When we study the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, we are faced with a description of the universe that sounds challenging, to say the least. In the description of Śukadeva Gosvami, the universe is divided into 14 planetary systems, and we live in the 7th one from top to bottom: Bhū-loka.

Our planetary system is then described as being composed of a structure of cosmic islands called Bhū-mandala that don’t fit anything we can see when we look to the sky.

Taking the description literally, our planetary system is supposed to look something like this:

This, however, is not what we see when we look to the sky. How to understand that?

In his purports, Prabhupāda concludes that Bhū-mandala is not formed by solid islands but is in reality formed by different planets, compared with islands floating in space. The islands that compose Bhū-mandala thus describe the general positions or orbits of these planets. They are not exactly solid blocks of land.

Another point is that the model is multidimensional. For example, it is described that below the orbit of Rāhu, there are planetary abodes of the Siddhas, Cāraṇas, and Vidyādharas, the lower demigods. These planets are very close to us in the Vedic model, less than 10,000 yojanas (80,000 miles) above, but they are invisible to us. Between these abodes and our planet are the subtle realms of the Yakṣas, Rākṣasas, Piśācas, and evil spirits, which start in the upper atmosphere. However, we can’t see any of these abodes. For us, these regions are composed of just rarefied air. This indicates that their bodies and their abodes are composed of some sort of subtle matter that we can’t interact with in our current bodies. The same appears to apply to the rest of Bhū-mandala, as well as the abodes of the demigods. These are all higher-dimensional abodes we don’t have direct access to.

Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura provided many details about the Vedic model of the universe in his Siddhānta-śiromaṇi, his early work on Vedic astronomy. In his purport to CC Madhya 20.218, Prabhupāda quotes two verses that provide details on the islands that form Bhū-mandala and the varṣas that compose Jambūdvīpa:

“The seven islands are mentioned in the Siddhānta-śiromaṇi:

bhūmer ardhaṁ kṣāra-sindhor udak-sthaṁ
 jambu-dvīpaṁ prāhur ācārya-varyāḥ
ardhe ’nyasmin dvīpa-ṣaṭkasya yāmye
 kṣāra-kṣīrādy-ambudhīnāṁ niveśaḥ

śākaṁ tataḥ śālmalam atra kauśaṁ
 krauñcaṁ ca gomedaka-puṣkare ca
dvayor dvayor antaram ekam ekaṁ
 samudrayor dvīpam udāharanti

The seven islands (dvīpas) are known as (1) Jambu, (2) Śāka, (3) Śālmalī, (4) Kuśa, (5) Krauñca, (6) Gomeda, or Plakṣa, and (7) Puṣkara. The planets are called dvīpas. Outer space is like an ocean of air. Just as there are islands in the watery ocean, these planets in the ocean of space are called dvīpas, or islands in outer space. There are nine khaṇḍas, known as (1) Bhārata, (2) Kinnara, (3) Hari, (4) Kuru, (5) Hiraṇmaya, (6) Ramyaka, (7) Ilāvṛta, (8) Bhadrāśva and (9) Ketumāla. These are different parts of Jambūdvīpa. A valley between two mountains is called a khaṇḍa or varṣa.”

He continued this description later, on his purport to CC Antya 2.10:

“In the Siddhānta-śiromaṇi, chapter one (Golādhyāya), in the Bhuvana-kośa section, the nine khaṇḍas are mentioned as follows:

aindraṁ kaśeru sakalaṁ kila tāmraparṇam
 anyad gabhastimad ataś ca kumārikākhyam
nāgaṁ ca saumyam iha vāruṇam antya-khaṇḍaṁ
 gāndharva-saṁjñam iti bhārata-varṣa-madhye

“Within Bhārata-varṣa, there are nine khaṇḍas. They are known as (1) Aindra, (2) Kaśeru, (3) Tāmraparṇa, (4) Gabhastimat, (5) Kumārikā, (6) Nāga, (7) Saumya, (8) Vāruṇa and (9) Gāndharva.”

In this way, Bhū-mandala, the intermediate planetary system, is composed of seven dvīpas: (1) Jambu, (2) Śāka, (3) Śālmalī, (4) Kuśa, (5) Krauñca, (6) Plakṣa, and (7) Puṣkara. Based on the description of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (with the dvipas being separated in distinct tracts of land with particular features), each of these dvīpas appears to be a collective of numerous planets. We live in the central island, Jambūdvīpa, which is also subdivided into smaller tracts of land: (1) Bhārata-varṣa, (2) Kinnara-varṣa (Kimpuruṣa), (3) Hari-varṣa, (4) Kuru-varṣa (Uttarakuru), (5) Hiraṇmaya-varṣa, (6) Ramyaka-varṣa, (7) Ilāvṛta-varṣa, (8) Bhadrāśva-varṣa and (9) Ketumāla-varṣa. Each of these divisions also appears to be formed by several planets, so we can’t say how many planets in total form Bhū-mandala.

Our planet is part of Bhārata-varṣa, which is, in turn, subdivided into nine smaller tracts of land: (1) Aindra, (2) Kaśeru, (3) Tāmraparṇa, (4) Gabhastimat, (5) Kumārikā, (6) Nāga, (7) Saumya, (8) Vāruṇa, and (9) Gāndharva.

This explains the differences in size between our planet and the description of Bhārata-varṣa. The equatorial circumference of our planet is about 24,901 miles (3,113 yojanas), while Bhārata-varṣa is described as being 9,000 yojanas north to south 80,000 yojanas east to west. If we consider our planet as just one of the nine divisions of Bhārata-varṣa, the description makes perfect sense.

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Over the centuries, many theories were created to try to classify human beings into different species, resulting in different types of racist theories. The whole issue of slavery was based on the idea that some human beings were inherently inferior to others and thus could be enslaved and exploited. Even in the United States, people of dark skin continued to be openly discriminated against and segregated up to the 1960s, with vestiges of discrimination persisting up to today. In India, discrimination during the medieval period was based on caste. Brahmans were considered inherently different from other social classes, with many believing that the only way to progress to the state of a brahmana was to take another birth and thus receive a “brahmana body.”

What do the Vedas have to say about it? Do the Vedas support the idea of human beings being divided into different species with some being higher than others? What about genetics? Do the Vedas support the modern theory of monogenesis, where it’s believed that all modern human beings come from a common ancestor and share the same DNA? The Vedas describe a race of evolved human beings called “Arians,” who were believed to be stronger, more intelligent, and more culturally refined than others. Would the Vedic Arians be different from other human beings at a genetic level? If not, how could the differences be explained?

The main point is that scriptures classify species according to the level of consciousness, not according to DNA. This makes the classification radically different from modern scientific theory, which classifies species according to their capacity to generate viable offspring. In the classification of the Vedas, a dog from another planet would still be counted as a dog (since the consciousness is similar) even though their bodily structure may be very different. According to the modern definition, there are 12,000 species of ants, but according to the Vedas, the number would be much smaller since they are still ants and have an ant consciousness, even though their bodies may be different and they may not be able to mate. According to the Vedic description, the forms of different beings may change and diversify over time due to adaptation to the environment, but they will still be counted as the same species.

The Vedas explain that, counting species of the whole universe, there are a total of 8,400,000 different species of living entities, including a whopping 400,000 species of human beings! However, many of these species are different from what we would call a “human being” and are present on the different planets of the universe. When the Vedas describe 400,000 species of “human beings,” they talk about different species of intelligent beings and not exactly the same anatomic characteristics as people from our planet. The Kinaras, for example, mix human and animal characteristics; the Nagas are intelligent snakes that live on the lower planets, while the Kimpurushas mix characteristics of humans and monkeys (like Hanuman and the other monkeys who assisted Lord Rama). The classification of “human being” also includes different types of demigods and so on.

These different species are described in the second canto of Śrīmad Bhagavatam:

“O King, know from me that all living entities are created by the Supreme Lord according to their past deeds. This includes Brahmā and his sons like Dakṣa, the periodical heads like Vaivasvata Manu, the demigods like Indra, Candra and Varuṇa, the great sages like Bhṛgu, Vyāsa and Vasiṣṭha, the inhabitants of Pitṛloka and Siddhaloka, the Cāraṇas, Gandharvas, Vidyādharas, Asuras, Yakṣas, Kinnaras and angels, the serpentines, the monkey-shaped Kimpuruṣas, the human beings, the inhabitants of Mātṛloka, the demons, Piśācas, ghosts, spirits, lunatics and evil spirits, the good and evil stars, the goblins, the animals in the forest, the birds, the household animals, the reptiles, the mountains, the moving and standing living entities, the living entities born from embryos, from eggs, from perspiration and from seeds, and all others, whether they be in the water, land or sky, in happiness, in distress or in mixed happiness and distress. All of them, according to their past deeds, are created by the Supreme Lord.” (SB 2.10.37-40)

What about human beings on our planet? Do the Vedas describe different races of people, like Africans, Europeans, Asians, etc., as different species of people?

To the frustration of the ones who are expecting to use the Vedas to sustain their racist theories, the answer is no. The Vedas describe different species of human beings according to the cultural level, going all the way from aboriginal humans all the way up to the Arians, the followers of Vedic culture, who were considered the most evolved. According to this definition, people in our age are all considered Mlecchas, the lowest kind of human beings, since in our age there are no true followers of the Vedic culture.

The difference, however, is not based on genetics but on the level of consciousness. There is also the idea of progression by initiation and other forms of purification. A Śūdra, or even a Mleccha who is properly initiated and receives the proper training, can thus progress to the stage of a Brahmana without having to change his body.

In lower forms of life, there is no possibility of such migration between species. No process can transform a dog into a horse or anything else, but in the case of human beings, the presence of evolved intelligence makes it possible. A human being can thus migrate to a higher level of consciousness if properly educated. Without education, however, people are all considered aborigines, regardless of the color of their skin.

This doesn’t just open the possibility of one progressing in this same lifetime but also giving birth to enlightened children of a similar disposition. The scriptures mention that during conception, the body of a child is not formed just from the DNA of the parents, but from their consciousness. A man and a woman from lower birth who have thus progressed to the Brahmana level due to initiation, education, and spiritual practice can generate a child who will have the same brahminical propensities since the beginning.

How can we then explain the physical differences between different groups of human beings? Why do people from Africa have black skin, while Europeans generally have white skin, for example?

These differences are just based on descendency. People share physical characteristics with their ancestors, and thus the son of a black man will be also black, and so on. This, however, doesn’t mean one is higher or lower than the child of a white man. Europeans and Caucasians are believed to be descendants of the Ksatriyas who fled Paraśurāma thousands of years ago. Because they lived geographically distant from other human groups, they were marrying among themselves for thousands of years, and thus they preserved some of the physical characteristics of these ancient Indian Ksatriyas, such as white skin. The Ksatriyas who stayed in India, on the other hand, mixed with people from other groups over time, and thus most people living now in India have darker skin. These physical characteristics don’t make them higher or lower, since the Vedic definition is based on the level of consciousness and not on the color of the skin.

The Vedas describe the history of human beings as a devolutionary process, where the perfect human beings from Satya-yuga gradually degrade into different groups of uncivilized human beings throughout the four eras. We like to see ourselves as civilized and enlightened people, but according to the Vedic concept, the meat-eating, intoxication, gambling, and low moral principles present in most modern societies put us among the uncivilized human beings.

There are different groups and species (according to the Vedic definition) of human beings living on our planet at different times (some of them genetically different from modern human beings), but the Vedas don’t emphasize these distinctions, focusing instead on offering transcendental knowledge that can help all classes of people to progress.

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Some take the description of Bhū-Mandala in the 5th canto of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam as meaning that the earth is flat, but it is a little more complicated than this.

The first point is that nowhere in the sastras is it directly stated that the earth, as the planet where we walk, is flat. This idea is interpretative, and it actually contradicts a number of direct passages. In the Surya-siddhanta (1.59), for example, which was commented on by Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Thākura, it is mentioned:

yojanāni śatānyastau bhukarmo dviguṇānitu
tadvargato daśaguṇāt padam bhūparidhirbhavet

“The earth’s diameter (bhukarna) is 1600 (2 x 800) yojanas. The square root of 10 times the square of earth’s diameter is earth’s circumference.”

There is no single fixed length for a yojana; different sources define it differently. In the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, Prabhupāda takes the measure of the yojana as eight miles, which is consistent with the descriptions of the Puranas. It appears, however, that the Surya-siddhanta uses a different measure for the yojana, of about five miles. We can see that in this particular verse, the diameter of the earth is given as 1600 yojanas. If we take the yojana as five miles, we have 8000 miles, which is extremely close to the 7,918 miles for the average diameter of the earth in modern calculations. Similarly, the distances and circumference of the planets in the Surya-siddhanta closely match modern estimates when the yojana is taken as five miles. If we take it as slightly less, then the agreement becomes even closer. Similarly, the formula given for calculating the earth’s circumference (the square root of 10 times the square of the earth’s diameter) is very close to modern estimates.

The measure of the earth’s diameter and circumference clearly indicates the earth we live on as a globe, which is consistently confirmed in other passages of the Surya-siddhanta and of the Puranas.

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 5.21.9, for example, mentions:

yatrodeti tasya ha samāna-sūtra-nipāte nimlocati yatra kvacana syandenābhitapati tasya haiṣa samāna-sūtra-nipāte prasvāpayati tatra gataṁ na paśyanti ye taṁ samanupaśyeran

“People living in countries at points diametrically opposite to where the sun is first seen rising will see the sun setting, and if a straight line were drawn from a point where the sun is at midday, the people in countries at the opposite end of the line would be experiencing midnight. Similarly, if people residing where the sun is setting were to go to countries diametrically opposite, they would not see the sun in the same condition.”

This describes our practical experience on earth. When it is midday in Japan, it is midnight in Brazil, which is located on the diametrically opposite side of the globe. If the earth were flat, the sun would circle overhead, just as it does at the north pole.

We can also see that Prabhupāda consistently identifies the earth as a globe in his translations and commentaries of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. He even instructed his disciples to depict Varāhadeva lifting a spherical earth from the ocean to illustrate the third canto, where the pastime is described.

At the same time, however, there is the description of an extended earth, formed by the collective of all the planets that form the intermediate planetary system, called Bhū-Mandala. This is a gigantic flat structure of which the planet earth is part.

How can these two descriptions be reconciled? It is just like in modern cosmology, where the earth, as a planet, is spherical, but it is part of a flat structure: the solar system, which in turn is part of an also relatively flat structure: the milky way. Similarly, although the earth is spherical, continents and islands are not. Therefore, one’s concept of living in a flat or spherical structure, as well as any description created by him, can vary according to which level he is speaking about. One can say that he lives on a flat island, that is part of a spherical planet, that is part of a flat solar system, and the three statements will be simultaneously true. Such apparent contradictions are also found in the Vedic literature, where our cosmic abode is described as spherical or flat according to the context. The earth itself is described as Bhū-gola, which can be translated as “the earthly globe”, but it’s also stated that our planet is part of a greater structure called Jambūdvīpa, which in turn is part of an even greater structure called Bhū-Mandala.

Such structures cannot be observed from our gross dimension; therefore, when we look into the sky, we see only the vastness and darkness of space, but according to the scriptures, higher beings can see such subtle structures, and thus their view of reality is very different from ours. Their view of the universe is conveyed in books like the Śrīmad-Bhagavatam, and thus, such books of knowledge describe a reality that does not directly correspond to what we can observe using our human senses.

Another interesting point to be observed is how the view of the universe of different people from antiquity was similar. The Vedas explain that before the beginning of Kali-yuga, different peoples of antiquity were part of a global Vedic culture, and thus had access to the same knowledge. This explains how different groups had similar views of the universe, from the Chinese to the American Indians, including practically everyone in between. The Vedas explain that all these ancient civilizations were once connected with the Vedic culture. They thus had access to the same knowledge about the structure of Bhu-Mandala.

