AEROPLANES IN ANCIENT INDIA

The Rig Veda, the oldest document of the human race includes references to the following modes of transportation: Jalayan - a vehicle designed to operate in air and water (Rig Veda 6.58.3); Kaara- Kaara- Kaara- a vehicle that operates on ground and in water. (Rig Veda 9.14.1); Tritala- Tritala- Tritala- a vehicle consisting of three stories. (Rig Veda 3.14.1); Trichakra Ratha - Trichakra Ratha - Trichakra Ratha - a three-wheeled vehicle designed to operate in the air. (Rig Veda 4.36.1); Vaayu Ratha- Vaayu Ratha- Vaayu Ratha- a gas or wind-powered chariot. (Rig Veda 5.41.6); Vidyut Ratha- Vidyut Ratha- Vidyut Ratha- a vehicle that operates on power. (Rig Veda 3.14.1).

Ancient Sanskrit literature is full of descriptions of flying machines - Vimanas. From the many documents found it is evident that the scientist-sages Agastya and Bharadwaja had developed the lore of aircraft construction.

The "Agastya Samhita" gives us Agastya's descriptions of two types of aeroplanes. The first is a "chchatra" (umbrella or balloon) to be filled with hydrogen. The process of extracting hydrogen from water is described in elaborate detail and the use of electricity in achieving this is clearly stated. This was stated to be a primitive type of plane, useful only for escaping from a fort when the enemy had set fire to the jungle all around. Hence the name "Agniyana". The second type of aircraft mentioned is somewhat on the lines of the parachute. It could be opened and shut by operating chords. This aircraft has been described as "vimanadvigunam" i.e. of a lower order than the regular aeroplane.

Bhardwaja's "Vaimanika Shastra" not only gives information on his methods of aeroplane construction but also provides a bibliography. He had consulted six treatises by six different authors previous to him. After him too there have been four commentaries on his work. Planes which will not break (abhedya), or catch fire (adaahya) and which cannot be cut (achchedya) have also been described. Along with the treatise there are diagrams of three types of aeroplanes - "Sundara", "Shukana" and "Rukma".

It appears that aerial warfare was also not unknown, for the treatise gives the technique of "shatru vimana kampana kriya" and "shatru vimana nashana kriya" i.e. shaking and destroying enemy aircraft, as well as photographing enemy planes, rendering their occupants unconscious and making one's own plane invisible.

The Arthasastra of Kautilya (c. 3rd century B.C.) mentions amongst various tradesmen and technocrats the Saubhikas as 'pilots conducting vehicles in the sky'. Saubha was the name of the aerial flying city of King Harishchandra and the form 'Saubika' means 'one who flies or knows the art of flying an aerial city'. Kautilya uses another significant word 'Akasa Yodhinah', which has been translated as 'persons who are trained to fight from the sky.' The existence of aerial chariots, in whatever form it might be, was so well-known that it found a place among the royal edicts of the Emperor Asoka which were executed during his reign from 256 B.C. - 237 B. C.

More stuff from India:

A glass-like material which cannot be detected by radar has been developed by Prof Dongre, a research scholar of Benaras Hindu University, based on technology found in an ancient Sanskrit text, Vaimanika Shastra. A plane coated with this unique material cannot be detected using radar.

Only a few years ago, the Chinese discovered some Sanskrit documents in Lhasa, Tibet and sent them to the University of Chandrigarh to be translated. Dr. Ruth Reyna of the university said that the documents contain directions for building interstellar spaceships! The Chinese announced that they were including certain parts of the documents for study in their space program.

What's the source of that information, kmguru?

I know of no glass-like substance which is immune to radar. Nor am I aware of China building interstellar spaceships.

The RADAR stuff. Source: Deccan Herald, Dated Nov. 2, 2002 writer: Rajesh Parishwad, DH News Service BANGALORE

If this were true, where'd the ancient yogis get their information? Is it like the scriptures say (got it from meditating) or are they aliens

Found it.

Now, all this was back in 2002. Why haven't we heard anything more about it? No, wait, let me guess. A conspiracy of silence, right?

It is being checked out as I post. I think, the reporter made it up. But this time we have a place to check.

There are a lot of materials that can absorb or scatter RADAR energy. just because the test worked does not mean they have the technology to apply it that is stable, light and does not fall off.

Besides, if they took one year to study - it will take atleast five years in India.

