article 5

[Guest guest]

I attach article 5 - creation of the universe. I

wrote this in response to a member's request.

T V Padmanabhan

*****Matter transfered from attachment to inline text***

CREATION OF THE UNIVERSE

 

 

God is the centre of the Hindu faith. God's breath is said to be the Vedas.

The Vedas are the only source of knowledge. Everything is contained in the

Vedas. Vedas say that the God has no beginning or end. He is the Ultimate.

One may call him as the Supreme Being or Brahman. Vaishnavites call him as

Narayana. He pervades the Universe and there is nothing in the Universe, which

does not have Him as its part. In human beings, he is the Antaryami or the

Inner Soul or the Paramatma. Every human being has a body with a soul

(Jivatma). Paramatma resides inside the Jivatma. All individual souls and

matter (world or nature and everything that forms part of them) are amsas (parts

or modes) of the Supreme Brahman. While they are distinct from the Brahman,

they are inseparable from Him, as they constitute His body. This is the theory

according to our philosophy and based on this theory, one has to approach the

subject of the creation of the Universe for easy understanding.

 

The Vedas (especially the Upanishads which form the latter part of the Vedas)

speak of the creation in various ways. It is difficult to understand,

comprehend and reconcile what all is spoken about creation in these Upanishads

unless one is fully well versed in the Vedas and the secondary scriptures like

the Ramayana, the Mahabharata, the Puranas, Agamas, Dharma Sastras, etc. While

there could be differences in one's approach and understanding what the Vedas

ultimately reveal about the creation, one thing is for sure, and that is God

created the world as part of his manifestation. Creation is said to begin after

a Mahapralayam and when God takes a Sankalpa to create again. Mahapralayam

comes after a Brahma's lifetime, which is one hundred years (4.32 billion

multiplied by 360 multiplied by 100 human years) to be calculated based on

chathur yuga formula detailed in the first write up of the author, viz. Hindu

Traditional Calendar.

 

The Purushasuktham speaks of the glories of the God. The Purushasuktham

contains in itself the three different constituents of the Vedas, namely Samhita

(Manthras - Prayers), Brahmanam (Yagnams - Karma Kandam) and Aranyakam

(Upanishads - Gnana Kandam). We have a splendid account of the creation of the

Universe in this Purushasuktham and it is narrated below.

 

The Universe, as it appears to us, is only one fourth of God's manifestation

and three fourths are unmanifest. Creation is a big Yagnam. The creation is in

two parts. In the first part, God manifested Himself as Brahma and from Brahma

as various beings. In the second part, God became food and other essentials for

the created beings to enable them live.

 

In the first part, God manifested Himself into a Brahmandam and from it,

appeared the Brahma, the Creator who created individuals. In the second part, a

sacrifice or Yagna was performed by the Devas, the first that was created by

Brahma. Brahma permitted himself to be used by the Devas as the Holy Cow for

sacrifice into the Homam in this Yagna. From this Yagna came birds, deer,

animals, cows and other similar creations. Then came the Rig-Veda, the Sama

Veda, Gayathri, and Yajur Veda. Then horses, other animals, goats, sheep etc.

came out. Brahma's face became a Brahmin, hands became a Kshatriya, thighs

became a Vaisya and feet became a Sudra.(*) From his mind appeared Moon, from

his eyes appeared Sun. From his face appeared Indra and Agni. From his breath

appeared Air. From his navel appeared Space. From the head, the heaven, from

the feet the earth, from the ears the directions (east, west, south and north)

came out. Thus was created all the worlds (Sastras say that there are fourteen

worlds in all). The devas through this yagna worshipped the God, the Creator.

The dharma was then established in the form of worship and prayer.

 

It will be seen that from God, Brahma appeared and from Brahma, all other beings

appeared, Devas being the first. God thus pervades his creation. God works

ceaselessly in the universe through his amsas or parts, namely chits and achits

by being their inner soul, controller and director.

 

The Purushasuktham worships Him as having thousands of heads, thousands of eyes,

thousands of feet and states that his vast figure spreads and pervades the

entire Universe in a symbolic ten inches height.

 

In the Aitareya Upanishad, it is said that God first created Ambalokam (water

world), Marichilokam (world of light), Maralokam (world of immortals) and

Apalokam (world of water) . Ambalokam is above the Heaven, Marichilokam is the

Space in between the Heaven and the Earth, Maralokam is the Earth and Apalokam

is below the Earth. He then created the Brahma from out of water to be the

guardian of all these lokas (worlds). At God's behest, Brahma opened his mouth

and from the mouth came the speech. From the speech came fire. At God's behest

again a nose appeared for the Brahma and from its nostrils, came the air.

Similarly, from eyes, vision came and from vision, came the Sun. From ears,

sounds and hearing came and from them came the directions (east, west, south and

north). From the skin, came hair and from the hair came herbs and plants. From

the heart came the mind and from the mind came the Moon. From the navel, came

Apanan and from that came death. From the genitals, came the fluid and from it

came water.

 

The above then fell in the water. Brahma created hunger and thirst for them.

The created ones wondered where would they reside. Brahma brought them a cow

first and on their expressing inadequacy, brought them a horse. They still felt

it inadequate. Then Brahma gave them Man. (Obviously woman too). They

appreciated Man as the best creation. Then Brahma ordered all of them to get

into their respective places within the Man. Fire became speech and entered the

mouth. Air became Pranan and entered the nostrils. Sun became vision and

entered the eyes. The directions in the form of hearing entered the ears.

Herbs and plants became hair and entered the skin. Moon became Mind and entered

the heart. Death became Apanan and entered the navel. Water became fluid and

entered the genitals. Hunger and Thirst asked for places from the Brahma. He

gave them places in the Devas (who were first created) and made them share in

their food. (If we offer food to the devas, hunger and thirst share in that

food.) Having created Man, Brahma proceeded to create food out of water. Food

ran away and the man wanted to take the food by speech, and failing that, by

smell, and failing that by vision, and failing that by hearing, and failing that

by touch, and failing that by mind, and again failing that by genitals. He

failed in all his attempts. He then tried through the Apanan and he could reach

the food. Therefore it is the Apanan that bears the life through food. God

then thought as to how the man could function. He then entered the Man

opening a gate in the head. Man then got his life and realized that the

Paramatma is inside him. Man and Woman then had their union and they got a

child, which is said to be the representative of the Man. It is said that the

child gets life from father and body from mother. God enters the child as the

Paramatma and protects the child. Thus the creation continues forever and ever.

 

Though I had given two accounts of the creation as per the Vedas and the

Upanishads (there are other accounts of creation too), we have to read them

together to conclude that God created the worlds, Brahma, the Devas, man and

woman and made them to pursue further creation Himself being part of the never

ending process. We believe that it is God's Sport.

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Prepared by Tenparai Viraraghavachari Padmanabhan, Advocate, A-20 Arcot Terrace,

160 Arcot Road, Vadapalani, Chennai 600 026, India (email:

tvpadmanabhan)

Dated Tuesday the 22nd March 2005 at Apex, NC, USA.

 

*These divisions were more for the performance of various duties and dharmas as

ordained in the Shastras for the good of the world.

 

 

*********** Attachment Matter Ends*****

 

T V Padmanabhan

Advocate

A-20 Arcot Terrace

160 Arcot Road, Vadapalani

Chennai 600 026, India

Tel: 91-44-24724911; 98400 52787