On 23 August 2023, the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) reached a significant milestone with the successful landing of Chandrayaan-3’s lander and rover on the south pole of the Moon. Recognizing this achievement, and congratulating ISRO for taking “Make in India to the Moon”, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has declared that 23 August will henceforth be observed as the National Space Day. He also announced the naming of the Chandrayaan-3 landing site as the Shiv Shakti point and the crash site of the failed Chandrayaan-2 mission in 2019 as the Tiranga point.
SPACE, SHIVA-SHAKTI AND NATIONAL SPACE DAY
It is interesting to note that two important concepts in Indian philosophy, namely space (Akasha) and Shiva-Shakti, are reflected in the proclamation of the National Space Day. Shiva-Shakti also entered the modern space exploration programme of observations from the European Space Agency’s Gaia space telescope (launched in 2013 and obtained a 3D-map of the Milky Way) which named one of the earliest groups of star-forming clouds as Shiva-Shakti.
This group of star-forming clouds, Shiva-Shakti, may be relics of two distinct galaxies that merged roughly 12 billion years ago with the Milky Way’s primordial form during its infancy. Scientists discovered that Shakti and Shiva comprised stars with similar chemical compositions that formed 12-13 billion years ago and each of the structures has a mass of about 10 million times greater than our sun. In Indian philosophy, the union between Shiva and Shakti gave rise to the universe. Studies provided an understanding of the Milky Way’s very initial stages of formation by identifying two star structures (Shiva and Shakti) that coalesced very early, perhaps the last event from the proto Milky Way before the formation of our galaxy.
In Indian philosophy, Akasha is the most fundamental of the Panchamahabhuthas, which designed the Universe as it is seen now. It is worthwhile to dwell upon the Panchamahabhuta of Akasha when India celebrates 23 August as the National Space Day, in the same footsteps of the National Science Day (February 28). This will help young Indians take pride in the country’s achievements in various fields of research and development.
AKASHA AND AETHER: INDIAN KNOWLEDGE SYSTEM AND MODERN SCIENCE
Translation of Akasha as Space does not bring out the real concept of the term. It is impregnated with magnificent meaning. Recently, scientists have suggested that Akasha can be identified as aether, which is the same as the luminiferous aether hypothesized by James Clark Maxwell as medium for light wave propagation. Inclusion of such a medium in Physics was essential because, to support any wave phenomenon, a medium is necessary. For example, sound propagates as waves in air while it is not possible for sound to propagate in vacuum. Since we know that light can propagate through vacuum, it was necessary to introduce a luminiferous aether as medium for light wave propagation.
The Bhagavad Gita classifies material world as follows:
Bhumirapo analo vayuḥ kham
mano buddhir eva cha
ahankara itiyaṁ me bhinna prakṛitir
aṣhṭadha
which means the Earth, water, fire, air, space, mind, intellect, and ego are eight components of my material energy
Matter is considered as part of God’s energy and called prakriti. This energy is further divided into eight forms, as listed in the verse above, as the Panchamahabhutas plus three other components related to individual mind. It is amazing how insightful the knowledge was in these ancient scriptures in comparison to the developing trends in modern science. For example, Albert Einstein was the first to propound the concept of Mass-Energy Equivalence in 1905. In his special theory of relativity, Einstein showed that it was possible to convert mass into energy and vice versa, described by the famous mass-energy equivalence equation, E=mc2.
Image Courtesy: European Space Agency
Einstein also showed that light can be described as a stream of particles called photons. Thus, light has dual property of particles and waves. During the decade of 1920s, physicists like Louis de Broglie, Niels Bohr, Max Born and other scientists developed quantum mechanics, which attributes dual particle-wave nature for matter also. Ever since the discovery of the dual nature of both light and matter, scientists have been on the lookout for a single field or Unified Field Theory (UFT). UFT could expound on the relationship between matter and all forces of the universe leading to a grand unified field theory or GUTS. The crux of the UFT is the creation and annihilation of matter. Matter can be created from photon field (electromagnetic field) and can be annihilated back into the photon field.
CREATION OF PANCHAMAHABHUTAS
It is surprising that more than 5000 years ago, long before the development of modern science, Lord Krishna disclosed a theory of universe which is perfectly in tune with the Unified Field Theory. Krishna says to Arjuna, ‘All that exists in the universe has manifested from My material energy.’ Just one material energy has extended itself into myriad shapes, forms, and entities of this world. The Taittiriya Upanishad (2.1.2) has elaborated on this:
‘From My material energy the akash (aether) was created, from aether the air; from air, fire; from fire, water; from water, earth; from earth, plants; from plants, food and from food, man. Thus, man is made of food-essence.’
The material energy in its primordial form is called prakriti. God glances at it when He wishes to create the world. His glance agitates and creates mahan. (There is no equivalent word for it in English, as modern science is yet to discover such a subtle level of energy) Mahan further manifests into ahankara, even this is unknown to modern science. Ahankar, in turn, forms the panch-tanmatras or the five perceptions of taste, touch, smell, sight, and sound. And from these, the five gross elements of space, air, fire, water, and earth manifest.
