the Eastern cosmological understanding is quitea proundounda....Fritjof Capra used it as analogy for explaining various aspects of modren physics in his book The Tao of Physics However......Eastern metaphysics i have discovered is dualistic. unlike an Indigenous animistic view, it tends to create an abstract of 'oneness' and 'purity'
I think even the Dali Lama acknowledges now that it was just the best guess at the time, even though there are similarities with revealed scientific truth.
Unless you consider the Hindus as immigrants from the Mizar star system as the story goes.....Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!
http://www.himalayanacademy.com/resources/panchangam/pancha_intro.PDF might help. If you still want to breack it down, let me know. I might be able to explain a bit.
Here are some quotes about the universe from the Srimad Bhagavatam: "There are innumerable universes besides this one, and although they are unlimitedly large, they move about like atoms in You. Therefore You are called unlimited [ananta]." "Thereafter, influenced by the interactions of eternal time, the supreme sum total of matter called the mahat-tattva became manifested, and in this mahat-tattva the unalloyed goodness, the Supreme Lord, sowed the seeds of universal manifestation out of His own body." "Thus, after manifesting variegatedness, the effulgent mahat-tattva, which contains all the universes within itself, which is the root of all cosmic manifestations and which is not destroyed at the time of annihilation, swallows the darkness that covered the effulgence at the time of dissolution" "After the incarnation of the first purusa [Karanarnavasayi Visnu], the mahat-tattva, or the principles of material creation, take place, and then time is manifested, and in course of time the three qualities appear. Nature means the three qualitative appearances. They transform into activities." "And what is Your glory? Unlimited universes pass through the pores of Your body just as particles of dust pass through the openings of a screened window." "Because You are unlimited, neither the lords of heaven nor even You Yourself can ever reach the end of Your glories. The countless universes, each enveloped in its shell, are compelled by the wheel of time to wander within You, like particles of dust blowing about in the sky." "Even though over a period of time I might count all the atoms of the universe, I could not count all of My opulences which I manifest within innumerable universes."
In my experience, Eastern views on Cosmology are very beautiful and profound, but because they are expressed in non-rational ways (in contrast to our Western tradition which is based more on logical, mathematical reasoning and direct observation) you need some patience to extract them. Generally the Eastern view of the universe, whether in Taoism, Buddhism or Hinduism is non-dualistic. In some sense, especially with the Indian religions, the universe as we 'see' it is an illusion, created by our senses or conciousness. True insight, especially in Buddhism, comes when we see this world as it truely is. While many tenets of these religions and philosophies are unfortunately often boiled down into New Age pseudo-philosophy and rubbish about feeling good about yourself, crystals, astrology and other superstitions, it is true all seem to emphasize a closeness between our being and the rest of the universe, and the Absolute. Properly understood, I feel Asian religions and philosophies give us Westerners many positive correctives to seeing nature merely as an economic resource to be exploited and plundered to make a profit, and also a corrective to our often cruel and brutal treatment of animals. Eastern cosmology also gives us a good basis for 're-enchanting ourselves' to the universe and to nature, of course when properly understood, without devolving into irrational superstition or pseudo-mysticism.
The essential difference between puranic time and westernised time (whether they be evolutionists or christians) is that puranic time is cyclic and the other is linear - they can be both reconciled if you view western ideas on time being a linear segment of the cycle of puranic time, which is quite vast in its calculations. Of course the puranic model illustrates time as a de-evolution as opposed to evolution.
