The Hindu Concept of Maya

Clark Gallagher

It is important when investigating the teachings of Hinduism that our conclusions

be derived from authoritative writings and teachings. We must not confuse the
opinion of individuals who claim to be Hindus with the definitive historical
teachings as found in Hinduism’s authoritative writings. We must also take into
account the scholarship of those who have seriously studied and clearly stated
the beliefs of Hinduism in dictionaries and encyclopedias.

We have documented below the Hindu concept of maya as it pertains to the

nature of the material universe. It is clear from the various sources referenced
that, according to Hinduism, the material universe as we know it is not real but is
instead an illusion.

The Upanishads

“The Upanishads are a collection of speculative treatises. They were composed

during the period 800-600 B.C., and 108 of them are still in existence. The word
Upanishads conveys the idea of secret teaching. Its treatises mark a definitive
change in emphasis from the sacrificial hymns and magic formulas in the Vedas
to the mystical ideas about man and the universe, specifically the eternal
Brahman, which is the basis of all reality, and the atman, which is the self or the
soul.” 1

The Upanishads are regarded as an authoritative guide to truth and thus bear
heavily on the discussion of the Hindu concept of maya. Below is listed various
passages from the Upanishads which document the teachings of Hinduism about
the nature of reality.
“Who sees the many and not the One, wanders from death to
death. Even by the mind this truth is to be learned: there are not
many but only One, who sees variety and not the unity wanders
from death to death.” 2
“Far spreading before or behind and right and left, and above and
below, Brahman, the Spirit eternal. In truth, Brahman is all.” 3
“OM. This eternal Word is all: what was, what is, and what shall be,
and what is beyond is in eternity. All is OM.”
“By the Yoga of meditation and contemplation the wise saw the
power of God, hidden in his own creation. It is he who rules over all
the sources of the universe, from time to time the soul of man.

1
Stewart, Don & McDowell, Josh. The Handbook of Today’s Religions, pg. 285. Thomas Nelson
Publishers.
2
Katha Upanishad.
3
Mundaka Upanishad.
 And they saw the Wheel of his power made of one circle…..and the
great illusion:”

“The three constituents of nature: light, fire, and darkness…..the

fifty states of consciousness….forms of nature, constituents of the
body, powers of Yoga….gods, and virtues… the great illusion- the
illusion which sees the One as two.” 4
These passages all teach a monistic view of reality. From these verses we can
see clearly that Hinduism teaches that the true nature of reality is the spirit known
as Brahman. Brahman, as we shall see, defies all description (a contradiction
inherent in this system, for if Brahman is beyond description these writings can
tell us nothing about him) yet is referred to as being a spirit and all that really
exists. If all that truly exists is spirit then the material world must not be real in the
sense of actually existing with the properties we ascribe to it; it is instead, “the
great illusion.”

We also can see from these passages that those who see two and not the One
are on the path of death. To Hindus this means they are stuck in the ignorance of
thinking this world is more than just an illusion and are thus trapped in the cycle
of rebirth and death. This idea denies to us the reality of the material world and of
thinking that there is any true distinction between anything. There is no “I” that is
separate from “you”, there is simply no differentiating between subject and
object, there is no duality, for all is one. Let us document this further.
“The One in whose hands is the net of Maya…. Greater than all is
Brahman, the Supreme, the Infinite. He dwells in the mystery of all
beings according to their own forms in nature.

Thou this boy, and thou this maiden; Thou this man and, thou this
woman; Thou art this old man who supports himself on a staff;
Thou the God who appears in forms infinite.” 5
“Know therefore that nature is Maya, but that god is the ruler of
Maya; and that all beings in our universe are parts of his infinite
splendor.” 6
“OM is in truth the whole universe.” 7
“This invisible and subtle essence is the Spirit of the whole
universe. That is Reality. That is Truth. THOU ART THAT.” 8
“The source of all forms is the eye, for it is by the eye that all forms

4
Svetasvatara Upanishad.
5
Ibid.
6
Ibid.
7
Chandogya Upanishad.
8
Ibid.
 are seen. The eye is behind all forms, even as Brahman is behind
the eye.” 9

