BIG-BANG COSMOLOGY :

Scientific& Religious View Points

H.S. VIRKProfessor Emeritus, Eternal University,

Baru Sahib, HP, India

Cosmological Ideas before Einstein

Aristotlian Ideas: Universe consists of Terrestrial andCelestial spheres, following different laws.

Newtonian Ideas: Newton considered the creation ofthe Universe as an act of God; Space and Timeappear as absolutes and the Earth occupies a uniqueposition in the Universe.

Gas-Cloud hypothesis: Kant and Laplace consider thecreation of the Universe out of gases and vapourssuch as hydrogen, methane, carbon dioxide,cyanogen and water. The planets and the sun werecreated out of the same nebular gas medium.

Einstein’s General Theory of Relativity and

RELATIVISTIC MODELS OF THE UNIVERSE

Einstein’s general theory of relativity presented in1915, is in reality a cosmological theory. VariousModels were proposed based on this theory:

• Parabolic Model; Elliptical Model; Hyperbolic Model. The three models of the universe start from a condition of infinite density which is called a singular state. The creation or expansion of the universe from singular state is referred to as ‘Big Bang’.

Some Interesting Facts about the Universe

• Size of Universe = 80 billion light year

~ 1million billion billion km (0.76x1024 km).

• Universe contains 100 billion galaxies, each havingmillion-billion stars in it.

• Virgo Cluster has 1000 galaxies inside, some of themare colliding.

• Black holes are present in the centre of galaxies.

• A star has a tendency to become a Black Hole if itsmass exceeds 5 Solar masses.

HYMNS on CREATION in VEDAS

• In the beginning was Hiranyagarbha, The Seed of Elemental Existence,The only Lord of all that was born.

• The whole of this Universe is stationed in the Omnipresent and the Omnipotent God .

• We see him in various forms.He brings to light all these Worlds.Him they call the Kala(Time), Infinite, pervading the Infinite Space.

• In this creation are held in balance the three regions, terrestrial, interspatial and celestial, and the three divine realms pertaining to body, mind and spirit, provided with three eternal functions-physical,mental and transcendental.

UPNISHADIC VIEWPOINT

• According to Dussen there are four views of creation inHindu philosophy based on Upnishadas:

• Matter is eternal and Purusha (creator) has always beenindependent of God. God does not create the matter butmoulds it into creation as a potter maketh the earthen pots.

• Purusha is the cause and creator of matter. But after thecreation, God does not interfere in its working and itcontinues according to its own fundamental laws.

• God himself transforms into creation i.e., changing hisNirguna form into Saguna form.

• Creation is a play of Maya. It is a mere illusion. Only God isreal.

Semitic Religions• According to the Holy Bible, the creation of universe

is the manifestation of God. The whole process ofcreation was completed in six days. The first book ofMoses, called Genesis, opens with the lines: In thebeginning God created the heaven and the earth.

• In 1650, Bishop Usher of Ireland calculated the dateof creation as 4004 B.C. according to the ‘Genesis’story of the Bible. This date has been pushed backby a long span that has elapsed since the appearanceof man on earth confirmed by recent archeologicalfind (Neanderthal man in Europe).

Cosmology in Sikh Religion

The truth of primordial existence of God before the creation of time and space is also explained by Guru Nanak in Japu:

Awid scu jugwid scu] hY BI scu nwnk hosI BI scu]

Existed before the beginning of time and space; Existed throughout the various ages in the past; Exists in the present; andWill exist in the future.

AGE of the UNIVERSE

According to the Hindu view, age of the universe is infinite.There are innumerable Brahmas who are employed in theprocess of creation. Each Brahma has life-time of 100 years.On astronomical time scale the year is much bigger than oursolar year. Some of the units are given below:

• 1 Maha Yuga = S+D+T+K (Four Yugas)= 432x104 Solar Years

• 1000 Maha Yugas= Kalp=Day=Night (of Brahma).• 1000 Maha Yugas = 14 Manvantar + 15 Junctions.

