Mount Meru (

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 ...

Pali Pali () is a Middle Indo-Aryan liturgical language native to the Indian subcontinent. It is widely studied because it is the language of the Buddhist ''Pāli Canon'' or '' Tipiṭaka'' as well as the sacred language of '' Theravāda'' Buddh ...

: मेरु), also known as Sumeru, Sineru or Mahāmeru, is the sacred five-peaked mountain of

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

Jain Jainism ( ), also known as Jain Dharma, is an Indian religion. Jainism traces its spiritual ideas and history through the succession of twenty-four tirthankaras (supreme preachers of ''Dharma''), with the first in the current time cycle being ...

, and Buddhist cosmology and is considered to be the centre of all the physical,

metaphysical Metaphysics is the branch of philosophy that studies the fundamental nature of reality, the first principles of being, identity and change, space and time, causality, necessity, and possibility. It includes questions about the nature of conscio ...

and spiritual universes. There is no clear identification of Mount Meru with a particular geophysical location. Many famous

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

temples have been built as symbolic representations of this mountain. The "Sumeru Throne" 須彌座 xūmízuò style base is a common feature of

Chinese pagoda A pagoda is an Asian tiered tower with multiple eaves common to Nepal, India, China, Japan, Korea, Myanmar, Vietnam, and other parts of Asia. Most pagodas were built to have a religious function, most often Buddhist but sometimes Taoist, ...

s. The highest point (the finial bud) on the

pyatthat Pyatthat ( my, ပြာသာဒ်, ; from Sanskrit ; mnw, တန်ဆံၚ် ; also spelt pyathat) is the name of a multistaged roof, with an odd number of tiers (from three to seven). The pyatthat is commonly incorporated into Burmese B ...

, a Burmese-style multi-tiered roof, represents Mount Meru.

Etymology

Etymologically, the proper name of the mountain is Meru (Sanskrit: Meru), to which is added the approbatory prefix su-, resulting in the meaning "excellent Meru" or "wonderful Meru". ''Meru'' is also the name of the central bead in a mālā.

In other languages

In other languages, Mount Meru is pronounced: * Assamese: মেৰু পর্বত (Meru Pôrbôt) *

Bengali Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to: *something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia * Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region * Bengali language, the language they speak ** Bengali alphabet, the w ...

: মেরু পর্বত (Meru Porbot) * Burmese: မြင်းမိုရ်တောင် () * Cebuano: Bukid Meru *

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...

: 須彌山 (''Xūmíshān'') *

Gujarati Gujarati may refer to: * something of, from, or related to Gujarat, a state of India * Gujarati people, the major ethnic group of Gujarat * Gujarati language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by them * Gujarati languages, the Western Indo-Aryan sub ...

: મેરૂ પર્વત (''Meru Parvat'') *

Hindi Hindi ( Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been ...

: मेरु पर्वत (''Meru Parvat'') * Ilocano: Bantay Meru *

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

: 須弥山 (''Shumisen'') * Javanese: ꦱꦼꦩꦺꦫꦸ (Semeru) *

Kannada Kannada (; ಕನ್ನಡ, ), originally romanised Canarese, is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by the people of Karnataka in southwestern India, with minorities in all neighbouring states. It has around 47 million native s ...

: ಮೇರು ಪರ್ವತ (''Meru Parvata'') * Khmer: ភ្នំព្រះសុមេរុ (''Phnom Preah Someru'') or (''Phnom Preah Somae'') *

Korean Korean may refer to: People and culture * Koreans, ethnic group originating in the Korean Peninsula * Korean cuisine * Korean culture * Korean language **Korean alphabet, known as Hangul or Chosŏn'gŭl **Korean dialects and the Jeju language ** ...

: 수미산 (''Sumisan'') *

Malayalam Malayalam (; , ) is a Dravidian languages, Dravidian language spoken in the Indian state of Kerala and the union territories of Lakshadweep and Puducherry (union territory), Puducherry (Mahé district) by the Malayali people. It is one of 2 ...