With the passage of time, however, the advanced concepts were forgotten, and these different civilizations became stuck with a flat earth concept, imagining our universe as some kind of flat island with the abode of the gods above, demons living below in subterranean abodes, and some kind of great mountain in the middle. We can see that over time this happened even in India, with the higher meanings of the model being forgotten over the centuries, until revived by the work of Śrīla Prabhupāda in his books.

Back to Bhū-mandala, there is a part of the structure that is indeed flat: the top of Mount Sumeru. However, the inhabitants of this place perceive the orbit of the sun very differently from the other inhabitants of Bhū-mandala, who, just like us, see the sun rising and setting every day. This is described in SB 5.21.8:

tatratyānāṁ divasa-madhyaṅgata eva sadādityas tapati savyenācalaṁ dakṣiṇena karoti

“The living entities residing on Sumeru Mountain are always very warm, as at midday, because for them the sun is always overhead. Although the sun moves counterclockwise, facing the constellations, with Sumeru Mountain on its left, it also moves clockwise and appears to have the mountain on its right because it is influenced by the dakṣiṇāvarta wind.”

Different from us, the demigods living on top of the Sumeru Mountain always see the sun circling overhead and feel its warmth. For them, there is no night, just as expected from a flat structure. If the earth were flat, it would be the same for us. Similarly, the sun rises and sets in all the other inhabited parts of Bhū-mandala, showing that the whole structure is composed of many spherical planets that are somehow connected, just as concluded by Prabhupāda in his famous letter to Svarupa Damodhara from 1976.

There are thus two cosmological models described in the Vedas: the cosmos of our practical experience, centered around our small planet, and the higher-dimensional universe experienced by demigods and other higher beings, which is centered around Bhū-Mandala, the extended earth, of which our planet is part.

Bhū-Mandala is composed of seven concentric islands, separated by concentric oceans. We just studied the central island, Jambūdvīpa, and there are six other islands around it. Each of the seven islands is somehow formed by several different planets. Earth, or Bharata-varṣa, comprises the southern part of Jambūdvīpa, separated from the rest by the higher-dimensional Himalayas. Some interpret our planet as not even the whole Bharata-varṣa, but just part of it, since the dimensions given for Bharata-varṣa are much greater than our planet.

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From the books of Śrīla Prabhupāda, we hear that the Vedas are the source of all knowledge. Thus, it is not a surprise that many of us will have a desire to study different books from the Vedas in search of knowledge, including the different Purāṇas, Upaniṣads, and so on. We then get in contact with the many translations of such works done by different scholars, both from India and the West. Some of these publications even contain commentaries of our Vaiṣnava ācāryas, such as Madhva and Ramanuja, which reassures us.

There is, however, a catch.

Sanskrit verses, especially verses from the Puranas and Upaniṣads, are highly metaphorical and difficult to translate. Unless one understands the meaning and conclusion of the text, just being a Sanskrit scholar is not sufficient to provide a bona fide translation.

Madhvācārya emphasizes this point in his commentary on the Mundaka Upanisad, explaining the difference between aparā-vidyā and parā-vidyā.

The word aparā literally means “lower” or “inferior”. In his commentary, Śrila Madhvācārya explains that passages in the Vedas are considered inferior, or aparā, when they do not designate Viṣnu but are employed in a ritualistic sense. However, they become parā-vidyā when they directly express Lord Viṣnu and service to Him. The same verses have thus at least two entirely different meanings, and we can capture one or the other according to our consciousness and qualifications. Apart from these two, there are unlimited speculations we can fall into.

The whole Vedic literature exists with the sole purpose of glorifying the Lord and bringing us to the platform of devotional service to Him, as Kṛṣṇa Himself explains in the Bhagavad-gītā: “By all the Vedas, I am to be known.” When we miss this purpose and instead focus on material knowledge included in the Vedas, using it to improve our position in this material world, be it by performing fruitive activities or simply accumulating knowledge about mundane topics, we deal with inferior knowledge. Thus, the distinction between aparā-vidyā and parā-vidyā is also related to the mentality and understanding of the student.

Madhvācārya also explains that in Satya-Yuga, the Vedas were one. This single and undivided Veda revealed a single ultimate truth: Lord Viṣnu as the Supreme Lord, without a second. During this era, all names we now associate with demigods (Indra, Brahmā, Rudra, etc.) applied solely to Viṣnu, who was understood as the only deity. This higher understanding of the meaning of the Vedas is revealed by Vyāsadeva in the Vedanta-sūtras (1.4.28) by the words: etena sarve vyākhyātā vyākhyātāḥ, “The Supreme Lord is the original cause of everything. All words of the scriptures should be interpreted according to this explanation.”

The division between parā-vidyā and aparā-vidyā started in Treta-yuga, when intelligence declined, and people manifested the desire for fruitive activities. The Vedas were then divided into three: Ṛg, Yajur, and Sāma, and people began to worship through these divisions by performing Vedic ceremonies. The Pañcarātra system of worship was also introduced. Due to the decline in spiritual focus, the worship of demigods was introduced, and thus the division of superior and inferior knowledge inside the Vedas became manifested due to people not being able to understand the deeper meaning of the verses.

In the Mundaka Upanisad, 1.1.3, Saunaka asked Aṅgirasa: “Knowing what does all become known?” In other words, he asks about one science, one subject, by knowing which everything becomes known. From understanding this one science, all other sciences can be deduced. Madhvācārya defines this science as Akṣara-Vidyā, the unifying knowledge that is the essence of all understanding. This knowledge is the understanding of Kṛṣṇa, His energy, and our eternal relationship with Him. When the syllables of the Vedas are studied with this understanding, the real meaning is revealed. Otherwise, one receives only the superficial meaning.

In other words, the real meaning of the scriptures, parā-vidyā, is the linking process of devotional service that connects us with Kṛṣṇa. When one studies the scriptures starting from the conclusion that all verses describe Kṛṣṇa and our relationship with Him, armed with the proper philosophical conclusions received through the Paramparā, one can understand the deep meaning of the verses, parā-vidyā. Otherwise, one gets just the superficial meaning and has the impression that the verses describe other subjects apart from Kṛṣṇa, aparā-vidyā. This illustrates the importance of the work of Śrīla Prabhupāda in his books, condensing the teachings of the previous ācāryas in his purports and giving us the conclusions by which we can understand the scriptures.

Before Śrila Bhaktivinoda Thākura, our ācāryas did not give translations of the Sanskrit verses in their commentaries. They would just include the original verse, followed by a (usually) short commentary, often also in Sanskrit. Therefore, even when we read a translation of a commentary from Madhvācārya or Ramanujacarya, the English translation of the verse still comes from the scholar who is doing the translation, and thus doesn’t necessarily transmit the ideas of the text.

Just to give you a small example, let’s take verse 1.1.8 from the Mundaka Upanisad:

tapasā cīyate brahma tato ’nnam abhijāyate
annāt prāṇo manaḥ satyaṁ lokāḥ karmasu cāmṛtam

Madhvācārya, Ranga Ramanuja, and Sankaracarya all agree in their commentaries that this verse describes the process of creation of the universe (Mahā-Viṣnu impregnating Prakrit with the souls, generating the mahat-tattva, the universes, Brahma, and then the planets and living beings). When we study the verse, each word indicates a stage in this creation. Tapasā cīyate indicates the creative potency of the Lord, annam means the mahat-tattva, prana the hiranyagarba, satyaṁ the physical elements, and so on.

However, although this is clearly indicated in the commentaries, most scholars will still translate the verse according to the literal meaning of the words, arriving at really interesting depictions.

One example: “By tapas Brahman increases in size and from it food is produced; from food the prana, the mind, the Bhutas the worlds, karma and with it, its fruits.”

Another: “The Brahman united with Tapas (the root of Matter and Thought), and thence arose the Matter, from the Matter arose the Breath, the Manas, and the True, as well as the worlds (and karmas) and in the Karmas the immortality itself.”

A third one: “Through heat brahman is built up; thereby food is produced. From food comes breath, mind, truth, and worlds, and immortality in rites.”

In his translations, Prabhupāda teaches us how to avoid such crude translations. Instead of focusing on the literal meaning of the words, he teaches us to go for the deep meaning of the verses, and especially to focus on the conclusions, focusing on clarity. We can see that often Prabhupāda gives a long translation to a short verse, because he tries to transmit all the ideas in an understandable way, instead of giving a literal translation that would barely make sense. The system Prabhupāda gives in his works, with the original Sanskrit verses, word for word, and then the translation, is thus a course on how to translate the scriptures.

When we apply these concepts to the verse from the Mundaka Upanisad, we would arrive at something quite different from the literal meaning, but that would much better transmit the ideas of the text:

“Brahman, desiring to create, manifested the material creation. First, pradhāna, the sun total of material energy was manifested, which is seen by the souls as an object of their enjoyment (anna). Agitated by the time energy of the Lord and inseminated by the innumerable souls, pradhāna produced the Hiranyagarbha, the golden egg which is the collective, cosmic entity holding Brahman’s power of creation. From this Hiranyagarbha, innumerable material universes were produced, and in each of them, the Lord manifested as the universal form, the subtle cosmic manifestation of the universe. From the Lord, Brahma appeared, creating the planetary systems and the bodies of the different living beings. Inside this material manifestation, these living beings perform material actions and receive the results, but by the development of Kṛṣṇa consciousness, one can finally become free.”

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Most of us have quite challenging lives in terms of the demands of work, family, and so on. In the past, middle-class people used to be able to sustain their families with just an 8/5 job. They would go out in the morning, return in the afternoon, and be free on weekends. The wives would generally not have to work and thus would have time to care for the children and the house. One could maintain a family and still have time to collect his thoughts.

Nowadays, however, things are much harder. Most well-paid jobs are quite demanding, and often both the husband and wife must work to maintain a family. This leads to a very chaotic situation, where they have to run around continuously trying to somehow balance the demands of work, caring for the children, maintaining their relationship, practicing spiritual life, maintaining their health, and so on. Due to pressure, usually one or more of these factors end up being neglected, often with disastrous results.

This is a cycle that is very difficult to avoid since modern life creates insurmountable demands, which force us to work like hamsters on the wheel just to maintain the status quo. Modern life makes us unhappy due to an artificial lifestyle, and then offers the solution in the form of more products and services. To obtain these things, however, we need more money, which in turn forces us to work more, making us even more miserable, which in turn forces us to find quick fixes in the form of more products and services.

Śrīla Prabhupāda was able to masterfully identify this propensity more than 50 years ago when society was still much earlier in this cycle. He also proposed a solution, which, although radical at first glance, is still the only one that solves the underlying problem: Simple Living, High Thinking.

When we hear this sentence, we immediately think that we need to leave civilization and start doing some subsistence farming, but this is actually a broader idea that can be applied on many levels. It’s a general idea that we can all apply to our lives in different forms and to different degrees.

The general concept is that by reducing our material needs, we can simplify our lives and thus have more time for what is really important. Using fewer products and services means having to work less, which equals more time that can be used to solve our real problems in life.

When we buy ready-to-eat food instead of raw ingredients like grains and vegetables, for example, we think we are saving time, but we forget that time equals money since working essentially means trading time for money. When we understand that, we may make the decision to start cooking at home, which takes time, but in return reduces our expenditures, which saves time. We may think that it’s a zero-sum game, in which we just save on one side and expend on the other, but it actually brings some important benefits. First of all, cooking at home is an activity that can be easily connected with Kṛṣṇa, different from most of what we do at work. It’s also time we can spend with our families, instead of doing extra hours in the office, and finally, it is better for both our physical and spiritual health, bringing additional benefits.

Organizing our homes in a way that the space is better utilized may take a lot of time and effort, but if we do that, we may be able to comfortably live in a smaller house or apartment, which will result in huge savings. Again, we can see that the time spent helps us to save time on the other end, reducing the time we have to spend at the office and increasing the time we spend with our families and with other devotees.

Breaking bad habits can also save a lot of money. Someone who has the habit of drinking a few bottles of Sprite or eating chocolate every day, for example, may end up spending a considerable amount of money on a habit that doesn’t improve anything in his or her life. If we can work less and have more balanced lives, maybe we will be able to stop with these pick-me-ups, which will, in turn, not only save money but also improve our health.

Similarly, learning to be more minimalist, buying less, and reusing may take time to learn, but again, it results in less expenditure, which in turn results in more time and a better quality of living.

Each of these steps helps us to gradually break the chains and regain control of our lives. Consumerist society is a prison without walls, where people remain bound by choices that are imposed on them by marketing and other forces. When we start simplifying our lives, we gradually break these chains and gradually free ourselves from this vicious cycle.

As we can see, simple living is a little more than just going to live on the farm.

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We may think that our universe is very vast and comprises everything that exists, but in fact, there are many universes floating on the causal ocean. They are called brahmāṇḍas (cosmic eggs). Just as in a coconut, half of the space inside each universe is filled with water. This is, however, not regular water we can detect with our telescopes, but subtle water, over which Lord Garbhodakaśāyī Viṣnu lies on the bed of Śeṣa-nāga. The other half is empty; that’s the space where the cosmic manifestation happens.

This is, however, a tiny portion of the whole universe. The central space occupied by the creation of Brahmā is just the central part of the universe. This core is covered by seven layers of primordial elements.

The first layer, composed of elemental earth, is ten times the diameter of the universe itself. The second layer, composed of elemental water, has ten times the diameter of the earth layer, and so on. After passing the first five coverings, composed of the five elements, one reaches the 6th covering, composed of mahat-tattva, the total material energy. After passing it, there is still the layer composed of false ego, the first and the subtlest of all material elements.

With each of the seven layers being exponentially greater than the previous, the total size of the universe is practically incalculable.

However, from the perspective of Mahā-Viṣnu, the universes are very small. From His perspective, all the universes clustered together appear like atoms in a huge combination that are constantly created and destroyed, following His cycles of inhalation and exhalation. Thus, not only do we live for an insignificant amount of time, but we are also incredibly small on the universal scale.

There are not many details about the coverings of the universe in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. They are just briefly mentioned in a few passages. However, we can find a first-hand account in the Bṛhad-bhāgavatāmṛta, where Gopa-kumāra travels through the coverings and describes what he experienced there. This brings us a better understanding of these elemental coverings.

“The first covering I entered was that of earth. There I saw the Supreme Lord in the form of a great boar being worshiped by the goddess Earth, the deity presiding over that covering and its wealth. She worshiped Him with riches not to be obtained within the universe itself, while all the opulences of the universe whirled within every pore of His body. Within the goddess Earth, who embodies the subtle causes of creation, I saw the creation itself, with all its ingredients.
After she finished worshiping the Lord, the goddess honored me as her guest and begged me to remain there to enjoy for a few days. Taking her leave, I quickly crossed beyond that covering, as if pulled by some force, and reached the other six. One after another, I saw Lords Matsya, Sūrya, Pradyumna, Aniruddha, Saṅkarṣaṇa, and Vāsudeva, each with one of the great manifested deities of those coverings worshiping Him with the element over which that deity presided — water, fire, air, ether, ego, or mahat. Each covering was the subtle cause of the one before it, and had a greater object of worship, a greater worshiper, and greater sense gratification, opulence, and importance.
As before, I crossed over each of these coverings, and finally came to the covering made of primordial nature. Composed of the most subtle form of ignorance, it was dark blue, and attractive to the eyes and mind. Seeing spread everywhere a color like that of my worshipable Lord, I was very much delighted. I had no desire to go further.
As I arrived, the goddess Prakṛti had just finished the worship of her Lord, the Lord of that region, the refulgent Śrī Mohinī-mūrti. The goddess at once approached me in her own superlative form. She offered me gifts such as aṇimā-siddhi and other great yogic powers. And like the goddess Earth and the other deities, she asked me to stay. She sweetly told me, “If you want to achieve your goal of liberation, then please be kind to me, because I am the bestower of liberation. “Or if you want devotion to Viṣṇu, still you should be kind and worship me, the giver of devotion, for I am His maidservant, His sister, and the embodiment of His energy.”
Declining all these enticements, understanding them to be the potency of Lord Viṣnu, I bowed down to the goddess and then wandered for a while to see that beautiful-colored region. That place was delightful and self-luminous, splendid with the most excellent wonders. Enjoying it were multitudes of living entities, their bodies made of primordial matter. It was inconceivable, utterly enchanting in opulence, and displaying many forms all at once. The whole material creation dwelt within it, with all the elements of creation, subtle and gross. By the desire of the Lord, I then crossed beyond that vast region of dense ignorance and came to a place flooded with a light so brilliant, so unbearably beyond looking at, that it forced me to close my eyes. With utmost devotion I struggled to look ahead. And then I saw the Supreme Lord, effulgent like millions of suns.”

