Samāgni ~ Balanced Fire

Those few among us who are blessed with balanced agni enjoy a wide range of benefits as a result. Balanced agni results in happiness, perfect health, and a calm, clear, and loving state of mind. Samāgni is the result of tridoṣas being in a balanced state. It maintains the health so long as there are no irregularities in food consumption. It properly digests the food that is well measured and consumed in time. Individuals with sama agni can generally digest a reasonable quantity of any food in any season without issue, and they tolerate changes in the weather and the seasons quite gracefully. These individuals enjoy balanced digestion, absorption, and elimination, a surplus of Ojas (vital energy / vital fluid / vital essence), tejas (radiant energy), and prāṇa (vital breath, life-force), strong immunity, and an abiding sense of contentment and satisfaction, even bliss, in their lives.

Ojas to “vital energy”, according to the Lalitāsahasranāma. Lalitā’s thousand names are eulogized in the Lalitāsahasranāma, describing the goddess’s spiritual beauty on the analogy of physical, sensuous beauty. […]

Agni Bhūta is the fire element, and it is divided to different forms:

1. Chitāgni: “digestive fire”

There are many dimensions of fire, within and without. Let us look at the three forms of fire that burn within us. One is known as Jaṭharāgni. Jaṭha means stomach or digestive process. Without a little bit of fire in your belly, you cannot digest the food that you eat. Food is functioning as fuel that you need to break down in order to release the energy that you need. If the digestive fire is well-nourished and well-supplied with fuel, it also becomes reproductive fire. Both digestion and reproduction depend on Jaṭharāgni.

• Chitāgni: “mental fire”

The second kind of inner fire is called chitagni. It is the dimension of the mind and beyond. Citta is a dimension of intelligence within you that transcends the limitations of the physical form. Your physical form is an outcome of your genetic and your karmic memory. By contrast, citta is a dimension of intelligence that is untainted by memory. The fire of intelligence can manifest on many different levels, the first level of manifestation being the intellect. If we look at the different fires within you, only if your digestive fire is going well, the reproductive fire will come into the act. If you are not well-fed, the reproductive instincts will disappear. Similarly, if your Chitāgni is not reasonably fired, your intellect will become weak and ineffective. However, if your Chitāgni is fired up, it will manifest itself in the form of intellect – even if you are not in a state to consciously access other dimensions of intelligence. If your Chitāgni is burning bright, you will lose interest in food, sexuality, and other matters of the body. It is in this context that what is unfortunately being propagated as renunciation should actually be transcendence. It is important that the fire of intelligence burns within you. When only the physical fires are burning within you but not the fire of intelligence, life can get miserable and ugly. When there is too much Chitāgni and not enough Chitāgni, people will do the stupidest things.

• Bhūtāgni:”the elemental fire”

The next dimension of fire is called Bhūtāgni, the elemental fire. If your elemental fire is on, the circus of the body and mind will not make much sense to you. Your interest and focus will shift from the antics of the body and mind to a more fundamental aspect of creation – the source of life. If you take charge of Jaṭharāgni, you will have a healthy and robust body. If you take charge of your Chitāgni, you will have a mind that you can use in many ways. If you take charge of your Bhūtāgni, you will have fundamental mastery over the process of life. The boundaries of the body are very clear and limited. The boundaries of the mind are larger. For example, if you know something about another part of the world, it is within the boundaries of your mind. As your knowledge expands, your mental boundaries can expand. But if you become conscious of the dimension of Bhūtāgni or the elemental fire, you will be a boundless being, because the play of elements is happening across the entire creation.

• Sarvāgni

Beyond this, there is something called Sarvāgni, because, according to modern science, the physical dimension of existence is less than five percent. That means if you know the entire physical dimension of the universe, you know only five percent of existence. Sarvāgni touches the dimension where there are no elements, where there is no creation as you know it, or in other words, where there is no physical nature.

Generally, a Yogi who wants to access the nature of life will not interest himself in Jaṭharāgni, Chitāgni and Bhūtāgni. He will focus only on Sarvāgni, because this is the ultimate fire – but it is a cool fire. Jaṭharāgni is a very obvious fire. Chitāgni is less obvious but very much there. Bhūtāgni is not so visible at all but very much there. Sarvāgni can hardly be felt, but without it, nothing would happen. It is the fundamental and ultimate fire that encompasses all other fires.

