How is the origin of the earth and the universe explained in Buddhism?
The human population on earth has been increasing by the millions over the years. How can this be explained in terms of rebirth? According to the ancient texts, there are countless world systems in the universe. The earth (an insignificant speck in the universe) is not the only place where life exists. It is said that there are thirty-one planes or states of existence in the universe and human plane is just one of them. A being is born to a particular plane depending on his accumulated kamma. The Buddha said that the number of beings in the universe is so vast that it cannot be counted. Therefore beings can be born from any of these planes into the human plane.
