the body is visualized as a series of containers. The flesh is the outermost container and is made up of the senses. It is composed of food and serves as food, and so it is called the container of food (anna-kosha). It is animated by the container of breath (prana-kosha). Within are the container of thoughts (mana-kosha), the container of beliefs (vi-gyana-kosha or buddhi-kosha) and finally the container of emotions (chitta-kosha).