In the first cover, Gopa-kumāra met Bhūmi Devi, worshiping Lord Varāha. This is the primordial Bhūmi, who expands herself into the Bhūmi who is the predominating deity of the earth. From there, he met an even more exalted ruler, worshiping a different form of the Lord. Moving to each successive covering, we get closer to the spiritual realm, and thus, in each covering, the Lord reveals more of His transcendental opulences.

In the first covering, the Lord appears as Varāha, in the second as Matsya, in the third as Sūrya, and then as Pradyumna, Aniruddha, Saṅkarṣaṇa, and Vāsudeva. In each covering, a different predominating deity, a manifestation of one of His eternal potencies, worships Him in full devotion.

After passing through the seven coverings, he reached pradhāna, the original potency of unmanifested matter. That’s the original potency of the Lord, from which comes the mahat-tattva. There, he met Prakṛti herself, worshiping the Lord in the form of Śrī Mohinī-mūrti. She appears in the lila as Subhadrā, the sister of the Lord, who helps devotees to advance in devotional service.

After passing through pradhāna, Gopa-kumāra finally reached the luminous part of the creation, where he got the darśana of Lord Mahā-Viṣnu.

In this way, the first misconception about the coverings of the universe is that they are just solid blocks of solid rock or layers of water or lava. The second is that they are sterile, uninhabited spaces.

The coverings are composed of primordial matter. It is still matter, but not matter in the sense we normally understand it. Practically speaking, it is considered matter in the sense that it has certain properties that are experienced by the inhabitants, but not matter in the sense of being composed of atoms. One example that can be given is that objects in the celestial planets are still composed of matter, but it is some kind of subtle matter that we can’t see or touch. The matter in the coverings is still subtler than in the celestial planets. It can be experienced by people who obtain bodies composed of the same type of matter, but not by us.

We can see that Gopa-kumāra’s experience is of each covering being a separate world, with a predominating deity, a different form of the Lord being worshiped, and a different set of objects and experiences that can be enjoyed.

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Imagine three different maps of a continent: a political map, a topographical map, and a road map. Which map is correct? It depends on the purpose.

When we speak about cosmology, it is difficult not to fall into comparisons of the model of the universe described in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam and the description given in modern cosmology. A mistake we make, however, is to try to directly relate the description of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam with telescope observations, point for point. Unless we are demigods, we will not directly see the universe in the same way the Bhāgavatam describes. The fact that it describes a reality different from what we observe when we look to the sky is thus not a fault, but a feature. The purpose is exactly to guide us into connecting with higher levels of reality. Gradually breaking the shackles that bind us to this gross reality.

In short, we have three different models of the universe:

a) Modern cosmology offers a description of the physical reality we perceive with our senses. It has practical and theoretical applications. The limitation is that it doesn’t help us at all in terms of self-realization. Generally, we observe the opposite.

b) The Sūrya-siddhānta offers practical calculations of the orbits of the luminaries and the passage of time. It has indirect spiritual value by helping us to determine the correct times for religious observances and making astrological calculations that can help us to understand our current position in the wheel of saṃsāra.

c) The Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam describes the universe as it is perceived by demigods and higher beings and has direct spiritual application in guiding us through these higher realms and beyond. It is basically a map that guides us through different levels of reality instead of a geographical map of our physical plane.

Which description is correct? It depends on our purpose. If we want to try to build a colony on mars, modern cosmology may appear more useful. If we want to calculate lunar days, the Sūrya-siddhānta will give the formulas, and if we want to go back to Godhead, the Bhāgavatam will offer the relevant explanation.

The first point to understand is that the view of the universe given by modern cosmology is based on sense perception, or what we can observe using our vision and other senses. It doesn’t matter if one tries to observe the universe using the naked eye, a telescope, or even advanced mathematical models. One will be limited by his senses and intelligence.

In the jyotiṣa-śāstras, the Vedas also give a view of the universe that is similar to modern science. The Sūrya-siddhānta gives formulas to calculate the circumference of the earth and the moon, the distance to the moon and different planets of our solar system, and so on, offering numbers close to modern estimates. Therefore, the view of the universe described by modern science was not unknown to the sages of previous ages. The point is that the Vedas offer something more.

Modern astronomy, as well as the Sūrya-siddhānta, describes the universe according to the sense perception of human beings, matching what we can perceive using our senses and intellect. The Puranas, on the other hand, describe the universe from the perspective of the demigods, who have different sets of senses and thus perceive reality differently from what we do.

Most of the books in the Vedas were received by humanity from higher beings. Most of them were spoken by great sages or by inhabitants of the higher planetary systems, while others were spoken by perfect devotees from the spiritual realm. The Sūrya-siddhānta, however, was received through Maya Dānava, the main architect in the lower planetary systems. Being a materialist, Maya Dānava is interested in the practical aspects of matter. Therefore, he gave humanity practical knowledge for astronomical calculations, which is close to the model conceived by modern cosmology. The main reason is that both are based on what we can see when we look into the sky.

The main topic of the Sūrya-siddhānta is calculations for the positions of the planets and the passage of time. Following these calculations, one can calculate the position of a planet at any given time, as well as understand the passages of years, yugas, etc., within the current cycle of creation. Nowadays, the calculation of the orbits of planets is done by complex software that takes a lot of processing power to run, while the calculations in the Sūrya-siddhānta were developed to be simple enough to be solvable by hand. This knowledge was used by sages in ancient times to calculate the position of different planets, eclipses, etc. It was thus important for both ritual and astrological purposes.

Both the calculations of the positions of the planets used in astrology and the correct times for vows, fasting, and religious functions were considered fundamental for people in previous ages and are still central for devotees. Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Thākura wrote a commentary on the Sūrya-siddhānta, bringing back many corrections for astrological calculations that had been lost over time. However, ultimately, he abandoned it to focus on his main mission of spreading Kṛṣṇa Consciousness.

Thus, the focus of the Sūrya-siddhānta is to give humanity a model to compute the apparent motions of the luminaries and the passage of time for practical purposes. It is not identical to modern cosmology but is closer to it.

The description of the universe we find in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, on the other hand, has the purpose of giving us a direct map of the universe we live in, but it does so from a perspective very different from modern cosmology. It describes a higher level of reality that we gain access to as we progress in spiritual realization, guiding us on a journey through different levels of existence, all the way to the highest level of all: life in the spiritual world in the company of Kṛṣṇa. This is surely a level of reality superior to what we can perceive with our current senses.

It may sound strange that different beings can have different conceptions of reality, but this is something that can be observed even on our own planet. Many carnivorous animals, such as tigers, see in black and white, while we see in color. Butterflies can see ultraviolet light that is invisible to us, while certain animals can’t see at all, being guided only by smell. In fact, our concept of reality is based on electrical signals our brain receives from our eyes, nose, ears, etc. If one were to receive a different set of senses, he would perceive reality differently. In other words, we can only experience the world to the extent our senses allow. Therefore, our sense perception is not the most reliable instrument to understand reality.

Just as a completely blind person will never be able to understand what color is, the limitations of our current senses prevent us from seeing and understanding how the universe really operates. The question thus is not in matching the description of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam to the way we perceive the cosmos with our senses, but in using this higher-dimensional map to elevate our consciousness.

Apart from determining the set of senses we receive at birth, our level of consciousness also shapes our perception of reality in other ways. The concept of reality of an ant is rudimentary if compared to that of a human being. It is not just about how an ant perceives reality but how it understands it. Similarly, our current concept of reality is very limited compared to the view of great sages and demigods.

One way in which our understanding is different from the demigods’ is that they can perceive and understand the hierarchical organization of the cosmos on different levels of existence. For us, the numerous planets and stars that compose the universe are distributed in a more or less random fashion throughout the cosmos and very far from each other. Practically speaking, everything, apart from our immediate planetary neighbors, is inaccessible to us. For the demigods, however, planets and stars are grouped according to different levels of existence, and inhabitants have access to different planets and planetary systems according to their position in the hierarchy. We thus have access only to our plane, while demigods can access both the earthly and heavenly realms, and so on. This goes up to Brahmā, who is at the very top of the hierarchy and can access everything.

These positions, however, are not fixed. We can progress to higher levels or be demoted to lower levels according to the consciousness we develop in this life. The description of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam serves thus as a map of the different abodes that constitute the material universe (as well as the spiritual planets beyond it). By studying the map, we can decide where to go next and find out how to get there.

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In the 5th canto of Śrīmad Bhāgavatam, Śukadeva Gosvāmi explains the Vedic model of the universe, describing the structure of the different planetary systems and so on. This model is not very easy to understand (we will try to explain it in more detail in an upcoming book), but it has an important purpose.

The description of the universe in the Fifth Canto is similar to the description of the virāṭ-rūpa offered in the 2nd and 3rd cantos that has the purpose of helping the yogī to see the universe as a form of the Lord and thus meditate on Him. If a yogī can directly meditate on the transcendental form of the Lord, this is much better, but the question is that it is not so easy in the beginning. A yogī is thus instructed to start with what he can see, the expansive universe we see when we look to the sky, and imagine it as a form of the Lord, connecting the different planetary systems and natural features of our planet with parts of His body. By doing that, a yogī learns to focus his mind and grows in spiritual realization and gradually comes to realize the transcendental form of the Lord.

Similarly, if we come to the stage of being interested only in the transcendental form of the Lord—His qualities, pastimes, and so on—and completely lose interest in this material creation, that’s perfect. As long as we are not on this platform, however, we can advance by studying the composition of the material universe and learning to see all of its features as manifestations of Kṛṣṇa’s potency. Just as a yogī meditating in the universal form, by doing that, we grow in spiritual realization. As Śukadeva Gosvāmi explains, “If one reads the description of this external form of the Lord with great faith, or if one hears about it or explains it to others to propagate bhāgavata-dharma, or Kṛṣṇa consciousness, his faith and devotion in spiritual consciousness, Kṛṣṇa consciousness, will gradually increase.”

People normally have curiosity in understanding the world around them. Modern educators hijack this natural propensity, using it to teach people an atheistic model of the universe that pushes them away from God consciousness. Śukadeva Gosvāmi, however, offers an alternative: the theistic view of the universe described in the Śrīmad Bhāgavatam. Prabhupāda had the view that, if correctly understood, the model of the Vedic universe could form a coherent response to modern scientific theories, offering people an option. He envisioned the temple of the Vedic planetarium as a vehicle to spread this alternative version, with a giant chandelier showing a working model of the Vedic universe and different exhibitions explaining the different concepts that are part of the model. By studying this model and learning to see the universe in connection with Kṛṣṇa, understanding how our acts in this life affect our consciousness and how our consciousness determines where we stay in this gigantic universal creation, people can automatically advance in Kṛṣṇa Consciousness.

See what Śukadeva Gosvāmi mentions in SB 5.26.39:

One who is interested in liberation, who accepts the path of liberation and is not attracted to the path of conditional life, is called yati, or a devotee. Such a person should first control his mind by thinking of the virāṭ-rūpa, the gigantic universal form of the Lord, and then gradually think of the spiritual form of Kṛṣṇa [sac-cid-ānanda-vigraha] after hearing of both forms. Thus one’s mind is fixed in samādhi. By devotional service one can then realize the spiritual form of the Lord, which is the destination of devotees. Thus his life becomes successful.

Here, the process to help common people reach spiritual consciousness is further explained. First, we should study the Vedic universe, learning to see the Lord behind the cosmic manifestation. After acquiring a little faith, one should hear about the spiritual form of the Lord and gradually move his’s meditation from the material manifestation to the spiritual form of the Lord, gradually reaching samādhi. However, he warns that the spiritual form of the Lord can’t be understood by academic study alone: to realize the spiritual form of the Lord, we need to practice devotional service. Practical devotional service is thus an integral part of the process.

Prabhupāda saw the spiritual society he created as a vehicle for both education and practical engagement of the public in the process of devotional service. Here is one instructive example of how these two go along together:

Once, Madan Mohan Malaviya, the vice-chancellor of the Benares Hindu University, came to the Gaudiya Math to ask some intricate philosophical questions to Śrila Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Thākura. Asked the questions, however, Śrila Bhaktisiddhānta answered that he should go to the next room and ask the devotees who were polishing the ārati paraphernalia of the deities.

The scholar was skeptical that these devotees could answer such difficult questions on Vedanta philosophy, but as Śrila Bhaktisiddhānta insisted, he decided to go and ask them. When he approached them, they immediately engaged him in helping to polish the different items, a task that took some time.

Even though he was a famous scholar, Madan Mohan was humble in heart and agreed to help them in their service. As he did that, however, something changed in his heart. Suddenly, he could understand the intricate questions that were previously troubling him. By the time he finished polishing the brass items, everything was clear in his mind.

When he went back to the first room, Śrila Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī asked if he got the answer to his questions, and he confirmed that as he helped polish the paraphernalia, the answers automatically came to his mind. Bhaktisiddhānta then explained that the philosophy of Kṛṣṇa Consciousness can be understood only through a service attitude (sevonmukhe hi jihvado); it can’t be understood just by reading books. He then described the example of his own Guru Maharaja, Śrila Gaura Kiśora Dās Babaji, who, although illiterate, had the highest level of spiritual realization and could explain all kinds of intricate philosophical concepts, because he was sevonmukha, inclined to serve Krsna.

Before meeting Śrila Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Thākura, the scholar was trying to find the answers by mere intellectual exercises. Bhaktisiddhānta understood that his problem was not a lack of intellectual arguments, but the simple fact that he never started the process of practical devotional service. When this gap was finally filled, he could finally understand everything.

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We learn in school that atoms are actually mostly empty space, electrons circling a nucleus like a mini-solar system. However, this picture is outdated. According to more up-to-date scientific studies, the nucleus is not a solid core, and the electrons are not really particles circling it. The current view is that electrons are not like tiny balls, but more like waves of electric charge (quantum objects that appear in certain regions around the nucleus), and the nucleus itself is also not solid matter, but also composed of smaller components held together by powerful interactions. In other words, an atom is not a little mechanical solar system, but mostly empty space structured by fields and interactions. It feels solid when we touch things, but in reality that solidity is mostly the result of electromagnetic forces and quantum effects acting within atoms that are almost entirely empty space.

When I hold a metal ball in my hand, it feels solid, but it feels that way because my hand is made of matter with the same basic atomic structure. The atoms in the ball resist being compressed by the atoms in my hand. If my hand were made of the same ultra-dense matter that physicists believe exists inside black holes, the ball of metal would not feel solid at all. It would simply collapse and almost disappear before I would even touch it, like a ball of styrofoam in contact with fire. If my hand were made of neutrinos or gamma rays, it would pass through the ball without affecting it much, just like the hand of a ghost.

Modern physics also explains that a vacuum is also not simply nothing. That’s another idea we learn in school that is outdated. What we call a vacuum may contain no ordinary matter, but the underlying fields of nature are still present. Even in their lowest state, these fields can fluctuate and produce measurable effects. So, what appears as empty space can still have physical properties: it is not a solid substance, but it is not mere nothingness either. It is the structured background in which particles, forces, and interactions appear, like a stage with no actors currently standing on it. The stage may be empty, but it still has structure, rules, and possibilities, and can influence how the actors move and interact.

So, modern physics explains that matter is not really solid, and space is not really empty. That sounds quite similar to what we study in Vedic metaphysics, as explained by Lord Kapila in the third canto of Śrīmad Bhagavatam.

