Thoughts on Hinduism & Buddhism

[Alexander]

A reflection I wrote on these two religions for a course I am taking that I thought might be worth sharing

Hinduism

One of the most august and ancient religions is Hinduism. The name itself is a western term. The Indians themselves call their faith “Sanatana Dharma,” which translates as something like “the eternal religion” or “the eternal truth.” The word “Hindu” in English is derived from the Iranian word for the Indus River (ie, the route by which most visitors to the subcontinent would have traveled), with Hinduism thus meaning in our language “the religion of the Indians.”

For westerners, Hinduism represents an utterly different approach to faith compared to our own history. In Europe (and the Middle East), religions were innately intolerant and struggled with one another for supremacy. Heretics and disbelievers were punished and there was an expectation of conformity of belief. For someone coming from this background, the religious pluralism and openness to different beliefs native to India is a dramatic change.

Hinduism is usually explained as polytheistic, though this is not entirely accurate. Interviewing an Indian family tends to result in them identifying a preferred deity - for instance Vishnu, Ganesh, Shakti, or Shiva - and explaining their devotion to him (or, in the case of Shakti, her). In practice this means their chosen god becomes a vehicle of monotheism. Shiva, for instance, is sometimes portrayed as “Mahadeva,” the supreme divine.

At the same time, this is not entirely accurate. (This flexibility is a big part of Indian belief.) Another articulation explains the gods as the individual expressions of a universal “brahman.” Brahman (not to be confused with the creator god Brahma, or a member of the learned class, brahmin) is the impersonal absolute that is the origin of the cosmos. In this model, the gods emanate or derive from brahman, similar to how the angels derive from God in western cosmology.

Modern Indian belief is believed to derive from Bronze Age traditions, making it one of the most ancient world religions alongside Judaism. Historically, the Indo-Europeans (also known as “Aryans”) invaded the subcontinent from the west. Likely taking control by force, there followed a deep cultural exchange between the invaders and the natives of India. It is from the invaders that the Sanskrit language was derived. It is also believed that the invaders introduced the caste system (perhaps a way of keeping their ethnicity in positions of power) along with one of the principal Indian deities, Indra (who is believed to have later evolved into the modern day Shiva).

Scholars of Hinduism usually start by explaining the trimurti, or trinity, of the three chief gods of India - Vishnu the maintainer, Brahma the creator, and Shiva the destroyer. However, this division is not an accurate reflection of daily practices. In India the most worshiped god is Vishnu, followed by Shiva, followed by Shakti. After this proceed a litany of other gods, including Ganesh, Kartikeya, and Lakshmi. Brahma is usually not worshiped at all.

Complicating Indian religion is the fact that each god comes in multiple forms. For example, Shiva’s consort Shakti also comes in the forms Kali (destructive form) and Parvati (calm form). Shiva himself comes in the forms of Nataraja (the cosmic dancer), Kala (the black destroyer), and Bholenath (the god of simplicity). Each god embodies different aspects of human psychology and cosmic principles; thus studying the gods becomes a tool for developing self-knowledge.

Essential beliefs

As stated before, Indian religion is characterized by its pluralism. There are a vast number of sects and a vast number of religious interpretations. A famous quote is that in India “there are as many sects as there are gods.” The overall tendency is toward diversity of belief (though the subcontinent does at times manifest religious intolerance and persecution the same as elsewhere).

Despite its breadth, Indian religion has a few strong consistencies. Indian religion tends to believe in the following.

“Life is suffering”
This line - actually from Buddhism - represents the starting point of the Indian worldview. Indian religion tends to define human life as characterized by the confrontation with the “three divine messengers,” the forces of old age, sickness, and death.

Because of this, commenters sometimes describe Indian religion as cynical: as focusing too much on the negative side of human life. At the same time, deeper investigation reveals this is simply the beginning; the whole focus on Indian religion is on reacting to and overcoming this negative reality.

