Samsara, Its Real Estate, Characters and Key Players

The Buddhist Cosmology

The Buddha never taught a cosmology. Nor was it the intent of those who developed this view in the centuries after the Buddha’s death that it to be taken literally. The intention was to provide a metaphoric framework in which to better understand our lives and our practices. Being we frequently encounter cosmological terms and references in reading about Buddhism, I thought a basic run-through of the cosmology might be helpful.

The Real Estate

Samsara is divided into three main realms: heaven, earth and hell. Both heaven and hell have a number of levels. Organizationally, in Buddhist cosmology our world extends three-dimensionally around Mount Sumeru, which sits at the center. On the upper slopes you find devas, the gods. The asuras, the titans, live on the lower slopes.  Humans and animals (nanusyas and tiryaks) live on the plains around the mountain. Pretas, the hungry ghosts, live on or just below the surface. And hell, where the narakas live, is deep under the earth.  All this is surrounded by a great ocean. All this is in samsara.

Characters and Key Players

Inhabiting these realms are creatures in six different states of existence–us in our various guises. These creatures represent us in the conditioned states of our samsaric existence. Beings in the first three states are there because of their accumulation of good acts. Beings in one of the last three states are there because of their accumulation of bad bad. Unlike theistic systems, where the goal is to get to heaven, in Buddhist practice the goal is not to get “higher,” not to become an asura or a deva, but rather to leave samsara completely.

Because in the Buddhist perspective, the causes of suffering can be used to gain release from samsara, understanding ourselves in the context of these metaphoric beings allows us to direct our spiritual practice to shift away from unwholesome behaviors and to develop wholesome states of being. Fortunately, in Buddhist thought everything, even our states of being, are impermanent, so while we may act stupidly and with stubborn determination in one situation, noticing our animal-like behavior, we can direct our practice so that we meet the next situation with a mindful, wisdom-informed, human response to conditions.

Character Analysis

1.  Devas or gods—These are Hollywood-types. Rich, powerful, glamorous. Sybarites. Often out of touch.  Unable to see the temporariness of their situation.

2.  Asuras or titans (jealous gods)—Competitive, aggressive, ambitious, power-hungry. Driven, A-types. Typified by sport figures and business tycoons.  Preoccupied with being the best, with mastering the situation, which lead to anxiety and a fear of failure .

3.  Manusyas or humans—Discriminating nature. Always picking and choosing. Future centered. Unable to see clearly. Consumers.

4.  Tiryaks or animals—Reactive, instinctual, stupid, stubborn. Can be explosive or hot-tempered. Sometimes sociopathic, criminal, or even psychopathic.

5.  Pretas or hungry ghosts—Addictive personalities. Never fulfilled or satisfied, always wanting, always craving. Pictured as starving and thirsty with large bellies and tiny mouths.

6.  Narakas or demons (hell beings)—Deeply tortured beings. Dominated by anxiety, hopelessness, a sense of being trapped.  Despairing and desperate. No ability to see their own responsibility for their hell-state.

Leading Actors

Some of the leading actors in the Buddhist mythological-cosmoslogical drama include:

Brahma -- The supreme deva, who convinced Buddha to teach.

Indra -- A major deva, originally the Hindu sky god.

Prajna – The goddess of knowledge. Buddha’s mother is considered to have been reborn as Prajna. 


Mara -- A deva associated with hindrances to enlightenment; a temptress. She tempted Buddha when he sat under the Bodhi tree.

Yama -- The king of the hell realms. 


Nagas -- Great serpents or water dragons. The king of the Nagas protected Buddha from a storm.

Gandharvas -- Angelic beings who provide the gods with music.