But it gets better. Imagine a second kind of matter that does not use the same forces that ordinary atoms use to resist contact. It’s not like antimatter, which destroys ordinary matter, but something neutral that would just not directly interact with it. This type of matter would not push back against the atoms in a wall because there would be almost no interaction between them. As a result, it would pass through ordinary matter like a ghost. Still, it would not be unreal: its particles could still interact strongly with one another through a different set of forces, allowing it to form solid objects of its own kind. People living in a world composed of this different type of matter would touch things and interact with other people; their reality would feel solid to them, just as our reality feels solid to us, but we would not be able to see them at all.

Now, imagine several other kinds of matter, some that do not interact at all with matter in our plane, others that interact weakly, some that interact with others but not with us, and so on. It starts getting quite close to the concept of the different planetary systems as different levels of reality, which is described in the Vedas.

When we study the Śrīmad Bhāgavatam, we learn that the world we live in is not unreal, but it is illusory. We hear that there are 14 different planetary systems, composed of what we may call different types of matter. We can’t see demigods, unless they assume forms that are visible to us. Demigods, in turn, can’t see sages from the higher planetary systems, like the Kumaras, unless they intentionally become visible to them. Demons can interact and fight with demigods, but they don’t live on the same level of existence. Matter can be manipulated using subtle, mystical forces that are unknown in modern science, and so on.

All of this may sound very mythical and hard to believe at first, but when we get in contact with ideas that are currently studied in modern physics, the Vedic model suddenly sounds a lot more plausible.

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The Vedas explain that our universe is divided into 14 planetary systems. Each planetary system is formed by millions of different planets or stars, but they are categorized by the level of consciousness of the inhabitants. In the Vedic model, consciousness creates reality. The environment we live in, including the type of body and senses we have, is determined by our previous consciousness, and similarly, what we do now shapes our consciousness in a certain way, and that will determine where we go next. In this way, we continuously travel through these 14 planetary systems, following the wheel of saṁsāra.

The first seven planetary systems are the lower planetary systems, inhabited by the asuras, where materialism and godlessness are predominant. These places are compared to a pit because once one falls in, there are not many opportunities for getting out again. We live in the 8th planetary system, called Bhū-loka, the intermediate planetary system. Our planet, Bhārata-varsa, is special because it is a place where souls come to create a new set of karma that will influence their destiny for many lives ahead. That’s the universal test room, we can say, where we take a short life to prove ourselves. According to our desires and actions, we can be elevated or degraded to any place in the cosmos, or even go beyond it, reaching the border regions of the pradhāna, the effulgence of the impersonal brahmajyoti, or returning home, back to Godhead, in our eternal position in the spiritual world.

Upwards in relation to our plane is Bhuvarloka, inhabited by subtle beings, like Yakṣas and Rākṣasas. These are subtle regions rich in material opulence, under the control of Kuvera, the treasurer of the demigods. The existence of Bhuvarloka introduces a concept that is very central in the model of the Vedas, which is the concept of multiple dimensions. This abode of Kuvera is very close to us; it is described as starting in the upper atmosphere. From our point of view, there is nothing there; it is just rarefied air that gradually becomes thinner as we go upwards. From their perspective, however, there are lakes, forests, and palaces. Because they live in a higher dimension, their bodies as well as their abode are made from a subtle, or refined, form of matter that is invisible to us. As a result, they can see us, but we can’t see them.

Human beings can gain access to their realm only through pious merit and purification of one's existence. There is no space probe or weapon that can force our way there.

Still higher is Svargaloka, the celestial system, where the demigods live. The description given in the Fifth Canto puts Svargaloka very far from us, beyond the Polestar, the abode of Maharaja Dhruva. The pious souls who take birth there can enjoy a life of great opulence for 10,000 years of the demigods. One day for them equals one year for us, resulting in an extremely long lifetime from our point of view.

Still higher are the planetary systems of Maharloka, Janaloka, Tapoloka, and Brahma-Loka, inhabited by highly elevated souls. Different from Svargaloka, these are not places for sensual enjoyment but places for advanced spiritual cultivation. Maharloka and Janaloka are inhabited by great sages who can perfectly control their senses and heartily worship the Lord through the performance of sacrifices

Sages living in Maharloka can stay there until the end of the day of Brahmā. When the day of Brahma ends, the fire emitted by Lord Ananta destroys all the lower planets of the universe, up to Svargaloka. The scale of the time given in the Bhāgavatam roughly corresponds to the phenomenon of the sun becoming a red giant and destroying our planet, which is studied in astrophysics.

Maharloka is not directly destroyed, but it becomes too hot even for the great sages who live there. The ones who are sufficiently qualified have at this point the possibility of ascending to the next planetary systems (Janaloka, Tapoloka, or Brahmaloka), according to their level of qualification, where they can live longer. The inhabitants of these three planetary systems are essentially deathless. They can continue living for trillions of years until the end of the universe.

Tapoloka is the abode of the four Kumāras, the four celibate sons of Brahmā, as well as other great yogis who spend their time in solitary meditation. Beyond this very subtle realm, there is Satyaloka, the abode of Lord Brahmā and the highest planetary system. Souls who attain this abode remain engaged in the worship of Lord Garbhodakaśāyī Viṣnu, together with Lord Brahmā, and normally go back to Godhead together with him at the end of his life, when the universe is finally destroyed.

A person may take his next birth in any of these planetary systems, according to his level of qualification. Great devotees are unrestricted. They can go to any planet they like, be it material or spiritual. Yogis generally don’t have access to the spiritual planets, but they can still transfer themselves to higher material planets, while materialists can’t go higher than Svargaloka, even if they are extraordinarily pious by material standards. More often than not, materialists just glide down to the lower planetary systems, where they become progressively more restricted.

People like to talk about the freedom of doing whatever they want, but this is not real freedom. In conditioned life, “doing whatever we want” means just following the dictates of the mind and senses, which is actually a form of slavery. Real freedom is attained when we cultivate spiritual knowledge and learn to control our senses.

In general, as one goes upwards, the desire to enjoy one’s senses is reduced, and by the time one reaches Satyaloka, it is almost completely gone, and one can go back to Godhead at the end of the universe together with Lord Brahmā. Devotees, however, are a special case. They hear about Kṛṣṇa’s pastimes and practice devotional service, and in this way tune up their consciousness directly to the reality of the spiritual world. Obtaining this higher taste, by the time they leave their bodies, they are not interested in anything more of this material world and are ready to go back home, back to Godhead.

There is, however, another, much longer path that yogis who are going upwards by their own power may take. After Satyaloka, there are the seven elemental coverings of the universe, respectively composed of elemental earth, water, fire, air, ether, mahat-tattva, and false ego, with each covering being ten times greater than the previous one. It’s described in the Bṛhad-bhāgavatāmṛta that the personification of the material energy lives in each of these coverings, worshiping a different form of the Lord. Yogis who are in the ascending process can gradually go through each one of these coverings, where they have access to objects of sense gratification more refined than anything available inside the universe, enjoying very long lives without any trace of pain. In this way, the yogi can satisfy any remaining material desires he may still have.

An analogy that could be used to explain such a refined level of sense gratification is that of a pig eating and a person eating in an expensive restaurant. Both enjoy eating, but the enjoyment of the pig is very gross, while the enjoyment of the person is more refined. While in the coverings, the yogi has the understanding that there is nothing better to be enjoyed anywhere in the material universe; therefore, when he finally becomes tired of the enjoyment there, he doesn’t have any desire to return, just as a rich person eating in a restaurant does not desire to become a pig.

We can see that a yogi who goes through this gradual ascending path can also achieve perfection, but only after an extremely long period, after passing through the different planetary systems and all the seven coverings of the material universe, a process painfully slow.

A devotee, on the other hand, can directly go to the spiritual world by just serving Krsna and concentrating his mind on Him. This direct process of devotional service is the most auspicious and effective way of deliverance, and that’s the message of the Śrīmad Bhāgavatam. All the cosmological and metaphysical knowledge offered there is just to help us realize there is no better path and thus chalk the path of devotion with confidence.

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In modern cosmology, the movements of the planets are explained from a heliocentric perspective, where the sun is orbited by the planets of our solar system while simultaneously wobbling in an almost circular orbit around the center of the galaxy. Vedic cosmology also gives us a valid model for explaining days and nights, as well as the passages of the seasons and the movements of the stars. It is, however, based on a geocentric model that puts our planet at the center, as part of Bhū-mandala, with the sun, all the stars, and other cosmic structures, as well as the other planets of the solar system orbiting this structure.

How does it work? In the cosmological model described in the Śrīmad Bhāgavatam (and all the other Puranas), the earth is described as stationary (as part of the structure of Bhū-mandala), while the whole sky, including the sun, orbits around it once a day. This daily movement of the whole sky around Dhruvaloka is complemented by the individual orbits of the sun, moon, and planets, resulting in the movements of the luminaries we see in the sky.

This movement of the sun is described by Lord Brahmā himself in his prayers in the Śrī Brahma-saṁhitā: yasyājñayā bhramati sambhṛta-kāla-cakro. The sun performs its journey, mounting the wheel of time. This movement of the sun around Mount Sumeru is thus a key element in Vedic cosmology, because it is connected with the very passage of time due to the influence of kāla (time), the divine potency of the Lord.

This may sound illogical at first. Why believe that the whole universe orbits around our planet? Doesn’t it make more sense to believe the opposite, as in modern cosmology?

Here is a point one may consider: when we look to the sky, we see only the relative motions of the sun, moon, stars, and planets, but practically speaking, we can’t tell experimentally what is orbiting around what. This is a point noted by a few important astronomers and physicists. As stated:

“Let it be understood at the outset that it makes no difference, from the point of view of describing planetary motion, whether we take the Earth or the Sun as the center of the solar system. Since the issue is one of relative motion only.” “We know now that the difference between a heliocentric and a geocentric theory is one of motions only, and that such a difference has no physical significance.” (Astronomer, Fred Hoyle)

“I can construct for you a spherically symmetrical universe with Earth at its center, and you cannot disprove it based on observations. You can only exclude it on philosophical grounds. In my view there is absolutely nothing wrong in that.” (Physicist, George F. R. Ellis)

Modern cosmology concludes that the earth orbits the sun based on the study of gravity. The Vedas also accept the influence of gravity, defining it as the potency of Lord Ananta, which maintains all the planets in their particular orbits. However, the Vedas make the point that the universe operates under the will of the Lord, not under mechanical forces. Our planet has a central role in the cosmos because it is the place where the souls create a new set of karma that will define their destiny. It is also the place chosen by the Lord when He personally descends to play His pastimes and the place where His divine abodes of Vṛndāvana, Jagannātha Pūri, Navadvīpa, etc., manifest. If He decides that the intermediate planetary system will have the form of a cosmic lotus and not only the sun but all the stars should orbit around it, who can prevent it?

Prabhupāda makes the point that the descriptions given in the Vedas should be given precedence over empirical observations, since, even though empirical observation is also a valid method for obtaining knowledge, it is imperfect, and it often results in errors, while the statements of the Vedas come from perfect sources, starting from God himself.

A few points that can be mentioned to support this point:

a) During medieval times, many believed the earth was flat, while the Vedas explained it as a sphere since the beginning, giving formulas to calculate its circumference and the distance to the moon and other astral bodies.

b) In 1929, Hubble calculated the age of our universe at about 2 billion years. Later, in 1958, Sandage put it around between 4 and 18 billion years. In 2003, a study conducted by Spergel brought it to 13.7 billion years, a number that was raised to 13.75 billion in 2011 (Komatsu), 13.772 in 2013 (Bennet et al.), 13.799 in 2015 (Lawrence), and finally 13.801 in 2018 (Aghanim et al.). The value given in the Vedas, however, remains constant since the beginning: 13.819 billion years (this is calculated from the destruction at the end of the first half of the life of Brahma, including Sridhara’s factor of two).

As we can see, the number given in different studies has gradually increased over time as the methodology and data of the studies have improved. The difference is already less than 0.15% from the value given in the Vedas. It may be that in the future, new studies put the numbers even closer, or even give exactly the same number.

c) The idea of multiple universes has existed for a long time in the field of science fiction, but it started gaining serious traction in scientific circles only in the 1980s, with the development of inflationary cosmology. Guth introduced the idea of cosmic inflation in 1981, and later developments by Linde showed that inflation can naturally produce multiple bubble universes. The multiverse theory gained further traction in the 1990s and 2000s, as the string theory evolved. The Vedas, however, have been stating since the beginning that, vast as it may be, our universe is just one among millions of other bubble-like universes floating in the causal ocean.

Just as the idea of our universe existing for billions of years and being just one amongst millions of other universes would sound utterly absurd to a medieval mind, other ideas proposed in the Vedas may sound incoherent to us. However, as our understand increases, not only in terms of experimental knowledge, but in terms of spiritual insight, the explanations given in the Vedas start to make more sense to us.

One central idea of the model of the Vedic universe that is different from what is believed in modern science is the concept of different dimensions, from gross to subtle, which explains the existence of the different structures and planetary systems described in the Vedas, such as Bhū-mandala, and their connection with our gross reality.

For example, in the Third Canto, Lord Kapila describes matter based on the five elements, earth, water, fire, air, and ether. The reason is that this is the only model that allows us to describe matter in all levels, not only in our gross reality.

According to the Vedas, reality exists on several different levels, going from gross (where matter is composed of atoms) to subtle (where matter assume more refined forms). We live in a gross material level, and the demigods live in different gradations of material subtle level. Just as we can’t see demigods such as Indra and Surya, unless they assume forms visible to us, they can’t see higher beings such as Nārada or the four Kumāras, unless they assume forms visible to them. The subtlest material level exist in Brahmaloka, where reality is so subtle that there is practically no matter at all. Outside the universe, there is the spiritual level, which is still higher and subtler, inaccessible even to the inhabitants of Brahmaloka.

In material science, the chemical elements are counted according to their atomic composition. Hydrogen is composed of atoms with one proton and one electron, lithium is composed of atoms with two of each, iron is made of atoms with twenty-six, and so on. There are also variations, like tritium, which is a hydrogen isotope, with one proton and two neutrons, for example. The Vedas, however, classify the elements according to their characteristics, and not according to their atomic structure. The reason is that material reality is composed of different levels of existence, which go from gross to subtle. In the gross level we live, matter is composed of atoms, but in the subtle realms of the inhabitants of Bhū-Mandala, of the demigods, great sages, etc. matter has different compositions. The classification of modern science, based on types of atoms is valid only for our plane, while the classification of the Vedas in terms of fire, ether, water, smell, taste, sight, hearing, etc. describes reality in all planes, because everywhere people see, taste, hear, and matter has properties of having taste, form, odor and so on. This classification of elements given by Lord Kapila is thus much more scientific than it may seem at first.

In the Vedas, the moon is described as a celestial planet, higher than the sun in the subtle scale. However, when we go there, we see only rocks and dust, because the matter that compose that level of reality is too subtle for us to experience.

This concept is indirectly supported in modern cosmology in the concept of dark matter. According to recent studies, about 95% of our universe is composed of dark matter and dark energy, different types of matter, not composed of atoms or detectable forms of energy. The Vedas explain it in terms of the subtle forms of matter that compose the abodes of the demigods and structures like Bhū-mandala, while modern science is still trying to figure out what it may be.

The idea of multiple dimensions (as different levels of reality in the same space) is currently discussed only in science fiction, but it may be the next Vedic concept to be acknowledged in scientific circles, just as the concept of multiple universes.

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One interesting and confusing aspect of the cosmology of the Śrīmad Bhāgavatam is the presence of a cosmic chain of mountains around the earthly and celestial planetary systems, dividing the universe into two parts. What are these cosmic mountains, and what is their nature?

