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By Jayaram V
The Buddha was silent about the existence of
God. He said to have
denied any first cause or the Cause of the Causes as the
source of all creation. Creation, according to early Buddhism, is an ongoing
and ever continuous process, which is without a beginning and without an end.
All the things that exist in all the worlds are
subject to infinite changes. They are becoming continuously, becoming from
something into another thing. They pass from state of existence into another,
go from one set of conditions to another. This process is continuous and
natural to the beings who are subject to change and impermanence. It goes on
till a being is full liberated through attainment of Niravana. Becoming is
thus the inexorable law and the fundamental Truth of our existence.
The Buddha denied the existence of God. But he
confirmed the existence of other worlds, of heavens and hells populated by
celestial beings, some of whom even bore the name of Hindu gods. In the early
Buddhist literature, the Buddha himself was described as having gone to the
heavens and meeting with the gods. The scriptures also quoted instances of
gods descending down to the earth to witness some momentous events in the
life of the Buddha.
Prominent among the Buddhist gods are Sakka and
Brahma. Sakka is like the Indra of the Buddhist pantheon. He is the ruler of
gods and stays in the world of desires. Brahma is the overlord of the highest
heavens, the Brahma lokas. He is is mentioned frequently in the Buddhist
scriptures. In Buddhism he becomes a follower of the Buddha, as if he has
become converted to Buddhism by the Buddha himself.
The gods are not immortal, though they may live
longer than the earthly beings. They also are subject to decay and change,
and the process of becoming. The intensity and the manner in which these
processes take place however may be different and involve longer periods of
time. But like any other beings, they are with a beginning and an end.
They are inferior in status to the Arhats who
have attained Nirvana. The gods were also from the lower worlds originally,
but slowly and gradually graduated themselves into higher worlds by virtue of
their past deeds and cultivation of virtuous qualities. Since there are many
heavens and higher worlds of Brahma, these gods may evolve progressively from
one heaven to another through their merit or descend into lower worlds due to
some misfortune or right intention.
The gods of Buddhism are therefore not
immortal. Neither their position in the heavens is permanent. They may
however live for longer durations of time. One of the Buddhist Sutras states
that a hundred years of our existence is equal to one day and one night in
the world of the thirty three gods. Thirty such days add up to their one
month. Twelve such months become their one year, while they live for a
thousand such years. If we translate this into our time frame, each Buddhist
should live for a minimum of thirty six million years.
The Buddhist worlds are of two types: rupa
lokas (world of forms) and arupa lokas (world of the formless). These worlds
exist in two different planes. The plane immediately above ours hosts the
Worlds of Desires (Kama Lokas) and the one above that, the Worlds of Brahma
(Brahma Lokas).
The Worlds of Desires(Kama Lokas):
The worlds of desire are six in number. They
all are rupa lokas, which means the worlds of forms. Shapes, sizes, forms,
movements populate and define these worlds. These heavens are attained by the
merit of good deeds. These worlds are described below:
The first world: At the lowest of the
hierarchy are the five worlds of men, demons, ghosts, animals and purgatory.
The second world: This is the world of
The Four Great Guardians who rule the four quarters.
The third world: This is the Tavatimsa
Heaven where reside the thirty three gods. Sakka is their chief. In nature
and status he is equivalent to the Indra of Hindu pantheon.
The fourth world: Known as the Tusita
heaven, here the Bodhisattvas await their rebirth on earth as the future
Buddhas. Gautama Buddha resided here before he was born on earth. Presently
Maitreya Buddha is said to be residing here here, awaiting his next birth on
earth.
The fifth world: This is the abode of
the Nimmanarati Gods
The sixth world: This is the Highest
world in the plane of Desires, where reside the Paranimitta Gods
Brahma Lokas (Brahma Worlds)
In the worlds of Brahma there are both the
worlds of forms and the worlds of the formless. The Brahma worlds are
organized in the following manner:
I. The sixteen rupa lokas stand at the lowest
level in this plane. They are free from kama vasanas. But beings of this
world are still conditioned by form and have to deal with forms. These
heavens are attained by the practice of the Four Noble Truths.
II. The four highest heavens, stand above the
rest of the planes and worlds. They are free from sensuous desires, and
devoid of all forms. These worlds are attained by the practices of the Four
Formless Truths.
Thus early Buddhism recognized 26 worlds of
existence. It must be remembered that existence in these worlds was not
considered as a great attainment by the early Buddhist monks. For them
Nirvana was the the highest and the ultimate goal to strive for and achieve.
Further recommended reading
The Buddhist Universe: The Buddhist universe consists of thirty-one planes of existence (see chart below). Every being lives on one or another of these planes. After death all beings, except the arahants, will be reborn in a realm and under circumstances that accords with their kamma — their volitional actions of body, speech, and mind made in that existence or in any previous one.
More...
The thirty-one planes of
existence: The suttas describe thirty-one distinct
"planes" or "realms" of existence into which
beings can be reborn during this long wandering through samsara. These
range from the extraordinarily dark, grim, and painful hell realms all
the way up to the most sublime, refined, and exquisitely blissful
heaven realms. Existence in every realm is impermanent; in Buddhist
cosmology there is no eternal heaven or hell. More...
Heaven - Sagga: In
Buddhist cosmology, the heaven realms are blissful abodes whose
present inhabitants (the devas) gained rebirth there through the power
of their past meritorious actions. Like all beings still caught in
samsara, however, these deities eventually succumb to aging, illness,
and death, and must eventually take rebirth in other realms —
pleasant or otherwise — according to the quality and strength of
their past kamma. More...
The Round of Rebirth - samsara:
"Long have you (repeatedly) experienced the death of a father...
the death of a brother... the death of a sister... the death of a
son... the death of a daughter... loss with regard to relatives...
loss with regard to wealth... loss with regard to disease. The tears
you have shed over loss with regard to disease while transmigrating
& wandering this long, long time — crying & weeping from
being joined with what is displeasing, being separated from what is
pleasing — are greater than the water in the four great oceans.
"Why is that? More...
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