Karma
This is the idea that good acts are rewarded and evil acts are punished. It is one of the pillars of Indian belief. For example, it is believed that the charitable are rewarded with wealth, while thieves are punished with poverty. Meanwhile the pacific are rewarded with long life, while murderers are punished with physical injury, short lifespan, or disability.

Karma is complicated by the delay that is believed to occur before the fruits of actions are wrought. It is further complicated by the intersection of the idea with reincarnation.

Karma is believed to ultimately originate from a divine Unity. If all beings are ultimately One, and it is only illusion (Maya) that conceals this, then it would follow that injury to another is actually self-injury, and help to another is actually self-help. The idea of a divine Oneness would thus be the basis of karma, and our experiences in the world would represent an exercise in us re-learning our essential unity.

Reincarnation
Reincarnation is the belief that an underlying self, called atman, is compelled to return existence after existence in an eternal chain. In India, it is believed one can reincarnate as various forms. These are usually explained as being the states of a human, animal, demon, ghost, and god.

One’s karma is believed to be the origin of one’s reincarnation in all these states. For example, a virtuous individual is believed to reincarnate as a brahmin. An unvirtuous person is believed to reincarnate as someone in poverty (an untouchable). Those of especial merit may join the gods and rise to the state of the devas on death. Meanwhile, those guilty of crimes such as theft, adultery, or fraud may find themselves among the lower states of being, forced to return as an animal, ghost, or asura (demon).

The idea of reincarnation is interwoven with the idea of samsara. Samsara is usually portrayed in art as a wheel. Samsara is a kind of prison one cannot escape from. Due to one’s nature, one is continually bound to form, forced to return and suffer repeatedly, whether one wishes to or not.

Moksha
Moksha is the idea that it is possible to free oneself from the forces of karma and reincarnation; that it is possible to break the cycle of eternal return and reunite with the divine. Moksha is usually described as a state of liberation, bliss, and immortality, and as the ultimate end of the spiritual quest.

One who has obtained moksha is called “enlightened.” An “enlightened” person is said to be in a state which is incomprehensible to the human mind. In this state, the individual’s atman, or personal soul, is in a state of unity with brahman, the universal soul. This state is usually described as distinct from heaven (ie, the world of the gods). It is believed that in this state one loses a conventional sense of selfhood or individuality.

Yoga
In the west, yoga is associated with the physical exercises (asanas), but in Hinduism it is the mystical life-path by which one seeks union with the divine. The word itself means “to yoke” or “to join,” ie, to unite oneself with the sacred.

The practice of it is described in detail by Patanjali in the Yoga Sutras. To walk the path of yoga, a yogi must amass wisdom, follow ethical prescriptions, and meditate to a state of absorption.

The Yoga Sutras are written in an aphoristic and terse style. Despite this, the lines are carefully constructed and appear to be intended for the reader to unpack them to derive their full meaning. Consequently, publishers of the Yoga Sutras usually include long commentaries (the verses themselves are fairly short) where the meaning of each Sanskrit term is defined and the multiple interpretations of each verse are examined.

The specific tenets of the Yoga Sutras are the following.
1. To practice tapas or asceticism; ie, abstaining from sense-pleasures for a spiritual end.
2. Self-examination and the study of the scriptures.
3. Devotion to the divine.
4. Ethical observances; actively doing the right thing.
5. Ethical abstentions; avoiding doing the wrong thing.
6. Asanas, physical exercises; the yoga postures used to keep the body fit, enabling it to sit for long periods in stillness.
7. Pranayama, breath control; believed to facilitate the transfer of energy in the body.
8. Pratyahara, withdrawing the senses from their engagement with sense-objects.
9. Dharana, applying and sustaining the attention (in other words, the first stage of meditation).
10. Dhyana, meditation; achieving a state of stillness.
11. Samadhi, the religious experience; the direct experience of the divine.

Patanjali places particular emphasis on samadhi, the altered states of consciousness produced by meditation. This is explained as a state of nonduality, in which the difference between subject and object - “I” and “you” - vanishes.