Śukadeva Goswami mentions:

“By the supreme will of Kṛṣṇa, the mountain known as Lokāloka has been installed as the outer border of the three worlds — Bhūrloka, Bhuvarloka and Svarloka — to control the rays of the sun throughout the universe. All the luminaries, from the sun up to Dhruvaloka, distribute their rays throughout the three worlds, but only within the boundary formed by this mountain. Because it is extremely high, extending even higher than Dhruvaloka, it blocks the rays of the luminaries, which therefore can never extend beyond it.
Learned scholars who are free from mistakes, illusions and propensities to cheat have thus described the planetary systems and their particular symptoms, measurements and locations. With great deliberation, they have established the truth that the distance between Sumeru and the mountain known as Lokāloka is one fourth of the diameter of the universe — or, in other words, 125,000,000 yojanas [1 billion miles]. (SB 5.20.34-38)

Outside of Puṣkaradvīpa, the island that anchors the orbit of the sun, there is an ocean of sweet water, which is as broad as the island itself. Beyond this ocean, there is another island, which extends all the way to the Lokāloka mountains that mark the boundary of the illuminated part of the universe.

This huge island is, in turn, divided into two areas. The internal part is inhabited land, the abode of many living entities, while the outer part is deserted. This mysterious, uninhabited land is described in the text as “adarśa-talopamā yasyāṁ prahitaḥ padārtho na kathañcit punaḥ pratyupalabhyate”.

What does it mean? The first quality is that the surface is perceived as being just like the surface of a mirror. This indicates one can’t properly see while there. The second is that although one can perceive an object held in one’s hand, as soon as this object is dropped, it cannot be found again by any means. The word kathañcit indicates that not only vision fails, but other senses, like touch, hearing, and taste, become unusable.

This indicates that this is not simply a place with a gold-like surface, but a place where ordinary sense perception fails. Due to this, it is indicated that no one lives there. This indicates that this mysterious golden land is a place where the conditions that sustain ordinary life cease to exist.

Outside of it are what is described as a cosmic range of mountains, the mysterious Lokāloka. These mountains are described as going high as Dhruvaloka. In other words, they encapsulate the whole inhabited area of the universe, both horizontally and vertically. It is clear that these are not ordinary mountains composed of rock, but some kind of structure composed of some very subtle form of matter or energy, rather than a solid barrier.

Beyond Lokāloka is Aloka-varṣa, a completely uninhabited region that is not reached by the light of the sun or any of the stars. Lokāloka is thus similar in concept to what is discussed in modern cosmology as the Cosmic light horizon, the very edge of the universe. Beyond that is an area beyond ordinary illumination, perception, and habitation. Beyond this area are the coverings of the universe, and beyond them is the Causal ocean (Kāraṇodaka), where Lord Mahā-Viṣnu resides.

In the pastime in which Arjuna brings back the sons of the brāhmaṇa who had been taken by Mahā-Viṣnu, Krsna guides Arjuna through this whole region, reaching the causal ocean, where Kṛṣṇa gives darśana to Mahā-Viṣnu Himself.

This episode is described in the Tenth Canto:

“Having thus advised Arjuna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead had Arjuna join Him on His divine chariot, and together they set off toward the west.
The Lord’s chariot passed over the seven islands of the middle universe, each with its ocean and its seven principal mountains. Then it crossed the Lokāloka boundary and entered the vast region of total darkness.
In that darkness the chariot’s horses — Śaibya, Sugrīva, Meghapuṣpa and Balāhaka — lost their way. Seeing them in this condition, O best of the Bhāratas, Lord Kṛṣṇa, the supreme master of all masters of yoga, sent His Sudarśana disc before the chariot. That disc shone like thousands of suns.
The Lord’s Sudarśana disc penetrated the darkness with its blazing effulgence. Racing forward with the speed of the mind, it cut through the fearsome, dense oblivion expanded from primeval matter, as an arrow shot from Lord Rāma’s bow cuts through His enemy’s army.
Following the Sudarśana disc, the chariot went beyond the darkness and reached the endless spiritual light of the all pervasive brahmajyoti. As Arjuna beheld this glaring effulgence, his eyes hurt, and so he shut them.
From that region they entered a body of water resplendent with huge waves being churned by a mighty wind. Within that ocean Arjuna saw an amazing palace more radiant than anything he had ever seen before. Its beauty was enhanced by thousands of ornamental pillars bedecked with brilliant gems.
Lord Kṛṣṇa offered homage to Himself in this boundless form, and Arjuna, astonished at the sight of Lord Mahā-Viṣṇu, bowed down as well.” (SB 10.89.46-52,57)

Lokāloka is described in the text as loka-traya-ante: situated at the end of Bhūrloka, Bhuvarloka, and Svargaloka, the physical realm that includes the lower, intermediate, and celestial planetary systems, extending up to Dhruvaloka, the polestar. From the description, this are appear to comprise what in modern cosmology is understood as our galaxy.

Beyond that, higher in the subtle vertical dimension, are the very subtle planetary systems of Maharloka, Janaloka, Tapoloka, and Satyaloka that are the abode of great sages. These abodes extend much beyond Dhruvaloka and are exponentially larger and further than Svargaloka and the rest. It appears that they form the rest of the observable universe, beyond our galaxy. Beyond them, there are the seven covering of the universe (each one exponentially larger than the previous) and beyond that, the Causal ocean (in which all the other universes float) and the impersonal brahmajyoti, and beyond that, the spiritual planets. The whole creation is thus many orders of magnitude larger than believed in modern cosmology, spreading much beyond the barriers of space and time.

“On the top of Lokāloka Mountain are the four gaja-patis, the best of elephants, which were established in the four directions by Lord Brahmā, the supreme spiritual master of the entire universe. The names of those elephants are Ṛṣabha, Puṣkaracūḍa, Vāmana and Aparājita. They are responsible for maintaining the planetary systems of the universe.
The Supreme Personality of Godhead is the master of all transcendental opulences and the master of the spiritual sky. He is the Supreme Person, Bhagavān, the Supersoul of everyone. The demigods, led by Indra, the King of heaven, are entrusted with seeing to the affairs of the material world. To benefit all living beings in all the varied planets and to increase the power of those elephants and of the demigods, the Lord manifests Himself on top of that mountain in a spiritual body, uncontaminated by the modes of material nature. Surrounded by His personal expansions and assistants like Viṣvaksena, He exhibits all His perfect opulences, such as religion and knowledge, and His mystic powers such as aṇimā, laghimā and mahimā. He is beautifully situated, and He is decorated by the different weapons in His four hands.
The various forms of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, such as Nārāyaṇa and Viṣṇu, are beautifully decorated with different weapons. The Lord exhibits those forms to maintain all the varied planets created by His personal potency, yoga-māyā.
My dear King, outside Lokāloka Mountain is the tract of land known as Aloka-varṣa, which extends for the same breadth as the area within the mountain — in other words, 125,000,000 yojanas [one billion miles]. Beyond Aloka-varṣa is the destination of those who aspire for liberation from the material world. It is beyond the jurisdiction of the material modes of nature, and therefore it is completely pure. Lord Kṛṣṇa took Arjuna through this place to bring back the sons of the brāhmaṇa.” (SB 5.20.39-42)

It is described that Lokāloka is supported on four sides by four great elephants. However, just as Lokāloka is not an ordinary mountain, these are not ordinary elephants, nor do they serve as ordinary weights on the sides of the structure.

Just as Brahmā creates the demigods as predominating deities of the different forces that govern the cosmos, he also creates these four elephant-deities to embody the forces that maintain the whole universal structure. The names of these divine elephants give us some clues about these potencies.

Ṛṣabha means “the foremost” or chief, giving the idea of strength and power. Puṣkaracūḍa means “lotus-crested,” which indicates purity. Vāmana means “small” or “short”, giving the idea of fine control, or restraint, while Aparājita means “unconquered” or “invincible,” indicating control that can’t be challenged or overthrown.

We can see that after describing these four gaja-patis, the text describes the Supreme Lord, indicating that He is the real maintainer and overseer. He manifests in His spiritual form above the whole structure of the universe, surrounded by His personal expansions, assistants, opulences, mystic potencies, etc. This again indicates that He is the power behind all material creation, and that everything works under His control.

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Since the 1950s, science fiction has been selling the idea of space exploration. Generations grew up believing that humanity would soon be able to colonize space. Many books were written on the subject. When I was small, for example, Isaac Asimov used to be popular. He wrote many stories about how the advancement of technology would allow humanity to explore and colonize space in just a few decades. The decades passed, but nothing really happened. Apart from a few manned missions to our closest satellite and the construction of a small space station in lower orbit, it doesn’t seem people are much closer to exploring space than in the 1960s.

The idea of space exploration started as a playground for governments. Both the US and the USSR spent huge quantities of money on the idea, and more recently, private companies started amassing the necessary resources to make a few steps. SpaceX has been promoting the idea of building a self-sustainable colony on Mars with a million inhabitants in the next few decades. The idea may sound attractive to some, but it will never work. Why?

The first problem with colonizing space is that we don’t have access to the higher dimensions where more evolved beings live. According to the Vedas, there are living beings living comfortably on most planets of the Universe, but they have bodies adapted to the conditions there.

We have bodies adapted to the environment we find on our own planet, and it’s very difficult for us to live anywhere else. Not only is it very difficult to leave our planet, due to the influence of gravity, but even when we finally get into space, we see only inhospitable environments, extremes of temperature, and other hazards.

Space travel is perfectly possible, but one has to follow the proper process, elevating one’s consciousness and attaining an appropriate body on the desirable planet at the time of death. As a soul, or even as a combination of soul and subtle body, one can travel everywhere in the universe, but for that, one has to leave behind this material body composed of gross material elements.

An interesting story in this connection is the saga of Trissanku, who, with the help of Visvamrta, tried to perform a sacrifice capable of elevating him to the celestial planets in the same body. As he started ascending, the demigods became alarmed at having such contamination in their abodes and sent him back down. However, because of the power of the sacrifice, he couldn’t return to earth, and thus remained in space, floating around, head down.

Traveling using a spaceship is a similar attempt, where one moves geographically around the cosmos, but is not able to properly move in the subtle vertical dimension, nor assume an appropriate body. One may thus eventually reach the Moon or Mars, but remain still entrapped in the gross dimension, without experiencing the celestial reality of the inhabitants of these abodes. As a result, instead of apsaras, one will find only dangers and privations outside our planet.

Even without mentioning all the philosophical aspects of the celestial status of the different planets of our universe and the existence of a vertical dimension we can’t move through without changing our consciousness and material bodies, there is another very simple, logical, and down-to-earth question: Economics. Why don’t we build colonies at the bottom of the ocean? It’s not because it’s not technically possible, but it’s just because it is too expensive.

Science fiction novels are always based on leaps of faith. Some new revolutionary technology, like an inexhaustible source of fuel, or a cheap way to lift up materials to space, or some easy way to build giant space stations with materials produced from thin air. However, when one examines the real challenges of sending materials to space and creating livable conditions for humans in space or on other planets, one sees that although it is not an unsolvable problem, it is just too problematic and too expensive.

The International Space Station, which started being built in 1993, cost about 160 billion dollars, and this is just for a very small station, built in low orbit, very close to our planet. The same station built in an orbit around Mars, for example, would cost several times more. If it were built on the surface of the red planet, it would cost even more.

Some speculate that the cost of spaceships and space stations can drop dramatically with economies of scale. According to these sources, if we start producing it in mass they may cost as little as a commercial jet. This is yet another leap of faith. Maybe one could build a space probe at the cost of a small plane, but the real problem is the enormous amount of fuel necessary to put it into space and transport it to distant planets. The cost of the probe may go down if one mass-produces it, but the fuel to put it in orbit, as well as the rockets and other disposable materials, will not become less expensive.

The Mars Curiosity Rover, for example, weighs about 889 kilos. It cost 2.47 billion dollars to send it to Mars, which equals 2.78 million dollars per kilogram. Thus, after solving the initial problem of sending a few humans to Mars, together with some small habitat and supplies, another problem would be how to maintain them there. Imagine the amount of food, water, clothes, and other products you use during your life. An average human eats about 35 tons of food during his or her life. He also needs water, clothes, and other supplies. To live in an inhospitable environment like Mars, one would also need space suits, radiation shields, sources of energy, vehicles, and many specialized tools, apart from the habitat in which one lives. There is no Walmart or Amazon on Mars; therefore, all of this would need to be sent from Earth, at a cost of 2.78 million dollars per kg! Most of us don’t make so much money in our entire lifetimes. How many people on the planet would be rich enough to live on Mars at such a cost? I don’t think any. The cost of maintaining a small colony on Mars would be on the scale of trillions of dollars.

Worse than that: Colonies in space will always have to be supplied from the Earth at an exorbitant cost. One may be able to recycle water and produce some food on Mars by bringing some soil and tools from Earth. It may also be possible to produce some water from gases in the atmosphere or mine it from underground sources, but what about everything else? How to produce a computer or a hover on Mars? These things will always have to be brought from Earth at an exorbitant cost. The colony would never be self-sufficient, and as soon as the interest in it started to wane, people would not want to continue spending so much money on it, and the project would have to be abandoned. What would happen to the people struggling to live there at this point would be a good question.

Apart from that, there is another problem: Life in space will always be miserable. Just like in the ISS, people living in space or in space colonies will always be forced to live in cramped and uncomfortable conditions, drinking their own urine in the form of recycled water, cultivating vegetables in their own stool, suffering the harmful effects of solar radiation and other hazards, and living in constant alert in inhospitable conditions. This, presuming they would be at all allowed to live there, since the place is already inhabited by beings much more powerful than us. The only place where we can comfortably leave is on our blue planet, the place we were assigned to.

The record of permanence in space was set in 2016 by Valery Polyakov, who spent a total of 437 days in the ISS. However, the environment is so harsh that most astronauts are not capable of staying nearly as long in space, and these are people who are rigorously selected and trained for this kind of mission. To think that ordinary people would be able to live in such harsh conditions for their entire lives is a great leap of faith. Even if it were possible, only a crazy fellow would voluntarily choose so.

Human bodies are just not made to survive in outer space. We have bodies that are capable of living in the environment we were made to live in, on our own planet. A human being who would try to live on Mars or any other planet would just condemn himself to a very short and miserable life.

As mentioned, it’s possible to travel in outer space and to visit other planets, but the process to do so is to elevate one’s consciousness and use the appropriate process to acquire a suitable type of body to live there. One who does so will attain a body capable of not only living in a different atmosphere but to experience the environments and interacting with the inhabitants there. This is what it really means to travel to other planets. Compared to that, the harsh conditions in cramped, unsafe space probes constructed at an exorbitant cost look childish.

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One passage of the Śrīmad Bhāgavatam that may sound quite bewildering is the story of Daksa being killed by Lord Śiva and then revived with the head of a goat. If we accept the Bhāgavatam as an account of real events, this may sound quite difficult to believe, even if we consider the standard of life in higher planets. Even if we accept that it could be physically possible to attach the head of a goat to his body, how to explain that he was revived after it, and that his personality didn’t change?

The point is that everyone has a certain life expectancy that is defined by karma, and no one can remain in his or her body even one second after it. However, there are many situations when a person dies before his time, being killed in a battle, or for some other reason. It’s described that in these cases the soul is forced to remain in his subtle body until the prescribed time for his life ends and the next body is prepared.

Demigods, however, have the power of reviving people and other demigods who died untimely by restoring their bodies and inviting the soul back to it. As long as the soul has not yet transmigrated to another body and the body can be repaired, one can be revived, it doesn’t matter how much time has passed since his death.

In Christianity, the resurrection of Christ is accepted as a great miracle, but according to the Vedas, this is quite a trivial event. Demigods such as the Aśvinī Kumāras, as well as great yogis, can revive people easily, both here and in the celestial planets. Thus, demigods are routinely revived after being killed in battle against demons, and sometimes human beings and others can also be revived. Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu revived Śrīvatsa Ṭhākura’s son, Nārada Muni revived the son of King Citraketu, and so on.

The case of Daksa is special, however. Because his head had been destroyed, it was not possible to restore his body. Because he had to be revived to complete the jñana, Lord Śiva instructed the demigods to restore his body using the head of a goat. This is testimony to another point made in the Vedas: consciousness doesn’t come from the brain, but from the combination of the soul and the subtle body, which are situated in the heart. The personality and abilities of a person are thus not situated in the brain, which works more as an interface between the gross body and the subtle body. In the case of Daksa, it must have been disconcerting to wake up with the head of a goat, but being such a great personality, he appears to have been able to quickly adapt to it.

