Outlines of Jainism c15: Appendix II. Cosmogony
Outlines of Jainism c15
- Language
- English
Contents
- c15.s1 Cosmology — 35 parts
- c15.s2 Astronomy — 3 parts
Appendix II. Cosmogony
c15.2
The world is infinite. All the magnitudes (*astikāyas*) in it may change their forms or their conditions; but none of them can be destroyed.
c15.3
The world was never created at any particular moment. It is subject to integration and dissolution. Its constituent elements—the six substances, or five magnitudes together with the soul—are the soul, matter, time, space, and the principles of motion and stationariness. These are eternal and indestructible; but their conditions change constantly.
c15.4
This change takes place in the two eras *avasarpiṇī* and *utsarpiṇī*. But this division of time does not apply to the whole universe; it exists only in Ārya-khaṇḍa of the Bhārata and Airāvata kshetras (regions).
Cosmology
c15.s1.1
The universe, or the *loka*, i.e. all space except the beyond (*aloka* or *non-loka*), has the form exhibited on the following page.
c15.s1.2
The total volume is 343 cubic *rajjus* (*rajju* = a certain, inconceivably great, measure of length), as may be calculated from the dimensions given on the map.
c15.s1.3
The cosmos (*loka*) is 14 *rajjus* high (HT), 7 *rajjus* from north to south, and 7 from east to west (EW). But from east to west it tapers up till at the height of 7 *rajjus*, i.e. the middle of the universe, it is only 1 *rajju* wide, like the waist of the akimbo headless figure in the diagram (MD). From here it again increases till at half the remaining height it reaches the breadth of 5 *rajjus* (E₁W₁). From here once more it grows less and less, till it is at the top of the universe (HH₁) 1 *rajju*.
c15.s1.5
The whole is enveloped in three atmospheres called the *vāta-valayas*, or wind-sheaths. They are:
c15.s1.6
I. the thick wind or very dense atmosphere (*ghanodadhi-vāta-valaya*);
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II. the less thick or dense atmosphere (*ghana-vāta-valaya*);
c15.s1.8
III. the fine wind or rare atmosphere (*tanu-vāta-valaya*).
c15.s1.9
Through the centre of the universe runs the region of mobile souls (*trasa-nāḍī*) (HT₁H₁). It is 14 *rajjus* high, 1 *rajju* thick, and 1 *rajju* broad. All living beings are here, i.e. all men, animals, gods, and devils, and also immobile souls. But it is called *trasa-nāḍī* because the mobile (*trasa*) souls cannot live outside it.
c15.s1.10
At the lowermost point of the region of mobile souls (at TT₁) is the seventh or the lowermost hell. Its pain is so acute, and its horrors are so great, that our degenerated race of the fifth age of the *avasarpiṇī* era is not strong and capable enough to sin so as to deserve being sent to this blackest spot in the universe! Next above it is the sixth hell, and so on till we reach the mildest of them, the first. The names of the hells are:
c15.s1.11
7th. *Mahā-tamaḥ-prabhā*, very dark; 6th. *Tamaḥ-prabhā*, black; 5th. *Dhūma-prabhā*, smoke; 4th. *Paṅka-prabhā*, mire or mud; 3rd. *Vālukā-prabhā*, sand; 2nd. *Śarkarā-prabhā*, sugar; 1st. *Ratna-prabhā*, gem or jewel.
c15.s1.12
After the first hell,—we are still ascending the *trasa-nāḍī* from TT₁ towards HH₁,—we come to the Middle World (*Madhya-loka*), the region where we ourselves live. It is 100,040 *yojanas* high; 1 *yojana* being = nearly 4,000 miles.
c15.s1.13
Our earth is an immense circular body consisting of a number of concentric rings called islands (*dvīpas*), separated from each other by ring-shaped oceans. In the centre stands Mount Meru. Around this at its foot runs the first continent Jambū-dvīpa. This is surrounded by the Lavaṇa-samudra, or the Salt Sea. Then come the other continents, each followed by a sea-ring. The names of the first eight continents beginning from Jambū-dvīpa outwards are:
c15.s1.14
1. Jambū-dvīpa, the Jambu island;
c15.s1.15
2. Dhātaki-dvīpa, the Grislea Tomentosa island;
c15.s1.16
3. Pushkaravara-dvīpa, the “lotus” island;
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4. Vāruṇivara-dvīpa, the “water” island;
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5. Kshiravara-dvīpa, the “white milk” island;
c15.s1.19
6. Ghṛitavara-dvīpa, the “ghee (clarified butter)” island;
c15.s1.20
7. Ikshuvara-dvīpa, the “sugar-cane juice” island;
c15.s1.21
8. Nandīśvara-dvīpa, the Nandīśvara island.
c15.s1.22
This Middle World is 1 rajju broad and long (at MD), and is 100,040 yojanas high.