Other Elements of Indian Religion

Indian religion is vast and contains many additional elements. Before continuing, we can examine some of these.

Purusartha
Indian civilization has the teaching of the Purusartha, or four goals of life. These are (1) duty, (2) wealth, (3) pleasure, and (4) liberation. This idea shows a worldview that understands the material as well as the spiritual needs of man, and that accepts the diversity of life-paths pursued by individuals.

Indian society usually teaches a set of life stages that derive from the Purusartha. As one ages, one passes through the following.
1. In youth one is a student (brahmacharya). Here one lives with one’s parents, studies in school, learns the scriptures, and observes chastity.
2. In adulthood one becomes a householder (grhastha), taking a spouse and raising a family of one’s own. During this stage, one pursues a trade and dedicates oneself to materialistic ends.
3. One ends one’s life as a renunciate (sannyasin), a spiritual ascetic. In old age, one’s children have reached maturity and formed households of their own. One retreats to the forest or an ashram and studies spiritual topics in the anticipation of death.

Bhagavad Gita
No discussion of Indian religion would be complete without a reference to the subcontinent’s central text - and greatest cultural production - the Bhagavad Gita or “Song of the Lord.” This work is a part of the larger epic, the Mahabharata or “Great Epic of India.”

In the Bhagavad Gita, two warriors (Krishna and Arjuna) discuss philosophy and the meaning of life before they leave to fight in a battle. In their conversation, they discuss death, karma, reincarnation, consciousness, and the soul. In the work, Arjuna represents the everyman, the average person. Krishna meanwhile is an avatar (incarnation) of the god Vishnu, an all-knowing teacher in the text who works to teach the “eternal dharma” to mankind. The concepts taught by Krishna are consistent with those described above.

Gurus
Indian culture embraces the idea of the spiritual teacher, or guru. A seeker or sannyasin who embarks on the spiritual quest is recommended to find a mentor. Over the years, many westerners have traveled to India in the imitation of this ancient practice. The guru takes the student under his discipline and communicates “revealed knowledge” to him. Through religious initiation by the guru, the student progresses to self-realization.

Mantras
The repetition of mantras is an important Indian religious practice. A mantra is similar to the prayers or hymns of Abrahamic faith: they are usually dense, brief verses which one repeats in devotion to a deity or an idea. It is believed a mantra can bring favor on an individual or help them achieve a desired goal.

Bhakti
Devotional religion in India is usually referred to as bhakti. This is a practice by which Hindus dedicate themselves to a deity to develop a personal relationship with the divine. This is similar to what is observed in some Christian practices (ie, a monk’s development of a personal relationship with Christ). The anthropomorphization of the divine allows the aspirant to reflect on the spiritual nature of the world. Devotional practice can include songs, prayers, and libations.

Chakras
A final tenet of Indian religion that we might mention is that of the chakras. The word chakra means “wheel” and refers to a series of “energy centers” in the body. These invisible centers are believed to facilitate the connection between the physical and the nonphysical. The chakras are identified as the base (root), navel, solar plexus, heart, throat, third eye, and crown. These centers are said to facilitate the transfer of energy (prana) through the body.

Some schools of yoga focus on the chakras and dedicate themselves to the raising of energy through them. The energy described in this context is sometimes referred to as kundalini or shakti. Yogis dedicated to this practice claim that when raised, this energy results in the induction of ecstatic or transcendent experiences.

Buddhism

Buddhism originated in upper central India, on the eastern shores of the Ganges, in approximately 500 BC. It developed from the underlying spiritual culture of India, and represents a refined version of the same principles.

Despite its origin - and its period of prevalence under the reign of Ashoka - Buddhism is little practiced in India today. However, over the centuries Buddhism spread to the neighboring countries, and today is the dominant faith of Tibet, Sri Lanka, and southeast Asia.

The Buddha’s historical name was Siddhartha Gautama. “Buddha” is a title, derived from the word “budh,” to awaken: thus the name means “the awakened one.”

