The Multiverse In Hindu Cosmology

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00:00According to all the many theories on the multiverse, your life, your timeline, only

00:06exists as one infinitely tiny strand along an endless web of other possibilities.

00:13When viewed via modern physics and mathematics, it can get pretty complex, but actually, there's

00:19evidence in almost all the ancient Hindu texts that the multiverse had been known about for

00:24thousands of years already.

00:28So how do you feel about the prospect of countless parallel worlds?

00:37If you're a fan of science, science fiction, superhero movies, pretty much anything nowadays,

00:42then you're probably familiar with the multiverse.

00:45The theory that we're all living in only one of possibly infinite, parallel universes.

00:50And while there's no confirmed scientific consensus as to whether or not the multiverse,

00:54in any of its many guises, is true, it is a concept that has crossovers into faith,

01:00as well.

01:01So, for today's video, we're assessing the multiverse as conceived in Hindu cosmology.

01:06To understand this multiverse, it's helpful to first consider other aspects of Hindu mythology.

01:11For example, there's an important distinction made here between matter and spirit.

01:16In Hinduism, the universe is composed of both of these things, with the main difference

01:20being that matter is physical and can therefore be destroyed, whereas spirit is non-physical

01:26and can so never be destroyed.

01:28For Hindus, the physical, material part of existence is then an illusion.

01:33And so it follows that the ultimate goal of Hinduism is to reach enlightenment, a level

01:38of existence at which one can see through the illusion, and realize that all material

01:43things are temporary, and that the spirit is always more important.

01:48The cyclical nature of existence is another major and well-known theme in Hinduism.

01:53And ultimately, it's another key aspect to the Hindu multiverse.

01:57The idea is that all material things go through three main phases of creation, preservation,

02:03and destruction.

02:04Therefore, again, the physical part of the universe, all things that we can see, feel,

02:09hear, and so on, must eventually be destroyed.

02:12These three phases are often represented by three of the most prominent Hindu gods

02:17– Brahma, the creator, Vishnu, the preserver, and Shiva, the destroyer.

02:22And it's believed that the interactions between these three are what fundamentally

02:26result in a many-layered reality of multiple universes – a multiverse.

02:31In Hindu tradition, the lifespan of the universe corresponds to the lifespan of Brahma, at

02:36the end of which Brahma dies and the universe is destroyed with him.

02:40Unfortunately, though, even after the death of the universe, all is not lost, and a new

02:45universe is born out of the ashes of the old.

02:48In this way, it's sometimes argued that Hindu cosmology has some similarities with

02:52modern scientific theories regarding the universe.

02:55Hinduism essentially holds that everything is born from a single point, much like it

02:59is in the Big Bang Theory.

03:01It then posits that everything eventually collapses into that same point… which comes

03:06close to another floated scientific prediction for our universe's fate, known as the Big

03:11Crunch.

03:12What's most important, though, is that because a new creation always follows from destruction

03:17in Hinduism, destruction isn't considered a bad thing.

03:20After all, the god Shiva, the destroyer, has a divine duty to end the universe in order

03:25to pave the way for a new one… and he's worshipped for doing so.

03:30Which brings us back to that distinction between matter and spirit.

03:34Matter, remember, can be destroyed, but that's fine because the spirit continues.

03:38The Hindu multiverse, in one sense, then, refers to the fact that the universe is not

03:42a single space, but rather infinite spaces occurring one after another.

03:47But perhaps even more significantly, across various Hindu texts, there's mention not

03:51just of one universe that goes through this cycle of birth, death, and rebirth… but

03:56rather many.

03:58In some cases, it's suggested that there's an endless number of universes that all coexist

04:02at the same time.

04:04It's variously said that these universes float around just like atoms do from our perspective…

04:10and that each one contains its own Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva.

04:14Its own story of birth, preservation, and destruction.

04:17It's said that each universe consists of many unique layers, too, including Earth,

04:22Water, Fire, Air, and Sky, to add more detail.

