[Buddha-l] Five groups of five substances

[Joy Vriens]

Hi Alex,

I remember an interesting chapter on pentads and the pentadic structure of the cosmos (or of anything considered as a "whole" in fact) in David Gordon White's The Alchemical Body. I just looked it up: Chapter Seven "Corresponding hierarchies", sub-chapter 5. "Pentads in Metallic and Yogic Hierarchies of the Elements. I can't see a mention of the "substances of the five pentads" as such, but he does mention various pentads of the alchemical tradition: the five gemstones, the five salts, the five greater and lesser poisons, the five animal oils, the five white, red and yellow substances. And then there are the more known ones that you already mentioned.       

Joy

Alex wrote:
        
>Or, to be precise: 
> 
>lnga tshan lnga'i rdzas 
> 
> 
>Can any scholars elucidate these for me? I'm aware of five nectars, five 
>meats, five precious substances - are these three of the five groups? If so, 
>what are the other two, if not what are the other five?