Siddhartha was born on the northeastern Gangetic plain, and was likely a noble and probably the heir to one of the small kingdoms of Magadha. A fortune teller is said to have prophesied Siddhartha’s future at the time of his birth. The fortune teller told Siddartha’s father he would be either a great conqueror or a holy man. Hearing this, Buddhist tradition says that Siddhartha’s father wished for him to become a ruler, and consequently sheltered him from outside knowledge out of the fear that it might inspire him to become spiritual.

Despite this, the Buddha was exposed to the “three divine messengers” - the three harmful forces of the human condition, old age, sickness, and death. This experience produced a profound impact on him, and spurred him to become a holy man. The Buddha is said to have renounced his worldly life and inheritance, and “gone forth” on the path of spiritual knowledge and monasticism.

The stories of the Buddha’s life are at least partly allegorical and teach important spiritual truths. Discerning the exact historical events is difficult, thus it is important to read the stories with an openness about their multiple levels of significance.

The Buddha is said to have followed an austere ascetic practice, renouncing all pleasures. The Buddha lived in the wilderness as a mendicant, and became malnourished due to his austerities. Buddhist tradition says he attracted several followers during this time, and also went to learn from spiritual teachers.

Frustrated by his lack of progress, the Buddha eventually realized that his ascetic practice was not bearing the desired fruit. He thus reformed himself and embraced the “Middle Way,” a spiritual path that was a median between the poles of extreme materialism and asceticism.

From here, the Buddha is said to have investigated a phenomenon he encountered in his youth. The suttas recount he had an experience as a young boy when he sat under a tree. While sitting he experienced a feeling of spontaneous joy. Intuiting this was the right path, the Buddha dedicated himself to meditation that would cultivate this.

This experience is usually referred to as the first “jhana,” and it represented the beginning of the Buddha’s path of introversion. In the Buddhist tradition, the Buddha is next said to have sat under the bodhi tree, and there remained until he achieved enlightenment.

This tale likely refers to a period of withdrawal when the Buddha dedicated himself to meditation. The tale speaks to the Buddha’s battles with demons and sirens, but these likely represent the Buddha’s confrontation with the passions, his development of virtue, his silencing of the mind, and his achievement of samadhi.

Despite his enlightenment, the suttas refer to the Buddha’s refusal to begin a ministry. There is a passage where the Buddha states he does not believe anyone will be capable of receiving his teaching. According to this same passage, the Buddha is only persuaded when one of the devas descends to earth to speak to him. This event led him to relent and to found the Buddhist religion.

[Alexander]

Similarities with Hinduism

Buddhism developed out of the underlying Indian religious tradition, so it would follow that Buddhists share many of the same beliefs as Hindus. Indeed, the Buddha himself refers to his teaching’s origins, for instance when he refers to his doctrine of the “brahma viharas” (which he cites as deriving from the brahmins of his time), and when he refers to the two teachers (Alara Kalama and Uddaka Ramaputta) he studied under in his early years.

Buddhism is divided into sects - Theravada, Mahayana, and Vajrayana - similar to how Hinduism is divided into Vaishnavism, Shaivism, and Shaktism. Similar to how Hinduism’s sects are localized to certain regions (for example, Shaivism to south India), Buddhism’s sects are as well. Vajrayana (which overlaps with Shaivism and Shaktism in places like Nepal) is practiced in Tibet and Mongolia; Theravada in Sri Lanka and southeast Asia (with the exception of Vietnam); and Mahayana in Vietnam. Chinese and Japanese Buddhism, usually referred to as Ch’an and Zen Buddhism, are often categorized as divisions of Mahayana.

One achievement of Buddhism is its articulate, extensive, and well-preserved literature. The Buddhist suttas, written in Pali, are a remarkable collection of spiritual doctrines worthy of study by any sincere student of religion.

