Flying as a Spiritual Experience
P.O. Box 44, PHALTAN-415523
E-mail: anilrajvanshi@vsnl.com
On 17 December 1903, Wright brothers in U.S. became the first human beings in recorded history to have a sustained flight in a manmade machine. Similarly in 1903 a Russian schoolteacher Konstantin Tsiolkovsky had suggested for the first time the use of rockets for space flight. However it was only in 1926 that Robert Goddard in US fired the first liquid fuel rocket that set the man on the path of space exploration. In the last 100 years our technological developments have been rapid and thus we have been able to send the man to the moon, been able to jet across our planet earth and there are indications that one of the space probes Voyager, launched 26 years ago, has reached the edge of our solar system some 13 billion kilometers away. From this distance the radio signal takes more than 1 hour to reach the earth.
Since time immemorial man has dreamt of flying and reaching the stars. In all mythologies gods are shown to have powers to go to any place at will. In Patanjali Yoga Darshan it is stated that a yogi can get, through spiritual practice, the powers to fly through space with speeds matching that of mind. Mahabharata and Ramayana have references to flying machines and in other societies also gods have always been portrayed as shining beings coming to earth from space. Almost all our scriptures talk about liberation from this planet earth and urge us to go to higher worlds or swargalok.
Hallmark of evolution is motion and increasing speed of motion. As we progress in our technological developments we will produce spacecrafts which will allow us to fly efficiently both on this planet earth and intergallactically at very high speeds. Our brains are somehow wired in such a way that we feel exhilarated in overcoming the gravitational field of earth. Thus people with an out of body experience (OBE) have reported spiritual experiences of flying at will and getting away from the gravitational pull of earth. Similar experiences have been reported by people who practice hand gliding. They talk about the thrill of flying silently almost like a bird. Our future technological developments in space travel may therefore allow us to experience this thrill while still possessing our bodies.
Almost all the astronauts who have flown over the earth talk about the beauty of blue earth in spiritual terms. Similarly moon landing itself was a spiritual experience to some astronauts. The dark background of the sky with sun shinning on the moon surface was described by many astronauts as incredibly beautiful. Similarly flying over snow-covered mountains, green fields and forests is very pleasing to the eye and shows the beauty of mother earth from close quarters.
Human beings have always reacted with awe and goose pimples when observing the powerful forces unleashed either by man or by nature. Thus Robert Oppenheimer the father of atom bomb described in almost spiritual tones the explosion of the first bomb in Trinity in New Mexico, U.S. Similarly when astronomers peer through their telescopes and instruments and see and study the gigantic forces, which are billions of times greater than atomic bombs, shaping our universe they are filled with awe and talk of seeing the handiwork of God. In Gita when Lord Krishna showed Arjun his "Virat" form it is possible he was showing him the galaxy formation and black hole. This awe-inspiring event made the hair on Arjun's body stand up. As we advance technologically, I am sure we will travel in our amazing spaceships visiting different planets and observing first hand these great forces at work.
Thinking about stars and seeing the forces of Universe may also give us a certain perspective in life. We are like a small speck of dust in the vast Universe and yet our petty worldly matters overwhelm us. The best way for all of us to be exposed to wonders of stars and cosmos is to learn about them in schools. Hence astronomy should be encouraged in all school curricula.
It is quite possible that in future we will explore space not as much for finding another home for mankind but as a spiritual experience. Then we will thank Wright brothers and Goddard for making it possible for us to fly and travel in space.
November 2003