9. Citta (iv) Where The Cosmos Expands

In this post, we explore where the expansion of the universe occurs by comparing Buddha’s teaching to the scientific perspective.

In the 1920s, Edwin Hubble was among the first to recognize that the universe contains galaxies beyond the boundaries of our Milky Way. He helped astronomers realize that we live in an expanding universe in which galaxies are moving apart. Furthermore, “on March 15, 1929, Hubble published his observation that the farthest galaxies are moving away faster than the closest ones.” In other words, not only is the universe expanding, but it is also accelerating. By being the first to observe that the universe’s expansion is accelerating, Hubble occupies a “special place in the history of astronomy.”

As the NASA image shows, scientists believe the universe consists of two categories: a dark realm and another realm composed of atomic matter. Furthermore, the dark realm comprises 71.4% dark energy and 24% dark matter. The remaining 4.6% belongs to the atomic slice.

According to NASA, “dark matter and dark energy are mysterious substances that affect and shape the cosmos, and scientists are still trying to figure them out.” Furthermore, dark energy is, “in physical cosmology and astronomy, an unknown form of energy that affects the universe on the largest scales. Its primary effect is to drive the accelerating expansion of the universe.”

Our discussion of the expansion of the universe does not include dark matter, as there is no equivalent in Buddhism. However, we will focus on dark energy because of its significant role in the expansion of the universe.

Our discussion of the expansion of the universe takes a crooked path through what Buddha teaches about Nirvana.

Nirvana (Chinese=涅槃), according to The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism, is “in Sanskrit, ‘extinction,’ the earliest and most common term describing the soteriological goal of Buddhism.”

According to The Shambhala Dictionary of Buddhism and Zen, there are debates about what exactly Nirvana extinguishes, both within and between Hinayana and Mahāyāna Buddhists. Additionally, Buddhists in the West and the East also differ. However, we do not discuss the controversial aspect of Nirvana. Instead, we will let Buddha’s own words guide us on the meaning of Nirvana.

According to The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism, Buddha says the following about Nirvana:

“There is that plane where there is neither earth, water, fire, nor air, neither the sphere of infinite space…nor the sphere of neither perception nor nonperception, neither this world nor another, nor both together, neither the sun nor the moon.“

Here, O monks, I say that there is no coming or going, no staying, no passing away or arising. It is not something fixed; it moves not on; it is not based on anything. This is indeed the end of suffering.”

By separating the “there” from the “here” of Nirvana, Buddha confirms that there are two levels of Nirvana.

A) The “There” of Nirvana

The first thing to understand about the “there” of Nirvana is that, by calling the “there” of Nirvana “there,” Buddha indicates that it is not the Nirvana he is in.  

In Buddhism, earth, water, fire, and air are collectively known as the four great elements (Romanized Sanskrit: mahabhuta; Chinese: 四大), and they constitute the physical world.

Therefore, by excluding the existence of the four “great elements, Buddha gives the reason why the “there’ of Nirvana has “neither this world nor another, nor both together, neither the sun nor the moon.” Simply put, the universe does not exist in the “there” of Nirvana.

“Sphere of infinite space” and the “sphere of neither perception nor nonperception” are the names of two of the highest celestial realms within the twenty-eight celestial realms. Furthermore, the twenty-eight celestial realms are the highest category of destination in the Six Destinations of recarnation (Chinese: 六趣). By excluding these two highest realms of reincarnation from the “there” of Nirvana, Buddha uses them as examples to indicate that all the other lower five destinations of reincarnation are also absent from the “there” of Nirvana. Simply put, the residents of the “there” of Nirvana are not subject to reincarnation.

In Buddhism, the absence of the universe is a hallmark of enlightenment, and those who are enlightened are no longer subject to reincarnation. In other words, the “there” of Nirvana is for the enlightened.

In the Verification Category, there are three examples of enlightened people. Post 25 discusses the enlightenment experience of Adyashanit, a contemporary American. Post 26 discusses the enlightenment experiences of Grandmaster Yong Jia (Chinese: 永嘉大師) and Dharma Master Hui-Neng, the Sixth Patriarch of Chan Buddhism, who was mentioned in the last post, focusing on his second enlightenment experience. While all three mentioned the disappearance of the universe upon their enlightenments, Grandmaster Yong Jia alone mentioned both the vanishing of the universe and the absence of the Destinations of Reincarnation upon his enlightenment.