: മഹാമേരു പർവ്വതം (''Mahameru Parvatham'') * Odia: ମେରୁ ପର୍ବତ (“Meru Pôrbôtô”) *

Pāli Pali () is a Middle Indo-Aryan liturgical language native to the Indian subcontinent. It is widely studied because it is the language of the Buddhist ''Pāli Canon'' or '' Tipiṭaka'' as well as the sacred language of ''Theravāda'' Buddhi ...

: Sineru * Tagalog: Bulkang Meru *

Tamil Tamil may refer to: * Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia **Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils **Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia * Tamil language, nativ ...

: மகா மேரு மலை (''Maha Meru Malai'') *

Telugu Telugu may refer to: * Telugu language, a major Dravidian language of India *Telugu people, an ethno-linguistic group of India * Telugu script, used to write the Telugu language ** Telugu (Unicode block), a block of Telugu characters in Unicode S ...

: మేరు పర్వతం (''Meru Parvatam'') * Sinhala: මහා මේරු පර්වතය (''Maha Meru Parvathaya'') * Tibetan: ཪི་རྒྱལ་པོ་རི་རབ་ * th, เขาพระสุเมรุ (''Khao phra sumen'') *

Vietnamese Vietnamese may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Vietnam, a country in Southeast Asia ** A citizen of Vietnam. See Demographics of Vietnam. * Vietnamese people, or Kinh people, a Southeast Asian ethnic group native to Vietnam ** Overse ...

: Núi Tu-di

Geography

The dimensions attributed to Mount Meru — which all refer to it as a part of the Cosmic Ocean, along with several other statements that describe it in geographically vague terms (e.g., "the Sun along with all the planets circle the mountain") — make the determination of its location most difficult, according to most scholars. Several researchers identify Mount Meru or Sumeru with the

Pamirs The Pamir Mountains are a mountain range between Central Asia and Pakistan. It is located at a junction with other notable mountains, namely the Tian Shan, Karakoram, Kunlun, Hindu Kush and the Himalaya mountain ranges. They are among the world ...

, northwest of Kashmir. The Suryasiddhanta mentions that Mt. Meru lies at the centre ''the Earth'' ("bhuva-madhya") in the land of the Jambunad (

Jambudvīpa Jambudvīpa ( sa, जम्बुद्वीप; Pali: Jambudīpa) is a name often used to describe the territory of Greater India in Ancient Indian sources. The term is based on the concept of '' dvīpa'', meaning "island" or "continent" ...

). ''Narapatijayacharyasvarodaya'', a ninth-century text, based on mostly unpublished texts of Yāmal Tantr, mentions: : " Prithvī-madhye shrūyate drishyate na tu" : (Sumeru is heard to be at the centre of the Earth, but is not seen there). Several versions of cosmology can be found in existing Hindu texts. In one of them, cosmologically, the Meru mountain was also described as being surrounded by Mandrachala Mountain to the east, Suparshva Mountain to the west, Kumuda Mountain to the north and Kailasa to the south.

In Buddhism

According to Buddhist cosmology, Mount Meru (or Sumeru) is at the centre of the world, and Jambūdvīpa is south of it. It is 80,000

yojana A yojana (Sanskrit: योजन; th, โยชน์; my, ယူဇနာ) is a measure of distance that was used in ancient India, Thailand and Myanmar. A yojana is about 12–15 km. Edicts of Ashoka (3rd century BCE) Ashoka, in his Major R ...

s wide and 80,000 yojanas high according to the ''Abhidharmakośabhāṣyam'' and 84,000 yojanas high according to the ''Long Āgama Sutra''.

Trāyastriṃśa The (Sanskrit; Pali ) heaven is an important world of the devas in the Buddhist cosmology. The word is an adjective formed from the numeral , "33" and can be translated in English as "belonging to the thirty-three evas. It is primarily t ...

is on its peak, where Śakra resides. The Sun and the Moon revolve around Mount Meru, and as the Sun passes behind it, it becomes nighttime. The mountain has four faces — each one made of a different material; the northern face is made of

gold Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile me ...

