his own commentaries on the Vedas by age fifteen and was
recognized as the leading authority on yoga by the time he
turned twenty. He established seats of learning throughout
India with one goal in mind—to help human beings
overcome their suffering through the wisdom of life. His
approach to truth was called Advaita,meaning “nondual-
ism.” The essence of Shankara’s teaching is that one
underlying field of intelligence manifests as the multi-
plicity of forms and phenomena that we call the physical
universe.
It is helpful to recognize the disguises consciousness
dons so you can see through to the underlying reality.
This is the great game of hide-and-seek that spirit plays
with us. The nonlocal field of awareness gives rise to
the sensory world that overshadows our experience of the
underlying unity. At some point we recognize that the
world of sensations alone cannot bring us genuine peace or
happiness, so we begin our journey of uncovering the lay-
ers that mask our essential unbounded nature. Shankara
called these various layers koshas, meaning “coverings,”
and he categorized them into three primary divisions—a
physical body, a subtle body, and a causal body. We can
also say body, mind, and soul. Let’s explore each of these
primary divisions and their three secondary layers.
The Physical Body—
The Field of Molecules
Within your physical domain, you have an extended
body, a personal body, and an energetic body. Your
extended body is the environment, containing the never-
14 The Seven Spiritual Laws of Yoga