Menu
Introduction
Hinduism presents more than one theory about the creation of this world. The various schools of Hindu religious philosophy, such Sankhya, Vaisheishika, Mimamsa, Vedanta and others, have different theories about creation. Sankhya, Yoga, Nyaya, Vaisheshika and Vedanta consider creation to be both beginningless and endless, and have the concept of an infinite series of successive creations and dissolutions of the world. Before creation the entire world remains in a potential state or seed-form in God. This is called the avyakta or unmanifested state of the world. The world becomes manifest when God projects the world out of Himself. The world after manifestation or creation still remains inside God and undergoes a process of evolution. The evolved world is allowed to exist for a certain length of time, lasting billions of years, until God decides to withdraw it back into Himself. After its withdrawal the world goes back again to its seed or unmanifested state. The projection of the world, its temporary existence, and its withdrawal back into God comprise a kalpa or a cycle.
An analogy will make this idea clear. Let us suppose a man goes to his doctor for his annual checkup. An X-ray shows that a benign tumour is forming inside his stomach. The tumour grows bigger and bigger until becomes as large as a chicken egg and stays that way for a while. Then, without any treatment, the tumour gradually shrinks and disappears completely.
In this particular analogy the man represents God and his tumour symbolises the world. Just as after its projection from God the world goes on evolving inside Him and eventually is withdrawn back into Him, so also the tumour appears inside the man’s body, starts evolving and getting bigger inside him, and eventually goes back to where it came from. The appearance of the tumour, its gradual growth and continuance, and its final disappearance symbolically constitute a kalpa or a cycle. According to Hinduism, there is an infinite series of such cycles or kalpas. That is why creation is thought to be without any beginning or end in Hinduism. Every kalpa is believed to be identifical to the other kalpas either preceding or succeeding it.
Questions have been raised in Hinduism about God’s motive for creation. Every action is prompted by a sense of want. As God is not wanting in anything, why should He act? Or, in other words, why should He create? One scriptural text gives a rather poetic reply to this question, as though echoing the voice of God, saying, “I shall be many. May I manifest Myself numerously.” This means that God, even though the one and only reality, wanted to “become” this manifold universe; hence the creation. His wish to become this world was not generated by any “real” feeling of want. From His standpoint creation is only a “game,” or lila.
Has God really become the world? In reply to this question some schools of Hindu philosophy say that God has really become this manifold universe, just as milk really becomes yogurt. Other schools say that God only appears to have become this world; He has not really become the world. A rope in partial darkness may appear to become a snake to an observer, so also God has apparently become the world. He has not really transformed Himself into the world.
Hinduism, as a religion, has the unique ability to accommodate both theistic and atheistic ideas. For instance, the Sankhya school of Hindu philosophy, which is atheistic, is accepted by Hinduism side by side with other schools of philosophy which believe in the existence of God. The Sankhya system, although atheistic, can help people attain spiritual liberation. How the Sankhya system explains the creation of this world in the absence of a creator God may be of interest to readers.
Sankhya theory of creation
The Sankhya system is the most ancient of all the schools of Hindu philosophy. This system recognises two types of ultimate reality: (1) Purusha and (2) Prakriti.
Purusha is pure consciousness or pure sentience. It is uncaused, changeless, eternal and all-pervading. It is pure spirit, and as such it is totally devoid of matter. It is also entirely passive. There are innumerable Purushas. There are as many Purushas as there are conscious beings. Objections have been raised by other schools about the Sankhya concept of many Purushas. According to them, since Purusha is all-pervading, the idea of many Purushas occupying the same space is not acceptable. The Sankhya reply to this objection is that Purushas have no difficulty coexisting, just as the light from different candles can occupy the same space without any conflict. The Sankhya school also argues in favour of the plurality of Purushas by pointing out that had there been only one Purusha, the birth or death of one conscious being would also cause the birth and death of all other conscious beings. But that is not the case. Therefore, there must be many Purushas.
Prakriti, as opposed to Purusha, is unconscious primordial matter. Even though Prakriti is uncaused, it is the cause of everything in this universe, whether matter, energy, or even mind. Hindu psychology very clearly states that mind, no matter how subtle, is no other than a material substance. It also should be remembered here that Purusha, being pure spirit, has not been caused by Prakriti.
According to the Sankhya school, Prakriti is composed of three extremely subtle substances called sattva, rajas and tamas. The process of creation starts when Prakriti borrows consciousness from Purusha and starts acting like a conscious entity. The first sign of Prakriti’s conscious activity is seen in its tendency to change itself. It undergoes a process of gradual transformation, the final outcome of which is this manifold world. In other words, primordial matter, Prakriti, becomes the world through a process of evolution.
