M A L AY S I AS I N G A P O R EI N D I ANotion Press

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First Published by Notion Press 2020Copyright © Ganesh Swaminathan 2020

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ISBN 978-1-64850-731-1

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7

Contents

Acknowledgments 9

I. The Puranas

An Introduction 12

II. The Sun

The Birth of Martanda and the Marriage of Vivasvan 20

Samvartakaditya and the End of a Kalpa 31

III. Units of Measure

Pramana: A Yojana and a Kalpa 46

IV. The Planet Earth

Jambudvipa of the Puranas 66

The Spherical Earth and Gravity 83

V. The History of the Earth

The Early Period 98

The Submergence of Bharata 113

The Descent of Ganga 128

VI. The Cosmic Egg

The Brahmanda and the Bhumandala 144

The Loka and the Patala 159

8

Contents

VII. The Moon

The Birth and Marriage of Chandra 178

The Churning of Kshiroda Sagara 194

The Tarakamaya War 209

VIII. The Great Flood

The Story from an Upapurana 224

The Narrative from the Mahapuranas 233

IX. The Puranic Universe

A Summing up 248

A Timeline of Events in the Varaha Kalpa 262

X. Maharishi Vyasa

Sage, Poet and Teacher 280

Bibliography 289

I. the PurAnAs

12

An IntroDuCtIon

The Puranas are one of the three sacred texts of the Hindu faith, the other two being the Vedas and the Itihasas. The Vedas are a collection of hymns to deities, with passages that are complex and

multi-layered in their meaning. The Vedic hymns, or sloka, are recited

during significant rituals, including births and weddings. The Vedas are

considered the cornerstone of the sacred texts of the Hindu faith.

The Itihasas are considered a narration of history. The word itihasa

is a compound of Sanskrit words, which together mean ‘this happened.’

The accounts carry with them the names of people and places. They also

come with date stamps of the universal calendar, which is the position

of stars and planets in the sky. The Itihasas consist of the two epics—

the Ramayana and the Mahabharata. They have both been translated,

widely read, and analyzed. The Puranas, however, are unique as a text.

The Puranas are Smriti, meaning ‘that which is remembered.’ They

are distinct from the Vedas that are Sruti, meaning ‘that which is heard.’

The Itihasas, as mentioned earlier, are considered a record of what

happened. The word purana in Sanskrit means ‘ancient.’ The Puranas

describe events from a time well before what the Itihasas chronicle.

The stories are less specific, mentioning only the epoch in which the

incident occurred.

The Puranas remain something of an enigma. The Bhagavata Purana,

for example, describes the solar system as being flat when seen from

The Puranas

13

an edge. This is a unique insight from a text that is over 2,000 years

old. The same document, however, describes the earth represented by

Jambudvipa as an island surrounded by oceans. This is a description

that does not resonate with our understanding of the planet.

One could view the Puranas as comprising passages of great insight,

interspersed with verses of poetic imagination. This does not seem

to stand up to scrutiny. The Puranas, as a body of work, appear to be

characterized by extreme brevity. For example, a story in the Devi

Purana describes Rama performing Navratra puja, which enabled him

to be victorious in his fight against Ravana. Passages in the Devi Purana

paraphrase almost the entire Ramayana of about 25,000 verses in less

than 200.

If we can rule out any form of dilation in the text, we must assume

that the passages that describe cosmic events are built on an underlying

narrative of the universe. Without this perspective, different verses

come across as flashes of brilliance that seem disconnected from one

another. It is this underlying view of the universe in the Puranas that

this book seeks to uncover.

The Puranas describe the various cosmic phenomena, either

factually or allegorically. They represent the events factually as

they are observed. This may be how an elementary textbook would

characterize the topic. An example of this would be the description of

the moon’s progress through its various phases. The moon marrying

the 27 daughters of Daksha, the 27 nakshatra, is an example of the use

of allegory. Every morning at dawn, the moon is seen near a new star, a

new nakshatra and, therefore, a new wife.

