PANCHABHUTA or five elements play very important role in the life of an individual. For the Hindus these five elements has special significance. The Akash (Space), the Vayu (Air), the Agni (Fire), the Jal (Water) and the Bhumi (Earth) are those five elements which not only give us meaning of our life, the universe and the nature but also had a lot more for us. Like fire, wave, water they do not not mean only for what they are but they also mean movement, change and improvement. These elements are also going to take us to a trophy of success and growth if we take them as our guide.
Akash (Space) - Sky is infinite and limitless. It is related to our sense of hearing i.e; word,syllable and noise. A person is able to understand the meaning of a word only when he hears it, similar is the case with space. When any undertaking takes place in space then only the earth is capable of receiving light, heat, energy etc.
Vayu (Air) - The atmosphere of the Earth is about 400 kms deep, and consists of 21% oxygen (Prana or Vaayu), 78% nitrogen,carbon-dioxide, helium, other kind of gases, dust particles, humidity and vapour, in certain proportions. The life of human beings, animals and plants depends upon this.
The Air is vital for our survival. Our sense of sound, touch and feel are related to Air. The air on earth is a mixture of various gases like nitrogen, oxygen, helium,hydrogen, etc. Oxygen is vital for human beings and nitrogen is essential for the growth of plant life, which in turn provides oxygen. The correct percentage of different gases, atmospheric pressure and humidity levels is important for life forms on earth.
Agni (Fire) - Agni represents light and heat of fire, lightning, volcanic heat,energy, seasons and other such aspects of the Solar System. It also represents enthusiasm, passion and spirited vigour.
The Fire element is related to our sense of sound, touch and sight. An increase in the fire element leads to love of power and rashness. To maintain the balance between fire and sight, watching and allowing morning sun’s rays to an entrance is required.
Jal (Water) - This is represented by rain, river and sea, and is in the form of liquid, solid (ice) and gas (steam). It is a combination of hydrogen and oxygen in the ratio of two to one, perfectly neutral in reaction. In plant and life on Earth, water exists in certain proportion. Water is linked to our senses of taste, touch, sight and hearing. Quantitatively, two-thirds of the earth’s surface is water. Those under the influence of the water element are likely to be have varied emotions: Love of novelty, sociable nature, fondness for home life, imaginative and fanciful attitude, flexibility. It also means slow, harmless, lazy, careless and inoffensive. An imbalance in the water element causes cough, piles and damp feet. The water element means gravitational attraction indicates presence of excess water element. It’s main characteristics are shabda (sound), sparsha (touch), roopa (form) and rasa(taste).
Bhumi (Earth) - Human beings have a natural and emotional affinity with the Earth. The Earth revolves around the Sun and has a gravitational and magnetic force. Earth is the only element linked to all five senses of taste, sound, touch, smell and sight, and thus exerts the maximum influence on us. Throat, intestines and knees are affected by the Earth element.
We have explained above about the five elements, the panchabhuta. These five elements also relate to the vastu. We all know that the vastu also helps us to get happiness, wealth and success. Vastu teaches the individual to live in balance and harmony with these sense organs. Each of these elements corresponds to a natural force, which affects our life as given below:
Sky: Space or Cosmic Energy
Air: Wind Intensity and Direction
Water: Gravitational Attraction of the Earth
Fire: Solar radiation
Earth: Magnetic Field of the Earth