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Purusha
Description
In Ayurvedic system, the synonym of purusha is soul. It means
soul resides (lives) in the body, so it is called purusha.
Body is meaningless without a soul (purusha). There are two
meanings of purusha in ayurveda; the first one is soul (jeevetma)
and the other meaning is body along with the soul.
It is the second meaning that holds significance because
soul without a body is hollow and needs body for its proper
functioning.
The whole ayurvedic system has been amassed for the good
of body. |
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Classification
Purusha can be classified into nine (9) categories. They are Ek dhatwatmak Purusha, Karma Purusha, Dwi dhatwatmak Purusha, Tri dhatwatmak Purusha, Panchadhatwatmak, Shad dhatwatmak Purusha, Sapta dhatwatmak Purusha, Chaturvinsati dhatwatmak Purusha, Twenty five dhatwatmak Purusha. The description of each category is as follows:
- Ek Dhatwatmak Purusha
Ek means one. So, Ek dhatwatmak refers to soul (Jeevatma). Its synonym is shuddha Purusha.
- Karma Purusha
It refers to body along with soul.
- Dwi Dhatwatmak Purusha
Dwi means two. So, Dwi dhatwatmak Purusha means the combination
of jeevatma and body.
4. Tri Dhatwatmak Purusha
Tri means three. So, Tri dhatwatmak Purusha refers to the combination
of soul and body is associated with mind or truth.
5. Panchadhatwatmak
Pancha means five. So, Panchadhatwatmak means the visible
part in karma purusha because the entire body according to
Hindu philosophy is made up of panchmahbhoota.
6. Shad Dhatwatmak Purusha
Shad means six. So, Shad dhatwatmak Karma Purusha refers to
six elements and the sixth element is soul which is called
atma in the language of Hindi. The combination of all 6 constituents
is the essence of Shad dhatwatmak Karma Purusha.
7. Sapta Dhatwatmak Purusha
Sapta means seven. There are two presumptions in Sapta dhatwatmak
Purusha.
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The first one states that there's a composition of panchamahabhoot,
mind (mana) and soul (atma) and the second presumption states that
it is composed of seven elements (dhatus) , i.e., Ras, Rakta (blood),
Meda, Mansa(muscles ) ,Asthi (bones), Majia and shukra (reproductive
tissue in the body).
8. Chaturvinsati Dhatwatmak Purusha
Chaturvinsati means twenty-four. So, Chaturvinsati dhatwatmak Purusha
means of all 24 elements of this theory are inter-related to each
other and are responsible for the augmentation of one another. For
instance, stating the theory of evolution of the universe, the element
of Avyaki gave push to the growth of Mahat, mahat started Ahankara
(pride), and ahankara gave birth to Pancha gyanindrya (Pancha Karma
indriya and one ubhaya indriya).
Tamasik ahankar along with Rajsik ahankar give rise to 5 tanmatra
and the combination of these ahankars gives birth to panchamahabhoota.
All elements are divided into 2 parts: Prakruti (nature);(
the sub-division of which is Aviakt, Mhat, Ahankar, Shabde, Sparbhe,
Rupa, Rase and gandha (smell) and the 2nd One is Vikar (by-product);(the
sub-division of which is as follows: 5 gyan indriya , 5 Karma Indriya,
1 Ubhaya Indriya and 5 maha bhootas.
9. Twenty-Five Dhatwatmak Purusha
The grouping of atma and 24 elements karma purusha takes the tally
to 25. Here, the growth takes place but with the increase in life
(age) and hence, the ultimate end is death.
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