Like Hinduism, Buddhism believes in karma, reincarnation, and samsara; in a life-path that returns one to the transcendent; and in a vast spiritual cosmology. Both religions emphasize the importance of liberation, the quest to realize the individual self is no different from the divine, universal self.

Buddhists present a codified version of the Indian worldview, which they call the Four Noble Truths. These are the following.

1. Life is suffering (dukkha)
In other words, life is ultimately unsatisfying, painful, and transitory; life characterized by the confrontations with sickness, old age, and death.

2. The cause of suffering is craving (tanha)
We are kept in a state of bondage due to our desires and attachments to form-based reality.

3. There is a way out of suffering
It is possible to overcome our desires and attachments by following the holy path.

4. The way out of suffering is to follow the Noble Eightfold Path
The Buddha presents a systemic path to lead one out of bondage and to liberation.

The Noble Eightfold Path is the following.

1. Right view; ie, understanding the ultimate nature of physical reality as unsatisfying (the First Noble Truth).
2. Right intention; applying oneself to the path to liberation (spiritual path).
3. Right speech; speaking positively, avoiding sowing chaos or discord.
4. Right conduct; avoiding injury to others and practicing ahimsa (nonviolence) and chastity.
5. Right livelihood; avoiding professions that cause harm to others, for instance working in weapons dealing, prostitution, or slaughterhouses.
6. Right effort; striving towards liberation.
7. Right mindfulness; practicing meditation.
8. Right samadhi; direct experience of the divine.

Without going into an extended commentary, we can see that the above is very similar to that expressed by Patanjali, and that the two were clearly derived from the same underlying spiritual tradition.

Differences with Hinduism

The main difference between Hinduism and Buddhism is that they represent the two articulations of the spiritual path: the positive and negative. A good analogy to understand this is to think of apophatic or “negative” theology in Christianity. Hinduism uses positive language to understand the quest to the divine, while Buddhism uses negative language. Ultimately, however, both are proceeding to the same end.

Hinduism begins with the underlying self, or atman, and states that through Yoga one realizes that this self is identical to the universal, divine I. When one realizes this one achieves moksha.

Buddhism in contrast teaches the doctrine of anatta, or not-self, the idea that there is no underlying, cogent self that reincarnates across the various lifetimes. Buddhism denies the reality of the external forms (skandhas) that one identifies with. When one achieves nirvana, the state of “blowing out,” one extinguishes the false identification with outward form and achieves identity with the true, underlying reality. As this state is transcendent, the Buddhists describe it using negative language.

This approach derives from the Buddha, who referred to himself as the “Tathagata,” or the “thus-gone one,” and even referred to himself in the third person. When questioners would ask the Buddha to describe the state he was in, he would negate their statements or refuse to answer, constantly emphasizing the unfathomable nature of enlightenment. (This ultimately led to the doctrine of the “unfathomables,” the philosophical questions the human mind cannot understand.)

There are two statements that perhaps embody these two paths of the spirit. One is “thou art that” (Tat Tvam Asi), the idea that the individual I is identical to what is observed; identical to the universal I. This would be the verbal summary of the Hindu, or positive, approach.

The other is “not this, not this” (Neti Neti): the idea that one should continually negate observed phenomena as objects of identification. It is believed that by doing this one ultimately loses the division between subject and object - between “I” and “you.” This line would be the summary of the Buddhist approach. This practice would produce the same state as the one described above.

Additional differences

Westerners are often attracted to Buddhism due to its apparent secularism or nontheism, and it is true the Buddha counseled against the worship of gods and against the elevation of himself as a deity. However, Buddhist cosmology is similar to that of most other faiths. Just as the Hindu cosmos consists of gods, demons, ghosts, animals, and humans, the Buddhist cosmos does as well.

The Buddha in fact went into great detail in the suttas describing the various levels of naraka, or hell, and the various planes of the gods in heaven. The Buddha also explained the deeds that led one to reincarnate in these various states. For example, moral behavior leads to human birth; acts like murder lead to descent to the animal reincarnations or to rebirth in hell.

