According to Ayurveda, life or existence is not a rigid compartment, but a harmonious flow. Even the five elements (earth, water, air, ether and fire) of which the whole universe is made of, are not tight compartments of defined objects. They flow into one another. Each of the elements contains the other four. The subtlest element in us is space, which the mind is made up of, and the grossest is the earth element, which our bones, marrow, the skin and the structure are made of.

This is further divided into three Doshas — Vata, Pitta and Kapha. This is a way to understand our physiology, its characteristics and its reflections on the mind. When an illness arises, it comes first in the thought form, the subtlest aspect, then the sound form, and then the light form, which is in the aura. It is only then that the illness manifests in the body. Simple symptoms arise in the fluid form, which can be eradicated, and then it manifests in the grossest form, where it needs medication. But with the practice of Ayurveda, the illness can be nipped in the bud.