Daksa was thus brought back to life and immediately regretted his mistakes. He also remembered the death of his daughter, Satī, which caused him great pain. Daksa thus choked up and couldn’t speak. With great endeavor, he was able to finally pacify his mind and offer heartfelt prayers to Lord Śiva.

Having prayed to Lord Śiva, Daksa was pardoned by him and blessed to again perform the sacrifice. First of all, the sacrificial arena had to be purified from all the blood and desecration from the followers of Lord Śiva. The brāhmaṇas cleaned the arena, but this in itself was not sufficient to remove the contamination. The true purification comes from invoking the name of Lord Viṣnu. for this end, the sages arranged to offer into the fire the oblations known as puroḍāśa. Before, Lord Viṣnu refused to be present in his sacrifice, due to his offenses to Lord Śiva, but now, as soon as Daksa offered oblations into the fire after chanting the mantras, Lord Viṣnu appeared personally as Nārāyaṇa.

Prabhupada connects these verses to deity worship by explaining that the worship of the deity of the Lord is also a form of yajña, and the priests who worship the deity, as well as all the offerings and the temples, must be very clean, since to offer anything in an unclean state is called a sevāparādha. On the one hand, all the principles of cleanliness must be followed, but on the other hand, it is not possible to have anything clean in this material world, and therefore, the name of the Lord must always be chanted to make anything clean. In this way, the chanting of the holy names must be performed side by side with all the rules and regulations.

After the prayers, Daksa, now in purified consciousness, arranged for the resumption of the sacrifice. Satisfied, the Lord instructed him.

Everyone is part and parcel of the Lord, and He is present in all bodies as the Supersoul. The Lord thus instructed Daksa to abandon his envious attitude towards Lord Śiva and all other living beings, and instead see everyone as being on the same transcendental platform, mentioning that only one who attains this platform attains peace. All others live in anxiety and face all kinds of material difficulties, just as Daksa had recently experienced.

After being thus instructed by the Lord, Daksa resumed the sacrifice, and this time, without offenses, it was successful. However, he did not return to his duties afterwards. Having now the head of a goat, he decided to abandon his body and was later reborn as the only son of the Pracetas and Marisa, a descendant of Maharaja Uttānapāda. All of this happened in the first Manvantara.

After being reborn, however, Daksa didn’t immediately resume his duties. In his first birth, Daksa was born as an exalted personality, the direct son of Brahma, but in this second birth, he was born as a human child, born from Kṣatriyas. To regain his powers, he performed austerities for five Manvantaras to accumulate pious merits, and was finally reinstated in his former position as a Prajāpati in the sixth Manvantara (the Cākṣuṣa Manvantara, the one preceding the current).

After Daksa was again appointed as a Prajāpati in the sixth Manvantara, he first created different types of living beings, such as demigods, humans, etc., out of his mind, just as Brahma does.

However, he was not able to generate sufficient population through this process and thus decided to again practice austerities to satisfy the Supreme Lord and be blessed to perform his service. He went to the mountains to practice austerities, and in this process, he offered the Haṁsa-guhya prayers to the Lord (described in SB 6.4), who became satisfied and appeared to him, blessing him to marry Asiknī, the daughter of Prajāpati Pañcajana.

Daksa then begot ten thousand very qualified sons in the womb of his wife. He instructed them to practice austerities and prepare to enter family life and assist him in the work of populating the universe. However, seeing these very qualified boys, Nārada Muni became compassionate and decided to free them from the clutches of material energy. Purified with transcendental knowledge, the boys decided to enter renounced life.

Sad with the loss of his sons, Daksa begot one thousand more sons. However, when Nārada Muni also delivered them, Daksa again lost his temper and proceeded to offend and curse him, as described in the 5th chapter of the 6th canto.

Daksa then proceeded to beget 60 daughters, whom, being girls, Daksa was sure Nārada would not try to instruct. These daughters were given in marriage to great personalities, and through them, Daksa was finally able to fulfill his ambition of populating the universe.

These daughters of Daksa generated all kinds of living beings, rapidly increasing the population of the universe. Although the universe was never empty, it appears that the population had become much smaller during the first five Manvantaras, to the point that when the Pracetas came out of the lake where they were meditating, the Earth was practically uninhabited and had been covered by trees.

This also provides some explanation for why there is no geological evidence for advanced species of life on our planet until about 800 million years ago. According to the chronology offered in the Śrīmad Bhāgavatam (taking into consideration Sridhara Swami’s factor of two), this coincides with the daughters of Daksa filling the universe with all species of life.

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Some Christians believe that the Earth is flat because their scripture mentions “the four corners of the Earth”, “the pillars of the earth”, and so on. In fact, one could be killed until a few centuries ago for publicly claiming the Earth is a globe. Similarly, some Muslims believe similarly because of passages of the Qur’an that mention the earth being spread out, or flat like a bed. Considering the description of Bhū-mandala being composed of seven islands in the Śrīmad Bhāgavatam, it is not surprising that some Hare Kṛṣṇa devotees also believe so, with some coming to the point of believing (no joke) that we can find the rest of Bhū-mandala by sailing past the North Pole.

In reality, nowhere in the sastras is it described that the Earth, as the planet where we walk, is flat. In the Surya-siddhanta (1.59), which was commented on by Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Thākura, it is mentioned:

yojanāni śatānyastau bhukarmo dviguṇānitu
tadvargato daśaguṇāt padam bhūparidhirbhavet

“The earth’s diameter (bhukarna) is 1600 (2 X 800) yojanas. The square root of 10 times the square of earth’s diameter is earth’s circumference.”

There is no single fixed length for a yojana; different sources define it differently. In the Śrīmad Bhāgavatam, Prabhupāda takes the measure of the yojana as eight miles, which is consistent with the descriptions of the Puranas. It appears, however, that the Surya-siddhanta uses a different measure for the yojana, of about five miles. We can see that in this particular verse, the diameter of the Earth is given as 1600 yojanas. If we take the yojana as five miles, we have 8000 miles, which is extremely close to the 7,918 miles for the average diameter of the Earth in modern calculations. Similarly, the distances and circumference of the planets in the Surya-siddhanta match modern estimates closely when the yojana is taken as five miles. If we take it as slightly less, then the agreement becomes even closer. Similarly, the formula given for calculating the Earth’s circumference (the square root of 10 times the square of the Earth’s diameter) is very close to modern estimates.

The measure of the Earth’s diameter and circumference clearly indicates the Earth as a globe, which is consistently confirmed in other passages of the Surya-siddhanta and of the Puranas.

Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 5.21.9, for example, mentions:

yatrodeti tasya ha samāna-sūtra-nipāte nimlocati yatra kvacana syandenābhitapati tasya haiṣa samāna-sūtra-nipāte prasvāpayati tatra gataṁ na paśyanti ye taṁ samanupaśyeran.

“People living in countries at points diametrically opposite to where the sun is first seen rising will see the sun setting, and if a straight line were drawn from a point where the sun is at midday, the people in countries at the opposite end of the line would be experiencing midnight. Similarly, if people residing where the sun is setting were to go to countries diametrically opposite, they would not see the sun in the same condition.”

This describes our practical experience on Earth. When it is midday in Japan, it is midnight in Brazil, which is located on the diametrically opposite side of the globe. If the Earth were flat, the sun would circle overhead, just as it does at the north pole.

We can also see that Prabhupāda consistently identifies the Earth as a globe in his translations and commentaries of the Śrīmad Bhāgavatam. He even instructed his disciples to depict Varāhadeva lifting a spherical Earth from the ocean to illustrate the Śrīmad Bhāgavatam.

As Srila Prabhupada mentions in a morning walk (December 9, 1973, Los Angeles):

“In Vedic literature it is bhu-gola, jagad-anda. These words are there. We can see also it is round, jagad-anda. The universe is round. And Goloka. Or Bhu-gola. Bhū-gola, the earth is round. So in the Vedic literatures... Therefore their knowledge is also imperfect because they do not refer to the Vedic literatures. It is already there. Bhu-gola. Bhu means the earth; gola means round. It is already there. And the geography’s called, according to Sanskrit, it is called Bhu-gola. Long, long ago, before Galileo.”

At the same time, however, there is the description of an extended earth, formed by the collective of all the intermediate planetary systems, called Bhū-Mandala. This is a gigantic flat structure of which the planet Earth is part.

This is not dificult to understand when we take into consideration that the universe described in the Vedas is multidimensional. One can simultaneously live on a flat island, on a spherical planet, and on a flat solar system. In the same way, there is the round Bhu (Bhu-Gola) and the flat Bhu (Bhu-Mandala), and both exist simultaneously. As human beings, we have access only to the gross dimension, and thus we can see only the earthly globe where we live, but higher beings can see more, and their understanding of reality is different from ours. Their view of the Universe is conveyed in books like the Srimad Bhagavatam, and thus, such books of knowledge describe a reality that does not directly correspond to what we can observe using our human senses.

Thus, different levels of reality are described with the same words, and one can pick one or the other according to one’s level of understanding. This is simultaneously one of the most intriguing and one of the most difficult to understand aspects of the Vedic literature.

Another proof that the Earth is not flat is that the orbit of the sun is perceived very differently by the inhabitants of other parts of Bhū-mandala. See SB 5.21.8, for example:

tatratyānāṁ divasa-madhyaṅgata eva sadādityas tapati savyenācalaṁ dakṣiṇena karoti

“The living entities residing on Sumeru Mountain are always very warm, as at midday, because for them the sun is always overhead. Although the sun moves counterclockwise, facing the constellations, with Sumeru Mountain on its left, it also moves clockwise and appears to have the mountain on its right because it is influenced by the dakṣiṇāvarta wind.”

Different from us, the inhabitants of Sumeru Mountain always see the sun circling overhead and always feel its warmth. For them, there is no night, just as expected from a flat structure. If the Earth were flat, it would be the same for us.

It is described that inhabitants of previous ages somehow had access to other parts of Bhū-mandala, but this is not possible for us. As inhabitants of Kali-yuga, all we have access to is our small and blue planet. Just because we can’t see something, however, it does not mean it doesn’t exist. I may not be able to see Kṛṣṇa’s pastimes when I go to Vṛndāvana, but it doesn’t mean they are not happening.

There are thus two cosmological models described in the Vedas: the cosmos of our practical experience, centered around our small planet, and the higher-dimensional universe experienced by demigods and other higher beings, which is centered around Bhū-Mandala, the extended earth, of which our planet is part. Bhū-Mandala is composed of seven concentric islands, separated by concentric oceans. It appears that each of the seven islands is somehow formed by several different planets. Earth, or Bharata-varṣa, comprises the southern part of Jambūdvīpa, separated from the rest by the higher-dimensional Himalayas. Some interpret our planet as not even the whole Bharata-varṣa, but just part of it, since the dimensions given for Bharata-varṣa are much greater than our planet.

Recently, I published another article where I described how Prabhupāda gave us the keys to understand Vedic cosmology. You can read more on his views there.

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We all know about Māyā, the illusory potency of the Lord that makes us attracted to this material world. As long as we are attracted to Māyā, we remain in this material world, chasing different material goals and desires, life after life.

Real as it may appear to us, this world is described in the Vedas as illusory. It has a beginning and an end, different from the spiritual realm that is eternal and immutable. However, how does this material world come to be? We know that the creator is the Lord, but what is the material used in this creation? From what is the material creation made?

Apart from Māyā, the illusory energy, another feature of the external potency of the Lord is pradhāna, the unmanifested, undifferentiated amalgamation of all material elements. Pradhāna is the material energy in its dormant state, with no variety, no activity, and no manifestation of the three material modes. Pradhāna exists beyond the causal ocean, on the material side. Sometimes it is described as being like a cloud on top of the waters, but without touching them.

Lord Kapila describes it on SB 3.26.10: “The unmanifested eternal combination of the three modes is the cause of the manifest state and is called pradhāna. It is called prakṛti when in the manifested stage of existence.”

Prabhupāda gives more details in his purport:

“The Lord points out material nature in its subtle stage, which is called pradhāna, and He analyzes this pradhāna. The explanation of pradhāna and prakṛti is that pradhāna is the subtle, undifferentiated sum total of all material elements. Although they are undifferentiated, one can understand that the total material elements are contained therein. When the total material elements are manifested by the interaction of the three modes of material nature, the manifestation is called prakṛti. Impersonalists say that Brahman is without variegatedness and without differentiation. One may say that pradhāna is the Brahman stage, but actually the Brahman stage is not pradhāna. Pradhāna is distinct from Brahman because in Brahman there is no existence of the material modes of nature. One may argue that the mahat-tattva is also different from pradhāna because in the mahat-tattva there are manifestations. The actual explanation of pradhāna, however, is given here: when the cause and effect are not clearly manifested (avyakta), the reaction of the total elements does not take place, and that stage of material nature is called pradhāna.Pradhāna is not the time element because in the time element there are actions and reactions, creation and annihilation. Nor is it the jīva, or marginal potency of living entities, or designated, conditioned living entities, because the designations of the living entities are not eternal. One adjective used in this connection is nitya, which indicates eternality. Therefore the condition of material nature immediately preceding its manifestation is called pradhāna.”

This pradhāna is agitated by the look of Lord Mahā-Viṣnu, which activates it, leading to the manifestation of the three material modes. The contact with kāla (eternal time) leads to a series of permutations, resulting in the appearance of the material elements. These elements amalgamate with the seeds of the universes that emanate from the breath of Mahā-Viṣnu, resulting in the many material universes in their inactive state.

This process is also described in the Brahma-samhitā:

“The prime divine avatāra lying in the spiritual Causal Ocean is such a great affair that in the pores of His divine form spring up myriads of seeds of the universes. Those series of universes are the perverted reflections of the infinite transcendental region. As long as they remain embedded in His divine form they embody the principle of spiritual reflection having the form of golden eggs. Nevertheless by the creative desire of Mahā-Viṣṇu the minute particles of the great elements, which are constituents of the mundane efficient and material causal principles, envelop them. When those golden sperms, coming out with the exhalation of Mahā-Viṣṇu, enter into the unlimited accommodating chamber of the limited potency (Māyā) they become enlarged by the nonconglomerate great elements.” (Brahma-samhitā 5.13 purport)

The “prime divine avatāra” mentioned here by Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura is Mahā-Viṣnu, lying on the spiritual waters of the causal ocean. He produces the seeds of the material universes, as reflections of the spiritual creation, and these universes are enveloped by the material elements, staying under the influence of Māyā, the illusory potency. Sometimes we think that Mahā-Viṣnu creates the universes already as balls of matter, but this view is not entirely correct. The universes are originally subtle, as reflections of the spiritual creation. They are covered by matter later on, as they move in the direction of the external potency.

These innumerable universes float on top of the causal ocean, just like many balls or bubbles floating on water. Another analogy that is sometimes made is with a board of styrofoam floating on water, since styrofoam is also composed of many small bubbles.

Once pradhāna becomes active (starting with the manifestation of the three material modes), it is called mahat-tattva, or prakṛti. These three words thus describe the same material nature, but in different stages. The word prakṛti is also used as a generic term for the material energy, as a potency of the Lord.

Once creation happens, the cosmic manifestation remains active for 311.04 trillion years, the lifetime of Brahma. When the creation is withdrawn, the souls merge back into the body of Mahā-Viṣnu for a very long sleep during the inactive phase of the material manifestation, and the material energy returns to its original state as pradhāna. In this way, the material energy is never really transformed; it is just assembled into the material manifestation, and later returns to its original state, just like a bar of gold hammered into different objects and later melted back into the original form.