One difference between Hinduism and Buddhism is the emphasis on monasticism. The Buddha thought worldly life was deeply distracting, and recommended renunciation and taking on the life of the bhikkhu (literally beggar), or monk. Placing particular emphasis on the seventh and eighth folds of the Noble Eightfold Path (the path of the contemplative), the Buddha expressed the difficulty of practicing these folds as a layperson. Thus, the Buddha counseled the taking on of the ochre robes and the joining of a monastic order to have time to practice meditation.

One last unique teaching of Buddhism is that of the four stages of enlightenment. This teaching is particular to the faith, and attempts to codify the steps of progress as one advances on the spiritual quest across several lifetimes.

Buddhism teaches that one reincarnates due to “fetters,” or desires and attachments, that bind one to form and matter. If one purifies oneself of these, one will rise to higher states of being.

The four stages of enlightenment are the following.

1. Steamwinner
One has taken the first steps on the path to liberation. One will inevitably reach enlightenment, but it may require multiple lifetimes to do so. One has overcome the fetters of identity-view, belief in religious ritual, and doubt about the existence of a spiritual path.

2. Once-returner
One has made great progress on the spiritual quest, and weakened the two powerful fetters of sensual desire and ill will. These are the two fetters that bind one to the world of matter. One will reincarnate at most once more as a human being.

3. Nonreturner
One has become effectively an angelic being in human form, and overcome the fetters of sensuality and ill will. On death, one will rise to the state of the devas.

4. Arahant
An enlightened being. An individual who achieves this is a great rarity. One has overcome the fetters that bind even the gods. These include conceit, restlessness, and ignorance, as well as the attachment to the states of jhana.

A spiritual civilization

I have a friend who I speak to on historical topics, and he said once, “India is the great spiritual civilization; China is the great material civilization.” When I heard this I felt it was one of those excellent lines that summarizes what one learns from reading a dozen books. Having studied the histories of both, I felt this was a fair characterization. Indeed, the two civilizations seem to be driven by opposing unconscious forces.

In my opinion, India has contributed more to the spiritual dimension of mankind than anywhere else; its contributions to the world of religion exceed that of any other civilization. India has produced Patanjali and the Buddha; the Yoga Sutras and Buddhist suttas; the Vedas and Upanishads; and a litany of sadhus, ascetics, and holy people. If one has an interest in religion, one should start with India. From India, one can get a base of understanding from which to interpret every other religion.

Despite this, we must remember that the stages of religion still apply to the subcontinent. In any faith we study we will find those at the “superstitious,” “dogmatic,” and “transcendent-mystical” levels, and India is not an exception.

I would like to share an anecdote here to illustrate this.

I once watched an Indian religious bathing. During this, dozens of people came to the Ganges to submerge themselves in the river. This bathing is believed to bring spiritual cleansing. I watched two people who were participating, a couple (husband and wife). They were submerged along with many others. While submerged however, the husband turned to his wife and lightly kissed her on the cheek. To an outside observer it would appear to be a non-event, but on seeing it the other bathers turned and slowly formed a crowd around the couple. The bathers then proceeded to beat and physically assault the pair. One was not supposed to engage in any sort of sensual activity during the ritual; doing so would contaminate the purity to be gained from the bath. The crowd turned into a mob, and became incandescent in their violence.

I share this anecdote here to put things in perspective. In the study of any religion, these contradictions exist. Hinduism is both the supreme spiritual expression of man, and also shelters superstition. A student of religion thus needs to be able to discern between the two.

Struggles of India

Before concluding, it may be appropriate for us to examine some of the sociological effects of Indian belief. As the supreme “spiritual civilization,” India has the strengths and weaknesses one might anticipate. While Indians embrace ideas like renunciation, almsgiving, and the reverence of the holy, their culture has also produced several problems.