Grandmaster YongJia is best known for two phrases in his Songs of Enlightenment (Chinese: 證道歌), which he wrote after his enlightenment about his enlightenment. These two phrases are “While dreaming, the Six Destinations are obviously there, after enlightenment, everything is empty, including the Trichilicosm.” (Chinese=夢裏明明有六趣. 覺後空空無大千).

“While Dreaming” is meant to describe the period before Grandmaster YongJia’s enlightenment. “Dreaming” is often used in contrast to enlightenment, which is usually referred to as an “awakening from deep sleep of unenlightenment.” So, the first part of the sentence, “While dreaming, the Six Destinations are obviously there,” refers to Grandmaster YongJia’s recognition that, before his enlightenment, he was subject to reincarnation.

To understand the meaning of the second part of the sentence, “After enlightenment, everything is empty, including the Trichilicosm,” we need first to understand the meaning of “Trichilicosm.”

Trichilicosm (Chinese=三千大千世界), according to The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism, means “the largest possible universe.” So, “After enlightenment, everything is empty, including the Trichilicosm” means that, upon his enlightenment, “the largest possible universe” becomes “empty,” i.e., disappears.

Indeed, given that the absence of the universe and the Six Destinations of recarnation are features of enlightenment, it means that the “there” of Nirvana is the Nirvana for the enlightened. However, while enlightenment is highly laudable and significant for freeing one from the endless cycles of karmically induced birth and rebirth, it is not Buddha’s soteriological goal.

Now, let’s discuss what Buddha’s teaching on this level of Nirvana is by first discussing Arhats, the name given to those who are enlightened for the first time.  

• Arhat (Chinese=阿羅漢) is, according to The Shambhala Dictionary of Buddhism and Zen, in Sanskrit, meaning “‘worthy one’ who has attained the highest of the Hinayana, that of ‘no-more-learning’ in the supramunda (Chinese: 聖僧) path, and who possesses the certainty that all defilements and passions have been extinguished and will not arise again in the future. The fruition of arhatship is Nirvana with remainder (Romanized Sanskrit: sopadhishesha-nirvana (Chinese: 有餘涅槃).”
• By becoming enlightened and extinguishing defilements and passions, Arhats have also removed their afflictive obstructions, one of the two obstructions that must be overcome to become a Buddha.
  • Afflictive Obstructions (Romanized Sanskrit: klesavarana; Chinese: 煩惱障), according to The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism, are “in Sanskrit, obstructions that are the afflictions, and first of the two obstructions that the Mahāyāna holds must be overcome in order to complete the Bodhisattva path and achieve Buddhahood.” Furthermore, “overcoming these types of obstructions will lead to freedom from further rebirth (and specifically the Paricchedajaramarana, or “determinative birth-and-rebirth (Chinese=分段生死).”
    • Arhats’ gaining “freedom from further rebirth (and specifically the Paricchedajaramarana, or “determinative birth-and-rebirth (Chinese=分段生死)” is why the Six Destinations of Reincarnation are absent from the “there” of Nirvana.
    • Furthermore, as clearly stated in the definition of Arhats, the “there” of Nirvana is “Nirvana with remainder (Romanized Sanskrit: sopadhishesha-nirvana (Chinese: 有餘涅槃).”

B) The “Here” of Nirvana

By calling the “here” of Nirvana “here,” Buddha makes it clear that the “here” of Nirvana is the Nirvana he is in,

As discussed in Post 6, the description of the “here” of Nirvana as having “no coming or going; no staying, no passing away or arising” means that the “here” of Nirvana is for those who have achieved that “ultimate wisdom that is free from the subject-object distinction (Romanized Sanskrit: grahyagrahakavikalpa; Chinese: 所取能取分別).” Furthermore, as discussed in the same post, achieving the “ultimate wisdom that is free from the subject-object distinction” means one has understood “things as they are,” and become a Tathāgata, such as our historical Shakyamuni Buddha.

Tathāgata (Chinese: 如來), according to The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism, is “in Sanskrit and Pali, lit., one who has thus come/gone.” “A secondary denotation of the term is to understand ‘things as they are.'”

By understanding “things as they are” and becoming a Tathāgata, the person has overcome the Cognitive or Noetic Obstruction, the second of the two obstructions.

