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Hatha Yoga: The Yogi Philosophy of Physical Well-Being1870
When death comes to the physical body, the cells separate and scatter
and that which we call decay sets in. The force which has held the cells
together is withdrawn, and they become free to go their own way and to
form new combinations. Some go into the body of the plants in the vicinity,
and eventually find themselves in the body of an animal; others remain in
the organism of the plant; others remain in the ground for a time, but the life
of the atom means incessant and constant change. As a leading writer has
said: “Death is but an aspect of life, and the destruction of one material form
is but a prelude to the building up of another.” We will give our students a
brief idea of the nature and work of this cell-life—the life of these little lives
of the body.
The cells of the body have three principles: (1) Matter, which they obtain
from the food; (2) Prana, or vital force, which enables them to manifest
action, and which is obtained from the food we eat; the water we drink and
the air we breathe; (3) Intelligence, or “mind-stuff,” which is obtained from
the Universal Mind. We will first take up the material side of cell-life.
As we have said, every living body is a collection of minute cells. This
is, of course, true of every part of the body, from the hard bone to the
softest tissue—from the enamel of the tooth to the most delicate part of the
mucous membrane. These cells have different shapes, which are regulated
by the requirements of its particular office, or work. Each cell is, to all
intents and purposes, an individual, separate and more or less independent,
although subject to the control of cell-group mind; large group commands;
and, finally to the central mind of the man, the controlling work, or at least
the greater part of it, coming within the control of the Instinctive Mind.
These cells are constantly at work, performing all the duties of the body,
each having its own particular work to do—and doing it to the best of
its ability. Some of the cells belong to the “reserves” and are kept under
“waiting orders” ready for some sudden demand of duty. Others belong
to the army of active workers of the cell-community and manufacture the
secretions and fluids needed in the varied work of the system. Some of the