, the eastern one is made of

crystal A crystal or crystalline solid is a solid material whose constituents (such as atoms, molecules, or ions) are arranged in a highly ordered microscopic structure, forming a crystal lattice that extends in all directions. In addition, macro ...

, the southern one is made of lapis lazuli, and the western one is made of

ruby A ruby is a pinkish red to blood-red colored gemstone, a variety of the mineral corundum ( aluminium oxide). Ruby is one of the most popular traditional jewelry gems and is very durable. Other varieties of gem-quality corundum are called ...

. In

Vajrayāna Vajrayāna ( sa, वज्रयान, "thunderbolt vehicle", "diamond vehicle", or "indestructible vehicle"), along with Mantrayāna, Guhyamantrayāna, Tantrayāna, Secret Mantra, Tantric Buddhism, and Esoteric Buddhism, are names referring t ...

, maṇḍala offerings often include Mount Meru, as they in part represent the entire universe. It is also believed that Mount Meru is the home of the

buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist tradition, he was born in L ...

Cakrasaṃvara.

In Hinduism

Mount Meru of

traditions is described as 84,000

s high, about , which would be 85 times the Earth's diameter. The Sun, along with all the planets in the Solar System, revolve around Mt. Meru as one unit. One

can be taken to mean about 11.5 km (9 miles), though its magnitude seems to differ over time periods — e.g., the

Earth's circumference Earth's circumference is the distance around Earth. Measured around the Equator, it is . Measured around the poles, the circumference is . Measurement of Earth's circumference has been important to navigation since ancient times. The first kno ...

is 3,200 yojanas according to Varahamihira and slightly less so in the Aryabhatiya, but is said to be 5,026.5 yojanas in the Suryasiddhānta. The

Matsya Purana The ''Matsya Purana'' (IAST: Matsya Purāṇa) is one of the eighteen major Puranas (Mahapurana), and among the oldest and better preserved in the Puranic genre of Sanskrit literature in Hinduism. The text is a Vaishnavism text named after the h ...

and the Bhagvata Purana, along with some other Hindu texts, consistently give the height of 84,000 yojanas to Mount Meru, which translates into 672,000 miles or 1,082,000 kilometers. Mount Meru was said to be the residence of King Padamja Brahma in antiquity. According to Charles Allen,

Mount Kailash Mount Kailash (also Kailasa; ''Kangrinboqê'' or ''Gang Rinpoche''; Tibetan: གངས་རིན་པོ་ཆེ; ; sa, कैलास, ), is a mountain in the Ngari Prefecture, Tibet Autonomous Region of China. It has an altitude of ...

is identified with Mount Meru. One description in the

Vishnu Purana The Vishnu Purana ( IAST:, sa, विष्णुपुराण) is one of the eighteen Mahapuranas, a genre of ancient and medieval texts of Hinduism. It is an important Pancharatra text in the Vaishnavism literature corpus. The manusc ...

of the mountain states that its four faces are made of

, and lapis lazuli. It is a pillar of the world and is located at the heart of six mountain ranges symbolizing a lotus. Allen, Charles. (1982). ''A Mountain in Tibet'', pp. 21–22. André Deutsch. Reprint: 1991. Futura Publications, London. .

In Jainism

According to Jain cosmology, Mount Meru (or ''Sumeru'') is at the centre of the world surrounded by Jambūdvīpa, in form of a circle forming a diameter of 100,000 yojans.Schubring, Walther (1995), pp. 204–246 There are two sets of sun, moon and stars revolving around Mount Meru; while one set works, the other set rests behind Mount Meru. Every

Tirthankara In Jainism, a ''Tirthankara'' (Sanskrit: '; English: literally a ' ford-maker') is a saviour and spiritual teacher of the '' dharma'' (righteous path). The word ''tirthankara'' signifies the founder of a '' tirtha'', which is a fordable pass ...

is taken to the summit of Meru by Indra shortly after his birth, after putting the Tirthankara child's mother into deep slumber. There, he is bathed and anointed with precious unctions. Indra and other Devas celebrate his birth.