“As is the human body, so is the cosmic body. As is the human mind, so is the cosmic mind. As is the microcosm, so is the macrocosm. As is the atom, so is the universe.”

~Upaniṣad

Fire element by Suzan Fauman:

According to Ayurveda, fire element powers your capacity for digestion. Everything you encounter, from food to thoughts and emotions, has to be digested and transformed so that it nourishes you. When you can’t transform something, it causes indigestion — that late night spinning-worry mind is like emotional burping.

Fire element expresses as hot, sharp, bright, upward-moving, and spreading. When you express clarified fire element, you are affectionate and compassionate, naturally joyful, generous and enthusiastic. Fire element brings intelligence and an ability to “cut through” the surface appearance of things to reach deeper understanding. When it is balanced it means a balanced appetite, good digestion and elimination, healthy skin, and bright, clear eyes.

However, it can build up too much under pressure to achieve. The hot and sharp quality of fire can express as anger, irritability and judgment. When fire burns to excess, our intensity may be overwhelming to others and we feel hot and bothered all the time. When fire is depleted, we feel cold, flat, depressed and unmotivated. The mind can’t digest new information. A lack of drive and enthusiasm leads to laziness and we withdraw from others.

Tejas Tattva

Tejastattva to the “elemental power of fire” and as one of the “five elemental powers, represents one of the various signs and paranormal powers (siddhi) experienced by the Yoga practicioner, according to the Amanaska Yoga.

Tejas is the third emanation to proceed from Akasha, the all pervading substance. Tejas is not separate from Akasha, but a special sub-quality of it. Eknath Easwaran translates Tejas (pronounced te-yus) as ‘Splendor, Inner Power, and Radiant Vitality.’ These are all qualities given Alchemical Fire in western traditions. The geometric symbol for Tejas is a red, upright, equilateral triangle. Its very shape suggests a tongue of flame. It is equivalent the Black Flame of the god, Kali, in Hindu philosophy since the Scintillating Light is a black light.

Practices to connect with the Fire Element:

Touch

Heat is a catalyst for the body’s processes – it can boost circulation and ease stiffness in the joints and muscles, as well as helping to promote sweating and increasing the body’s ability to withstand high temperatures. Whilst it’s important to make sure you’re never too hot, experiencing a sauna or steam room regularly can help relieve both physical and emotional tension, sending blood flow to tissues that may need healing and repairing. Especially during colder months, try to warm your body regularly to keep circulation moving well; take a warm bath, wrap up, try a hot stone massage, or even a hot yoga class. 

Taste

The fire element is linked to the sour, salty and pungent (or hot) tastes, and these are tastes that tend to make our mouths water and increase AGNI, THE DIGESTIVE FIRE. Consuming something sour, salty and hot before a meal can help improve both the digestion and assimilation of nutrients – I like to make an Ayurvedic mix of sliced ginger, lemon juice and a sprinkle of salt, and consume a slice just before dinner to boost digestive power.  Other foods you can use to increase the fire element within the body are, of course, hot spices like cayenne, chilli, black pepper, ginger and cinnamon, as well as vinegars. Ensure you’re eating enough good quality salty foods like seaweed and miso, and boost your intake of sour foods with chutneys, citrus fruits, kefir, sourdough bread, wine, and fermented foods like sauerkraut.

Smell 

Warming, heating scents like ginger, juniper and clove can help boost the energy of Maṇippuṟāchakra, but if you need to calm and balance this place, essential oils can be very helpful too. If you’re feeling overly hot physically or emotionally, try calming things down with rose, geranium, chamomile, and sandalwood essential oils. You can mix these with a cooling carrier oil like coconut oil, or a more warming and stimulating oil like mustard. Try massaging the Nābhi marma point (a pressure point linked to Maṇippuṟā) located at the navel centre. Massage around the navel in a clockwise direction for a few minutes, or until you feel a sense of relaxation in this place. 

Sight 

Trāṭaka is a traditional and meditative way to reconnect to the fire element, and is also a great way to re-set after a long day staring at laptops and screens. Trāṭaka should be “practiced in a dark room free from draughts and insects” according to Swami Svātmārāma, who compiled the Haṭhapradīpikā, and serves to help the mind cultivate Ekāgratā or ‘one-pointed focus’, directing energy away from the chattering mind, and toward an object. The flame also has many representations in yogic literature, and in this sense, we can think of the flame symbolising Ātman, the soul, which is often pictured as a flame within the heart.