Mythic universes
Cosmologies Compared
Every culture drew its own map of the universe. Here are 27 of them side by side, from the highest heaven to the deepest pit.
Yggdrasil and the Nine Worlds
Upper worlds
Middle worlds
Lower worlds
Sky, Earth, and the Depths
Heaven and Olympus
Earth and sea
The house of Hades
Tartarus
Caelum, Terra, and the Realm of Dis
Caelum, the sky
Terra and the household
The realm of Dis
Nut, Geb, and the Duat
The sky of Nut
The earth of Geb
The Duat
Nun, the primeval waters
The Fourteen Lokas and Mount Meru
Abodes of the supreme gods
The seven upper worlds
Bhurloka, the earth
The seven lower worlds
Naraka
The Plain of High Heaven and the Land of Yomi
Takamagahara
Ashihara no Nakatsukuni
Yomi and the Root Land
Heaven, Kunlun, and the Courts of Diyu
Tian, the heavenly court
The pillar mountain
The world below heaven
Diyu
Three Heavens, the Earth, the Apsu, and Kur
Upper heaven
Middle and lower heavens
Ki, the earth
The waters below
Kur, the land of no return
Thirteen Heavens and Nine Levels of Mictlan
Omeyocan, the thirteenth heaven
The upper heavens
Tlalticpac, the earth
Mictlan, nine levels down
The Maya World Tree and Xibalba
The thirteen skies
The middle world
Xibalba
Ireland and the Otherworld
Islands of the western sea
Ireland, the visible world
The síde, the hollow hills
Ọ̀run and Ayé
Ọ̀run, the invisible realm
The crossroads
Ayé, the visible world
The deep waters
Rangi, Papa, and Te Pō
Ngā Rangi, the heavens
Te Ao Mārama, the world of light
Te Moana, the ocean
Te Pō, the night
The World Oak: Perun's Sky and Veles's Roots
The Crown: Sky and Thunder
The Trunk: The Human World
The Roots: Waters and the Underworld
Sky World Above, Turtle Island Below
The Sky World
Turtle Island
A World Without a Stack: Raven's Coast
The Coastal World
Nyame Above, Asase Yaa Below
The sky
The earth and its waters
Asamando
Many Traditions, No Single Cosmos
Forests and villages
Rivers, swamps, and seas
Heaven, the Dark Earth, and the Giant in the Sea
Heaven
The land
The sea
The Dark Earth
Zaphon, the Sea, and the Throat of Death
El's domain
Zaphon and the heavens
The broad earth
The Sea
The land of Mot
Sky, Land, Sea, and the Lands of the Dead
The sky
The land and the ice
The sea
Adlivun
Country, Sky, and Water: No Single Map
In the sky
In Country
In the waters
The Lower Worlds and the Glittering World
The sky
The Glittering World
The waters below
The lower worlds
Hanan Pacha, Kay Pacha, Uku Pacha: The Andean Worlds
Hanan Pacha: The Upper World
Kay Pacha: This World
Mama Qucha: The Sea
Uku Pacha: The Inner World
Endless Light, the Seven Regions, and the House of the Lie
Garo-demana: The House of Song
The Stations of the Sun, Moon, and Stars
The Seven Regions of the Earth
The Chinvat Bridge
The Sea Vouru-Kasha
Drujo-demana: The House of the Lie
The Egg-Born World and the Nail of the North
Taivas: The Vault of the Sky
The Lands of Kalevala and Pohjola
Ahtola: The Waters
Tuonela: The Land of the Dead
Heaven, This World, and That World
Haneul: Heaven
Iseung: This World
The Waters and the Dragon Palace
Jeoseung: That World
How to read these maps
Some traditions stack worlds in layers. Others join them with a tree, a mountain or a chain, and a few, like the Irish, set the Otherworld beside this one instead of above or below it. Each column follows that culture's own sources. Open a pantheon to see who lives in each realm and where the sources disagree.