04:26But despite these structural similarities, each universe has the potential to be unique.

04:31By hosting different creatures, for example, different environments, cultures, and perhaps

04:36different rules of nature.

04:38And some universes even come with other universes contained inside them.

04:42The possibilities are essentially endless, then.

04:45As such, there are many myths and legends in the ancient texts that refer back to the

04:50multiverse, making use of the many, many variations that it offers.

04:55So now we have the idea that each individual universe is moving through a repeating cycle

05:00from birth to rebirth, and the idea that this is happening across countless, multi-layered,

05:05multiple universes that exist on a higher level.

05:08You'd perhaps think that the structure of reality must end there, but there's one

05:12final concept to incorporate.

05:14In the ancient texts, the Puranas, the mythology goes into detail about fourteen further worlds,

05:21or lokas, that also contribute to the multiverse total.

05:24There is some debate as to whether lokas are intended to be taken literally as physical

05:29realms, or if they're meant as symbolic representations of different levels of consciousness…

05:34but in either case, they play a major role.

05:37The lokas are located on different planes of existence, with seven forming the heavens

05:42or upper worlds, and seven forming hell, or the underworlds.

05:46Those belonging to the upper worlds are known as the Viyaritis, and the highest of all of

05:50them is the Satyaloka, which is held to be the home of truth and is also where Brahma

05:55is said to live.

05:57The upper lokas then descend through various levels, all containing various supreme and

06:01good deities, until we get back to Earth… which is the first and lowest of the upper

06:06worlds.

06:07From here, though, we can descend further into the lower seven lokas, which are called

06:11the Pataulas.

06:13At the lower stages, we encounter various demons and malevolent forces, until we finally

06:18arrive at the lowest and worst level, the Nagaloka.

06:22The move from top to bottom of the lokas, then, is a journey from wisdom and enlightenment

06:27to immorality and sin.

06:29And with Earth situated close to the centre, it's easy to see that the lesson contained

06:33here is that we, mere human beings, can wind up rising or falling depending on the actions

06:38we take during our lives.

06:40So, now we have a full and rich picture of the Hindu reality.

06:44Let's recap.

06:45First, there's the idea that the universe moves through a cycle of births and rebirths,

06:50producing new universes every time.

06:52This cycle is guided by the gods Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva, and carries on indefinitely.

06:57Second, we have the idea that this cycle is happening across endless universes, not just

07:02this one, that exist on a higher plane of reality.

07:05These multiple universes are many-layered and are self-contained.

07:08Third, and finally, inside each of these many cyclical universes, there's a fundamental

07:14structure of lokas, split across fourteen levels in total.

07:18Earth itself is in the middle, but there are many other realms above and below Earth,

07:22too, the highest of which promises peace, the lowest of which promises torment.

07:26For the most part, the myths and legends suggest that travelling across the multiverse is difficult

07:31if not impossible… and many of those who do achieve it only do so with the help of

07:36at least one divine being.

07:38But to finish, we'll again highlight the distinction made at the top of this video

07:42– between physical matter and the non-physical spirit.

07:46When considered against the backdrop of the multiverse, we encounter the possibility that

07:51the spirit can go to places that are otherwise impossible for our physical bodies to reach.

07:56We're imbued with consciousness, imagination and emotions like love, fear and hope.

08:01It's these that colour or cloud our experience of life… and it's perhaps through these

08:07that we can gain a greater understanding.

08:09The multiverse in Hindu cosmology is perhaps, then, as much a spiritual concept as it is

08:15a physical one.

08:16There are elements of it that share similarities with emerging theories in physical science,

08:21yes… but to truly explore this particular version of the multiverse, you must prepare

08:26for a journey deep into your soul.

08:29Navigate that journey well, and enlightenment can be yours.

08:33What do you think?

08:34Is there anything we missed?

08:35Let us know in the comments, check out these other clips from Unveiled, and make sure you

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