Most of the stories are repeated across the various Puranic texts,

but the level of detail varies. Some Puranas may refer to the story in

just a verse or two, while others go into much greater detail. But often,

each Purana adds some significant and unique element to the same

account. If we compile all the references to a specific topic, across the

Puranas, we can aggregate a significant volume of information on the

subject. This collection of material can be used to build a narrative for

the topic.

14

From the Beginning of Time

This book explores the universe of the Puranas in five parts—

the sun, the moon, the earth, the heavens (planets and stars), and

the netherworlds. For each of these five parts, as many references as

possible are taken from each of the Puranas. The account constructed

for each component incorporates the vast majority of references to it.

The narrative that emerges is tested in a couple of ways.

The first test is to see if the narrative constructed is close to the

current scientific framework. Many are, as this book will reveal.

The narrative is built as close to the current scientific context as an

interpretation of the texts will allow. Any differences are allowed to

stand.

This book, therefore, presents three separate narratives. The first

view is informed by science and the second, as inferred from the texts.

Often the two are not very different from each other. The third, of

course, is the Puranic story, such as the sun’s marriage; that in itself

makes for absorbing reading.

The second test is to confirm if the narrative constructed is internally

consistent. The account developed should be coherent, representing a

plausible sequence of events. For example, the sun’s story covers all the

stages of the lifecycle of a star in a clear and concise narrative.

The third is to see if the description developed for one part works

well with those for the other parts. This book, at the end, examines two

stories that cut across more than one of the component narratives—

to test for this consistency. The story of the descent of Ganga is an

example of this. Ganga originates in Milky Way and then comes into our

solar system. It then comes down to the earth, all the way to the patala.

The story, therefore, cross-references and draws from the individual

narratives of the heavens, the earth, and the netherworlds.

As a final validation, the various events that have been inferred

from the narratives are pulled together in a timeline of events. These

events are compared with what is known to modern science to see if

they corroborate.

The Puranas are considered the most extensive collection of

mythology in the world. The Purana Samhita, or Puranic collection,

The Puranas

15

consists of 18 Mahapuranas, or major Puranas, and 18 Upapuranas

or subsidiary Puranas. Besides these, there are Sthala Puranas, which

describe the stories regarding a particular place.

The list of the 18 Mahapuranas is mentioned in a few of the

Puranic texts. Here is the list from the Bhagavata Purana: Brahma,

Padma, Vishnu, Shiva, Linga, Garuda, Narada, Bhagavata, Agni, Skanda,

Bhavishya, Brahmavaivarta, Markandeya, Vamana, Varaha, Matsya,

Kurma and Brahmanda.

The list of the Upapuranas varies quite a bit across different texts.

The Skanda Purana has a list of Upapuranas, where some of them are

seen as being subsidiary to specific Mahapuranas. One of the Upapuranas

referred to in this book is the Kalika Purana. This text is described as

being subsidiary to the Brahmanda Purana. The book also references

the Nilmata Purana, a Sthala Purana from the region of Kashmir.

The Puranas are considered an essential part of the learning of the

scriptures. The Skanda Purana declares thus:

93. A Brahmana who knows all the four Vedas along with their

Angas and the Upanisads, but who does not know the Purana is not

learned.

Skanda Purana, Book VII, Section i, Ch. 2

The Puranas are also considered the source of the scientific knowledge

in the scriptures. They are encyclopedic, covering a wide range of

topics, from the science of music to medicine. Here is a verse from the

Padma Purana that speaks to this notion.

50. The Four-faced one (i.e. Brahmadeva) having heard it (from

Kesava) narrated the Vedas to the sages. Then Purana became the

source of all the sciences.

Padma Purana, Section I, Ch. 1

Many scholars date the Puranas to between 500 CE and 500 BCE.

This period of Indian history has its name derived from the texts and

is called the Early Puranic Period. Others date the Samhita to many

centuries earlier, from around 1,500 BCE to about 2,500 BCE.

