Svarga (), also known as Indraloka and Svargaloka, is the celestial abode of the
devas
Devas may refer to:
* Devas Club, a club in south London
* Anthony Devas (1911–1958), British portrait painter
* Charles Stanton Devas (1848–1906), political economist
* Jocelyn Devas (died 1886), founder of the Devas Club
* Devas (band)
Deva ...
in
Hinduism
Hinduism () is an Indian religion or ''dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global po ...
. Svarga is one of the seven higher
lokas (
esoteric planes) in
Hindu cosmology.
Svarga is often translated as heaven, though it is regarded to be not the equivalent of the
Abrahamic
The Abrahamic religions are a group of religions centered around worship of the God of Abraham. Abraham, a Hebrew patriarch, is extensively mentioned throughout Abrahamic religious scriptures such as the Bible and the Quran.
Jewish tradition ...
Heaven
Heaven or the heavens, is a common religious cosmological or transcendent supernatural place where beings such as deities, angels, souls, saints, or venerated ancestors are said to originate, be enthroned, or reside. According to the bel ...
.
Description
Svargaloka is a set of celestial worlds located on and above
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 sp ...
, where those who had led righteous lives by adhering to the scriptures delight in pleasures, before their next birth on earth. It is described to have been built by the deity
Tvashtar, the Vedic architect of the devas.
The king of the
devas
Devas may refer to:
* Devas Club, a club in south London
* Anthony Devas (1911–1958), British portrait painter
* Charles Stanton Devas (1848–1906), political economist
* Jocelyn Devas (died 1886), founder of the Devas Club
* Devas (band)
Deva ...
,
Indra, is the ruler of Svarga, ruling it with his consort,
Indrani. His palace in the abode is called Vaijayanta. This palace holds the famous hall, Sudharma, unrivalled among all the princely courts. The capital of Svarga is
Amaravati
Amaravati () is the capital of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is located on the banks of the river Krishna in Guntur district.
The Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone at a ceremonial event in Uddand ...
, and its entrance is guarded by the legendary elephant,
Airavata
Shachi.html" ;"title="Indra (alias Sakra) and Shachi">Indra (alias Sakra) and Shachi riding the five-headed Divine Elephant Airavata, Folio from a Jain text, Panch Kalyanaka (Five Auspicious Events in the Life of Jina Rishabhanatha), c. 1670 ...
. Svarga is described to be the home of
Kamadhenu, the cow of plenty, as well as Parijata, the tree that grants all wishes. The legendary
kalpavriskha tree grows in the centre of the Nandana gardens, which was planted there by Indra after it emerged from the
Samudra Manthana, the churning of the ocean. Due to its location, Svarga is called Tridiva, the third highest heaven.
In
Hindu mythology
Hindu mythology is the body of myths and literature attributed to, and espoused by, the adherents of the Hindu religion, found in Hindu texts such as the Vedic literature, epics like ''Mahabharata'' and ''Ramayana'', the Puranas, and r ...
, the devas' dominion over Svarga is often the primary point of contention in their eternal war with their rivals, the
asuras
Asuras (Sanskrit: असुर) are a class of beings in Indic religions. They are described as power-seeking clans related to the more benevolent Devas (also known as Suras) in Hinduism. In its Buddhist context, the word is sometimes translated ...
. A common theme in these legends is an asura king, such as
Hiranyakashipu, usurping the realm for himself. The preserver deity,
Vishnu
Vishnu ( ; , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism.
Vishnu is known as "The Preserver" within ...
, often intervenes to restore the status quo. He sometimes assumes an
avatar
Avatar (, ; ), is a concept within Hinduism that in Sanskrit literally means "descent". It signifies the material appearance or incarnation of a powerful deity, goddess or spirit on Earth. The relative verb to "alight, to make one's appeara ...
, such as
Narasimha
Narasimha ( sa, नरसिंह, lit=man-lion, ), sometimes rendered Narasingha, is the fourth avatar of the Hindu god Vishnu. He is regarded to have incarnated in the form of a part-lion, part-man being to slay Hiranyakashipu, to end r ...