This is described in Prabhupāda’s purport to SB 1.10.21:

“There are two types of dissolution of the manifested cosmos. At the end of every 4,320,000,000 solar years, when Brahmā, the lord of one particular universe, goes to sleep, there is one annihilation. And at the end of Lord Brahmā’s life, which takes place at the end of Brahmā’s one hundred years of age, in our calculation at the end of 8,640,000,000 × 30 × 12 × 100 solar years, there is complete annihilation of the entire universe, and in both the periods both the material energy called the mahat-tattva and the marginal energy called jīva-tattva merge in the person of the Supreme Lord. The living beings remain asleep within the body of the Lord until there is another creation of the material world, and that is the way of the creation, maintenance and annihilation of the material manifestation.
The material creation is effected by the interaction of the three modes of material nature set in action by the Lord, and therefore it is said here that the Lord existed before the modes of material nature were set in motion. In the śruti-mantra it is said that only Viṣṇu, the Supreme Lord, existed before the creation, and there was no Brahmā, Śiva or other demigods. Viṣṇu means the Mahā-Viṣṇu, who is lying on the Causal Ocean. By His breathing only all the universes are generated in seeds and gradually develop into gigantic forms with innumerable planets within each and every universe. The seeds of universes develop into gigantic forms in the way seeds of a banyan tree develop into numberless banyan trees.”

The idea of the jīvas merging into the body of Mahā-Viṣnu may sound strange at first, but it doesn’t mean they lose their identity. It’s just like a fish entering the ocean, or a bird entering a tree. It just describes proximity, and not loss of identity. Prabhupāda explains this point later in the same purport:

“The merging of the living beings into the body of Mahā-Viṣṇu takes place automatically at the end of Brahmā’s one hundred years. But that does not mean that the individual living being loses his identity. The identity is there, and as soon as there is another creation by the supreme will of the Lord, all the sleeping, inactive living beings are again let loose to begin their activities in the continuation of past different spheres of life. It is called suptotthita-nyāya, or awakening from sleep and again engaging in one’s respective continuous duty. When a man is asleep at night, he forgets himself, what he is, what his duty is and everything of his waking state. But as soon as he awakens from slumber, he remembers all that he has to do and thus engages himself again in his prescribed activities. The living beings also remain merged in the body of Mahā-Viṣṇu during the period of annihilation, but as soon as there is another creation they arise to take up their unfinished work. This is also confirmed in the Bhagavad-gītā (8.18-19).”

In this way, we can see that all the components of the material creation are different potencies of the Lord. Mahā-Viṣnu is His expansion, who lies on the causal ocean, which is a feature of His spiritual potency. Both pradhāna and māyā are features of His external potency. The time-energy and the jīvas are also potencies of the Lord, just as Lord Sadaśiva. The material elements and the cosmic manifestation itself are nothing more than the same material energy previously present in the pradhāna after being agitated by the contact with these different potencies.

The material energy is also spiritual in nature, being one of the potencies of the Lord. However, the presence of Māyā, the illusory potency, makes the jīvas see it as separate from the Lord, as an object of their enjoyment. This is what makes the cosmic creation appear material. The material creation is thus illusory, due to the presence of Māyā, but it is not false. The Lord appears inside of it in many different incarnations, but He never comes in contact with the material energy and never falls under the control of Māyā. Because He remains transcendental, He can give liberation to the jīvas who so desire.

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The Vedas give great importance to the syllable Oṁ, which is considered the sound representation of the Lord. All the Vedic mantras start with Oṁ, and this is actually what gives them value. As Prabhupada mentions, “the Vedic mantras or hymns have transcendental value because they are prefixed by the syllable Oṁ” (TLC 20).

The syllable Oṁ is so important that it has even His own symbol in the Devanagari alphabet, ॐ. By the way, Srila Prabhupada insists on referring to Oṁ as “He”, not only using the personal pronoun, but with an uppercase H, indicating that we are not speaking about ordinary sound, but a direct incarnation of the Supreme. Just as Krsna comes as Lord Narasimha, Varāha, etc., He also appears in this world in the form of the sacred syllable Oṁ.

Being the sound incarnation of the Lord, Omkāra is just like a deity of the Lord. Just like we perform ceremonies in front of the deity, or in the presence of the fire (in a fire ceremony), the same functions can be performed by just pronouncing the Omkāra. In Srimad Bhagavatam (9.20.16), for example, it is described how Mahārāja Duṣmanta married Śakuntalā in the forest by just pronouncing the Omkāra. It’s described that this process is also practiced by the Gandharvas in the celestial planets. By pronouncing the Omkāra, one invokes the Supreme Lord to sanctify the marriage, just like when one performs a fire sacrifice.

Although transliterated as “Oṁ”, with just two letters, the sacred syllable ॐ is actually composed of three sounds, “a”, “u”, and “m”. These three sounds have special significance. The first, “a” represents the Supreme Personality of Godhead in His personal aspect, as Krsna or Viṣnu. Different transcendentalists will vibrate the sound meditating in the Supreme according to their level of understanding (yogis will take the Supreme as being the localized Paramātmā, while impersonalists will take it as meaning the impersonal brahman), but it’s important to understand that in the highest aspect, the first of the three sounds addresses the Supreme in His personal aspect. The second sound, “u”, addresses the internal potency of the Lord, which in the highest understanding is personified in the form of Śrīmat Rādhārāṇī. Krsna is never alone; therefore, by “au” we address Krsna and His potency together. Finally, “m” means the living entity, the soul, in his original form as the eternal servitor of the Lord. The highest meaning of the three sounds is to surrender to the Lord in His personal aspect, declaring oneself as an eternal servitor of the Lord. In other words, by pronouncing the Omkāra, a transcendentalist recovers his original, lost position as an eternal associate of the Lord.

This higher understanding of the Omkāra is explained by Srila Prabhupada (TLC 20): “The Vaiṣṇavas interpret Oṁ-kāra, a combination of the letters a, u and m, as follows: The letter a indicates Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the letter u indicates Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī, Kṛṣṇa’s eternal consort, and the letter m indicates the living entity, the eternal servitor of the Supreme Lord.”

In this way, the Omkāra is non-different from the mantra Hare Krsna. The meaning and the result of both mantras are the same, as Srila Prabhupada explains in the same purport: “The sound representation or name of the Supreme Lord is as good as the Supreme Lord Himself. By vibrating such sounds as Oṁ-kāra or Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare/ Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare, one can be delivered from the contamination of this material world. Because such vibrations of transcendental sound can deliver a conditioned soul, they are known as tāraka-mantras.” The main difference is that the Omkāra is a Vedic mantra that can be chanted only by people who are dully initiated in the Vedic tradition, while the Mahā-Mantra Hare Krsna can be chanted by anyone by the mercy of Sri Caitanya Mahāprabhu. In this way, the chanting of Hare Krsna replaced the chanting of the Omkāra in the age we live in, although both mantras were originally equally powerful.

The Nārada Pancaratra says that “When the transcendental sound is vibrated by a conditioned soul, the Supreme Lord is present on his tongue.” and the Māṇḍūkya Upaniṣad confirms that when the Omkāra is chanted, one attains perfect spiritual vision.

Mayavadis don’t accept the Omkāra as a sound representation of the Supreme, classifying it instead as just a material symbol. This comes all the way from Śrīpāda Śaṅkarācārya, who replaced the Omkāra with the mantra “tat tvam asi” as the main mantra in his sect. Sankara explains about the supreme ātma, the impersonal Brahman, and then quotes the mantra “tat tvam asi” from the Chāndogya Upaniṣad (6.8.7). Tat tvam asi can be translated as “you are that”, which in Sankara’s imaginary explanation indicates our identity as part of the Supreme Brahman. Mayavadi gurus in the West frequently translate it as “I’m god”, and teach their disciples to repeat this “mantra” as a means of self-realization. That was the mantra a popular guru was selling to his followers in the 1970s.

As Prabhupada mentions: “ The principal word in the Vedas – praṇava, or Oṁ-kāra – is the sound representation of the Supreme Lord. Therefore Oṁ-kāra should be considered the supreme sound. But Śaṅkarācārya has falsely preached that the phrase tat tvam asi is the supreme vibration. Oṁ-kāra is the reservoir of all the energies of the Supreme Lord. Śaṅkara is wrong in maintaining that tat tvam asi is the supreme vibration of the Vedas, for tat tvam asi is only a secondary vibration.”

We know that Śrīpāda Śaṅkarācārya was an incarnation of Lord Śiva, but he received the mission of teaching Māyāvāda philosophy in order to cheat the Buddhists in India, bringing them back to the study of the Vedas, paving thus the way for Vaishnava ācāryas like Madhvācārya, Rāmānujācārya, etc. to gradually reestablish the proper conclusion of the Vedas, which at the time had been completely lost. However, because the Mayavadis are offenders, Śaṅkarācārya didn’t tell them to chant the Omkāra or any other holy names, giving them instead an imaginary mantra.

Vaiṣnavas, however, properly understand the meaning and the potency of the Omkāra, and we continuously chant Him in the form of the Mahā-Mantra Hare Krsna.

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One of the topics discussed in the Srimad Bhagavatam is the topic of primary and secondary creations. This may sound quite complicated, especially taking into consideration that the explanations are spread through different descriptions in different cantos. How can we understand it?

The primary creation is done by Lord Mahā-Viṣnu, who creates everything that will exist in the numerous universes in a subtle form (like a project or an idea). Later, Brahma is inspired from the heart to give physical forms to this project, performing the secondary creation. As he himself mentions in SB 2.5.17: “Inspired by Him only, I discover what is already created by Him [Nārāyaṇa] under His vision as the all-pervading Supersoul, and I also am created by Him only.”

This happens much like most contemporary constructions and products, which exist first in a subtle form (a project) and later are manifested in a gross form when finally built. Similarly, the ideas and desires stored in our minds are the basis for the gross forms and experiences that will be experienced in our future lives.

When Lord Mahā-Viṣnu performs the primary creation, he creates all possible forms and experiences that exist in the material universes. During the secondary creation, Brahma creates a number of different levels of existence that correspond to the different levels of consciousness of the different living entities. There are thus 14 levels of planetary systems, subdivided into millions of planets and stars, each one containing an enormous volume of forms and experiences. According to our consciousness, we take birth into one of these places, the one corresponding to our current level, and there we perform our small role in the creation, manipulating different material objects and interacting with other living entities.

When an engineer desires to design a plane, for example, the Lord reveals to him, from inside his heart, the knowledge necessary to build it. The engineer may thus take the credit for it, but in reality, the plane was conceived by the Lord long before. In truth, everything that exists inside the universe is the manifestation of ideas previously conceived by the Lord. As different living beings desire these things, the Lord gives the knowledge from the heart so they can satisfy their desires.

The description of the creation of the universe given in the Srimad Bhagavatam (starting from the creation of material elements) gives us an idea of the work necessary for creating the environment we live in. It also helps us to better understand the nature of this world and gradually become free from it.

Srila Prabhupada frequently explains in his teachings that life in this material world is just like a dream. We spend time in this dream thinking that we are a man or a woman, that we have this or that position, and so on, but because none of it is true in the ultimate sense, we need to leave these positions in due time, just like someone awakening from a dream. This, however, should not be misunderstood.

Like all analogies, the comparison of material life and a dream offers many similarities with reality, but like all analogies, it doesn’t represent all the intricacies of the subject being discussed. We should thus take the main meaning, which is the temporary nature and illusion of our current situation, and not start believing that we are literally living inside a dream and that everything around us doesn’t exist.

A dream is illusory in essence, but it is not false. It is real in the sense that someone is experiencing it, but at the same time, it is illusory in nature, since in the dream, we forget our real identity and become absorbed in imaginary situations. A dream is thus not false, but it is illusory and based on the forgetfulness of our real identity.

Similarly, this whole material manifestation is not false. We are here experiencing it, as are all the people around us. Things are really happening. It is compared to a dream because we become forgetful of our real nature and become absorbed in the different temporary roles we play here.

Because they are not connected with our eternal nature, all the roles we play in this material world are temporary. We play for some time, but eventually, we are forced to leave, and this is called death. After that, if one is still not ready to accept their real nature, a new temporary role is accepted, which we call birth.

The Srimad Bhagavatam describes not only the illusory nature of reality in this material world but also explains how this “dream” or “virtual reality” is created.

In the teaching of Lord Kapila (3.26.34), it’s mentioned that: “The activities and characteristics of the ethereal element can be observed as the accommodation of room for the external and internal existences of all living entities, namely the field of activities of the vital air, the senses and the mind.”

In his purport to this verse, Srila Prabhupada mentions that this verse could become the basis for great scientific research because it deals with the creation of reality from the ether.

According to the Vedas, there are five material elements: earth, water, air, fire, and ether. The “ether” mentioned in the Vedas is not connected with the disproven theory of the luminiferous ether from past centuries, nor is it just a vacuum, like in space. The Vedic conception of ether is a subtle element that serves as a fabric for all the other gross manifestations through the interaction with the mind, intelligence, and false ego. In other words, the reality in which each and every conditioned soul lives is created from his own consciousness.

The subtle elements (the mind, intelligence, and false ego, as well as all desires, ideas, and so on) are created from the ether, and from the further interaction of these subtle elements with the ether, gross elements (earth, water, air, and fire), as well as all physical manifestations are created. As previously discussed, everything that exists starts in the form of an idea, created as part of the primary creation by Mahā-Viṣnu. As different souls desire to create different objects and go through different experiences, the knowledge about all these creations is revealed to them from inside the heart and they use this knowledge to create the material forms and objects they desire. In other words, the ideas and desires stored in our minds are the basis for the gross forms and experiences that will be experienced in our future lives.

We should remember that when Lord Mahā-Viṣnu performs the primary creation, he creates all possible forms and experiences that exist in the material universe. During the secondary creation, Brahma creates a number of different levels of existence that correspond to the different levels of consciousness of the different living entities. There are thus 14 levels of planetary systems, subdivided into millions of planets and stars, corresponding to different levels of consciousness of the different living entities who populate the universe. Each of these planets and stars contains an enormous volume of forms and experiences. According to the level of our consciousness, we take birth into one of these places and we perform our small role in the creation, manipulating the different material objects and interacting with other living entities.

This corroborates what Krsna says in the Bhagavad-gītā when He explains that one’s mental situation at death is the basis for his next birth. Srila Prabhupada explains that mental existence transforms into tangible form as soon as there is an opportunity. In other words, all the desires stored in the mind serve as the basis for the development of a new body, which will lead to a new birth in a situation that will allow the soul to act upon such desires.

By carefully studying these teachings, we can understand the ephemeral (although not false) nature of this world and how our reality is created from our consciousness, through the interactions of the subtle elements with the ether. Just as a material consciousness creates a material body and numerous material objects and experiences, a spiritual consciousness fixed in service to Krsna leads us to the spiritual, eternal reality.

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When we create something, we use materials and tools that are available. When we build a house, for example, we buy bricks and other construction materials and just do the work of construction. Even if one does everything from zero, making also the bricks and everything else himself, still one takes materials from the ground, such as clay.

However, when Krsna created the material universe, He was alone; nothing else existed. How then could He create it, without using any tool or construction material apart from Himself?

First of all, the Lord possesses unlimited potencies. That’s the first point in understanding how He can create something apparently out of nothing, and understand how exactly He did it.

Krsna has many different potencies, which are all part of Himself. Here is nothing separate from Krsna, and thus, when Krsna desires to create something, He does it using some of His potencies, which are not different from Himself. He is thus the creator and also the ingredient, just as a spider creates its web from its own silk.

These potencies are grouped into three groups: the internal potency (antarangā-śakti), which includes all the spiritual planets, pastimes, and paraphernalia, the external potency, or material nature (bahiranga-śakti), and the marginal potency (taṭasthā-śakti), which are the individual souls, who are free to take shelter on one or the other.

All the spiritual planets, as well as the Brahman refulgence and so on, are part of the spiritual potency. Everything there is eternal, blissful, and full of knowledge. There is no creation, no destruction, and no ignorance there. All the individual souls are originally part of this internal potency, but we can come in contact with the external potency due to free will. The external potency includes both matter and Māyā, the illusory potency, which makes the souls identify with it. Māyā can cover the individual souls who choose to forget their eternal relationship with Krsna, but the Lord is always transcendental to it, and she remains always under His complete control. The function of māyā is to create an alternate, illusory world, where the forgotten jīvas can play.

