Ananthasayanam Vishnu - Ananta Shesha

“A long one but very informative”  - From Udaypai JI  Deciphering the Ananthasayanam Code “Udayji, can you explain the significance of Anantha sayanam?" question from a WhatsApp broadcast reader who said he is a Physics professor. (The posture of Lord Vishnu in lying is often called Ananthasayanam.)  "Do stars die?" I asked. "What?" "I am asking because you are a physics teacher. Like human beings, stars will also die, right?" "Yes, everything in this universe will perish. Most stars take millions of years to die. When a star like the Sun has burned all of its hydrogen fuel, it may become a red giant mass.  When massive stars die, they explode violently as supernovae. They leave either a neutron star or a black hole. Black holes swallow light so they are 'invisible'." "What happens when all stars die?" "When all stars die, the universe will die. But what's that to do with Ananthasayanam?" he asked. I asked again: "Do you know the current composition of the universe?" "Yes, 5% matter, 27% dark matter and 68% dark energy. It is a vast space..." "I think universe exists in 'space' (or occupies 'space'), but not only space, time and matter make up the universe." "You are right. Cosmos is various manifestations of forms of energy. Both energy and matter become one there." "When the universe dies, will the energy remain? Energy can't be created or destroyed, right?" "After all stars die, at last this universe will only have lots of photons and dark energy. This is known as the heat death of the universe or the "Big Freeze". "In layman's terms, it means energy can remain in dormant form, right?" I asked. "Yes, after the Universe dies there will exist a Unified Field (UF). The UF is a state of maximum entropy consisting of random and chaotic fluctuations without awareness of space or time. In the UF there is the possibility of a spontaneous low-entropy condition at any given scale, then a new Universe will be born and expand in scale." "So, it is not a permanent death, so it can also be called a cosmic hibernation?" "Yes" "After some time, another Big Bang can happen and a new universe can expand from it, right?" "May be...we do not know about it. It is possible...But how are these things relevant with Ananthasayanam?" "Oh, you have already explained all about Ananthasayanam. Our ancestors called the process of death of universe as 'Mahapralaya' (Great Dissolution). Vedic scriptures clearly say that when the universes disappear in Mahapralaya, they are no longer in gross form, but they remain within the cosmic consciousness. All beings that inhabit the universes remain within this consciousness." "Really? Is it the same as we learn in astro-physics?” "The UF or universal consciousness is narrated in personified form it is called ‘Ananthasayanam’ in Sanskrit.  As you know Anantha=infinity and sayanam = lying down or sleeping. Anantha Sayanam is in a way the 'Cosmic Hibernation'. The silent sleeping nature of the universe. In many articles I have explained how the entire universe and its consciousness (or Brahmam in Sanskrit) is represented by Vishnu." "Yes I have read your articles on Viswaroopam and Secret of Krishna. But in Anantha Sayanam, the cosmic or Vishnu is sleeping right?" "It says Vishnu is lying down, but not sleeping. Scriptures clearly say that his sleep is called 'Yoga Nidra', a state of Yoga when one is awake yet asleep. This sleep wakefulness is not bound by either Space or Time. That means the Pure Consciousness cannot be bound by Time or Space for Brahman. Time and space are attributes (or manifestation) of Brahmam..." "Though Physics says about possibility of cosmic consciousness, it doesn't go to this depth..." "But Vedic scriptures say that the entire universe is manifestation of Vishnu (Brahmam). It manifests into entire cosmos..." "But what about the matter? I know the energy and matter are theoretically the same? But how does it get converted to the matter?” "Yes. Mundak Upanishad provides analogy of a spider. It says as a spider projects forth and draws back (its threads), as plants grow on earth, as hairs grow on the body, so does the universe emerge from the Imperishable Being or Pure Consciousness." "Interesting. Can you explain bit more about it?" “The spider designs its web. So it is the intelligent cause of the web. Raw material is also produced by the spider itself (normally any raw material is different from the maker). So here spider is the intelligent as well as the material cause of the web. The energy can manifest as matter." "Okay, but in Ananthasayanam Vishnu is sleeping on a serpent called Ananta Shesha." "The word 'Shesha' in Sanskrit texts, especially those relating to mathematical calculation, implies the 'remainder'—that which remains when all else ceases to exist. So the sum total of all the energies this universe is made up of is contained in Sheshanaga." "It can spring into next universe again..." "The Vedas say Narayana is the causal principle of Universe. Narayana is the resting form of energy, when he wakes up and becomes active he is called Vishnu.  This is the resting period of Narayana (who holds the sustaining energy of Vishnu) which is said to be between these kalpas." "Now I understand. After this Kalpa (eon), a Mahapralayam happens and the universe goes to hibernation which is called Ananthasayanam, then again the Big Bang happens. But the Puranas describe Mahapralaya in a different concept. It's about some flood in the earth" "A flood is the best analogy for ordinary people like us to understand. As per Hindu Scriptures, Mahapralaya takes place when the cosmos goes beyond the redemption due to the destruction of Dharma. Dharma means duty, responsibility, and privilege of an individual as well as universe. If one cell among trillions of cells in the human body manipulates, the entire body will die - as it can cause cancer. Similarly the human greed can kill the earth, which is just a planet in the solar system. But destruction of earth can ultimately lead to the destruction of Universe. In short, it is the adharma that causes destruction. Never it is said that Mahapralaya is the end. It just a transcendental change or death before rebirth & rebuild. This cycle is repeated endless times." "So, this Mahapralaya or cosmic dissolution is just a temporary stage before next creation" "Yes, the cosmic dissolution is a period of silence. It may be billions of years in human point of view. Where Lord Vishnu reclines over the deep silenced cosmic ocean (Kshirasagara) in the state of divine sleep (yoga-nidra) on the endless coils of serpent Ananta Sesha. In other words, everything that existed before the cosmic dissolution lays in him the still primeval waters. During the yoga-nidra Vishnu is focused on the infinite reality of his own identity. Both Vishnu and Anantha are depicted in black (or dark bluish black) colour to represent the dark universe!" "Okay Udayji. It is very simple now. The term consciousness and Brahmam will be bit confusing in modern physics..." "It is also very simple. The depiction of Vishnu/Narayana in ‘Ananthasayanam’ coveys the absolute reality. After the complete dissolution, that' is in the last state, everything is pure consciousness. It is a state where seeker-seeking-sought are all same - BRAHMAN. The creation and created become one. The experiencer, one who experiences and the experienced are One. Religions misinterpret it as a separate entity and call it God or Creator. There is nothing except Narayana!" (Please check http://www.udaypai.in/ for other articles mentioned above)