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''Karana sarira'' or the causal body is merely the cause{{sfn|Sharma|2006|p=193}} or seed of the subtle body and the gross body. It has no other function than being the seed of the subtle and the gross body.{{sfn|Bahder|Bahder|2013}} It is ''nirvikalpa [[Rūpa|rupam]]'', "undifferentiated form".{{sfn|Bahder|Bahder|2013}} It originates with ''avidya'', "ignorance" or "nescience" of the real identity of the atman, instead giving birth to the notion of ''[[jiva]]''.

''Karana sarira'' or the causal body is merely the cause{{sfn|Sharma|2006|p=193}} or seed of the subtle body and the gross body. It has no other function than being the seed of the subtle and the gross body.{{sfn|Bahder|Bahder|2013}} It is ''nirvikalpa [[Rūpa|rupam]]'', "undifferentiated form".{{sfn|Bahder|Bahder|2013}} It originates with ''avidya'', "ignorance" or "nescience" of the real identity of the atman, instead giving birth to the notion of ''[[jiva]]''.

[[Swami Sivananda]] characterizes the causal body as "The beginningless ignorance that is indescribable".<ref group=web name="BV" /> [[Siddharameshwar Maharaj]], the guru of [[Nisargadatta Maharaj]], also describes the causal body as characterized by "emptiness", "ignorance", and "darkness".{{sfn|Siddharameshwar Maharaj|2009|31-32}} In the search for the "I am", this is a state where there is nothing to hold on to anymore.{{sfn|Siddharameshwar Maharaj|2009|31-32}}{{refn|group=note|name="kenosis"|Compare [[kenosis]] and Juan de la Cross' ''[[Dark Night of the Soul]]''.}}

[[Swami Sivananda]] characterizes the causal body as "The beginningless ignorance that is indescribable". [[Siddharameshwar Maharaj]], the guru of [[Nisargadatta Maharaj]], also describes the causal body as characterized by "emptiness", "ignorance", and "darkness".{{sfn|Siddharameshwar Maharaj|2009|31-32}} In the search for the "I am", this is a state where there is nothing to hold on to anymore.{{sfn|Siddharameshwar Maharaj|2009|31-32}}{{refn|group=note|name="kenosis"|Compare [[kenosis]] and Juan de la Cross' ''[[Dark Night of the Soul]]''.}}

[[Ramanuja]] concludes that it is at this stage that consummation of the [[Atman (Hinduism)|atman]] with the [[Paramatman]] is reached and the search for the highest [[Purusa]], i.e., of [[Ishvara]], ends.{{sfn|Ranade|1926|p=155–168}}

[[Ramanuja]] concludes that it is at this stage that consummation of the [[Atman (Hinduism)|atman]] with the [[Paramatman]] is reached and the search for the highest [[Purusa]], i.e., of [[Ishvara]], ends.{{sfn|Ranade|1926|p=155–168}}

According to other philosophical schools, the causal body is not the ''atman'', because it also has a beginning and an end and is subject to modification.<ref group=web>{{cite web|title=Tattva Bodha of Adi Shankara Part 2|author=Dr. S. Yegnasubramanian|url=http://svbf.org/journal/vol3no4/bodha.pdf}}</ref> [[Adi Shankara|Shankara]], not seeking a personal god, goes beyond ''Anandamaya Kosha'' in search of the transcendent [[Brahman]].{{sfn|Ranade|1926|p=155–168}}

According to other philosophical schools, the causal body is not the ''atman'', because it also has a beginning and an end and is subject to modification.[[Adi Shankara|Shankara]], not seeking a personal god, goes beyond ''Anandamaya Kosha'' in search of the transcendent [[Brahman]].{{sfn|Ranade|1926|p=155–168}}

The Indian tradition identifies it with the ''[[Anandamaya kosha]]'',<ref group=web name="BV">[http://sivanandaonline.org/public_html/?cmd=displaysection&section_id=774 Divine life Society, ''Bases of Vedanta'']</ref> and the deep sleep state, where ''buddhi'' becomes dormant and all concepts of time fail, although there are differences between these three descriptions.

The Indian tradition identifies it with the ''[[Anandamaya kosha]]''and the deep sleep state, where ''buddhi'' becomes dormant and all concepts of time fail, although there are differences between these three descriptions.

The causal body is considered as the most complex of the three bodies. It contains the impressions of experience, which results from past experience.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Gregory P.|first1=Fields|title=Religious Therapeutics: Body and Health in Yoga, Āyurveda, and Tantra|date=2001|publisher=State University of New York Press|page=27|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rvQhuyGpB3wC&pg=PA27&dq=three+bodies+in+vedanta&hl=en&sa=X&ei=mY-OU8vmBJOMuASVp4LICA&ved=0CFkQ6AEwBg#v=onepage&q=three%20bodies%20in%20vedanta&f=false|accessdate=4 June 2014}}</ref>

The causal body is considered as the most complex of the three bodies. It contains the impressions of experience, which results from past experience.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Gregory P.|first1=Fields|title=Religious Therapeutics: Body and Health in Yoga, Āyurveda, and Tantra|date=2001|publisher=State University of New York Press|page=27|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rvQhuyGpB3wC&pg=PA27&dq=three+bodies+in+vedanta&hl=en&sa=X&ei=mY-OU8vmBJOMuASVp4LICA&ved=0CFkQ6AEwBg#v=onepage&q=three%20bodies%20in%20vedanta&f=false|accessdate=4 June 2014}}</ref>