Hinduism Explains: Dreaming & Amaranth

>This was originally meant to be apart of “Hinduism Explains: Kalpas, Anuad and the End of C0DA (Part II).” But, that post is already going to be long, and have a lot of information to digest. Also, I felt this topic really deserved it’s own spot. If you haven’t read Part I of that series, you may be a bit lost.

It's pretty common knowledge by now (at /r/teslore at least) that Anu, The Everything, is said to be “Dreaming,” or in a state of Amaranth. I don’t think I need to point out that this isn’t a dream like we would understand it. Anu isn’t a person, “he” isn’t even a god or a spirit. Anu is force, the embodiment of “IS.” So when he dreams, what does that mean? Well Vishnu, a Hindu god who is closely related to Anu thematically, may hold the answer. Because Vishnu is also said to be “dreaming.”

Vishnu exists in a state of yoga nidra, a cosmic sleep. This can be akin to lucid dreaming; in fact, when people practice yoga nidra, that is almost certainly what it is. But Vishnu isn't people. Like Anu, he is the manifestation of stasis, of preservation. When Vishnu enters yoga nidra, it is his way of preserving the world. This fits well with our understanding of Amaranth.

Amaranth is an utterly selfless act. It isn't lucid dreaming to create a world of your own fantasies. It’s a sacrifice. You cease to exist as anything that could be described as “you.” When Vishnu does this, it's to preserve the universe. His yoga nidra is used to preserve the universe. It’s not that he is creating a world of his own, it’s that he is shaping the world that already exists. Basically, using yoga nidra, he hardwired himself into reality. This is what Anu did as well.

When Sithis cracked the Time Egg, or “beat the pregnant Nir” he didn't destroy the Universe. This is strange, given that Sithis is a Padomaic force. He is said to be “misanthropy anthropomorphised” (Source not found). He should want to destroy the Universe. In the book, [Sithis](http://www.uesp.net/wiki/Lore:Sithis_(book), it says that he begat Lorkhan for exactly this purpose, to end reality. So, why didn't Sithis destroy the Universe? A possible reason is that he couldn't, maybe Sithis got as far as fracturing the world, but was unable to destroy it, because Anu started Dreaming.

The parallels between Amaranth (as a state) and yoga nidra are apparent. Both are akin to lucid dreaming. Both are described as being a state “half-awake & half-asleep.” Both are experienced by the cosmic force of preservation. And, if these similarity continue, then both would be responsible for the maintenance of the the Universe. They are what prevents Sithis from destroying the Time Egg, and what keeps the parts of reality from vanishing during the Pralaya.