The origin of the Universe
Creation versus Manifestation
There are mainly three popular theories about how this universe came into existence.
1. The scientific theory of the Big Bang.
2. Creation - The Judo-Christian-Islamic concept of how God created the world.
3. Manifestation - The Hindu or ancient Vedantic theory of Brahm - the supreme conscious energy manifesting itself into Nature - the universe.
1. Big Bang
According to Science, no one designed or created the universe; it just happened with a ‘Big Bang’ and evolved over a long period of time, and is still expanding. Some updates and a few new scientific theories have also developed lately. Tons of material is available on this subject on the net, so I do not need to go into the details.
2. Western theory of Creation
According to the western religions, namely Judaism, Christianity, and Islam - the universe was designed and created by an all-powerful Almighty God. Since Christianity and Islam, both draw their main philosophy from Judaism - their concept of God and the universe comes from the Torah, the Holy Scripture of Judaism - adopted in the Christian Bible as the Old Testament.
According to them, God created the universe in six days, and on the seventh day, He rested.
Therefore, Christians all over the world believe that Sunday, the seventh day should be kept only for worship and rest. There was a time when most of the world was ruled by the Christians - the British and the Europeans. They officially made Sunday as the Holiday in their territories - which is still being followed in most parts of the world.
They believed that the earth was the center of the universe, and everything was created around it.
The sun, moon, and stars were created to divide the day from night and to provide light.
Bible - Genesis chapter 1 - The beginning of all things
"In the beginning, God created the sky and the earth.
The earth was empty and had no form. Darkness covered the ocean, and God's spirit was moving over the waters.
"Then God said, "Let there be light" and there was light. God saw that the light was good, so He divided the light from the darkness. God named the light day and the darkness the night. Evening passed and the morning came. This was the first day."
Then God said, " let there be something to divide the water in two. So God made the air and placed some of the water above the air and some below it. God named the air 'Sky'. Evening passed and morning came, This was the second day.
Then God said, " Let the water under the sky gathered together so the dry land will appear. And it happened. God named the dry land 'Earth and the water 'seas. God saw that this was good."
Then God said." let the earth produce plants.......... God saw that this was good. Everything passed, and morning came. This was the third day.
Then God said, "Let there be lights in the sky to separate the day from the night These lights will be used for signs, seasons, days, and years. They will be in the sky to give light to the earth. And it happened.
So God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser lights to rule the night: he made the stars also. (1-16)
God put all these in the sky to shine on the earth, to rule over the day and over the night. and to divide the light from the darkness: and God saw that it was good.
Evening passed and morning came, This was the fourth day.
And the evening and the morning were the fourth day. (1-19)"
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Interestingly, the earth was created on the first day - grass, plants, and the trees were created on the third day - and the sun, moon, and stars were formed on the fourth day.
(How was it calculated that it was the fourth day if there was no sun before that?)
Whales and all other sea creatures and all kinds of birds were created on the fifth day.
"On the Sixth Day, God said; Let the earth bring forth the living creatures, cattle, and creeping things and beast of the earth after his kind: and it was so.
And God saw that it was good.
And God said; Let us make man in our image, after our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle and all over the earth…
So God created man in his own image. And God saw everything that he had made, and, behold, it was good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.
Thus the heavens and the earth were finished and all the host of them. And on the seventh day, God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made. And God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it".
(Above excerpts taken from - Bible, Genesis chapter 1)
However, several questions arise in scientific and logical minds about this theory of Creation in seven days.
A scientific mind can not accept that the earth is the center of the universe, and everything was created around it - that the sun, moon, and stars were created to divide the day from night and to provide light.
Moreover, how was it calculated that it was the fourth day if there was no sun before the fourth day?
On the sixth day, man was created in God's image and to rule over everything on the earth.
"So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female he created them.
And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.
And God saw everything he had made, and behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.
