UFOs... Buddhism's 31 Planes of Existence

Access to Insight; Amber Larson, Dhr. Seven, Ashley Wells, CC Liu (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

The Thirty-One Planes of Existence

Scattered throughout the Buddhist sutras are references to as many as 31 distinct "planes" or "realms" of existence.

Onto these planes beings are reborn during their long coursing through samsara, the Wheel of Life and Death or literally the "Continued Wandering On [Through Rebirth]."

These realms range from the extraordinarily grim and painful hell realms all the way up to the most exquisitely refined and blissful celestial realms.

Existence in any and every realm is temporary, although the lifespan there may last aeons. In Buddhist cosmology there is no such thing as an eternal heaven or hell.

Beings are reborn into a particular realm according to their karma (actions of thought, speech, deed).

When we pass away, we take rebirth again elsewhere according to the quality of our karma: wholesome actions bring about a desirable rebirth, whereas unwholesome actions lead to an unwanted one. And so the wearisome cycle continues without end [or until enlightenment and final liberation].

The countless worlds in the realms of existence [categorized roughly into 31 varieties] are customarily further divided into three distinct "spheres" (loka), listed here in descending order of refinement:

 

The Immaterial Sphere (arupa-loka) consists of four realms that are accessible to those who pass away while meditating in the formless meditative absorptions or jhanas.

 

The Fine-Material Sphere (rupa-loka) consists of 16 realms whose inhabitants (devas) experience extremely refined degrees of mental pleasure.

These realms are accessible to those who have attained at least some level of meditative absorption and who have thereby managed to (temporarily) suppress aversion and ill-will.

The beings here are said to possess extremely refined bodies of pure light.

The highest of these realms, the "Pure Abodes," are accessible only to those who have attained to the third stage of enlightenment or awakening called "non-returning."
 

Pleiadian (deva) arrival to Earth: aliens

The ethereal Fine-Material World and the formless Immaterial World together constitute the "heavens" (sagga) along with the highest of the Sensual Sphere realms.

The Sensual Sphere (kama-loka) consists of 11 realms [including the human world which is much bigger than our minuscule earth] in which experience -- both pleasurable and unpleasant -- is dominated by the five senses.
 

Buddhist, Jain, Vedic "UFO" = vimana.

Seven of these realms are desirable destinations, and include our own human plane as well as several realms occupied by sensual/light body devas (a word that literally means "shining ones").
 

The lowest realms are the four "bad" or unwanted destinations, which consist of the animal, ghost, titan, and hell realms.

Welcome, light beings! Follow the stupa/pagoda built as a mandala (Boudhanath, Nepal)

• Sources: Buddhist Dictionary, Ven. Nyanatiloka (Kandy: BPS.lk, 1980)
• The Buddhist Religion: A Historical Introduction (4th ed.), R.H. Robinson & W.L. Johnson (Belmont, California: Wadsworth, 1997)
• The Long Discourses of the Buddha (introduction), Maurice Walshe, trans. (Boston: Wisdom Publications, 1987)
• A Manual of Abhidhamma, Ven. Narada Thera (Kuala Lumpur: Buddhist Missionary Society, 1979)
• The Middle Length Discourses of the Buddha (introduction), Ven. Ñanamoli and Bhikkhu Bodhi, trans. (Boston: Wisdom Publications, 1995)
• Teacher of the Devas (Wheel Publication 414/416), Susan Elbaum Jootla (Kandy: BPS.lk, 1997)
• The Three Worlds (wall chart) Ven. Acaro Suvanno 
• See also: Intentional Action (Karma)
• Buddhist Heavens (sagga)
• The Round of Rebirth (samsara)

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