The first product of the evolution of Prakriti is Mahat or cosmic intellect. Ahankara or cosmic ego is the second product of Prakriti.
There are three types of cosmic ego: (1) ego in which the Sattva substance is predominant, (2) ego in which the Rajas substance is preponderant and (3) ego with the preponderance of Tamas substance. From the first are evolved the five sense organs, the five motor organs and the mind. From the third are evolved the five subtle physical essences or tanmatras. The second – that in which Rajas is predominant – provides the energy to the first and the third to evolve.
From the tanmatras are evolved the five gross physical elements or mahabhutas: (1) akasha – the space element, (2) vayu – the air element, (3) agni – the fire element, (4) ap – the water element, (5) kshiti or prithivi – the earth element. These elements mingle in different proportions following certain rules of permutation and combination and become the manifold universe.
Creation according to the Vedanta school of philosophy
The non-dualistic school of Vedanta philosophy accepts God as the creator of this world. But it holds the view that the world is only an apparent transformation of God.
An analogy is used by the non-dualistic school of Vedanta philosophy to explain how God has created this world. Let us suppose a magician has cast a hypnotic spell on his audience. By hypnotic suggestion he creates an apple tree on the stage. The entire audience will see that apple tree, but not the magician, since he is not under the spell of his own hypnotic power. Similarly, God (Ishvara), using His power of magic or maya, has created this world. This world is real to those who are under the spell of God’s maya. It is not real to God. From His standpoint He has not really created the world. To us who are under the sway of His maya the world appears to be real. And, from our point of view, God the Creator also seems to be real. The Creation Hymm of the Rig-Veda beautifully expresses this idea:
Not non-existent was it nor existent was it at that time;
There was not atmosphere nor the heavens which are beyond.
What existed? Where? In whose care?
Water was it? An abyss unfathomable?
Neither mortal was there nor immortal then;
Not of night, of day was there distinction:
That alone breathed windless through inherent power.
Other than That there was naught else.
Darkness it was, by darkness hidden in the beginning;
an undistinguished sea was all this.
The germ of all things which was enveloped in void,
That alone through the power of brooding thought was born.
Upon That in the beginning arose desire, which was the first offshoot of that thought.
This desire sages found out to be the link between the existent and the non-existent, after searching with the wisdom in their heart.
Straight across was extended their line of vision:
was That below, was That above?
Seed-placers there were, powers there were:
potential energy below, impulse above.
Who, after all, knows?
Who here will declare whence it arose, whence this world?
Subsequent are the gods to the creation of this world.
Who then, knows whence it came into being?
This world – whence it came into being, whether it was made or whether not –
He who is the overseer in the highest heavens surely knows – or perhaps He knows not!
In the above Rig-Vedic hymn doubts have been raised in the last stanza about the real creation of this world. The “overseer in the highest heavens” is no other than Ishvara or God the Creator. He is all-knowing. He must know if the world has been created. If He does not know, then it may mean that from His point of view no world has really been created. For what is not really there, the question of knowing its existence cannot arise. Therefore, it does not contradict Ishvara’s omniscience.
Nevertheless, from the point of view of mortals under the sway of maya (God’s power of creating illusion), the world is real, and it must have a cause or a Creator. From their standpoint, God by mere thought created the first being called Hiranyagarbha. Even though created by God, Hiranyagarbha is endowed with almost divine powers. He has infinite powers of knowledge, will and action. Through meditation Hiranyagarbha comes to know everything about the previous kalpa or cycle. Then by his thought he creates the rest of the world exactly following the order of the previous kalpa.
First akasha or the space element is created. Then in succession are created vayu the air element, agni the fire element, ap the water element, and prithivi the earth element. In Sanskrit, something which has come into being is called a bhuta, and these five manifested elements are called bhutas. These elements are extremely subtle. The Sanskrit counterparts of the words five and subtle are respectively pancha and sukshma. Therefore, these five subtle elements are called Pancha sukshma-bhutas.
These five subtle elements then mingle together in five different ways to produce the five gross (in Sanskrit: sthula) elements. These five gross elements are called pancha sthula-bhutas. The process of mixing the five subtle elements to produce the five gross elements is called panchikarana in Sanskrit. The process of such mixing is given below:
1/2 subtle space + 1/8 subtle air + 1/8 subtle fire + 1/8 subtle water + 1/8 subtle earth produce “gross” space element.
