Indra's net (also called Indra's jewels or Indra's pearls,
Sanskrit
Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...
''Indrajāla'', Chinese: 因陀羅網) is a
metaphor
A metaphor is a figure of speech that, for rhetorical effect, directly refers to one thing by mentioning another. It may provide (or obscure) clarity or identify hidden similarities between two different ideas. Metaphors are often compared wi ...
used to illustrate the concepts of
Śūnyatā
''Śūnyatā'' ( sa, शून्यता, śūnyatā; pi, suññatā) pronounced in English as (shoon-ya-ta), translated most often as ''emptiness'', ''vacuity'', and sometimes ''voidness'', is a Buddhist concept which has multiple meani ...
(emptiness),
pratītyasamutpāda (dependent origination),
[.] and
interpenetration in
Buddhist philosophy
Buddhist philosophy refers to the philosophical investigations and systems of inquiry that developed among various schools of Buddhism in India following the parinirvana of The Buddha and later spread throughout Asia. The Buddhist path combin ...
.
The metaphor's earliest known reference is found in the
Atharva Veda
The Atharva Veda (, ' from ' and ''veda'', meaning "knowledge") is the "knowledge storehouse of ''atharvāṇas'', the procedures for everyday life".Laurie Patton (2004), Veda and Upanishad, in ''The Hindu World'' (Editors: Sushil Mittal and G ...
. It was further developed by the
Mahayana school in the 3rd century ''
Buddhāvataṃsaka Sūtra'' and later by the
Huayan school
The Huayan or Flower Garland school of Buddhism (, from sa, अवतंसक, Avataṃsaka) is a tradition of Mahayana Buddhist philosophy that first flourished in China during the Tang dynasty (618-907). The Huayan worldview is based prima ...
between the 6th and 8th centuries.
In the ''Buddhāvataṃsaka Sūtra''
![Indrasnet](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ea/Indrasnet.jpg)
"Indra's net" is an infinitely large net owned by the
Vedic
upright=1.2, The Vedas are ancient Sanskrit texts of Hinduism. Above: A page from the '' Atharvaveda''.
The Vedas (, , ) are a large body of religious texts originating in ancient India. Composed in Vedic Sanskrit, the texts constitute the ...
deva
Deva may refer to:
Entertainment
* ''Deva'' (1989 film), a 1989 Kannada film
* ''Deva'' (1995 film), a 1995 Tamil film
* ''Deva'' (2002 film), a 2002 Bengali film
* Deva (2007 Telugu film)
* ''Deva'' (2017 film), a 2017 Marathi film
* Deva ...
Indra, which hangs over his palace on
Mount Meru
Mount Meru (Sanskrit/Pali: मेरु), also known as Sumeru, Sineru or Mahāmeru, is the sacred five-peaked mountain of Hindu, Jain, and Buddhist cosmology and is considered to be the centre of all the physical, metaphysical and spiritu ...
, the
axis mundi of
Buddhist
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...
and
Hindu cosmology
Hindu cosmology is the description of the universe and its states of matter, cycles within time, physical structure, and effects on living entities according to Hindu texts. Hindu cosmology is also intertwined with the idea of a creator who all ...
. In
East Asian Buddhism, Indra's net is considered as having a multifaceted jewel at each vertex, with each jewel being reflected in all of the other jewels. In the
Huayan school
The Huayan or Flower Garland school of Buddhism (, from sa, अवतंसक, Avataṃsaka) is a tradition of Mahayana Buddhist philosophy that first flourished in China during the Tang dynasty (618-907). The Huayan worldview is based prima ...
of
Chinese Buddhism
Chinese Buddhism or Han Buddhism ( zh, s=汉传佛教, t=漢傳佛教, p=Hànchuán Fójiào) is a Chinese form of Mahayana Buddhism which has shaped Chinese culture in a wide variety of areas including art, politics, literature, philosophy, ...
, which follows the ''Buddhāvataṃsaka Sūtra'', the image of "Indra's net" is used to describe the interconnectedness or "perfect interfusion" (''yuanrong'', 圓融) of all phenomena in the universe.