One that appears occasionally is a victim-blaming mentality. As Indians embrace the idea of karma, this at times leads to the belief that any suffering experienced by an individual - even one who is blameless - is their own fault. This occasionally leads to a decrease in sympathy for the suffering (at least in comparison to Christian or Islamic civilization).

Caste rigidity is another challenge produced by the spiritual traditions of India. Though lawfully the caste system is abolished, having met many Indians I learned the extent to which it is still internalized by large numbers of people. Most Indians continue to follow the subcontinent’s strict social mores which regulate behavior. In my opinion, this system hinders India’s dynamism and impedes its social development.

Material development is the last challenge faced by India. While the subcontinent was formerly one of the world’s great economies (it was about a quarter of world GDP in the 17th century - approximately the same as the United States today), this has diminished to the present. I have spoken to several Indians about this. Indeed, it appears that if a culture strongly believes the main end of life is to prepare for death, then there are reduced incentives to amass wealth, innovate, and compete. This leads to long-term material effects. Thus a danger of excessive religiosity is a decline in economic development.

Abraham Maslow spoke about the need for balance in man between the material and the spiritual, and it is interesting to expand this analogy to civilizations. The thesis here would be that balance is necessary. Indeed, it is rare to find cultures that maintain a healthy balance between the material and the spiritual.

[Naman]

Very well written, quite elaborated and deep insights

something i wanted to share about sanatan dharma and polytheism. The concept of shaivaites (worshipping shiva), vaishnavites (worshipping vishnu), shakts (worshipping shakti) etc. are born as a result of diminished human intelligence and understanding of spiritual existence. Might have heard of yugas? (cycles) when the fourth cycles run, human morals, spirituality all go downhill big time.
Whenever there is a sanskrit prayer or chant before the begining of the a religious event they actually say and account for the cosmic time we are in..
 so it goes like this

The Universe which we live in starts with the origin of Brahma. It runs till Brahma's life and after His death another cycle starts with the creation of next Brahma by Vishnu.

Brahma's lifespan extends to 100 years.

His 1 day consists of a day and a night.

During day Universe runs and during night everything dissolves and nothing left and Vishnu goes to sleep on Sheshnag.

Universe again starts on the second day at daytime and this cycle goes on till Brahma's lifespan.

A daytime of Brahma consists of a duration of 1 Kalpa and night time is also of same duration.

1 Kalpa equals 14 Manvantaras.

1 Manvantara consists of 71 Mahayugas.

1 Mahayuga consists of 4 Yugas called Chaturyuga and they are in the ratio of 4:3:2:1.

Kaliyuga age is 1200 divine years or 432000 human years.

1 divine year is equal to 360 human years.

Satyuga is 4 times Kaliyuga ie 4800 divine years or 1728000 human years.

Tretayuga is 3 times Kaliyuga ie 3600 divine years or 1296000 human years.

Dwaparyuga is 2 times Kaliyuga ie 2400 divine years or 864000 human years.

1 Mahayuga is 12000 divine years or 4,320,000 human years.

1 Manvantara is 852,000 divine years or 306,720,000 human years.

Before first Manvantara and after last Manvantara and between each Manvantara there exists Sandhikalas, a transitional period equals to 1 Satyuga ie 4800 divine years in which Earth is submerged in Garbodhaka ocean for cleansing purpose.

So there are 15 Sandhikalas and 14 Manvantaras adding upto 12,000,000 divine years ie the age of 1 Kalpa.

1 day of Brahma equals to 2 Kalpas ie 24,000,000 divine years.

So Brahma's 100 years lifespan is equal to 864,000,000,000 divine years or 311.04 trillion human years.

Brahma's is in his 51st year and first day.