After working out the above relation, we can get:• 1 Manvantar = 71x432x104 Solar years.

Concept of SUNN in SUKHMANI

• sloku ] srgun inrgun inrMkwr suMn smwDI Awip ] Awpn kIAw nwnkw Awpy hI iPir jwip ]

• AstpdI ] jb Akwru iehu kCu n idRstyqw ] pwp puMn qb kh qy hoqw ] jb DwrI Awpn suMn smwiD ] qb bYr ibroD iksu sMig kmwiq ] jb ies kw brnu ichnu n jwpq ] qb hrK sog khu iksih ibAwpq ] jb Awpn Awp Awip pwrbRhm ] qb moh khw iksu hovq Brm ] Awpn Kylu Awip vrqIjw ] nwnk krnYhwru n dUjw ]1] {pMnw 290-291}

• suMn klw AprMpir DwrI ] Awip inrwlmu Apr ApwrI ]

Awpy kudriq kir kir dyKY suMnhu suMnu aupwiedw ] 1 ]

• pauxu pwxI suMnY qy swjy ]isRsit aupwie kwieAw gV rwjy ]

Agin pwxI jIau joiq qumwrI suMny klw rhwiedw ] 2 ]

• suMnhu bRhmw ibsnu mhysu aupwey ] suMny vrqy jug sbwey ]

iesu pd vIcwry so jnu pUrw iqsu imlIAY Brmu cukwiedw ] 3 ]

• suMnhu spq srovr Qwpy ] ijin swjy vIcwry Awpy ]

iqqu sq sir mnUAw gurmuiK nwvY iPir bwhuiV join n pwiedw ] 4 ]

• suMnhu cMdu sUrju gYxwry ] iqs kI joiq iqRBvx swry ]

• pMc qqu suMnhu prgwsw ].........

• (AGGS, M. 1, p. 1037-38)

• Guru Arjun, the fifth Nanak, describes the primordial trance of God before the creation process starts as a manifestation of God :

• For countless days, He remained invisible.

For countless days, He remained absorbed in Sünn. For countless days, there was utter darkness, and

Then the Creator revealed Himself. kyqiVAw idn gupqu khwieAw ]

kyqiVAw idn suMin smwieAw ]

kyqiVAw idn DuMDUkwrw Awpy krqw prgtVw ]

(AGGS, M. 1, p. 1081)

Big-Bang Cosmology in AGGS

• Arbd nrbd DuMDUkwrw ] Drix n ggnw hukmu Apwrw ] nw idnu rYin n cMdu n sUrju suMn smwiD lgwiedw ]1] KwxI n bwxI paux n pwxI ] Epiq Kpiq n Awvx jwxI ] KMf pqwl spq nhI swgr ndI n nIru vhwiedw ]2] nw qid surgu mCu pieAwlw ] dojku iBsqu nhI KY kwlw ] nrku surgu nhI jMmxu mrxw nw ko Awie n jwiedw ]3] bRhmw ibsnu mhysu n koeI ] Avru n dIsY eyko soeI ] nwir purKu nhI jwiq n jnmw nw ko duKu suKu pwiedw ]4]

• jw iqsu Bwxw qw jgqu aupwieAw ] bwJu klw Awfwxu rhwieAw ] bRhmw ibsnu mhysu aupwey mwieAw mohu vDwiedw ]14] ivrly kau guir sbdu suxwieAw ] kir kir dyKY hukmu sbwieAw ] KMf bRhmMf pwqwl ArMBy gupqhu prgtI Awiedw ]15] qw kw AMqu n jwxY koeI ] pUry gur qy soJI hoeI ] nwnk swic rqy ibsmwdI ibsm Bey gux gwiedw ]16]3]15] {pMnw 1035-1036}

• For billions of years, there was nothing bututter darkness. There was neither day nornight, nor moon, nor sun, but the Lord alonesat in profound trance. Neither there wascreation, nor air, nor water. There were nocontinents, nor underwords, nor sevenoceans, nor rivers nor the flowing of water.There was neither death nor time. There wasno Brahma, nor Vishnu or Shiva.