c15.s1.23
The sea between Dhātaki-dvīpa and Pushkaravara-dvīpa is the Kālodadhi. The Pushkaravara-dvīpa is divided by Mount Mānushottara, which is the ultimate limit of the region inhabited by human beings. Thus human beings live in two and a half continents: Jambū-dvīpa, Dhātaki-dvīpa, and half of Pushkaravara-dvīpa.
c15.s1.24
The name of the last sea is Svayambhū-ramaṇa.
c15.s1.25
Non-human beings (tiryag-ja) live in the whole of the Middle World; immobile souls (sthāvara) in the whole Universe. Aquatic souls are only in the first two seas (Lavaṇa and Kālodadhi) and in the last.
c15.s1.26
We are concerned mainly with Jambū-dvīpa. It has six mountains running through it east and west. These are, from south to north: (1) Himavān; (2) Mahā-himavān; (3) Nishadha; (4) Nila; (5) Rukmin; and (6) Śikharin. These divide it into seven zones.
c15.s1.27
From the south the names are: (1) Bhārata-kshetra; (2) Haimavata-kshetra; (3) Hari-kshetra; (4) Videha-kshetra; (5) Ramyaka-kshetra; (6) Hairanyavata-kshetra; (7) Airāvata-kshetra.
c15.s1.28
Bhārata-kshetra is the part to which we belong. Its form is something like this:
c15.s1.30
Bhārata-kshetra is divided by the Vijayārdha Mountain into a northern and a southern region (VV). The northern region is peopled by Mlecchas (barbarians). The southern region is divided into three sections by two great rivers—the Mahā-Sindhu in the west and the Mahā-Gaṅgā in the east. The barbarians again people the extreme eastern and western sections. We belong to the middle section called the Ārya-khaṇḍa (A₁A₂A₃A₄). It is bounded by the Great Ganges on the east, by the Vijayārdha Mountain on the north, by the Great Indus on the west, and by the Salt Sea on the south.
c15.s1.31
Bhārata-kshetra is 526 6/19 yojanas broad. The two rivers, the Great Indus and the Great Ganges, and the mountain Vijayārdha divide it into six sections as seen above.
c15.s1.32
Our whole world, with its Asia, Europe, America, Africa, Australia, etc., are included in Ārya-khaṇḍa.
c15.s1.33
Going upwards again in the trasa-nāḍī (HTT₁H₁ on p. 121) we get into the Upper World. This has two parts, called: (1) Kalpa; (2) Kalpātīta. The parts, etc., of Kalpa can be counted; those of Kalpātīta cannot.
c15.s1.34
The parts of Kalpa are the Sixteen Heavens respectively called (beginning from bottom to top): (1) Saudharma; (2) Aiśāna; (3) Sānatkumāra; (4) Māhendra; (5) Brāhma; (6) Brahmottara; (7) Lāntava (Lāntaka); (8) Kāpiṣṭha; (9) Śukra; (10) Mahāśukra; (11) Śatāra; (12) Sahasrāra; (13) Ānata; (14) Prāṇata; (15) Araṇa; and (16) Acyuta.
c15.s1.35
In the Kalpātīta portion we have the nine Graiveyakas and the five Pañca-anuttaras.
c15.s1.36
After all these, at the summit of the universe, is the Siddha-śilā. This is situated in the middle of the Īshat-prāgbhāra world, which is 1 rajju wide, 1 rajju long, and 8 yojanas high.
c15.s1.37
The Siddha-śilā is in the form of a brilliant canopy. It is round, 45 lakhs of yojanas in width and 8 yojanas in breadth, tapering up towards the top. Above this Siddha-śilā, at the end of the Tanu-vāta-valaya or the outermost atmosphere (III in the map on p. 120), the liberated souls rest in the blissful possession of their infinite quaternary (ss in the map).
Astronomy
c15.s2.1
The system of Jaina astronomy is characterized by the doctrine of two (different) suns, two moons, and two sets of constellations. The doctrine supposes that three appearances of a planet, or of sun or moon, are required in order to compass Mount Meru and return to the starting-point. Therefore the doctrine allots two suns to Jambū-dvīpa. This means that the second appearance of a sun, for instance, in the sky at a given spot is not that of the sun that appeared first; the two suns appear alternately, so that the third appearance is the return of the first sun.
c15.s2.2
The Jaina books and the Purāṇas of the Hindūs both hold that the sun, moon, etc., revolve round Mount Meru. The Paurāṇic opinion was that the revolution took twenty-four hours, and that it was night north of Mount Meru, when the sun was making its half-revolution round the south of Mount Meru and vice versa.
c15.s2.3
The Jainas, therefore, held that there are four directions, and the sun's orbit should be divided into four quarters, corresponding to the four directions; and it should bring day in succession to the countries in the south, west, north, and east. The sun must take equal time to traverse each quarter. Therefore, when it has left one quarter, say the eastern, and gone to the southern, it is night in the east and day in the south. When it goes to the western quarter, it is day in the west and night in the south: but in fact it is day in the east; therefore there must be another sun, which keeps opposite to this sun, on the opposite side of Mount Meru. The same argument applies to the two moons.