Two Areas Of Modern Science Covered By The Vedas

“There are many personalities possessing the qualities of Bhagavan, but Krishna is the supreme because none can excel Him. He is the Supreme Person, and His body is eternal, full of knowledge and bliss. He is the primeval Lord Govinda and the cause of all causes.” (Brahma-samhita, 5.1)

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ईश्वरः परमः कृष्णः
सच्-चिद्-आनन्द-विग्रहः
अनादिर् आदिर् गोविन्दः
सर्व-कारण-कारणम्

īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ
sac-cid-ānanda-vigrahaḥ
anādir ādir govindaḥ
sarva-kāraṇa-kāraṇam

In a specific area of the world it was a new way of thinking. In the past it might have gotten you killed. You would be labeled a heretic, someone going against the established traditions of the time, venturing beyond what is written in a specific book that was translated and maintained by an institution with a rigid hierarchical management structure.

In the more free thinking areas, where the people were liberal on the concept of a creator or the origin of everything, scientists were free to think for themselves. Conduct experiments to learn valuable truths. Go beyond blind faith and sentimentalism. Have some sort of empirical data to substantiate the belief amongst the majority of the population.

Fortunately, Vedic culture already accounts for this. Man is not encouraged to accept blindly and neither are they expected to discover everything for themselves. Rely on the authority of a realized person, one who has heard the truth, shrotriya.

To test the validity of the claim, we see that several areas that are of interest to modern science are already covered in Vedic literature with great clarity.

1. The first cause of action in matter

The interest in this area increased as the curiosity with electricity began to grow. Scientists were adding on to the discoveries of Sir Isaac Newton. The average person could conduct their own experiments and then share the results with their peers. Sort of how the original personal computers came to be through the association involved with hobby-related clubs, there was a collaborative spirit in advancing the condition of human society in general.

There was the visible evidence of electricity. There were experiments showing how a single charge could travel over a specific distance, maintaining intensity. The belief was that this same kind of energy pervaded the entire nature, being responsible for the workings of the creation.

But what exactly is the initial cause? To conduct an experiment, someone had to act as the instigator. Even in the basic functioning of a light bulb today, someone must first turn the switch to the “on” position. If the same concept extends to the macro level, who is providing the initial surge to keep the lights on in the universe, so to speak?

2. The cause of gravitation

The apple falls from the tree. The apple is not doing anything special and neither is the tree. There is a specific force pulling the object down. The same force applies to all objects, and at every moment. This helps to explain how objects remain where they are, and why certain collections of elements remain above relative to others, like the clouds.

The natural question, therefore, is what causes the gravitational pull. Who is on the other side? Is there a mechanism to negate? Is there a way to turn everything off, so to speak?

…

To answer the first question we have a verse from the Brahma-samhita. It says that one person is the cause of all causes. The Sanskrit is sarva karana-karanam. For every action there is a cause. There cannot be a result without some work applied, as confirmed by Shri Lakshmana.

अदृष्टगुणदोषाणामध्रुवाणां तु कर्मणाम्
नान्तरेण क्रियां तेषां फलमिष्टं प्रवर्तते

adṛṣṭaguṇadoṣāṇāmadhruvāṇāṃ tu karmaṇām
nāntareṇa kriyāṃ teṣāṃ phalamiṣṭaṃ pravartate

“Unseen and indefinite are the good and bad reactions of fruitive work. And without taking action, the desired fruits of such work cannot manifest.” (Lakshmana speaking to Lord Rama, Valmiki Ramayana, Aranya Kand, 66.17)

If you travel up the chain of causes, you eventually reach a beginning point. This is one way to understand God. The Brahma-samhita describes Him to be Govinda, the one who gives pleasure to the senses. Govinda is all-attractive and thus also known as Krishna. Even if a person simply understands Him to be the original cause, they have made tremendous advancement in fulfilling the objective of the human birth.

For the second question we have the knowledge of the expansion of God known as Anantadeva. He is depicted to be a serpent with an unlimited number of hoods. The idea is that God holds everything together. He is in charge of maintaining the solar system. The planets are where they are because of Anantadeva.

We know something is keeping everything in place; that is undeniable. Through the knowledge of this amazing expansion of God, we learn that the Supreme Lord is not fatigued in holding up the massive objects of matter known as planets. He has limitless potency. Consider millions upon millions of universes. Know that Shri Krishna can maintain a proper inventory count. He can supply the necessary energy without tiring.

Without consulting Vedic literature, the curious scientist is left to keep exploring. Bits and pieces of information gathered over time, published in an ever-revising compendium of literature-sets, but always missing the mark. The amazing nature is intentionally constructed to indulge this curiosity, to have layer upon layer of mystery. In other words, a conditioned soul has as much time as they desire to forget the Supreme Lord and service to Him.

Those on the other side are blessed with the astounding information from the outset. They both know the workings of nature and have a great appreciation for how everything works. They marvel at the power of illusion, maya. Through exploring this universe they find new ways to continue their praise of the all-attractive one, who is the source of the material and spiritual sciences.

In Closing:

In science discovery’s course,

Finding gravitational force,

But what exactly at the source?

And who the original force?

For matter to move and collide,

Such knowledge in Vedas to reside.

God as first cause one way known,

Holding up the many planets alone.