“For when there seems to be a duality, there one sees another, one
hears another, one feels another’s perfume, one thinks of another,
one knows another. But when all has become Spirit, one’s own
Self, how and whom could one see? How and whom could one
hear? How and whom could one fell perfume? How and to whom
could one speak? How and to whom could one know? How and to
whom could one speak? How and whom could one know? How can
one know him who knows all? How can the knower be known?” 10
“Even by the mind this truth must be seen: there are not many but
only One. Who sees variety and not the Unity wanders from death
to death.” 11
Again we can see the strict monistic view of reality that is taught in the
Upanishads. Monism is the idea that there is one fundamental Reality. In
Hinduism this Reality is Brahman, the infinite spirit that manifests itself in the
many forms of the universe. Ultimately there is no distinction between planets,
persons, rocks, the rapist and the rape victim.

Further Documentation of The Hindu Concept of Maya

Maya is the illusion that the material world is real and that human beings, plants,
and animals are all separate and distinct parts that each have there own material
bodies and existence. This fact can further be demonstrated by quoting a
passage from another Hindu scripture, the Bhagavad-Gita:
“Nothing of nonbeing comes to be,
Nor does being cease to exist;
The boundary between these two is seen by those who see
reality.” 12
If nothing that truly exists ceases to exist then it cannot be the case that we
actually have bodies that are conceived or die. The universe could never have
been created, matter cannot decay, food cannot be eaten and become refuse.
Thus we conclude with the Hindu that the material world only exists as an illusion
and not as it appears to exist. This definition of maya is clearly expressed by
Huston Smith:

“This word is often translated “illusion,” but this is misleading. For one thing it
suggests that the world need not be taken seriously. This the Hindu would deny,
pointing out that as long as it appears real and demanding to us we must accept

9
Brihad-Aranyaka Upanishad.
10
Ibid.
11
The Supreme Teaching.
12
The Bhagavad-Gita, The Second Teaching
it as such. Moreover, it does have a kind of qualified reality; reality on a
provisional level (emphasis mine).

Were we to be asked if dreams were real, our answer would have to be qualified.
They are real in the sense that we have them, but they are not real in the sense
that the things they depict necessarily exist in their own right….. When the
Hindus say the word is maya, this too is what they mean. Given the human mind
in its normal condition, the world appears as we see it. But we have no right to
infer form this that reality is in itself the way it so appears (emphasis mine).” 13

Runes Dictionary of Philosophy lists the definition of maya as; “The power of
obscuring or state of producing error or illusion; the veil covering reality, the
experience of manifoldness when only the One is real.” 14

“In referring to the world as “maya,” classical Hindu thought is suggesting that
there is something tricky about the universe, whether it tricks us in terms of fact
or value….The trick lies in the way the world’s materiality and multiplicity pass
themselves off as being independently real- real apart from the sense from which
we see them- whereas in reality it is undifferentiated Brahman throughout, even
as a rope lying in the dust remains a rope while mistaken for a snake. It is the
power of maya which makes the rope appear as the snake. It should be borne in
mind that it is not maya which appears as the snake, it makes the rope appear as
the snake. Even so it makes Brahman, the sole spiritual reality, appear as this
universe characterized by multiplicity.” 15

Heinrich Zimmer documents the story of Vishnu revealing his maya to Narada in
the book, Myths and Symbols in Indian Art and Civilization, where Vishnu likens
the universe to a mirage that one sees in the desert.

Sankara, one of the greatest Indian Philosophers also taught the idea that the
material world as we see it is nothing more than an illusion and that ignorance
consisted in taking it to be real and projecting our view of it onto our view of
Brahman. 16

Conclusion

It is our firm conviction that Hinduism does indeed teach that the material
universe as we experience it does not exist. Again, we are not asserting what
every individual Hindu believes but rather what is taught in their sacred writings
and by their gurus and sages. To be sure, there are many sects within Hinduism
which may bring different variations and interpretations to the concept of maya,

13
Smith, Huston, The Religions of Man, pg. 82,83. Harper and Row.
14
Runes Dictionary of Philosophy, pg. 191.
15
Sharma, Arvind, Classical Hindu Thought, pg. 109,110. Oxford.
16
Flood, Gavin, An Introduction to Hinduism, pg. 241.
however, we find that the concept as outlined in this brief paper is true to the
general teachings of Hinduism as it has come down to us though the ages.