, to vanquish the asura king, restoring Indra and the devas to their place. During each
pralaya (the great dissolution), the first three realms,
Bhuloka, Bhuvarloka, and Svargaloka are destroyed. In contemporary Hinduism, Svarga itself is often relegated to the status of a lower heaven, one that is spiritually as well as physically beneath
Vaikuntha and
Kailasha, the celestial abodes of
Vishnu
Vishnu ( ; , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism.
Vishnu is known as "The Preserver" within ...
and
Shiva
Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hin ...
.
Literature
Vedas
In the hymns of the
Atharvaveda, Svarga is conceptualised as Pitrloka, the land where one hopes to meet one's departed ancestors. It is the abode that is rewarded for the one who performs sacrifices. The sacrifices that one performs are stated to journey directly to heaven, and are stored to await the sacrificer on his arrival. One hymn describes Svarga to be a realm that contains water-lilies and lotuses, lakes of butter with banks of honey, along with streams flowing with a number of foods such as wine, milk, curds, and water. Offering gifts to guests is also stated to be a path that secures heaven.
The
Vedanta Shutra explains the concept of
transmigration from Svarga to Bhuloka. It indicates that a
jiva
''Jiva'' ( sa, जीव, IAST: ) is a living being or any entity imbued with a life force in Hinduism and Jainism. The word itself originates from the Sanskrit verb-root ''jīv'', which translates as 'to breathe' or 'to live'. The ''jiva'', as ...
(life force) that has performed sacrifices and
charitable acts ascends to Svarga, and when departing the abode and returning to earth, it descends as a raincloud, and is precipitated upon the earth as rain. When man consumes the food that is watered by the rain, it enters his semen, and during intercourse, enters a woman, to be reborn. It described "sampata" to be the term for the concept that allows one to ascend to heaven. It also states that the one who was of good conduct in Svarga attains the birth of a
Brahmin
Brahmin (; sa, ब्राह्मण, brāhmaṇa) is a varna as well as a caste within Hindu society. The Brahmins are designated as the priestly class as they serve as priests ( purohit, pandit, or pujari) and religious teachers ( ...
,
Kshatriya, or a
Vaishya
Vaishya (Sanskrit: वैश्य, ''vaiśya'') is one of the four varnas of the Hindu social order in India. Vaishyas are classed third in the order of caste hierarchy.
The occupation of Vaishyas consists mainly of agriculture, taking care ...
, and that others are condemned to lesser births, such as other animals or outcastes.
The
Mundaka Upanishad affirms that the performance of Vedic rituals is necessary to attain Svarga.
Puranas
The
Bhagavata Purana
The ''Bhagavata Purana'' ( sa, भागवतपुराण; ), also known as the ''Srimad Bhagavatam'', ''Srimad Bhagavata Mahapurana'' or simply ''Bhagavata'', is one of Hinduism's eighteen great Puranas (''Mahapuranas''). Composed in S ...
states that Svarga is the realm for the one who is able to discriminate between right and wrong acts, and loves other people, engaging in good deeds for them. The good, the virtuous, and the devoted are described to be able to achieve the abode. It is stated to be a realm of gratification, where one is able to appreciate divine music, divine beauty, and divine objects, all of which are enough for any man. The duration of one's stay in this
loka is determined by the
punya (virtue) one has accumulated. High intellect is not deemed to be sufficient to enter the abode if one lacks the necessary level of spirituality.
Ramayana
The acquisition of
punya and the performance of good deeds is stated to be a prerequisite of attaining Svarga in the
Ramayana
The ''Rāmāyana'' (; sa, रामायणम्, ) is a Sanskrit epic composed over a period of nearly a millennium, with scholars' estimates for the earliest stage of the text ranging from the 8th to 4th centuries BCE, and later stages e ...
.
The epic describes the legend of King
Trishanku
Trishanku (त्रिशंकु), born as Satyavrata, was a king who belonged to ''Ikshvaku dynasty''. Trishanku is commonly referred to through mention of "Trishanku's heaven" or "hanging like Trishanku". The word Trishanku has come to deno ...