• When He so willed, He created the world andsupported the firmament without support.He created Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva andextended the love of mammon. He foundedthe continents, solar systems andunderworlds, and from the absolute self Hebecame manifest.

Experimental Observations

• Radio telescopes have recorded evidence for various components of the expanding Universe. Star formation out of the Gas Clouds in the Galaxies is still going on. Evidence of Supernova explosions, Pulsars, Quasars, Neutron Stars and Black Holes is provided by Radio telescopes.

My Connection with God Particle

God Particle (Higgs Boson) and Big Bang Cosmology

• The discovery of Higgs boson will help usunderstand as to what happened just after theBig Bang, also known as creation of the Universe?The Higgs boson will complete our description ofthe visible matter in the universe, and of thefundamental processes governing the Big Bangsince it was a trillionth of a second old. The Higgsboson may have played a role in generating thematter in the universe, and may be linked to darkmatter. It may even provide a clue how theuniverse inflated to its present size.

Interactions of Higgs Boson

Implications of God Particle for Science and Gurbani

• If God particle is not there, the creationprocess will not advance further and there willbe no life in the Universe. Big Bang created lotof energy but material particles are created bythe intervention of Higgs field and Higgsboson. According to Einstein’s famousequation, E=mc2, the energy and matter areequivalent and inter-convertible. How can weuse this analogy in the field of Sikh religion?

God is both Transcendent & Immanent

• It is clearly stated in Gurbani that God exists inboth nirgun (transcendent) and sargun(immanent) states simultaneously.

srgun inrgun inrMkwr suMn smwDI Awip ]

Awpn kIAw nwnkw Awpy hI iPir jwip ]

The Formless is attributed and un-attributed;

And gone into absorption in the cosmic void.

Saith Nanak: He has made creation,

Himself on it meditates. (SGGS, M. 5, P. 290)

Analogy of Nirgun and Sargun

• The discovery of God particle can solve the riddleof creation of Universe after the Big Bang but itdoes not help us to understand what happenedbefore it or at the point called ‘singularity’. Theproblem of ‘singularity’ faced by the Big-Bangmodel of the Universe is solved by Guru Nanak bybringing in God as the creator of the Universe.God particle has provided a beautiful analogy oftransformation of nirgun (energy) state to sargun(matter) state of the Universe.

Invisible to Visible (Sukham to Asthool)

• In Gurbani, God is also referred to exist in two phases: subtle (sukham) and solid (asthool).

• nank s] sUKmu s]eI AsTUlu .O Nanak, He is the subtle, and He is also the manifest.

(SGGS, M. 5, P. 281)

• riv rihAa srbt OaeI sUKm] AsTUl .He is the source of life. He is all-pervading, permeating all places;He is in subtle essence and manifest form.

(SGGS, M. 5, P. 987)

Can We Create God?

• The discovery of God particle is a step forward to unification of fundamental forces, which may lead to Theory of Everything (TOE).

• Guru Nanak proclaims in Japu, God is self-existent (s{B;) and cannot be created:

TaipAa n jaie kIta n h]ie . Aap[ Aaip inr;jnu s]ie .

He cannot be established, He cannot be created. He Himself is Immaculate and Pure.

(SGGS, Japu, P. 1)

Universal Message of Gurbani in SGGS

• Grand Unification of Forces in the Universe hasimplications in the Spiritual realm. Let us HOPEthat there will be unification of all religions of theWorld leading to Global Harmony and Peace.Universal message of Gurbani is a panacea forthis troubled world:

• jgtu jl;wa riK l{ AapNI ikrpa Wair . ijtu wuAar{ xubr{ itt{ l{huxubair .

The world is going up in flames - shower it withYour Mercy, and save it! Save it, and deliver it, bywhatever spiritual door U like? (SGGS, M.3, P. 853)