Sumeru is also called as Mount Meru, Mahameru or Sineru. In Hindu mythology in India, it is believed that the gods like Vishnu, Brahma, Indra and many other gods, live on top of the mountains. It is said that Sumeru is the name of Mount Meru, the heavenly abode of Lord Indra. In Hinduism, Indra is an ancient Vedic deity. In Buddhism, he is called a guardian deity. Indra uses weapons like the Astras and Vajra (thunderbolt). Sumeru is one such mountain which is surrounded by seven concentric rings of mountains.
As per Buddhist, Jain and Hindu cosmology, Mount Meru is a five peaked sacred mountain and is believed to be the centre of all spiritual, metaphysical and physical universes. The Meru Mountain has been used as a symbolic representation to construct popular Hindu, Jain and Buddhist temples. One common feature seen in pagodas in China is the ‘Sumeru Throne’ style base. In Burma, the multi-tiered roofs at their highest point, is represented as Mount Meru.
In a mala or garland of beads, the central bead is called as Meru. Mount Meru is also believed to be a part of the Cosmic Ocean. The mountain is circled by the plants and the solar deity, the Sun. Many scholars find it tough to determine the location of Mount Meru. Sumeru is identified with the Pamirs (mountain range) located in the northwest region of Kashmir, India. According to Suryasiddhanta, Mount Meru is located in the Bhuva-Madhya – the middle of the Earth which is called the land of the Jambunad. Another text from the ninth-century indicates that Sumeru is heard to be situated in the middle of the Earth, however it is not visible there. Buddhist cosmology also states that Sumeru is situated at the centre of the world. Diameter of Sumeru is 85 times the diameter of the Earth as per Hindu traditions. It is also said to be the home of King Padmaja Brahma in antiquity.
