Creation of the world in Jainism

Jainism mythology contains the detailed data on the world construction. According to it the Universe includes the world and not the world. The "not the world" is unavailable for getting inside it and its cognition. The world according to Jainism is divided into the great, the middle and the poor and it consists of three truncated cones.

Jainism gives the detailed description of the poor world and people that inhabit it. The poor world consists of seven levels and is filled with stink and sewage. There are inhabitants of the hell in some levels of this world, they have the eternal suffering. Other levels are inhabited by the ugly creatures of the black colour that are similar to the ugly birds that have no gender and that constantly fight with each other.

The middle world consists of the oceans, continents and islands. It also has mountains and some of them even consist of gold and silver, valleys with mysterious trees and pounds covered with flowers. There are also castles, walls and other structures decorated with the precious stones. Some islands belong to the moon, the sun and other gods. There is the world mountain in the middle of the world.

The great world consists of 10 or 11 levels; the number depends on the culture. Every level is divided into another range of levels that are inhabited by numerous gods. Very often text mentions their names not giving the description. And in the highest points of the Universe in the upper level of the great world the free souls live.

Such conception of the world certainly influenced the conception of Jainism about the creation of the world.