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Spirituality February 2006

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“Spiritual hunger is common to all; but tastes differ.
There are different forms of God to suit all tastes.”
- Swami Yogaswarupananda, of the Divine Life Society,
a Vedanta-based foundation in Rishikesh.

The Hindu Concept of Creation

Gyan Rajhans P. Eng.
BHAJANAWALI RADIO PROGRAM

There are quite a few differences in the Vedic and Puranic scriptures in the explanations about the origin of the universe. But the ultimate conclusion about creation is the same. Science estimates the universe to be 10 - 20 billion years old. American astrophysicist, Dr. Carl Sagan notes “The Hindu religion is the only one of the world’s great faiths dedicated to the idea that the cosmos itself undergoes an immense infinite number of deaths and rebirths. It is the only religion where the time scales correspond to those of modern scientific cosmology. A millennium before Europeans were willing to divest themselves of the biblical idea that the world was a few thousand years old, the Hindu were thinking of billions.”

First the Vedas, mainly Yajurveda says that all threads come off the spider, as little sparks come out of the fire, so all the senses, all the worlds, all the gods, all beings issue forth from the self. Yajurveda also says, “This universe is a tree eternally existing, its root aloft, its branches spread below, the pure root of the tree is Brahman, the immortal, in whom the three worlds have there been, whom none can transcend, who is verily the self. Yajurveda further says, “God who in the mystery of His vision and power transforms His white radiance in many coloured creations from whom all things come and into whom all return. Yajurved goes on, without beginning, thou art, beyond time, beyond space. Thou art He from whom sprang the three worlds”.

The Vedanta philosophy says, “The universe exists in an endless cycle of creation, preservation, and destruction. There is no absolute end to the world; neither is there a duality of God and world, but a unity”.

The modern scientists believe in the “big bang theory” of creation. Dissolution of the universe is the same process working in reverse. This cycle of changes may keep on repeating known as the pulsating universe theory.

In Upanishads, the story of the cycle of creation is very close to the picture drawn by the modern scientist. They say, “In the beginning there was Brahman and nothing else. There was no matter or energy, no space or time, and no natural laws. Brahman was nirgun (it had no attributes), so it could not be perceived. Brahman expanded and matter and food were born. From matter arose life and mind, the five elements and the world. All these got into a state of intense activity and change. The result was the universe”. This was quoted from Mundako Upanishad. Then Brahman retired to His dormant Self, this is called Sarga (or primary creation). Sarga was followed by Visarga (secondary creation). It proceeds according to the laws laid down. This is what would be referred to as evolution. Since Brahman pervaded everything, and its creative powers came into play as changes followed one another, new names and forms are being brought out. Then at some stage, under the same set of laws, the dissolution of the universe takes place. Matter and energy, space and time, and all the elements of life merge again with Brahman. This whole cycle is called Kalpa. In due course, Kalpa follows Kalpa and everything repeats itself. Here, one discovers a new unity which was not seen before. The old Kalpa and the new pulsating universe theory are clearly one and the same.

The words of Adishankara sum up the entire teachings of the Upanishads as: Brahman is the reality, the world is unreal, and the Atman is Brahman itself. Unreal means anything which is not eternal but is transient, which has a limited life - long or short.

Hindus believe that the universe is without beginning (Anadi) and without end (Anant). It is the inherent nature of the universe to evolve, devolve, and revolve eternally in cycles of creation, dissolution and recreation. Thus, in Hindu religion there is no such thing as the initial creation. The creation is eternal and proceeds in cycles. Whenever the words ‘beginning’ and ‘end’ are used in Hindu scriptures, they simply mean the beginning and end of a particular cycle.

According to Manu Smriti, each cycle of creation is divided into four Yugas (ages of the world). Satyuga (the golden age), Tretayuga (silver age), Dwaparyuga (copper age), Kaliyuga (iron age). Each cycle of creation begins with Satyuga, evolves through Tretayuga and Dwaparyuga and ends with Kaliyuga. Satyuga is the age of bliss and virtue, as the human intellect is very powerful and able to grasp and obey the spiritual laws underlying the operation of the universe. The spiritual knowledge diminishes and universal chaos increases as the creation evolves from the Satyuga to the Kaliyuga. The total duration of one cycle of the four Yugas is 12000 divine years or 4.32 million human years and is called Mahayuga. One thousand Mahayugas comprise one Kalpa. At the end of one Kalpa, the universe is dissolved by Pralaya (meaning cosmic dissolute or natural disaster). It must be noted that the cosmic dissolute, apparent death and destruction at the end of Kalpa is not a permanent destruction. Cosmic dissolute is a link between the end of one Kalpa and the beginning of the next one, in an endless process of cyclic creation. We are currently in Kaliyug, which began around 3100 BCE. The Hindu notion of time is cyclic and is different from the Western notion of time, which is unidirectional implying a one time beginning.

Gyan Rajhans, an internationally recognized heath & safety professional has been broadcasting the only non-commercial Vedic religion radio program in North America since 1981 & worldwide web cast on www.bhajanawali.com since 1999. Mr. Rajhans has published extensively on religious and spiritual matters. Some articles are available on the Bhajanawali web site. He has translated Sri Mad Bhagvad Gita in English for the younger generation. Mr Rajhans has been conferred various titles, including that of Rishi by Hindu Prarthana Samaj of Toronto Hindu Ratna by Hindu Federation of Toronto. He received Canadian Journalists' and Writers' Club (CEJWC) award for 2005 in the Internet category - Opinion - for his Spirituality columns in South Asian Outlook e-Monthly.]

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