Manomaya Kosha

Taittiriya Upanishad reveals that the atma of Pranamaya kosha is the Manomaya
Kosha. Our prana, the vital energy, which takes care of the energy backup for all
our physical, physiological & mental activities is sustained and thus is directly
effected by our mind. Ramana Maharshi in his Upadesha Sar says that mind & prana
are like two branches of one tree, both connected together below. We can see this
direct co-relation of mind & prana, when we see the increased pulse & breathing
rate the moment the mind gets anxiety ridden. If however, we can keep our mind
pleasant & cool, then the physiological activities too get positively effected.
What exactly is this Manomaya Kosha?
Manomaya Kosha is that layer of our personality which is called as mind. We have
what is called as an Antahkarana (inner instrument). This broadly has two parts -
the mind and the intellect. The former constitutes the manomaya kosha, while the
latter is called as the Vigyanmaya Kosha, which we shall see in the next article.
What is Mind? Well, mind is basically the thoughts layer of our personality. They
could be any thoughts. Thoughts prompted by memories, conditionings of either likes
or dislikes, various emotions or even wisdom. Thought is that because of which we
are 'conscious of something'. This awareness of
something or anything is a thought, and in the mind we have thoughts of various
things continuously flowing. Thoughts which are as per our likes invoke positive
feelings, while thoughts pertaining to our dislikes invoke negative emotions. Those
who do not know how these thoughts come about are continuously buffeted by the
various thoughts. They are helplessly caught up in their moods. Not knowing their
secret & genesis they even arrogate their good & bad moods and experiences to
destiny, or even to the whims & fancies of God.
Every thought has a great inherent power, it effects our physiology, moods,
physical body, responses, work efficiency, relationships and even wisdom. In short
our thoughts determine as to what we really are. In our day to day life mind is
really the real essence of man. As the mind so the man. The modern day epidemic
problem of stress is basically a problem at the level of mind, wherein a great
negative emotion has been allowed to be built up without giving it a vent.
The secret of managing your mind is by understanding the mind. Understand properly
as to what a thought is, how they come about, what are its contents. However, to
begin with, check out the quantity, quality & direction of your thoughts. Having a
clear & noble goal begins the process of setting the house in order. Then we can
directly see the effect of mind on our prana. It is indeed that which sustains the
prana. So dont think that pranayama is just doing some breathing exercises. Till
you manage your mind, you can not really manage your prana - say the Vedas.
However, there is something beyond mind too, and that is our Vigyanmaya Kosha -
which we shall see in our next article