The Significance of Number 108 in Hinduism

 

If you follow hindu religion then you must heard about the number 108. There are “108 Shiva Lingam”, “ Japa Mala with 108 beads”, “108 time chanting of mantras”, “108 names of lord Krishna” and many more. What is the secret behind this number “108”?  In hindu religion this number is considered as a holy number as “786” in Islamic religion. In many pujas and tantric rituals many expert tantric use 108 lotus flowers. There are many points mentioned in Hindu mythology like Veda, Upanishads which emphasizes the number 108 as a sacred number in Hinduism.

According to vedic cosmology the number “108” represents the whole universe and our existence. In number 108 “0” represents the “sunya” or the whole universe, “1” represents the “life” and “8” represents the “death”. So the number “108” as a whole represents the “cycle of time” or “cycle of life”. If we add the number 1 and 8 it becomes 9. The number 9 is also significant in Hinduism. It is represents as a universal number. If we multiplies any number with 9 and then add the digits it comes 9.  In hindu mythology the number “9” represents the “brambha” or the creation. Rishi Vedavyasa created 9 purans, 108 mahapurans  (1+8=9) or Upanishads. Mahabharata has 18 chapters (1+8=9), Gita has 18 chapters and bhagavatam has one lack eight thousand slokas.

According to hindu mythology the number “108” represents the distance between the leaving being and gods. In hindu religion there are use of different japamalas through which we can chant any sloka or mantra. These japamalas contains 108 beads through which we can chant any mantra 108 times. Each chant moves us one unit closer to god.

According to Ayurveda there are “marma points” or “vital points” which represent the vital parts of our body. These parts or marma points are used for acupressure treatment in our body.

In astrology there is also a huge significance of the number “108”. The diameter of sun is 108 th  times bigger than that of earth. The distance of sun to earth is 108th time of sun’s diameter. The distance between earth and moon is 108 th time longer than the diameter of moon. According to vedic astrology there are 12 houses and 9 planets. Again 12*9=108.  Top astrologers used this method for horoscope calculation and analysis.

According to Indian astronomy there are 27 Nakshatras and each has 4 directions or padas namely dharma, artha, kama & moksha. These directions represent our purusharthas or the inherent values of the universe. So if we multiply 27 and 4 it will come again 108.

In hindu mythology the number “108” is also associated with the holy river Ganga. The longitude of river ganga is 12 degree and the latitude is 9 degrees. Again 12*9=108

According to hindu tantra there are 108 “chakras” or energy lines leads to the heart chakra located at the center of our body. These chakras control different emotions, self realization, health aspects of our body.  In meditation if you can breath properly 108 times a day you will able to achieve the enlightenment.

In Sanskrit language there are 54 alphabets and each has one masculine and one feminine form represents the “shiva” and “shakti”. Again 54*2=108

According to some gurus there are 108 feelings of human being 36 from present, 36 from past and 36 from future that is total 108.

According to Skanda Puran there are 108 “gopis” or girl friends of lord Krishna. According to Hinduism there are 108 names of goddess “Durga”. So during durga puja we use 108 lotus to chant her 108 names.