[Hamar, Imre (Editor) (2007). ''Reflecting Mirrors: Perspectives on Huayan Buddhism'' (Asiatesche Forschungen), p. 189.]
Francis H. Cook describes Indra's net thus:
The Buddha in the ''Buddhāvataṃsaka Sūtras 30th book states a similar idea:
:If untold Buddha-lands are reduced to atoms,
:In one atom are untold lands, and as in one, so in each.
:The atoms to which these Buddha-lands are reduced in an instant are unspeakable,
:And so are the atoms of continuous reduction moment to moment, going on for untold eons;
:These atoms contain lands unspeakably many, and the atoms in these lands are even harder to tell of.
Book 30 of the ''Buddhāvataṃsaka'' is named "The Incalculable" because it focuses on the idea of the
infinitude of the universe and as
Thomas Cleary
Thomas Cleary (24 April 1949 – 20 June 2021) was an American translator and writer of more than 80 books related to Buddhist, Taoist, Confucian, and Muslim classics, and of '' The Art of War'', a treatise on management, military strategy, an ...
notes, concludes that "the cosmos is unutterably infinite, and hence so is the total scope and detail of knowledge and activity of enlightenment."
In another part of the ''Buddhāvataṃsaka'' sutra, the actual metaphor of "Indra's Net" is used to refer to the all phenomena in the
dharmadhātu ("dharma realm", ultimate reality, the ultimate principle, Chinese: 法界中):
They uddhasknow all phenomena come from interdependent origination.
They know all world systems exhaustively. They know all the different phenomena in all worlds, interrelated in Indra's net.
In Huayan texts
The metaphor of Indra's net of jewels plays an essential role in the Chinese
Huayan school
The Huayan or Flower Garland school of Buddhism (, from sa, अवतंसक, Avataṃsaka) is a tradition of Mahayana Buddhist philosophy that first flourished in China during the Tang dynasty (618-907). The Huayan worldview is based prima ...
, where it is used to describe the interpenetration or perfect interfusion (''yuanrong'', 圓融) of microcosmos and macrocosmos, as well as the interfusion of all
dharmas
The Abhidharma are ancient (third century BCE and later) Buddhist texts which contain detailed scholastic presentations of doctrinal material appearing in the Buddhist ''sutras''. It also refers to the scholastic method itself as well as the f ...
(phenomena) in the entire universe.
According to Bryan Van Norden, in the Huayan tradition, Indra's net is "adopted as a metaphor for the manner in which each thing that exists is dependent for both its existence and its identity upon every other thing that exists."
The Huayan text entitled "''Calming and Contemplation in the Five Teachings of Huayan''" (''Huayan wujiao zhiguan'' 華嚴五教止觀, T1867) attributed to the first Huayan patriarch
Dushun
Dushun () (557–640) was the First Patriarch of the Huayan School of Chinese Buddhism, which has the Indian Avatamsaka Sutra as its central scripture.
Biography
Dushun was born in present-day Shaanxi province. He ordained at the age of sevente ...
(557–640) gives an extended overview of this concept:
The manner in which all dharmas interpenetrate is like an imperial net of celestial jewels extending in all directions infinitely, without limit. … As for the imperial net of heavenly jewels, it is known as Indra’s Net, a net which is made entirely of jewels. Because of the clarity of the jewels, they are all reflected in and enter into each other, ad infinitum. Within each jewel, simultaneously, is reflected the whole net. Ultimately, nothing comes or goes. If we now turn to the southwest, we can pick one particular jewel and
examine it closely. This individual jewel can immediately reflect the image
of every other jewel.