The causal ocean

After the spiritual realm, there is the causal ocean (kāraṇodaka), the abode of Lord Mahā-Viṣnu, which, although also spiritual, represents the very border between the spiritual world and the material creation. Lord Vāmanadeva created a crack in the coverings of the universe when He kicked it, allowing this spiritual water to enter the universe in the form of the river Ganges.

The causal ocean is sometimes compared to a cloud that “covers” part of the spiritual sky. In this analogy, the impersonal Brahmajyoti, the light that emanates from Krsna’s body and all spiritual planets, is like sunshine, which engulfs the whole transcendental realm, and the causal ocean is like a rain cloud that covers a small part of it. Lord Mahā-Viṣnu lies on this ocean (or cloud), absorbed in His yoga-nidrā, or mystic slumber. However, His “sleep” is not a state of unconsciousness like ours, but a mystic state where He associates with His internal potency. Therefore, even while “sleeping”, He casts His glance over the external potency and produces the whole material creation.

The causal ocean is also described as the virajā river, giving the idea of a border between the spiritual and material realms. In the metaphor, one of the banks represents the spiritual world, and the other the material energy, the external potency of the Lord.

Prabhupada explains: “Virajā is a river that divides the material world from the spiritual world. On one side of the river Virajā is the effulgence of Brahmaloka and innumerable Vaikuṇṭha planets, and on the other side is this material world. It is to be understood that this side of the Virajā River is filled with material planets floating in the Causal Ocean. The name Virajā indicates a marginal position between the spiritual and material worlds, but the Virajā River is not under the control of the material energy. Consequently, it is devoid of the three guṇas.” (CC Madhya 15.172 purport)

The process of creation

From our point of view, there are many planetary systems beyond our planet, including Bhuvarloka, Svargaloka, Maharloka, Janaloka, Tapoloka, and Brahmaloka, which are progressively larger and more distant. After all these different planetary systems, there are the seven coverings of the universe, each one ten times larger than the previous. Beyond the last covering is the causal ocean, which is inconceivably large. Beyond the causal ocean is the impersonal Brahmajyoti, and beyond it are the Vaikuṇṭha planets and Goloka Vṛndāvana.

As explained in the Brahma-samhitā, the Lord does not come in direct contact with the illusory potency, which lies beyond the borders of the causal ocean. The work of creation is performed by the mere look of Lord Mahā-Viṣnu, who inseminates the material energy with the time-energy (kāla), Śambhu, and the jīvas who desire to participate in the material creation.

The look of Lord Mahā-Viṣnu is personified in the form of Lord Sadaśiva, who associates with the material nature and becomes the father of all living entities. Because of this association with the material energy, Lord Śiva is compared to yogurt, which is nothing but milk, but can’t be used in the place of milk. Lord Sadaśiva is originally Viṣnu-tattva, and has his eternal abode on the spiritual side, where he eternally glorifies the Lord. However, when he comes in contact with the material energy and expands himself in the numerous Śivas inside each material universe, part of his qualities are covered.

Apart from Māyā, another feature of the external potency is pradhāna, the unmanifested, undifferentiated amalgamation of all material elements, which remains dissolved in perfect equilibrium. Pradhāna is the material energy in its dormant state, with no variety, no activity, and no manifestation of the three material modes. Pradhāna exists beyond the causal ocean, on the material side. Sometimes it is described as being on top of the waters, but without touching them.

This pradhāna is agitated by the look of Lord Mahā-Viṣnu, which activates it, leading to the manifestation of the three material modes. The contact with kāla (eternal time) leads to a series of permutations, resulting in the appearance of the material elements. These elements amalgamate with the seeds of the universes that emanate from the breath of Mahā-Viṣnu, resulting in the many material universes in their inactive state.

These innumerable universes float on top of the causal ocean, just like many balls or bubbles floating on water. Another analogy that is sometimes made is with a board of styrofoam floating on water, since styrofoam is also composed of many small bubbles.

Once pradhāna becomes active (starting with the manifestation of the three material modes), it is called mahat-tattva, or prakṛti. These three words thus describe the same material nature, but in different stages. The word prakṛti is also used as a generic term for the material energy, as a potency of the Lord.

To activate the material universes, Mahā-Viṣnu enters each of them as Garbhodakaśāyī-Viṣnu, who in turn expands as Kṣīrodakaśāyī-Viṣnu (Paramātmā), powering the whole cosmic manifestation and acting as the source of all incarnations that appear in each particular universe. As explained by Lord Kapila in the third canto of Srimad-Bhagavatam, the Lord becomes present as Garbhodakaśāyī-Viṣnu and Kṣīrodakaśāyī-Viṣnu inside of each universe as a reflection, and not directly. In this way, the principle that the Lord never associates with the material energy remains valid.

Once creation happens, the cosmic manifestation remains active for 311.04 trillion years, the lifetime of Brahma. When the creation is withdrawn, the souls merge back into the body of Mahā-Viṣnu for a very long sleep during the inactive phase of the material manifestation, and the material energy returns to its original state as pradhāna. In this way, the material energy is never really transformed; it is just assembled into the material manifestation, and later returns to its original state, just like a bar of gold hammered into different objects and later melted back into the original form.

Merging into Mahā-Viṣnu

The idea of the jīvas merging into the body of Mahā-Viṣnu may sound strange at first, but it doesn’t mean they lose their identity. It’s just like a fish entering the ocean, or a bird entering a tree. It just describes proximity, and not loss of identity. Prabhupada explains this point later in the same purport:

“The merging of the living beings into the body of Mahā-Viṣṇu takes place automatically at the end of Brahmā’s one hundred years. But that does not mean that the individual living being loses his identity. The identity is there, and as soon as there is another creation by the supreme will of the Lord, all the sleeping, inactive living beings are again let loose to begin their activities in the continuation of past different spheres of life. It is called suptotthita-nyāya, or awakening from sleep and again engaging in one’s respective continuous duty. When a man is asleep at night, he forgets himself, what he is, what his duty is and everything of his waking state. But as soon as he awakens from slumber, he remembers all that he has to do and thus engages himself again in his prescribed activities. The living beings also remain merged in the body of Mahā-Viṣṇu during the period of annihilation, but as soon as there is another creation they arise to take up their unfinished work. This is also confirmed in the Bhagavad-gītā (8.18-19).”

In this way, we can see that all the components of the material creation are different potencies of the Lord. Mahā-Viṣnu is His expansion, who lies on the causal ocean, which is a feature of His spiritual potency. Both pradhāna and māyā are features of His external potency. The time-energy and the jīvas are also potencies of the Lord, just as Lord Sadaśiva. The material elements and the cosmic manifestation itself are nothing more than the same material energy previously present in the pradhāna after being agitated by the contact with these different potencies.

The material energy is also spiritual in nature, being one of the potencies of the Lord. However, the presence of Māyā, the illusory potency, makes the jīvas see it as separate from the Lord, as an object of their enjoyment. This is what makes the cosmic creation appear material. The material creation is thus illusory, due to the presence of Māyā, but it is not false. The Lord appears inside of it in many different incarnations, but He never comes in contact with the material energy and never falls under the control of Māyā. Because He remains transcendental, He can give liberation to the jīvas who desire to be reinstated in their original position of service to the Lord.

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Apart from small units of time, used to measure the time of human beings, the Vedas also describe larger cycles of time, which measure the duration of time of inhabitants of higher planetary systems, many of whom live for many kalpas. This passage of the Srimad Bhagavatam starts with the inquiry of Vidura:

“Vidura said: I now understand the life durations of the residents of the Pitā planets and heavenly planets as well as that of the human beings. Now kindly inform me of the durations of life of those greatly learned living entities who are beyond the range of a kalpa.” (SB 3.11.16)

The Divya-yuga

Satya-yuga lasts for 4,800 celestial years. Each celestial year corresponds to 360 years of our time, and therefore Satya-yuga lasts for a total of 1,728,000 years. During this period, there is a gradual decline in the level of consciousness, which in time leads humanity to the second age in the cycle: Treta-Yuga, or the Silver Age.

During this period, people become interested in economic development. Agriculture becomes very prominent, and society is divided into different classes, with pious kings watching over the well-being of the general population. Most people in this age are still quite pious, and their level of consciousness is sufficient to award them bodies capable of living up to 10,000 years. The preferred method of self-realization in this age is the performance of elaborate Vedic sacrifices.

Treta-yuga lasts for 3,600 celestial years, or 1,296,000 years of our time. Again, there is a gradual deterioration and low qualities become more prominent, leading humanity to the third age: Dvapara-yuga, or the Bronze Age. In this age, about half of humanity is dominated by lust, greed, and other similar qualities. At the start of Dvapara-yuga, people live for 1,000 years, but life expectancy diminishes gradually and by the end of the period is close to 100 years.

Dvapara-yuga lasts for 2,400 celestial years, or 864,000 years of Bhu-Mandala. It’s followed by Kali-yuga, the last era of the cycle, the era we are currently living. According to astronomical calculations, this age started at 3012 BCE, exactly at the time Krsna left this world. The Surya Siddhanta describes a particularly inauspicious alignment of planets that happened at the start of this era. Modern calculations confirm this alignment happened at the described time.

During Kali-yuga, humanity slowly degrades, as beings from the lower realms get the opportunity to take birth on our planet to accumulate a new set of Karma. This is also the shortest of the four eras, lasting for just 1,200 celestial years, or 432,000 years of Bhu-Mandala.

It’s narrated that by the end of this period, the avatara Kalki comes. He destroys the oppressive kings and soldiers who, by that tim,e will be no more than plunderers of the poor citizens, and creates the conditions for the beginning of a new cycle. Under the guidance of great sages from previous ages who wait for the end of Kali-yuga in Badarikāśrama, humanity is restored to its original state, and a new Satya-yuga starts, marking the beginning of a new cycle.

The cycles of Satya-yuga, Treta-yuga, Dvapara-yuga, and Kali-yuga go on cyclically like the seasons of the year. Each complete cycle of four eras is called Divya-yuga, and it lasts for a total of 12,000 celestial years or 4.32 million years of Bhu-Mandala. It may seem like a very long period, but it’s just a moment in the cosmic scale of time. It’s described that the inhabitants of Swargaloka live for 10,000 celestial years (3.6 million years). From there, we can see that not only the living standard but also the perception of time on different planets of the cosmos differ. What’s almost a complete universal cycle for us is just a lifetime for them.

One year in Bhu-Mandala (the intermediate planetary system) equals one day for the demigods. Therefore, one year for the demigods equals 360 years in Bhu-Mandala. Satya-yuga lasts for 4,800 years for the demigods, Tretā-yuga for 3,600 years, Dvāpara-yuga 2,400 years, and Kali-yuga for 1,200 years. Thus, a Divya-yuga, or one complete cycle of four yugas, lasts for 12,000 years of the demigods, or 4,320,000 years in Bhu-Mandala.

The manvantara cycles

With this, we come to the Manvantara, which is the cycle that more directly affects the demigods.

A Manvantara is composed of 71 Divya-yugas and lasts for a total of 852,000 celestial years or 306,720,000 years of Bhu-Mandala. The events at the end of a Manvantara are much more dramatic than the events at the end of Kali-yuga, resonating all over the cosmos.

All the Devas, led by Manu, stay in their posts for the period of a single Manvantara. When the period is concluded, they are promoted to Maharloka and a new Manu, as well as a new generation of demigods, take their places. During this time, there are many disturbances in the universe, and it takes some time until things get back on track. During this period, life on most planets ceases almost completely, and everything starts again with the advent of a new Manu, who receives the mission of repopulating the universe with all the different species of life. This period of transition is called Manvantara-sandhya, and it lasts for 1.728 million years.

71 Divya-yugas, or complete cycles of four yugas, form a Manvantara (306,720,000 years, or 852,000 years of the demigods), and 14 Manvantaras, together with their Sandhyas form a day of Brahma (4.32 billion years). The same is the duration of his night.

1 Divya-yuga (set of 4 yugas) = 4.32 million years (12,000 celestial years)

1 Manvantara (71 Divya-yugas) = 306.72 million years (or 852,000 celestial years)

1 Kalpa (a day of Brahma) = 4.32 billion years

360 of such days and nights form one of his years, and 50 of such years form a Parardha. Brahma lives for two of such parardhas and thus his life is divided into two halves. As mentioned in SB 3.11.34: “The one hundred years of Brahmā’s life are divided into two parts, the first half and the second half. The first half of the duration of Brahmā’s life is already over, and the second half is now current.”

With this, we enter into the really large units of time:

2 Kalpas (a day and night of Brahma) = 8.64 billion years

1 Parardha (50 years for Brahma) = 155,52 trillion years

2 Parardhas = 1 Maha-kalpa (311,04 trillion years)

1 Maha-kalpa (a life of Brahma) = 1 mimesa for Lord Maha-Vishnu

The total duration of the life of Brahma equals just one mimesa (about half a second) for Lord Maha-Vishnu, which gives us an idea of the insignificance of our limited lifespans in this material world. One could use these formulas to calculate the length of the ksanas, kasthas, laghus, and daṇḍas of Maha-Vishnu, but I believe what we saw up to here already makes the point.

Similarly, our universe is covered by seven layers (earth, water, fire, air, ether, mahat-tattva, and false ego). The first layer has 10 times the diameter of the universe itself, and each successive layer has 10 times the diameter of the preceding layer. All the universes clustered together appear like atoms in a huge combination that are constantly created and destroyed, following the cycles of exhalation and inhalation of Maha-Vishnu. Thus, not only do we live for an insignificant amount of time, but we are also incredibly small on the universal scale.

The life of Brahma

Just like us, Brahma lives for 100 years. The difference is that his years are a little longer than ours.

The life of Brahma is divided into two halves, or parardhas. The first half is already over, and now we are in the second half. The first day of the life of Brahma was called Brāhma-kalpa (the millennium Brahma appeared), and the second Pādma-kalpa (the millennium the first creation happened). The current millennium is called the Vārāha millennium (because that’s the millennium Lord Varaha appears) or Pādma-kalpa (because in this millennium a new creation takes place following the complete destruction at the end of the first half of the life of Brahma). The whole life of Brahma equals just one nimeṣa (half a second) for Lord Maha-Vishnu.

Although time controls everything that is material, time is under the complete control of the Lord. Similarly, time controls everyone who is under the body’s conception of life, from lower animals to demigods, but it doesn’t control pure devotees of the Lord, who live in the transcendental platform.

The size of the universe

“This phenomenal material world is expanded to a diameter of four billion miles, as a combination of eight material elements transformed into sixteen further categories, within and without, as follows.

The layers or elements covering the universes are each ten times thicker than the one before, and all the universes clustered together appear like atoms in a huge combination.” (SB 10.11.40-41)

Bhu-mandala, the early planetary system, is just four billion miles in diameter, a size that is similar in scale to the size of our solar system according to modern astronomy. We can’t access the other parts of Bhu-mandala because these realms exist in higher dimensions, but it is described that qualified human beings from previous ages were able to access the different realms that comprise it. However, when we speak about going up, to the higher planetary systems, the trip can’t be completed by just traveling in the physical plane: it demands a change of consciousness. Only someone who has a level of consciousness similar to the demigods and great sages can visit their planetary systems. It is described that Arjuna could visit the celestial planets and even go all the way to the causal ocean together with Krsna. We can understand that it was possible because Arjuna is a pure devotee, but for general people, this is not possible.

Apart from the universe created by Brahma, our universe also includes the coverings of elemental earth, water, air, fire, sky, ego, and mahat-tattva. Each covering is ten times larger than the previous. According to the measurements given in the Puranas, the coverings extend to a scale similar to what in modern astronomy is calculated as the size of our galaxy, but due to the multidimensional nature of the Vedic universe, it may extend much further than this, covering all the observable universe and beyond.

Because it demands a shift in consciousness, the distance to the higher planets when calculated in terms of physical distance becomes practically infinitely big. Our universe is simultaneously relatively small (the four billion miles of Bhu-Mandala) and infinitely big, including all the different stars and galaxies we see in the sky. All of this, however, is not the complete material manifestation. There are millions of other universes, clustered together like atoms.

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