16

From the Beginning of Time

The dating of the Puranas is carried out using two key markers. The

first looks at events mentioned in the Purana, the dates of which we

have a good handle on. The Purana was likely written after this event.

Second, the text was probably written before other works of literature

that make a reference to it. Some parts of the Puranas seem to have

been rewritten, further complicating the task. That said, for most of

this book, the Purana Samhita will be referenced as a text that is about

2,000 years old, conforming to the conservative dating of 500 BCE to

500 BC.

The last major translation of the Puranas into the English language

was in the 1950s, more than half a century ago. This task was undertaken

by a Board of Scholars, supported by the Government of India and

the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization

(UNESCO). This book, for the most part, uses this set of translations.

These translations of the Sanskrit texts are works of high scholarship.

There has been no attempt to ‘re-interpret’ the original Sanskrit text to

fit a proposed narrative.

The language used in the translations reflects the sensibilities of

the translators and the conventions of the time. Also, any parentheses

within the translated texts are those of the translators. The author has

not edited these English translations of the Sanskrit texts in any way.

As mentioned earlier, the book looks at the Puranic universe in five

parts. These five parts also define the overall structure of the book. Each

part, or section, begins with the current scientific view, summarized in

simple terms. This view is used as a framework to interpret the Puranas

in as much detail as possible. Verses are cited from one or more of the

Puranas to validate this interpretation

The first section following this introduction describes the life of

the sun as a star across two chapters. It outlines the Puranic narrative

relating to the lifecycle of the sun from its birth through its youth, its

mature phase, and, finally, its death as a white dwarf star. Following

this is a brief section that describes the measures of distance

and time. It concludes with a discussion on a large unit of time, the

kalpa.

The Puranas

17

After this is a section of two chapters that describes our home

planet. The first chapter demonstrates that the earth of the Puranas

was, indeed, spherical. It then goes on to outline the size and geography

of the earth. This is followed by an account from the Surya Siddhanta

validating these conclusions. This chapter also discusses the concept of

gravity from the Puranic times.

The next section, of three chapters, outlines a brief history of

the earth as recorded in the Puranas. This includes significant events

in the earth’s past, such as volcanic eruptions and mass extinctions.

These events go back to the beginning of the current kalpa, about two

billion years ago. The third chapter describes the descent of Ganga. It

describes the path of the celestial river from the heavens and the earth

as it was filled up with the waters of Ganga.

Then there is a section consisting of two chapters that describes the

Brahmanda (cosmic egg). The first chapter describes the Bhumandala

with a brief discussion of the various dvipa. The second outlines the

loka above the earth, along with a short description of the patala.

With the Puranic description of the earth, the sun, and the

surrounding regions understood, we get to an elaborate story, that

of the moon. The first chapter describes the origin of the moon and

its disappearance, while the second talks about the reappearance of

the moon during the churning of the ocean. The third chapter talks

about the passage of the moon to our Brahmanda, in the context of the

Tarakamaya War.

The next section talks about the Great Flood, a story found in many

cultures. The most widely known version is the story of Noah and his

ark. The Puranas have two renditions of this story, which are recounted

in two chapters. The first version is from an Upapurana, which is quite

similar to the flood stories from elsewhere in the world. The second

is the narrative from the Mahapuranas, one that suggests a radically

different perspective of the earth and the solar system.

The exploration of the Puranic universe ends with a summing up in

a section of two chapters. The first touches briefly on the origin of the

waters. The second chapter pulls together the various events described

18

From the Beginning of Time

in the Puranas in a consolidated timeline, starting from the beginning

of the current Varaha kalpa. This timeline of events is also explored for

its correlation with the geological records.

No mention of the Puranas would be complete without

acknowledging Sage Vyasa, who compiled the Purana Samhita. The

book offers homage to the great sage, in the form of an epilogue at the

end of the book. The section on Vyasa begins with the fascinating story

of his birth. It then goes on to describe his many contributions to the

texts of the Hindu faith.