The early hindus thought of alot of interesting things with the help of Soma, whatever that is, probably some kind of mushroom. But thinking fanciful thoughts and having existing technology are very different things.

Rig Veda 6.58.3:
Rig Veda 4.36.1:
As I highlighted, the vehicle is your mind. These are psychedelic parables, not to be taken literally. Indeed, when taken literally, they lose all their intended meaning.

You mean just like 2001 Space Odyssey or Star Trek or Babylon 5?

But the ancient hindus believe that everything (material and non-material) is made up of thought so how can you really tell...

Everything you can be aware of IS made of thought. The existence of a material world is only inferred.

u may find the bhagvad geeta a good instruction manual.

Not so fast James...You havent probably heard of it because you arent supposed to...As it is you Aussies have taken India's Cricket Supremecy away ... and no,i am not saying that this piece of info might be true.In all probabilities it was a made up thing...

But you never know these days...When U.S. refused India Super Comp.,India made it on its own.so may be one never knows...
bye!

Tis so true

There is a vision of aeroplanes in Ezekiel. Icarus flies in classical mythology and there's something similar in Norse mythology. The important thing is not imaginig someone flyng, seeing at a distance etc, but working out a practical way of actually doing it. Did any of these sacred texts say how a wing or an aerofoil works?

a brief description from clarendon's translation of the Samaranga Sutradhara

Inside the circular air frame, place the mercury-engine with its solar mercury boiler at the aircraft center. By means of the power latent in the heated mercury which sets the driving whirlwind in motion a man sitting inside may travel a great distance in a most marvellous manner. Four strong mercury containers must be built into the interior structure. When these have been heated by fire through solar or other sources the vimana (aircraft) develops thunder-power through the mercury.

contrast with.......

*The gas used to propel this type of engine is either the gas Ar (Argon) or Xe (Xenon), or the vaporized form of Hg (Mercury) or Cs (Cesium).
*This stored gas enters the ionization chamber to increase its temperature up to the thrust temperature.
*The increase in temperature is done through the ionization of the gas.
*It passes through two acceleration grids which bombard it with positive ions from the power source.
*Before reaching the nozzle the accelerated mass of ionized gas is injected with electrons.
*Thrust is obtained, and the exhaust beam is electrically neutral behind the thruster nozzle.

mercury ion engines.

SERT II FLIGHT EXPERIMENT

ion engines

One excellent example is the 3,000 year old Vymanika Shastra , meaning “The Science of Aeronautics”. It has been translated by G.R. Josyer, director of the International Academy of Sanskrit research in Mysore, India. The translation, “Aeronautics, a Manuscript From the Prehistoric Past”, was published in book form by Coronation press, Mysore, in 1973.

The Real History of Aviation.

Flying high with Shivkur Bapuji Talpade

Does this explain how their are descriptions of other races and living things from other planets in the Puranas? Or is that knowledge attained from using a siddhi power?

anu:
You give a description of an engine which hasn't yet been built and an engine which probably never was built. Neither is much use. Go to any encyclopaedia if aeronautics and it will explain how a wing will give lift and a propellor give propulsion. Go to a relevant engineering book and it will show how an internal combustion engine works. In short, you could put together your own flying machine from them. Do any of your ancient texts give this info? If not, their claims cannot be accepted as certain or relevant

You give a description of an engine which hasn't yet been built and an engine which probably never was built.

you claim there are no functioning ion engines at the present time? elaborate. i merely provided the procedures by which it is claimed an ion engine could be built. it just so happens that one was from a 2000 year old text and the other of more recent times.

If not, their claims cannot be accepted as certain or relevant

why would one want to demand certainty? this info happens to be out there and i am trying to figure out what it all means. one speculates and engages in conjecture. to make definitive claims at this point considering the paucity of info is uneccessary and foolhardy. i mean, the ancients appear to be boiling mercury! that hardly inspires confidence.

i do not have access to these texts. one wonders if they are still in existence

here is how "relevance" works. i know of current mercury ion engines. i hear of ancient texts referring to engines using mercury. should i not at the very least, investigate, make comparisons and formulate a tentative hypothesis based on all available info?

why should i dismiss this? who here is making definitive claims? considering there are references to this stuff all over the world. might there not be something to it? who is to say that some future acheological dig would unearth a flying machine?

the prudent approach would be to accept that there might be something to it. to deny outright or embrace with certainty, possibilties, implies ideology.

i do not play that

i had no idea kmguru was a conspiracy theorist
let me ridicule him as you have done