Javanese legends

This mythical mountain of gods was mentioned in the

Tantu Pagelaran Tantu Pagelaran or Tangtu Panggelaran is an Old Javanese manuscript written in the Kawi language that originated from the 15th century Majapahit period. The manuscript describes the mythical origin of Java island. Legend of moving Meru to Java ...

, an

Old Javanese Old Javanese or Kawi is the oldest attested phase of the Javanese language. It was spoken in the eastern part of what is now Central Java and the whole of East Java, Indonesia. As a literary language, Kawi was used across Java and on the island ...

manuscript written in the 15th-century Majapahit period. The manuscript describes the mythical origin of the island of

Java Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's mos ...

, as well as the legendary movement of portions of Mount Meru to Java. The manuscript explains that

Batara Guru Batara Guru (also called Bhattara Guru, Debata Batara Guru and Batara Siwa) is the name of a supreme god in Indonesian Hinduism. His name is derived from Sanskrit ''Bhattaraka'' which means “noble lord".R. Ghose (1966), Saivism in Indonesia dur ...

(

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 Hindu ...

) ordered the gods

Brahma Brahma ( sa, ब्रह्मा, Brahmā) is a Hindu god, referred to as "the Creator" within the Trimurti, the trinity of supreme divinity that includes Vishnu, and Shiva.Jan Gonda (1969)The Hindu Trinity Anthropos, Bd 63/64, H 1/2, pp. 21 ...

and

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" withi ...

to fill Java with human beings. However, at that time, Java island was floating freely on the ocean, always tumbling and shaking. To stop the island's movement, the gods decided to nail it to the Earth by moving the part of Mahameru in Jambudvipa (

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

) and attaching it to Java. The resulting mountain is

Mount Semeru The Semeru ( jv, ꦱꦼꦩꦺꦫꦸ), or Mount Semeru ( jv, ꦒꦸꦤꦸꦁꦱꦼꦩꦺꦫꦸ (Pegon:, Gunung Semeru), is an active volcano located in East Java, Indonesia. It is located in a subduction zone, where the Indo-Australian plate ...

, the tallest mountain on Java.

Architecture

The concept of a holy mountain surrounded by various circles was incorporated into ancient

Hindu temple A Hindu temple, or ''mandir'' or ''koil'' in Indian languages, is a house, seat and body of divinity for Hindus. It is a structure designed to bring human beings and gods together through worship, sacrifice, and devotion.; Quote: "The Hin ...

architecture with a ''

Shikhara ''Shikhara'' ( IAST: '), a Sanskrit word translating literally to "mountain peak", refers to the rising tower in the Hindu temple architecture of North India, and also often used in Jain temples. A ''shikhara'' over the ''garbhagriha'' chambe ...

'' (''Śikhara'') — a Sanskrit word translating literally to "mountain peak." Early examples of this style can be found at the Harshat Mata Temple and Harshnath Temple from the 8th century CE in

Rajasthan Rajasthan (; lit. 'Land of Kings') is a state in northern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the largest Indian state by area and the seventh largest by population. It is on India's northwestern s ...

Western India Western India is a loosely defined region of India consisting of its western part. The Ministry of Home Affairs in its Western Zonal Council Administrative division includes the states of Goa, Gujarat, and Maharashtra along with the Union ...

. This concept also continued outside India, such as in Bali, where temples feature

Meru tower A Meru tower or pelinggih meru is the principal shrine of a Balinese temple. It is a wooden, pagoda-like structure with a masonry base, a wooden chamber and multi-tiered thatched roofs. The height of Meru towers represent the Hindu Mount Meru. Mer ...

s. In Buddhist temples, the

Mahabodhi Temple The Mahabodhi Temple (literally: "Great Awakening Temple") or the Mahābodhi Mahāvihāra, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is an ancient, but rebuilt and restored Buddhist temple in Bodh Gaya, Bihar, India, marking the location where the Buddha i ...

in Bodh Gaya is the earliest example of the 5th- to 6th-century depiction. Many other Buddhist temples took on this form, such as the

Wat Arun Wat Arun Ratchawararam Ratchawaramahawihan ( th, วัดอรุณราชวราราม ราชวรมหาวิหาร ) or Wat Arun (, "Temple of Dawn") is a Buddhist temple ('' wat'') in Bangkok Yai district of Bangkok, Th ...

Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is b ...

and the

Hsinbyume Pagoda The Hsinbyume Pagoda ( my, ဆင်ဖြူမယ်စေတီ ; also known as Myatheindan Pagoda ( )) is a large pagoda on the northern side of Mingun in Sagaing Region in Myanmar, on the western bank of the Irrawaddy River. It is approxima ...

Myanmar Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John Wells explai ...

. File:Sunset at Wat Chaiwatthanaram, Ayutthaya, Thailand.jpg, ''Prang'' of Wat Chaiwatthanaram, a Buddhist temple in

Ayutthaya Ayutthaya, Ayudhya, or Ayuthia may refer to: * Ayutthaya Kingdom, a Thai kingdom that existed from 1350 to 1767 ** Ayutthaya Historical Park, the ruins of the old capital city of the Ayutthaya Kingdom * Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya province (locally ...

, Thailand, representing Mount Meru File:วัดแจ้ง2.jpg, A Buddhist ''

prang Prang may refer to: Places * Prang, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, a town of Charsadda District, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, Pakistan *Prang Besar, an old name for Putrajaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malayasia * Prang Ghar Tehsil or Pran Ghar Subdivision, a subdivisi ...

'' in

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estimated populati ...

, representing Mount Sumeru File:Min Kun, Myanmar (Burma) - panoramio (23).jpg,

in Mandalay,

, representing Mount Sumeru File:Pura Ulun Danu Bratan, 2022.jpg, The ''meru'' of Pura Ulun Danu Bratan is dedicated to

and his consort Parvathi File:Jambudweep Rachna.jpg, Depiction of Mount Meru at

Jambudweep Jambudweep is a Digambara Jain temple in Hastinapur, Uttar Pradesh built under the blessings of Gyanmati Mataji in 1972. Jambudweep in Hastinapur is a depiction of Jambudvipa and Kailash Parvat Rachna & Shree Ashtapad Teerth are depictions o ...

, a Jain temple in

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh (; , 'Northern Province') is a state in northern India. With over 200 million inhabitants, it is the most populated state in India as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. It was established in 1950 ...

Notes

Sources

* . *Narpatijayacharyā, commentary by Ganeshdatta Pathak, Published by Chowkhambha Sanskrit Sansthana, Varanasi, India, PIN-221001.

External links

* Description of Mount Meru in the Devi-bhagavata-puran
1
http://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/db/bk08ch15.htm 2]
Painting of Mount Meru found in Buddhist cave sanctuary in Xinjiang, China
* Mount Meru in Encyclopedia of Buddhist Iconograph

https://web.archive.org/web/20060322234200/http://huntingtonarchive.osu.edu/Encyclopedia%20Buddhist%20Icon/01a%20Mount%20Meru_Yogin%20Series/MM_YoginSeries01.html 2] * Sumeru in ''Encyclopedia of Buddhist Iconography'
1
https://web.archive.org/web/20060322234200/http://huntingtonarchive.osu.edu/Encyclopedia%20Buddhist%20Icon/01a%20Mount%20Meru_Yogin%20Series/MM_YoginSeries01.html 2]
Ngari

What is Mount Meru?
{{Portal bar, Hinduism, Religion, India Mount Meru (mythology), Locations in Hindu mythology Hindu cosmology

Meru Meru may refer to: Geography Kenya * Meru, Kenya, a city in Meru County, Kenya ** Meru County, created by the merger of *** Meru Central District *** Meru North District *** Meru South District * Meru National Park, a Kenyan wildlife park T ...

Ancient Indian mountains Buddhist cosmology Buddhist mythology Mountains in Buddhism