further than the Sun

[Guest guest]

 

Nobody lives in the Garbhodaka Ocean except for Garbhodakasayi Vishnu who lies there on Ananta Sesha

 

I am not so sure about that.

I think there might be some playyful dolphins, some gigantic whales, some sharks and all sort of aquatics that live in the Garbhodaka ocean.

 

I find it hard to believe that there is no life and no creatures that in live in the great ocean where Lord Vishnu is floating on Ananta Sesha.

 

Half the universe is filled with the water of the Garbha ocean.

Surely it is not vacant of life?

[Kulapavana]

 

Half the universe is filled with the water of the Garbha ocean.

Surely it is not vacant of life?

 

actually, Garbhodaka Ocean is certainly not water as we usually think of it. perhaps it is like a certain state of being - very fluid and primordial. I studied that topic for some time and have never come across any references to it's inhabitants other than Lord Vishnu. this Ocean is not reachable even for Lord Brahma (see his search for the origin of the lotus flower in which he was born). Garbhodaka ocean also plays a major role in the cycle of universal destruction. One of the most fascinating examples of unconcievable leela is Lord Krsna floating on a banyan leaf, sucking His toe, tossed around by the incredibly rough monster waves of Garbhodaka Ocean during the time of cosmic dissolution.

[suchandra]

"The following questions and answers are taken from "Vedic Cosmography and Astronomy" by Dr. Richard L. Thompson (Sadaputa dasa) which was published in 1989 by the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust (used with permission). Sadaputa dasa is a founding member of the Bhaktivedanta Institute, the scientific branch of ISKCON.

 

 

[From Chapter Eight - Questions and Answers]

 

Q: Using radar and lasers, scientists have recently obtained very accurate estimates of the earth-moon distance. This distance is about 238,000 miles. How do you reconcile this with Vedic calculations?

A: According to surya-siddhanta [see footnote], the distance from the earth globe to the moon is about 258,000 miles. This is in reasonable agreement with the modern value.

Q: The Vedic literature says that the moon is higher than the sun. How can this be?

A: In Chapter 22 of the Fifth Canto, the heights of the planets above the earth are given, and it is stated that the moon is 100,000 yojanas above the rays of the sun. In this chapter, the word "above" means "above the plane of Bhu-mandala". It does not refer to distance measured radially from the surface of the earth globe. In Section 4.b we show that if the plane of Bhu-mandala corresponds to the plane of the ecliptic, then it indeed makes sense to say that the moon is higher than the sun relative to BhU-maNDala. This does not mean that the moon is farther from the earth globe than the sun.

For example, if point A is in a plane, B is 1,000 miles above the plane, and C is 2,000 miles above the plane, we cannot necessarily conclude that C is further from A than B is.

<CENTER></CENTER

 

Footnote:

Several times in the Caitanya-Caritamrta, Srila Prabhupada refers to the surya-siddhanta which was spoken by a messenger from the sun-god, surya, at the end of the last Satya-yuga. It was translated into Bengali by Srila BhaktisiddhAnta SarasvatI. In the Caitanya-Caritamrta (Adi 1.3.8p), Prabhupada writes:

 

These calculations are given in the authentic astronomy book known as the surya-siddhanta. This book was compiled by the great professor of astronomy and mathematics Bimal Prasad Datta, later known as Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvata Gosvami, who was our merciful spiritual master. He was honored with the title Siddhanta SarasvatI for writing surya-siddhanta, and the title Gosvami Maharaja was added when he accepted sannyasa, the renounced order of life."

 

 

 

 

The above article was first published several years ago in the now defunct

soc.religion.vaishnava

newsgroup. The following are the Bhaktivedanta sources relating to the moon-thing:

A SYNOPSIS

 

THESE QUESTIONS DO NOT ARISE

 

BOOK REFERENCES

 

LECTURES

 

SRIMAD BHAGAVATAM

 

PRESS INTERVIEW

 

MOON DISTANCE DIFFERENCE

 

CONCLUSION

 

 

</CENTER>

[theist]

 

Srila Prabhupada was from India, he knew that Mt. Everest was 29,035 ft, yet he still didn't hesitate to translate the Bhagavatam literally and the 80,000 mile figure for the Himalayas.

