What is Oja??? Part 2 (Concluding part)

We have looked upon Oja very critically and to be frank, we have not yet found an answer that is satisfactory and which points out exactly what oja is all about. We have been given clues by our acharyas trying to explain it in their terminologies. The function of oja has also been specifically mentioned and the diseases or conditions occurring due to decreased oja specified.

We now know for a fact in our last discussion that :

v  Oja is no energy or an abstract but is a physical substance as its physical features have been well specified.

v  Oja has a very intimate relationship with shukra dhatu

v  Oja is the excellence of all dhatus and hence is superior to them

v  Oja helps to maintain the immunity of the body by helping in regeneration and hence gives strength and stability to the body

v  Oja has the quality of “Sheetatva” or coldness hence cannot withstand heat

v  There are 2 types of Oja – Para (superior) and Apara (Inferior)

v  Para oja is constant throughout life and Apara may change depending on various factors

v  Oja delays the degeneration and the ageing processes

v  Oja forms a link between the 3 bodies (Gross, Subtle and Causal)

We know all of the above facts and yet there is confusion in our minds as to what oja really is.

In this blog, I would like to explain, according to me “what is oja”

In the human body, there are some cells that are known as “Stem cells”. Stem cells are primal undifferentiated cells which retain the ability to differentiate into other cell types. This ability allows them to act as a repair system for the body, replenishing other cells as long as the organism is alive.

These cells are further divided into 2 major types as “embryonic stem cells” and “adult/somatic stem cells”.

Embryonic Stem Cells (Para Oja)*- The embryonic stem cells are tottipotent cells and remain constant throughout life. They are formed from embryos after fertilization. This very well explains why the content of embryonic stem cells or para oja remains constant throughout life as with only 1 gamete, more of it cannot be formed.

Somatic/Adult Stem Cells (Apara Oja)* - The adult stem cells are pleuripotent  cells which are present in the body in greater number than embryonic stem cells. These cells are not as potent as embryonic stem cells but have the capacity to multiply and specialize themselves to any tissue eg blood. Hence, the regeneration of the body depends directly on the amount of adult stem cells that the body has. Similarly the immunity or resistance to degeneration or to a disease is directly dependant on the amount of Oja the body has. This Oja is, as the name suggests, formed from shukra dhatu (only 1 gamete is involved)

Now, let us compare the parameters of oja to stem cells in the same order

v  Stem cells is no energy or an abstract thought, but is a physical substance with physical features matching the description of Oja given by the respected Acharyas

v  The relationship of Shukra dhatu with stem cells is obvious

v  Stem cells is definitely superior to all tissue elements as it can specialize to any of them at will, hence it is the most excellent of cells to be present in the human body

v  As this stem cell regenerates or replaces damaged organs or tissues by specializing itself to form the tissue, this acts as the best immunity provider in the body by providing strength and stability to the body

v  Stem cells require a cold temperature to thrive in vitro and in vivo. Heat destroys these cells easily.

v  The 2 types of stem cells have been discussed in short where the superior one being the embryonic stem cells and inferior being the somatic counterpart

v  Embryonic stem cells remain constant throughout life and if depleted the patient dies as regeneration stops completely whereas somatic stem cells may increase or decrease

v  Stem cells are used for delay in ageing processes as it stops degeneration by regenerating and substituting degenerated cells.

*(My opinion, may or may not be true)

Hence, I have tried to give my understanding of oja in very very short and easy language. I have also co-related it with stem cells specifically to explain why I think what I think.

According to me, the Acharyas of ayurveda knew of the complete existence of these stem cells and they chose the word Oja to explain it.

I hope to have clarified another tricky concept of ayurveda. If there are any arguments for or against this topic or any comments or critical analysis, please feel free to post them as it will only improve my understanding of the subject

What is Oja???

As we are discussing controversial and unclear topics on this blog, after agni I felt it right to understand ojas so as to get a clearer idea as we move ahead to discuss and dwell upon aspects of ayurveda in further blogs and discussions.

At first ojas seemed a very abstract concept and to pinpoint such a substance in the body, seemingly difficult.

There are varied opinions concerned with this highly accepted yet little known entity. Let me put forward some of the opinions that i have encountered.

We shall discuss these opinions one after another to understand more about what our preceptors tried to point out at.

1.         1. Some scholars of ayurveda say that it is the energy present in the body produced during destruction of shukra dhatu responsible for anabolic changes in the body.

2.       2. Some say it is nothing but the antibodies and WBCs present in the body

3.       3. Some say that it is no different from shukra, just that old shukra should be counted as oja

4.         4. Some say it is an upadhatu of shukra

5.         5. And others say it’s the mala of shukra

6.             6.Others, well, say that science is not good enough to figure it out or explain such concepts….???

Now, taking into account these opinions of various schools of thoughts, we need to list out the pros and cons to aid us in our search of what exactly is oja.

1.       In the first opinion,

Pros: It is by far the best attempt made to explain oja in terms of science of energies. It shows the intimate relation of shukra and points out at its function very clearly.

Cons: It does not point out what oja is, but points out the function of oja. For eg. describing a knife as something that cuts things is only a function not the knife itself. If this were to be accepted assuming that oja is energy and not a substance then the description of oja as having yellowish colour, resembling clarified butter(ghee) etc, seems useless as only physical substances can have such explanations.

2.       In the second opinion,

Pros: It is a good attempt to substantiate the oja by relating it in modern medicine by comparing it to WBCs and antibodies.

Cons: This explanation of oja does not really suffice as the intimate relationship with shukra is totally overlooked and the formation of it depending on the quality of shukra dhatu and its increase by conserving shukra in processes of bhramacharya etc are totally ignored. Hence to accept this does not seem complete.

3.       In the third opinion,

Pros: This explanation goes out of its way to show how intimately it is connected to shukra and how it is an upadhatu of the same. (I do not want to get into whether it is an upadhatu or mala of shukra, but we have a separate blog for it, if requested)

Cons: The cons are quite a few because this reason is rarely accepted due to the obvious fact that there are no definite parameters that differentiate it from shukra, if it really was nothing but shukra, then why is it even considered as another dhatu in itself? Hence this argument does not satisfy our intellectual needs.

4.       &     5.            These points on whether it is an upadhatu or mala and why need not be discussed here, but a blog can be specifically to clear that doubt if need be.

6.  In the sixth opinion,

Well, there is a good amount of truth in this statement as it is difficult to understand ayurveda which goes deep into layers of sukshma shareer and karan shareer on which modern medicine has not reached as yet. Quantum physics for that matter has definitely reached and is probing the manomaya kosha, hence trying to use it to understand those concepts should prove beneficial.

Hence, all the explanations provided to us individually seems a bit hazy and tough to grasp. But when put together and thought upon, the eventual answer could seem ridiculously obvious.

If any one of you would like to share your thoughts on this subject or have an opinion about my writings, please do comment, I shall try to better myself in each attempt.

In the coming blogs I will try and put my point of view trying to elaborate and understand oja, while showing how to tap it and use it for a complete transformation of life and psyche for the good.