Kundalini Yoga Glossary
Physical Body
The fifth of the Ten Bodies: the temple where the other nine play out their parts.
Meaning
What Physical Body Means
The Physical Body is the fifth of the Ten Bodies in Kundalini Yoga, associated with Guru Arjun and the themes of sacrifice, balance and teaching. It is described as the temple where the other nine bodies play out their parts: it gives the capacity to sacrifice, meaning to make sacred, and to balance every part of one's life.
When strong, the Physical Body represents the teacher, able to take an abstract idea and explain it to anyone, of any age or way of life, bringing it into concrete, earthly form. When it is weak, the manual describes anger, greed, jealousy, competitiveness and difficulty expressing oneself verbally.
In Practice
How It’s Used
The key to balancing the Physical Body is regular exercise and teaching: physically moving the body and, where possible, passing on what has been learned to someone else.
Because the Physical Body carries the other nine, its balance affects all of them; keeping it strong through movement is treated as foundational rather than as one practice among many.