 

Was Srila Prabhupada an idiot, or did he understand something about these things that we can't with our dull brains?

Those are not the only choices. He made it quite clear he was simply repeating through translation what the Bhagavatam was saying. He also instructed to "take the essence" from the Bhagavatam without worrying so much about this types of things.

 

So now what have to develop is an idea on what the essence of the Bhagavatam is. IMO moon distances and Himalayan heighth do not qualify as essence. They certainly are not essential to me. Understanding who I am, Who is God and what is His nature, what is this phantasmagoria that has me so entranced, and what my relationship to God is are the essence that I can gain from the Bhagavatam. I may be curious about all these other things but why should I take them seriously.

[Avinash]

Kulpavana,

You have used the word phantasmagoria. Not joking but seriously I liked this word a lot, but I do not see it being used much. Is there any background behind the usage of this word in the context in which you are using it?

[Kulapavana]

http://www.dandavats.com/?p=2411

 

looks like the subject is back on the surface

[Guest guest]

 

....This subject matter is naturally interesting to many devotees because Srila Prabhupada himself was doubtful about the moon landing- - but more on that later.....

 

 

looks like the subject is back on the surface

 

 

This article is quite misleading, he says, "Prabhupada himself was doubtful" - yes, of course, Prabhupada didnt know exactly. Why do they even refer to Prabhupada if they just talk so fuzzy about him? The opposite is true Prabhupada was not doubtful he always said that they didnt reach the moon and the whole thing was made up, a hoax.

Funny is that lately they just let everyone post a dandavats.com, even people who dont mention Krishna or devotional service at their filling pages.

[sefroth77]

Nasa lost original moon landing footages

 

http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/one-giant-blunder-for-mankind-how-nasa-lost-moon-pictures/2006/08/04/1154198328978.html

 

 

So was it a Hoax ?

 

Did Nasa destoyed all the moon landing evidence ?? or did they really went to the moon.

[Kulapavana]

 

Nasa lost original moon landing footages.

 

actually one set of tapes was recovered in Australia

 

http://www.cosmosmagazine.com/node/818

[theist]

LOL Missing tapes??? Where have I heard that one before?

 

Found in Australia huh? Maybe Bhavanada "found them." =;-)

[Guest guest]

I have an idea. Let's ask this Indian-American Astronaut Sunita Williams if the moon is farther away from the sun:

 

HPI 12/11/06 article

"Space Shuttle Astronaut Sunita Blasts off with Ganesha, Gita, and Samosas"

 

She was formerly a Navy test pilot and a Navy diver before going into the astronaut program. The main thing I would like to know how she keeps her head covered with her sari in zero gravity.

[Guest guest]

Uh-oh but she is a woman so she is less intelligent than a man. So guess we can't ask her. I wonder why all the astronauts invited her aboard then if she is less intelligent? To make them look smarter? Nah nah for the free samosas.

[bolo_hare_krsna]

 

Vedic scholars were dead & gone by the time the Bhagavatam was written.

 

In any case, since you take the position that the SB talks about non-physical distances (whatever that means), then I am sure you have no problem in honestly admitting that Prabhupada was talking nonsense when he complained (based on his understanding of the SB) that man never went to the moon as the scientists miscalculated the distance of the moon from the earth.

 

He mus be wrong in your opinion as you just admitted that the SB does not refer to the physical moon while the scientists were calculating distances to the physical moon.

 

Or do you want to change you tune now and continue your game of defending the existence of dragons in seas?

 

The real problem is, if you examine yourselves for one honest moment, you will know Prabhupada was way off on this one. However, such an admission (even to yourselves) is too expensive. It is so much simpler to pretend everything is fine and continue your life of denial. Sad in a way...but that is how it is.

 

first of all, the bhagavatam and the knowledge therein has existed since time immemorial, for the bhagvatam, as with krsna, and the jiva, there is no beginning or end...lastly...srila prabhupada was not "way off" on anything....he simply represents the parampara coming from sri krsna himself...

hare krsna