As is the case with this jewel, this is furthermore the case with all the rest of the jewels–each and every jewel simultaneously and immediately reflects each and every other jewel, ad infinitum. The image of each of these limitless jewels is within one jewel, appearing brilliantly. None of the other jewels interfere with this. When one sits within one jewel, one is simultaneously sitting in all the infinite jewels in all ten directions. How is this so? Because within each jewel are present all jewels. If all jewels are present within each jewel, it is also the case that if you sit in one jewel you sit in all jewels at the same time. The inverse is also understood in the same way. Just as one goes into one jewel and thus enters every other jewel while never leaving this one jewel, so too one enters any jewel while never leaving this particular jewel.
The Huayan Patriarch
Fazang
Fazang () (643–712) was the third of the five patriarchs of the Huayan school of Mahayana Buddhism, of which he is traditionally considered the founder. He was an important and influential philosopher, so much so that it has been claimed that he ...
(643–712) used the golden statue of a lion to demonstrate the Huayan vision of interpenetration to empress Wu:
Atharva Veda
According to
Rajiv Malhotra
Rajiv Malhotra (born 15 September 1950) is an Indian-born American Hindutva ideologue, author and founder of Infinity Foundation, which focuses on Indic studies, and also funds projects such as Columbia University's project to translate the ...
, the earliest reference to a net belonging to Indra is in the
Atharva Veda
The Atharva Veda (, ' from ' and ''veda'', meaning "knowledge") is the "knowledge storehouse of ''atharvāṇas'', the procedures for everyday life".Laurie Patton (2004), Veda and Upanishad, in ''The Hindu World'' (Editors: Sushil Mittal and G ...
(c. 1000
BCE
Common Era (CE) and Before the Common Era (BCE) are year notations for the Gregorian calendar (and its predecessor, the Julian calendar), the world's most widely used calendar era. Common Era and Before the Common Era are alternatives to the or ...
). Verse 8.8.6. says:
And verse 8.8.8. says:
The net was one of the weapons of the sky-god Indra, used to snare and entangle enemies. The net also signifies
magic
Magic or Magick most commonly refers to:
* Magic (supernatural), beliefs and actions employed to influence supernatural beings and forces
* Ceremonial magic, encompasses a wide variety of rituals of magic
* Magical thinking, the belief that unrela ...
or
illusion
An illusion is a distortion of the senses, which can reveal how the mind normally organizes and interprets sensory stimulation. Although illusions distort the human perception of reality, they are generally shared by most people.
Illusions may oc ...
. According to Teun Goudriaan, Indra is conceived in the
Rig Veda as a great magician, tricking his enemies with their own weapons, thereby continuing human life and prosperity on earth. Indra became associated with earthly magic, as reflected in the term ''indrajal'', "Indra's Net", the name given to the occult practices magicians. According to Goudriaan, the term ''indrajalam'' seems to originate in verse 8.8.8 from the Atharva Veda, of which Goudriaan gives a different translation:
According to Goudriaan, the speaker pretends to use a weapon of cosmical size. The net being referred to here
Modern and Western references
''Gödel, Escher, Bach''
In ''
Gödel, Escher, Bach'' (1979),
Douglas Hofstadter uses Indra's net as a metaphor for the complex interconnected networks formed by relationships between objects in a system—including
social network
A social network is a social structure made up of a set of social actors (such as individuals or organizations), sets of dyadic ties, and other social interactions between actors. The social network perspective provides a set of methods for ...
s, the interactions of particles, and the "
symbols" that stand for
idea
In common usage and in philosophy, ideas are the results of thought. Also in philosophy, ideas can also be mental representational images of some object. Many philosophers have considered ideas to be a fundamental ontological category of bei ...
s in a
brain
A brain is an organ that serves as the center of the nervous system in all vertebrate and most invertebrate animals. It is located in the head, usually close to the sensory organs for senses such as vision. It is the most complex organ in a ve ...
or
intelligent computer.