(Genesis Chapter 1 - 27, 28, 31)
"By the seventh day, God finished the work he had been doing, so He rested from all his work. God blessed the seventh day and made it a holy day, because, on that day, He rested from all the work.
Conclusion:
According to this concept of Creation, God created the universe in six days.
In the beginning, God created heaven and the earth.
The third day he created Grass, all kinds of plants and trees - and
Sun moon and stars on the fourth day - and all kinds of sea creatures, birds, and beasts on the fifth day.
On the sixth day, he created man in his image to rule over the earth and everything on it.
God rested on the seventh day - blessed it and sanctified it (for worship).
3. Vedantic theory of Manifestation
According to the Hindu Vedantic theory, since, in the beginning, there was no material available to create from, everything came out of the Brahm - The Absolute Nothingness - The Supreme energy and Supreme Consciousness.
This is how the Mundak Upanishad explains it.
यथोर्णनाभिः सृजते गृह्णते च
यथा पृथिव्यामोषधयः संभवन्ति।
यथा सतः पुरुषात् केशलोमानि
तथाऽक्षरात् संभवतीह विश्वम् ॥
Yathorna Naabhih Srajte grahmyate cha
Yatha Prithvyaam Aushdhyah Sambhvanti
Yatha Satah Purushaat kesh lomaani
Tathaakshraat Sambhavteeh Vishvam
Mundakopanishad ||1 - 7||
“Just as a spider brings forth from within the material to build its web
Just as the plants and trees grow out of the ground,
And Just as the hair comes forth from a living person’s scalp
Thus the universe came into existence from the Imperishable”.
This is an excellent explanation.
However, there are a few significant points to be considered in this verse.
Many a time - in Sanskrit and Hindi poetry - the poet begins with an analogy - and then adds other parallels to explain his point.
There are three analogies used in this verse - one after the other, and sort of nullifying the previous ones.
Even though they might seem to be similar, they are quite different - and the author emphasizes the last one.
The analogy of Spider weaving its web
Spider has a selfish motive; to catch other insects in its web - whereas God has no such purpose in creating the universe.
Secondly - though the spider brings out the material from within itself to build the web - yet, the web is separate from the spider - nor it can grow on its own.
Whereas the universe is a manifestation of the Brahm. Not separate like the creator and creation - but a part of it and is ever-evolving and expanding.
The Sanskrit word for universe is Jagat - from Gati (movement) - meaning ever moving - changing and expanding.
So the Rishi (Sage) rejects this first analogy and moves on to the next.
The analogy of plants coming forth from the earth
Plants and trees are the living beings that spring forth from the ‘non-living’ earth, whereas the universe, with such precise design and order, could not have come from a ‘non-living and non-conscious field of energy.
So the author moves on to the next example.
Analogy of Hair
The hair grows out of a living and thinking-conscious scalp - Instinctively.
It is an integral part of the body, and it keeps on growing as well - Involuntarily.
latest
Satisfied with this third analogy, in the fourth line, the writer says:
Similarly, the universe came into existence from the Akshar - the Imperishable; Living and super-conscious source of energy - inherently.
Now, logically thinking, the current scientific theory is very much in agreement with this theory of the Mundakopanishad stated above.
According to both - the Mundakopanishad and the latest Science - the universe was not created - it just happened - just as hair appears in a living body and keeps on growing naturally - automatically.
The analogy of hair growing out of the scalp has another meaning also.
It does not grow to its full length instantaneously. It keeps on growing slowly over the period of time.
Similarly, according to science as well - the universe did not instantly begin as it is today. It expanded and developed for billions of years slowly - and it is still expanding and evolving along with life on the earth.
According to the ancient Vedantic philosophy, the universe is not a creation - it's a manifestation - expression of the Akshar Brahm.
‘Rajan Sachdeva’
Note: The Mundak Upanishad was written around 1000 BC.
Also, note that the word Brahm (Brahma) should not be confused with Brahmaa - one of the Hindu Trinity.
