Purusha

Purusha

"man", "spirit", "dwelling in the city (i.e. in the body)"

The highest spiritual essence, the spiritual self of human. Later to be identified with the concept of Atman. 

In Sankhya, Purusha is an unmanifested aspect of reality, an intelligent beginning, in which consciousness (chaitanya) is not an attribute, but its very essence. Purusha is “I” completely different fr om the body, feelings and mind (manas). Being outside of the world of objects, it is an eternal consciousness that is a witness to the changes and actions taking place in the world – consciousness that does not act and does not change. Physical items – chairs, beds, etc. – exist for others rather than for themselves. Therefore there must be Purusha, or self, different from Prakriti, or primordial matter, but using (bhokta) the products of Prakriti. There are many different selves associated with different bodies, as a result of which some people are happy, others are unhappy, some die, others live. 

One of the meanings of the term "Purusha", according to the etymology of Yaska, is deriving from the root "shad" – "sit, submerge" in "pura" – "abode" (in the form of a manifested universe or an individual body). Therefore, for example, in many pujas there are the eight qualities of Purusha who is connected with Prakriti – dharma, adharma, jnyana, ajnyana etc. And that qualities are revered as the energies of the base of yantra, asana, on which you sit or in your body, because the body is an asana for our Atman (us as a spirit). The body, in the literal sense, is the temple of the soul, as well as the place wh ere the Deity descends during the call (avahana).