''Vermeer's Hat''
Timothy Brook
Timothy James Brook ( Chinese name: 卜正民; born January 6, 1951) is a Canadian historian, sinologist, and writer specializing in the study of China (sinology). He holds the Republic of China Chair, Department of History, University of British C ...
uses the metaphor:
Sarah Burton explains that Brook uses the metaphor, and its interconnectedness,
''Brave New World''
In the 2020 TV Series
Brave New World
''Brave New World'' is a dystopian novel by English author Aldous Huxley, written in 1931 and published in 1932. Largely set in a futuristic World State, whose citizens are environmentally engineered into an intelligence-based social hiera ...
inspired by the homonymous book by
Aldous Huxley
Aldous Leonard Huxley (26 July 1894 – 22 November 1963) was an English writer and philosopher. He wrote nearly 50 books, both novels and non-fiction works, as well as wide-ranging essays, narratives, and poems.
Born into the prominent Huxle ...
, a new element is introduced in the original story: everyone in New London is always connected to an artificial intelligence called Indra, that observes, monitors and analyzes all citizens 24/7. Writer
Grant Morrison
Grant Morrison, MBE (born 31 January 1960) is a Scottish comic book writer, screenwriter, and producer. Their work is known for its nonlinear narratives, humanist philosophy and countercultural leanings. Morrison has written extensively for th ...
named this network after the Vedic deity, since Huxley was notoriously fascinated by Indian mysticism and named another element of the story, Soma, after a
Hindu ritual drink which shares its name with another Vedic deity.
''Indra's Net: Defending Hinduism's Philosophical Unity''
In ''
Indra's Net
Indra's net (also called Indra's jewels or Indra's pearls, Sanskrit ''Indrajāla'', Chinese: 因陀羅網) is a metaphor used to illustrate the concepts of Śūnyatā (emptiness), pratītyasamutpāda (dependent origination),. and interpenetration ...
'' (2014),
Rajiv Malhotra
Rajiv Malhotra (born 15 September 1950) is an Indian-born American Hindutva ideologue, author and founder of Infinity Foundation, which focuses on Indic studies, and also funds projects such as Columbia University's project to translate the ...
uses the image of Indra's net as a metaphor for
''Midnight Gospel''
In the TV Series
Midnight Gospel 2020, Indra's Net is discussed in the episode Annihilation of Joy where prisoners die over and over.
See also
*
Brahmajala Sutra
*
Coincidentia oppositorum
The unity of opposites is the central category of dialectics, said to be related to the notion of non-duality in a deep sense.
*
Fazang
Fazang () (643–712) was the third of the five patriarchs of the Huayan school of Mahayana Buddhism, of which he is traditionally considered the founder. He was an important and influential philosopher, so much so that it has been claimed that he ...
*
Hosshin Kingdom
*
Indra's thunderbolt
*
Macrocosm and microcosm
*
Metamodernism Metamodernism is a term that refers to a range of developments observed in many areas of art, culture and philosophy, emerging in the aftermath of postmodernism, roughly at the turn of the 21st century. To many, it is characterized as mediations bet ...
*
Rhizome (philosophy)
A rhizome is a concept in post-structuralism describing a nonlinear network that "connects any point to any other point". It appears in the work of French theorists Deleuze and Guattari, who used the term in their book '' A Thousand Plateaus'' to ...
*
Śakra (Buddhism)
Śakra (Sanskrit: शक्र Śakra; Pali: सक्क Sakka) is the ruler of the Trāyastriṃśa Heaven according to Buddhist cosmology. He is also referred to by the title "Śakra, Lord of the Devas" (Sanskrit: '; Pali: '). The name Śa ...
*
The Net (substance)
Sir Isaac Newton (25 December 1642 – 20 March 1726/27) was an English mathematician, physicist, astronomer, alchemist, theologian, and author (described in his time as a "natural philosopher"), widely recognised as one of the grea ...
*
Three Spheres II
''Three Spheres II'' is a Lithography, lithograph print by the Netherlands, Dutch artist M. C. Escher first printed in April 1946.
As the title implies, it depicts three spheres resting on a flat surface.
The sphere on the left is transparent w ...
References
Sources
Published sources
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Web-sources
Further reading
*.
{{Use dmy dates, date=April 2017
Buddhist symbols
Metaphors
Nondualism
Philosophical analogies
Weapons in Hindu mythology