1/2 subtle air + 1/8 subtle space + 1/8 subtle fire + 1/8 subtle water + 1/8 subtle earth produce “gross” air element.
1/2 subtle fire + 1/8 subtle space + 1/8 subtle air + 1/8 subtle water + 1/8 subtle earth produce “gross” fire element.
1/2 subtle water + 1/8 subtle space + 1/8 subtle air + 1/8 subtle fire + 1/8 subtle earth produce “gross” water element.
1/2 subtle earth + 1/8 subtle space + 1/8 subtle air + 1/8 subtle fire + 1/8 subtle water produce “gross” earth element.
The subtle body of man is made of the five subtle elements, and his gross body and all gross objects of nature arise by the mixture of the five gross elements.
Pralaya or the Dissolution of the World
As a created being, no matter how glorified or endowed with power, Hiranyagarbha has limited longevity. One day of his life, called a kalpa, is equal to 4,320,000,000 human years, and he lives for 100 years according to this time scale. According to another view one kalpa consists of 8,640,000,000 human years. The life span of Hiranyagarbha is called a maha-kalpa (36,500 kalpas).
When Hiranyagarbha goes to sleep after his day’s work, there is cosmic dissolution or pralaya. This is called naimittika pralaya. When he wakes up, the creation of the world starts all over again. This process of alternate creation and dissolution continues until Hiranyagarbha dies at the end of the maha-kalpa.
When Hiranyagarbha dies, he merges into God and becomes one with Him. In other words, he becomes liberated and will not be born again. At the death or liberation of Hiranyagarbha the world undergoes dissolution, which is called prakrita pralaya, and the maha-kalpa ends.
By the will of God when the next cycle of creation starts, another exalted mortal being appears as Hiranyagarbha by virtue of the extraordinary merits earned by him in the previous kalpa or cycle of creation. Thus the process of repeated creation, continuance and dissolution of the universe goes on forever.
An Objection Regarding the Hindu Theories of Creation and Its Refutation
It may seem that Hindu cosmogony is not sure about the origin of this world. Had it been sure, it would have offered only one theory of creation. As it presents more than one theory, one may argue that either all the theories are wrong, or only one is correct.
Yet such an objection does not pose any problem for the non-dualistic school of Vedanta philosophy. Shankara, the great saint and non-dualist philosopher of India, says that this world has empirical existence, but no ultimate existence. In other words, the word is real for the time being only; it is not ultimately real. In the final analysis when the unreality of the world is established, every theory of creation will automatically be proved to be invalid and meaningless. Therefore, it does not matter if there are numerous theories or just one theory about creation.
To understand Shankara’s non-dualistic position, one should be acquainted with the meaning of the word “real” in Hindu philosophy. According to Hindu philosophy, whatever is real must be eternal and changeless.
For instance, if someone saw a dinosaur appear in his backyard, stay there for one minute, and then suddenly vanish into thin air, he would realise that what he saw was not real. He would realise that his sighting of the dinosaur must have been caused by either an optical illusion or his heightened imagination. On the other hand, had the dinosaur existed forever, it would be considered real by him. In that case his judgement of the “reality” of the dinosaur would be based on its perpetuity.
Now let us suppose that an observer is seeing a creature which keeps on changing its form every minute. The first minute it is a dog, then it becomes a weasel, then a racoon, and then something else. Owing to its every changing nature the observer is not able to determine the true identity of the creature; he does not know what it “really” is. Had the creature not changed at all, there would be no difficulty in ascertaining the true or “real” identity of the creature. It would be known in terms of the “changelessness” of the creature.
The world has a beginning in time. Therefore, it cannot be eternal; it must be transitory. Being transitory it cannot be real. The unreality of the world can also be determined by its every-changing character.
To explain the illusory and unreal character of the world, Shankara uses the analogy of a rope, which when seen in the dark, is seen as a snake. The “reality” is the rope, but it is being observed as a snake. As long as the illusion lasts, the so-called snake seems to be real. When the darkness goes, the so-called snake disappears. The observer comes to realise that even though the snake appeared to exist for a while, it actually was never there.
According to Shankara, the rope represents Nirguna Brahman or Impersonal God, and the snake represents the world. Nirguna Brahman, being eternal and changeless, is the only reality that exists. To a person who has come to know Nirguna Brahman, the world is not real to him anymore. He also comes to know that the world was never created. Therefore, the question about the origin or creation of an “uncreated” world cannot arise.