Sthūla

Gross, coarse, material. The outermost dimension of embodied existence, comprising the physical body and its perceptible elements. In the Taittirīya Upaniṣad, the sthūla śarīra (gross body) is the annamaya kośa — the sheath made of food. It is contrasted with sukshma (subtle) and [[karana]] (causal) bodies. In haṭha yoga, sthūla practices (āsana, śatkarma, dhauti) purify the gross vehicle so that the subtle body can be accessed. The sthūla is not rejected but refined: the body becomes a temple when its coarseness is transformed through sustained practice. See sharira, [[annamaya-kosha]].