This paper presents an analysis from the perspectives of ancient Hindu scriptures on the three states of consciousness namely, the waking state, dreaming state and the deep sleep state, commonly accepted in contemporary neuroscience and psychology. In doing so, the authors have taken verses from two ancient Hindu scriptures, the Mandukya Upanishad (4th-5th century BCE), a Sanskrit Vedic scripture and the Tirumandiram (5th century CE) a Tamil scripture to elucidate the remarkable correlation between the verses in these scriptures and the contemporary thinking in this field. The paper goes on to cite the scriptural references that go beyond the three states of consciousness into the fourth and then to an array of multiple states of consciousness. The authors hope with sincerity that this paper serves not only to shed light on the advanced findings of the ancient Hindu scriptures, but also provides a basis for future research in this fertile field of study.

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