The Three Worlds

[Singh559]

Does anyone have any text or katha about the Three Worlds mentioned in Gurbani? Possibly by Sant Singh Maskeen, i find it very easy to understand his katha, but any katha at all would be fine.

Thanks

[dalsingh101]

Are you talking about ਤ੍ਰਿਭਵਣ ?

[Singh559]

Are you talking about ਤ੍ਰਿਭਵਣ ?

Hanji, both of the two Gurbani below:

qIin lok jw kY hih Bwr ]He bears the burden of the three worlds;teen lok jaa kai heh bhaar.

---

AMDuly iqRBvx sUiJAw gur Byit punIqw ]1]and the blind man sees the three worlds, by meeting with the True Guru and being purified. ||1||anDhulay taribhavan soojhi-aa gur bhayt puneetaa. ||1||

[VanHelsingh]

Metaphorically three worlds or actual three worlds?

[dalsingh101]

Well this formula gets mentioned in the opening chand of Jaap Sahib where Akal Purakh is 'tribhavan maheep' or 'king of the three worlds'. This statement is immediately followed by sur (devtay?) nar (men) and asur (demons?) although these given translations of sur and asur are problematic (maybe they represent entities/ideas without equivalents in the English language?) and I fear we may be transposing semitic conceptualisations by using such translations?

Mahan kosh tells us: ਸੰ. ਤ੍ਰਿਭੁਵਨ. {ਸੰਗ੍ਯਾ}. ਤਿੰਨ ਲੋਕ. ਸ੍ਵਰਗ, ਪ੍ਰਿਥਵੀ ਅਤੇ ਪਾਤਾਲ. Which seem to suggest heaven, earth and an underworld.

There seem to be many underworlds (also called nether worlds) as expressed in Jap Ji Sahib: ਪਾਤਾਲਾ ਪਾਤਾਲ ਲਖ ਆਗਾਸਾ ਆਗਾਸ ॥

Whether we are literally talking about specific places or whether it is a device being used to convey Waheguru's transcendence over all dimensions/places/beings using the Sanskrit based term is an interesting question.

[dalsingh101]

These tuks from Japji Sahib seem to suggest that dividing creation like this is wrong?

ਪਾਤਾਲਾ ਪਾਤਾਲ ਲਖ ਆਗਾਸਾ ਆਗਾਸ ॥

There are nether worlds beyond the nether worlds and lacs of skies over skies.

ਓੜਕ ਓੜਕ ਭਾਲਿ ਥਕੇ ਵੇਦ ਕਹਨਿ ਇਕ ਵਾਤ ॥

The scriptures say one thing: searching for God's limits and bounds, (without success) people have grown weary.

ਸਹਸ ਅਠਾਰਹ ਕਹਨਿ ਕਤੇਬਾ ਅਸੁਲੂ ਇਕੁ ਧਾਤੁ ॥

The Semitic scriptures say that there are eighteen thousand worlds, but in reality there is only one essence; that the Lord is limitless.

Trans by: Bhai Manmohan Singh.

Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa has:

There are nether worlds beneath nether worlds, and hundreds of thousands of heavenly worlds above.

The Vedas say that you can search and search for them all, until you grow weary.

The scriptures say that there are 18,000 worlds, but in reality, there is only One Universe.

[Singh559]

Well this formula gets mentioned in the opening chand of Jaap Sahib where Akal Purakh is 'tribhavan maheep' or 'king of the three worlds'. This statement is immediately followed by sur (devtay?) nar (men) and asur (demons?) although these given translations of sur and asur are problematic (maybe they represent entities/ideas without equivalents in the English language?) and I fear we may be transposing semitic conceptualisations by using such translations?

Mahan kosh tells us: ਸੰ. ਤ੍ਰਿਭੁਵਨ. {ਸੰਗ੍ਯਾ}. ਤਿੰਨ ਲੋਕ. ਸ੍ਵਰਗ, ਪ੍ਰਿਥਵੀ ਅਤੇ ਪਾਤਾਲ. Which seem to suggest heaven, earth and an underworld.

There seem to be many underworlds (also called nether worlds) as expressed in Jap Ji Sahib: ਪਾਤਾਲਾ ਪਾਤਾਲ ਲਖ ਆਗਾਸਾ ਆਗਾਸ ॥

Whether we are literally talking about specific places or whether it is a device being used to convey Waheguru's transcendence over all dimensions/places/beings using the Sanskrit based term is an interesting question.

Thanks for posting this, it helped a lot. Would be nice to see what others have to say as well, i am sure GurSikhs have room to vary in terms of interpretation so long as it is in line with Gurbani and Gurmat.

Love it, you ask one question and you get countless more.

[harsharan000]

"and the blind man sees the three worlds, by meeting with the True Guru and being purified. ||1||anDhulay taribhavan soojhi-aa gur bhayt puneetaa."

Dear Brother, as far as i understand from this upper line, which means, at this phisicall level we see with our sight (eyes), but we are unaware of the spiritual dimensions, that is why, in a way we are blind, because we do not see them. But with a proper guide and jugtee( meeting with the true Guru and purity), we can perceive and enter into those subtle regions: first the astral ( Sahasdanwal Kanwal); second, the causal (Trikuti); and third, the beyond one, more spiritual, more subtle one: (Daswan Dwar) Parbraham, the gateway to Sach Khand.

One proceeds from this phisical mayavee creation to the upper and higher regions, penetrating them, as one gets more and more purified with Nam Simarn. Apart from this phisicall body, the soul has two more coverings on it, the astral and the causal bodies, which are needed when one reaches in those regions, but once passing Parbraham, the soul is free from all coverings, and is thus ready to merge in Satnam, because it has become as pure as Him. And all this is possible, only through His inmense Daya Meher.

[MokhamSingh]

<br />Does anyone have any text or katha about the Three Worlds mentioned in Gurbani? Possibly by Sant Singh Maskeen, i find it very easy to understand his katha, but any katha at all would be fine.<br /><br />Thanks<br />

<br /><br /><br />

Khalsa Ji

Patal , Dharti , and Akash are also mentioned in Gurbani i.e. Under the earth , on the ground , and in the sky.

[ladli-fauj]

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