• Cognitive or Noetic Obstructions (to Omniscience) (Romanized Sanskrit: jneyavarana; Chinese: 所知障), according to The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism, “The second of the two categories of obstructions, together with the afflictive obstructions, that must be overcome to perfect the Bodhisattva path and achieve Buddhahood. In the Yogacara and Madhyamaka systems, cognitive obstructions are treated as subtle hindrances that serve as the origin of the afflictive obstructions and result from the reification of what are actually imaginary external phenomena. According to Yogacara, because of the attachment deriving ultimately from the reification of what are actually imaginary external phenomena, conceptualization and discrimination arise in the mind, which lead in turn to pride, ignorance, and wrong views. Based on these mistakes in cognition, the individual engages in defiled actions, such as anger, envy, etc., which constitute the afflictive obstructions. The afflictive obstructions may be removed by followers of Sravaka (Chinese: 聲聞), Pratyekabuddha (Chinese: 緣覺/獨覺), and beginning Bodhisattva paths by applying various antidotes or counteragents (Pratipajksa) to the afflictions (Klesa); overcoming these types of obstructions will lead to freedom from further rebirth. The cognitive obstructions, however, are more deeply ingrained and can only be overcome by advanced bodhisattvas who seek instead to achieve Buddhahood by perfecting their understanding of emptiness. Buddhas, therefore, are the only class of beings who have overcome both types of obstructions and thus are able simultaneously to cognize all objects of knowledge in the universe; this is one of the sources of their unparalleled skills as teachers of sentient beings. The jneyavarana are therefore sometimes translated as “obstructions to omniscience.”

In other words, while the “origin of the afflictive obstructions” lies in the “reification of what are actually imaginary external phenomena,” overcoming them by advanced Bodhisattvas requires their “understanding of emptiness.”

Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara, as a tenth-level Bodhisattva, is such an advanced bodhisattva who, in the Heart Sūtra, demonstrated his “understanding of emptiness” by clearly stating “the Emptiness of the Five Aggregates (Chinese: 五蘊皆空).” The significance of that statement is that it shows not only that Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara understood emptiness and had overcome his cognitive obstructions, but also that he had reached the level of a Tathāgata, thus fulfilling the Buddha’s soveriological goal, as stated in the Lotus Sūtra (as mentioned in Post 3). If you would like to know the details of how Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara did it, please visit Post 28.

So, we can be sure that the “here” of Nirvana is for Tathagatas or advanced bodhisattvas who understand emptiness, thus fulfilling Buddha’s soteriological goal. The name of this Nirvana is “Nirvana without Remainder (Romanized Sanskrit: anupadhisesa-nirvana; Chinese: 無餘涅槃).”

However, what is the seemingly contradictory meaning that the “here” of Nirvana “is not something fixed; it moves not on” that requires a Tathāgata to realize?

Let’s have science help us.

In this video lecture, “A Universe From Nothing,” Dr. Lawrence Krauss explains that Edwin Hubble discovered the universe is expanding. When Hubble looked at the sky, he saw that other galaxies were moving away from him, indicating an expanding universe. At the same time, Hubble felt he was at the center of the universe, because he was not moving while all other galaxies were moving away from him.

Dr. Krause then used a graphic presentation, starting about 9 minutes into the video, to show that this is true for any observer anywhere in the universe. In other words, wherever an individual stands in the universe, the place he is standing on always feels like the center of the universe and “moving not on.” At the same time, however, he sees all other galaxies as “not something fixed” because they are all moving away from him. In other words, the description “not something fixed; it moves not on” describes what scientists call the expansion of the universe.

Given that scientists think dark energy is the driver of the universe’s expansion, and that Buddha realized the driver of the universe’s expansion is the Ultimate Reality, it means that dark energy and the Citta are equivalent.

However, while dark energy and Citta are equivalent, the structures of the cosmos they are in are significantly different. While dark energy and the atomic slice coexist in NASA’s universe, Citta and Rupa exist separately in their own realms.

From the Buddhist perspective, the fact that dark energy and the atomic slice coexist in the same universe is the root cause of what in science is known as the Cosmological Constant Problem, deemed “the largest discrepancy between theory and experiment in all of science and the worst theoretical prediction in the history of physics.” With a discrepancy “calculated to be between 50 and as many as 120 orders of magnitude,” what the Cosmological Constant Problem reflects can hardly be considered a mere mathematical error or the worst scientific prediction in the history of physics. From the Buddhist perspective, what the Cosmological Problem reflects is a structural issue.

Indeed, in Buddha’s cosmos, the Cosmological Constant Problem cannot exist. It is because the two realms of reality in the Buddhist cosmos, Citta and Rupa, are distinguished by their different states of fluctuations. Indeed, by separating the realms with and without fluctuations, Buddha’s two-body structure of reality in the cosmos solves a significant headache for scientists that would otherwise be unsolvable. We will discuss this topic in a future post.

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