, who had been promised a place in Svarga by the sage
Vishvamitra. The sage engaged in a solitary
yajna
Yajna ( sa, यज्ञ, yajña, translit-std=IAST, sacrifice, devotion, worship, offering) refers in Hinduism to any ritual done in front of a sacred fire, often with mantras.SG Nigal (1986), Axiological Approach to the Vedas, Northern Book ...
to achieve this, not joined by other sages due to instructions from Sage
Vasishta. Due to the power of the sage's ceremony, the king ascended to the gates of Svarga. The devas reported this to Indra, who angrily kicked Trishanku from the abode because of his low birth, sending him hurtling towards the earth. Vishvamitra was able to halt his fall mid-way during his descent, and so the king was left suspended in the air. Indra opted to create a new Svarga below his own Svarga as a compromise, just for the residence of Trishanku. In retort, Vishvamitra created a new Indra and devas to occupy the new heaven with the king. Terrified of the powers of the sage, Indra relented, and personally carried Trishanku to the real Svarga on his own golden
vimana.
Mahabharata
In the epic
Mahabharata
The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; sa, महाभारतम्, ', ) is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India in Hinduism, the other being the '' Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the struggle between two groups of cousins in the K ...
, the prince
Arjuna
Arjuna (Sanskrit: अर्जुन, ), also known as Partha and Dhananjaya, is a character in several ancient Hindu texts, and specifically one of the major characters of the Indian epic Mahabharata. In the epic, he is the third among Pand ...
is escorted to Svarga by
Matali, the charioteer of
Indra, the prince's father. During the journey, he witnesses thousands of flying celestial cars,
vimanas. He observes that there is neither sun nor moon that is necessary to offer light in this realm, as it is entirely self-luminous. He takes note of the residents of Svarga:
rishis, heroes who had died in battle, those who had performed severe austerities,
gandharvas,
guhyakas, as well as
apsaras. He passes through the several successive regions of heaven until he arrives at Amaravati, the capital of Indra.
In Amaravati, Arjuna beholds the gardens of Nandana, the favourite resort of the apsaras. He observes that sacred trees and flowers of all seasons bloom. He is eulogised by various classes of beings, such as deities like the
Ashvins and the
Maruts, the royal sages, headed by
Dilipa
''Dilipa'' is a genus of butterflies in the family Nymphalidae.
Species
*''Dilipa fenestra'' (Leech, 1891)
*''Dilipa morgiana'' (Westwood, 850
''For codepage, see CP850.''
__NOTOC__
Year 850 (Roman numerals, DCCCL) was a common year star ...
, and exalted
Brahmanas. He is treated to the most profane music of the finest gandharva,
Tumvuru, and observes the dances of the most enticing apsaras, such as
Menaka,
Rambha, and
Urvashi.
The Mahabharata suggests the existence of several forms or regions of Svarga, each headed by a deity, such as
Surya
Surya (; sa, सूर्य, ) is the sun as well as the solar deity in Hinduism. He is traditionally one of the major five deities in the Smarta tradition, all of whom are considered as equivalent deities in the Panchayatana puja and a ...
,
Kubera, and
Varuna
Varuna (; sa, वरुण, , Malay: ''Baruna'') is a Vedic deity associated initially with the sky, later also with the seas as well as Ṛta (justice) and Satya (truth). He is found in the oldest layer of Vedic literature of Hinduism, suc ...
. Indra is stated to sate all the desires of the residents. Men and women enjoy each other's pleasures without restriction, and there is no form of jealousy between the sexes.
In the text,
Nahusha opines to
Yudhisthira that offering charity, speaking pleasing words, honesty, and
ahimsa allows one to achieve heaven.
Bhagavad Gita
In the
Bhagavad Gita'','' it is indicated that Svarga is not the everlasting destination of those who had accumulated
punya''.''
See also
*
Amaravati (mythology)
*
Devaloka
*
Hiranyagarbha
*
Naraka (Hinduism)
*
Trāyastriṃśa
*
Urdhva lokas
The Urdhva lokas or upper spheres of the world are composed of seven lokas or "world" according to Hindu mythology. The detailed explanation of them is found in Vishnu Purana. The three highest Lokas (realms), Jana, Tapa, and Satya are styled d ...
References
The Garuda Purana (Wood and Subrahmanyam translation, 1911)at
sacred-texts.com
{{Heaven
Conceptions of heaven
Hindu cosmology
Locations in Hindu mythology