Lord Krishna includes the mind, intellect, and ego along with the five gross elements as different manifestations of His material energy. In this verse, He states that all these eight elements are simply parts of Maya, His material energy. In the next verse, He describes another of His superior energies, the soul energy. The five elements are what we recognise as the basic ingredients of life. With five things, what presents itself is life and everything that we can see, hear, smell, taste, and touch, and other emergent permutations and combinations that we can think of. Pathanjali’s Yoga Sutra provides us with special knowledge to unlock the secret of Nature. The most fundamental dimension of Yoga is to master this elemental magic of panchamahabhuthas from where the diversifications originate. Essentially, when people want to be physically robust, then earth would be important, but for one who is on the spiritual path, who wants to perceive, the most important factor is akasha. In the making of this human form, 72 percent is made of water, 12 percent of earth, 6 percent of air, 4 percent of fire, and the rest is akasha.
The Bhagavat Gita states: ‘The three states of material existence—goodness, passion, and ignorance—are manifested by My energy. They are in Me, but I am beyond them.’
Even though the entire creation originates from God, He is beyond His creation and independent of it. A famous poet, Alfred Tennyson, stated in his poem In Memorium:
Our little systems have their day;
They have their day and cease to be.
They are but broken lights of thee,
And thou, O Lord, art more than they.
Panchamahabhutas are enumerated in the Ayurveda, the ancient Indian system of medicine, which is still practiced in the country. A healthy human body is the result of perfectly balanced tridoshas called vata, pitta and kapha. Vata is due to vayu and akasha while Pitta arises due to fire and water. The Kapha is manifested due to the panchamahabhutas of water and earth. The human body is part of Nature since the human body is opened to the universe through nine openings or nava dwaras.
AETHER AS SUPER FLUID
The panchamahabhuta of Akasha is interpreted by many physicists, including Prof E C G Sudarshan (1931-2018), as aether. Sudarshan elaborates properties of aether as superfluid, like the superfluid nature of liquid helium at very low temperature. The superfluid nature of aether explains some of the unanswered questions of Modern Physics. Most important property of superfluid is the absence of resistance offered by superfluid to any moving object. In other words, any vehicle moving through a superfluid will not experience any wind which we experience while travelling in a bus with open windows. This explains why the famous Michelson-Morley experiment did not detect the aether wind. As aether is super fluid, it will enter into any nook and corner without any resistance. This means that akasha as the manifestation of superfluid will fill our body after entering through the nava dwaras without any resistance. This means that aether with its superfluid nature will not be experienced by our body.
AETHER AS ALTERNATE TO DARK MATTER CONCEPT
Dark matter in the universe is theorised by scientists to modify gravitational force-based model of universe to explain recently observed acceleration of universe expansion. Zlosnik and his group have recently come up with an alternative to dark matter by modifying gravity with aether. They modified Einstein’s gravitational field equations by adding an aether field to the space-time structure. Jacobson and Mettingly earlier introduced the concept of aether to explain some of the unexplained problems in cosmology.
Albert Einstein (left) was the first to propose the equivalence of mass and energy as a general principle and a consequence of the symmetries of space and time, while Prof E C G Sudarshan (right) was among the scientists who explained how formless Brahma transforms itself into aether, a superfluid
Akasha is the Sanskrit word for Brahma or the unmanifested, primordial, absolute substrate (space) and source of energy for material manifestation. When It made a wish, the Formless Brahma transformed itself into a form of aethereal fluid with special property of superfluidity, as explained by many physicists including Prof Sudarshan. We recognise the panchamahabhuthas as the basic ingredients of life. With five things, what is presenting itself as life and as everything that we can see, hear, smell, taste, and touch is well beyond that we can think of. This elemental magic can be enhanced through Yoga. Essentially, when people want to be physically robust, then earth would be important, but for one who is on the spiritual path, who wants to perceive, the most important thing is akasha.
If we increase the proportion of akasha within the system and in the larger landscape of who we are, then our ability to perceive is tremendously enhanced. If this proportion remains low, or akasha is at its minimal in one’s making, then their ability to perceive will be very minimal. Even if they have a great intellect, it will be satisfied by mundane things. It can never rise to perceive something more than that. In this context, an important aspect of spiritual progress, of vigyan or vishesh gyan, to perceive beyond five senses that which is not physical in nature, and explore the mystical nature of our existence, is enhancing the akasha.
CONCLUSION
In short, akasha is a boundless dimension. When the composition of akasha is enhanced, then boundlessness becomes the nature of one’s being. The component of akasha in our body can be enhanced by Yoga, Pranayama and meditation. At least, we can perceive a boundary that we cannot see and feel. This gives the individual a great sense of freedom of not being tied down to anything. This lack of bondage within oneself is an essential amount of space that one needs to have some mastery over these five elements. This is the liberation from the cyclic punarjanma (rebirth), and ultimate salvation of the soul.
*The author is Visiting Scientist, Cochin University of Science and Technology, Kochi. He can be reached at nampoori@gmail.com.
