To attempt to name and place the subtle realm is somewhat ridiculous and risks tempting the mind to believe she knows it all. Yet communication in the language realm is way easier if we agree on certain constraints.
An Artist's Rendering of the Nadis
Some SUBTLE ANATOMY LANGUAGE
Prana is our vital life force.
Nadis are the interior rivers through which the prana flows.
The three primary nadis are Sushumna, Ida, and
Pingala.
While the texts speak of over 350,000 nadis, in addition to the primary three, there are eleven other named nadis.
The seven Chakras are vortices of the nadis.
They are Muladhara, Svadhishthana, Manipura, Anahata, Vishuddi, Ajna and Sahasrara.
The Bandhas are the locks or seals.
The three primary bandhas are Mula Bandha, Uddiyana Bandha and Jalandhara Bandha.
The Granthis are the psychic knots of spiritual energy.
The three granthis are Brahma, Vishnu and Rudra.
They are located at the Muladhara, Anahata and the Ajna Chakra respectively.
The bandhas assist in the directing of the prana through the nadis towards the chakras to assist in loosening the granthis so that prana may flow more freely in the Shushumna and the yogini may connect to the physical, astral and causal planes of Herself.
The Marma Points are specific locations on the 14 recognized nadis in the Ayurvedic System of Healing. There are 107 Classic Marma Points.
The 5 Koshas are sheaths, or vibrations of our Self, varying in degrees of subtley.
The 5 Koshas are annamaya, pranamaya, vijnanamaya and anandamaya.
The 5 Vayus are the winds of prana in the body handling different functions. They are apana vayu, prana vayu, samana vayu, udana vayu, and vyana vayu.
About Models and Maps
As we agree upon some of these terms and maps to help us communicate, it is useful to understand the limitations of such representations. Please read "About Models and Maps" to help create some spaciousness around these models.