalpa Samadhi, which in Pali would be called Nirvana. Not perfect equivalents, but good enough for the sake of this comparison. In this state, the soul leaves the body and the experience of union with God is no longer confined to the physical body. What happens, is that the subtle sheaths are all peeled away and discarded, including the various subtle bodies that resemble our physical body and the mind. All that remains is the innermost, bliss sheath, which is without form, made of pure, non-dual light. It may be compared to a shining star floating freely in space. It is the only body that the highest order of spiritual beings possess, being as close to God as is possible, whilst still maintaining some individuality and separation from Source in the Godhead. That is why they are often depicted simply as beings of light, shining without form.

Here, for instance are some famous artistic depictions of the Baptism of Christ, symbolically showing the holy spirit as a white dove emerging from pure, undifferentiated and non-dual light:

Or, indeed, a few depictions of the ecstasy of St Theresa of Avila:

As noted above, in rapture or ecstasy the soul or Self is finally free of its earthly ties, (also called ropes or gunas in Sanskrit) and it can soar free, like a bird. In the popular imagination, rapture is often imagined as physical bodies literally floating up into the sky. However, this should be treated symbolically as all of the four outermost sheaths are discarded in rapture, with only the bliss sheath remaining.

In fact, I would distinguish between ecstasy and rapture here, (the vedantic equivalents would be Nirvikalpa Samadhi and Mahasamadhi respectively) as ecstasy is temporary, a glimpse of the divine by the individuated soul, where it temporarily merges back into the Godhead, to experience divine ecstasy, infinite love, bliss, joy, happiness and boundless existence in universality. The same is experienced in rapture, but there the individuated soul returns to its creator, from which it was sparked at beginning of time and becomes one with the Godhead in the infinite space of happiness, joy and love, we call Heaven, never to return to an earthly existence.

Note that in all the depictions I have included here, divine light is shown as coming from above and always located above the head. Partly, this is because of religious cosmology, where heaven is imagined to be above us (in outer space basically), along with all the heavenly bodies, however the true reason is, that in the subtle architecture of the body-soul complex, heaven is literally located in the space above the head, and it is where the light of all forms of inspiration, religious, artistic or otherwise flows into the brain and other parts of the body. This flow is of liquid light, which contains information, such as ideas and inspiration, but is also indistinguishable from the substance of God himself. It can appear momentarily as a mere spark or flash, to provide the initial germination for inspired ideas or art, but it can also turn into a flood, upon illumination or religious ecstasy.

In the case of ecstasy, which is a temporary union with God, the bliss sheath may return into an earthly existence, falling back into the body, where the four outer sheaths maintain the body-mind complex as an automaton in a sort of suspended animation. In India and Tibet, many holy men have the ability to leave their bodies for extended periods of time, sometimes years, with their bodies basically in suspended animation, whilst they are gone, to enjoy divine union or ecstasy. They will usually choose to return, in order to impart wisdom on their disciples and to spread divine light to all that are ready to receive it. In the time they are away, their bodies don’t age, this way some have been known to have extremely long life-spans, even centuries in some cases.

That would be my interpretation of the subtle architecture of the physical body, which is partly based on scripture and the writings of others, but is also rooted in personal experience. It is a shame that our civilisation is so materialistic, that we can’t even imagine the richness and rewarding nature of spiritual existence and the vastness of spiritual realms beyond our own. In fact, we aren’t even aware of our own spiritual nature and the subtle architecture of our own bodies. This is a tragedy of epic proportions, as it impacts upon all areas of our lives, from our spiritual and emotional lives, to our health. How many people are even aware, that their emotions and thoughts and the way they process them, have a direct impact on how healthy they are? We are vaguely aware that stress and worry can cause digestive and heart issues, that somebody can literally die of heartbreak, that a negative, pessimistic attitude shortens our lifespan, and so on, but there is so much more to it, than we are aware of.

The healing touch, practiced by the Essenes in biblical times and by various healers today, works for a reason. It may not impact upon the physical body directly, but it heals the soul and the subtle body, which is after all the blueprint for the physical body, so whatever is done to the body on the subtle level, will eventually manifest in the gross physical.

We live in a profoundly sick society today, because we’ve forgotten our spiritual nature and our connection to God. The further away we are from God and the more we deny the existence of spirit, the sicker we will become. That is why re-enchantment, as Rod Dreher calls it, is such an important project, that humanity must undertake if we are to survive as a species. Only by reclaiming our spiritual inheritance and rediscovering our connection to God, can we return to health in any meaningful sense, both as a society and as individuals.

So, if there’s anything I’d like you to take away from today’s piece, it would be this:

Discover re-enchantment, by looking within, with present awareness. Pray to God with conviction and ask him to grant you the gift of divine grace, so that you may discover your true nature. Allow divine grace to descend upon you from above and receive it in your heart. From your heart, with universal love towards all living things, shine the light of God upon others. Your very presence will be a soothing balm to others. Wherever you go, people will be, subconsciously, reminded of the existence of the divine and will naturally long to return to heaven, which was once their home, but will also be their final destination.

All living things long to return to the presence of the creator, to see his undifferentiated, loving, benevolent, joyful, ecstatic light and to be filled by it, to the very brim of their being. This longing is the primary motive force for all earthly endeavours, we just don’t know it. In everything we do, we either work on returning to God directly, or we engage in ersatz actions that can give us momentary happiness or a glimpse of the infinite joy, ecstasy and happiness that can only be experienced in divine union. All addictions are cries for help, a futile attempt to fill the God-shaped hole in our souls and in particular, our hearts. No man can be happy without God, a truism we are quickly discovering with the shocking rise of unhappiness, loneliness and mental illness in our increasingly secular society. The Psyche, as a sheath, is nothing without the support of the inner sheaths that are supposed to nourish it, but very few psychologists or psychiatrists know this, therefore their therapy goes nowhere, until their patients discover re-enchantment.

Consider yourself lucky, that you know all this. Once known, the truth cannot be unknown, it will become part of your subtle energetic makeup and guide your actions henceforth. God provides personal guidance to all, but especially to those that request it with prayerful conviction. Other spiritual beings in the divine hierarchy, such as angels, are there to guide you further and subtly influence events in your life in such a way, that best serves divine will. I have experienced this many times myself and divine guidance and providence has never failed me. Trust in a higher power and surrender your pride and ego to the Most High, then the path you must walk and actions you must take, will be revealed to you.