So currently the ongoing Kalpa name is Sweta Kalpa, ongoing Manvantara is the seventh one called Vaivasvata Manvantara and the current Mahayuga is the 28th one out of 71 in which we are in Kaliyuga which has been started in 3102 BC and 5121 human years has been elapsed in this Kaliyuga.

so in satyuga all humans were pretty evolved and enlightened, they didn need to worship any god. and then in next yuga, people devolved, started beliving rather than experiencing for themselves, so the partioning of belief in two gods (shva and vishnu) happened, people started fighting over that. in kaliyuga there are so many religions n casts people keep fightinig over one thing or the other.

and about the origin of the universes. Enlightenend beings who have outlived cycles of universes, they say that, u can count the numberof sand particles on all the beaches of earth but cant count the number of universes getting created and destroyed this one moment. So every universe have tri-nity gods, one creator, one sustainer and one destoryer.. and in some universes, brahma is the creator, some vishu is and in some shiva is the creator,,,
in our universe, vishnu happenend first, then brahma.
some universe brahma creates out of nothingness, in some shiva dissolves everything and in some brahma comes out of vishnu .
 well u can imagine all permutation n combinations of everything haha
and if u ask why everything happened, then the best answer is, like the flowers nature is to give fragrance, the ultimate source, the all prevading consciousness, its the nature of that creator to create. it creates trinity like bubbles generating in the ocean.

You should read, yoga vasistha maharamayana, its supposedly an ancient scripture. You will be flabbergasted by the details it shares.there are universes where there is no light, some where everthing is made of gold, in some u travel back n forth in time not space, some men give birth to babies.. so on and so forth. More impotantly it expounds on the true nature of reality.

[Alexander]

Yes I've heard of these (world ages) but have resisted attempting to interpret of it. Judaism has a similar narrative, for example with the extremely long-lived patriarchs, then the human lifespan shortens as human beings get further away from Adam. I'm reluctant to define an exact literal or figurative meaning.

The last part you write about the multiverse I think is correct. It is quite mind blowing to try to imagine.

It does seem our world is regulated by universal principles (as Plato said); there is a delay but there is karma, justice, beauty, and so forth. It seems all very carefully balanced.

It makes me wonder how you could maintain a divine order if you start changing variables... (turn gravity off, make brown red, make women men). It seems you would want those same universal principles to be governing in all universes. But perhaps I am mistaken.

Alternate universes would of course also open up possibilities for entirely new laws / phenomena to come into existence that we can't imagine.

[Jhanananda]

It is interesting to note that both Hinduism and Buddhism self-identify as Aryan. For instance the term that is commonly translated as 'noble' as in the noble eight fold path is 'Aryan.'

It is also worth pointing out the Dravidians, the bottom of the social strata of India, have a strong physical resemblance to Australian aborigines. And, an hypnosis subscribed to by many anthropologists and Archaeologists is the Dravidians, aborigines, Inu, Polynesians, and Maori are all closely related and were early colonizers of southeast Asia, Australia, New Zealand and Polynesia. And, Archaeology shows dates as early as 150,000 years ago.

Further there are a few religious icons in India that are typically carved out of onyx, which is black, and the hair is often fro-like, such as most notably: Krishna, and Kali, which suggests these religious icons may very well predate the Aryan invasion.

Another religion with Aryan identification is Zoroastrianism, which is an Iranian religion.

Aryan Invasion

[Naman]

It makes me wonder how you could maintain a divine order if you start changing variables... (turn gravity off, make brown red, make women men). It seems you would want those same universal principles to be governing in all universes. But perhaps I am mistaken.

Alternate universes would of course also open up possibilities for entirely new laws / phenomena to come into existence that we can't imagine.

So how i personally like to make sense of it all this way, that wtever space time is isnt the absolute reality. The absolute consciouness is the only real "thing". Every projection of time & space we see is equivalent to the dream, real 3D dream, only those rules prevail what were written in the begining. You can make logical  sense of everything that "happens" after those rules, which supposedly were created immediately as the creation was done (of that particular universe). There cause n effect n laws etc everything applicable to the creation, only thing which transcends logic is the "source consciousness".
Rules can be as weird as it can get cause that the basis of what we live as 3D reality, all made up. It can be anything, like we can see anthing weird happening in dream, its all but a dream, projection anyways.