One final thought as we move forward. The Puranas are

acknowledged as a great source of knowledge. That said, the import of

many of the Puranic stories is not immediately apparent. And yet the

Puranic texts are alive and available to us, even as they are around two

millennia old. This is because of the deep reverence and sanctity the

Puranic texts are held in.

The Puranas, as we will see, have room to accommodate both

reverence and rationality. It is this spirit of rationality in the Puranas

that this book seeks to build upon. It is my earnest prayer that this

spirit of rationality is not seen as diminishing the reverence for this

treasure of knowledge bequeathed to us.

II. the sun

20

the BIrth of MArtAnDA AnD the MArrIAGe of VIVAsVAn

There is probably no celestial body that is as fundamental to our existence on this planet as the sun. The sun provides us with light and warmth during the day, and its light reflected by the moon

brightens up our nights. The heat of the sun drives the winds, such as

the monsoons, and the water cycle. This causes rainfall, which fills up

our rivers and irrigates our crops. Rainfall and sunshine help plants

make carbohydrates through photosynthesis, thus enabling life as we

know it.

The Puranas acknowledge the importance of the sun in our very

existence, as seen in this verse from the Brahmanda Purana.

52-54. The entire universe including the Devas, Asuras and human

beings originate from the Sun, O leading Brahmanas.

The Sun alone is at the root of the three worlds. He is the highest

Deity. It is from him everything is born and everything gets merged

into him alone.

Brahmanda Purana, Book I, Section ii, Ch. 24

The Puranas speak of a sect of sun-worshippers, the Saura, from the

Sanskrit word surya, meaning ‘sun.’ Hymns to the sun are part of the

Rig Veda, the foremost of the scriptures of the Hindu faith.

The Sun

21

This chapter talks about the sun through the framework of its life.

Current science describes the life of the sun as spanning five stages:

its birth, its life as a young star, its mature phase that we see today, its

stage as a red giant, and its final collapse as a white dwarf. The Puranas,

though it may be hard to believe, speak to each of the five stages of the

sun’s life.

In this chapter and the next, each of these five stages of the sun’s life

has been explored. The description of each stage starts with a view as

informed by current science. The corresponding passages that describe

each of the five stages from the Puranas are cited. The first chapter

talks about the birth of the sun and its life as a young star. The sun’s

current mature stage and its final two stages as a red giant and a white

dwarf are described in the next. We begin with a scientific perspective

of the sun.

The sun that we see today is one of the billions of stars in the

universe. It is the closest star to our planet and our host star. The earth

seems to be situated in a ‘Goldilocks’ region in relation to the sun. The

earth is at a distance where it is neither too hot, as Mercury and Venus

are, where water boils off the surface, nor too cold, as is the case of the

planets beyond Mars, where water freezes over. Water can stay liquid

on the earth’s surface, enabling life on our planet.

In spite of being the star closest to the earth, the sun is difficult

to study. This is because of the vast amounts of heat and radiation

that it emits. With more resilient probes in the future, the increased

volume of data that will be available should significantly improve our

understanding of our parent celestial body.

Our galaxy, the Milky Way, is home to billions of stars, and there

are billions of galaxies in the universe. Some of the stars in the Milky

Way are less than a hundred light-years away, while many galaxies are

billions of light-years away. A light-year is a measure of length and

represents the distance that light travels in one year.

The light from some of the nearer stars reaching us today would

have left them less than a hundred years ago. One of the farthest galaxies

is estimated to be a little over 13 billion light-years away. The light from

22

From the Beginning of Time

the stars in this galaxy would have left them about 13 billion years ago,

just a few hundred million years after the Big Bang. By observing a

large number of stars, scientists can gain a good understanding of their

lifecycle.

It seems inconceivable that we can find passages in the Puranas that

speak to the stages in the life of the sun. The study of the sun is at the

cutting edge of science today. Let us think about this for a moment.

The likelihood of the science of the sun having anything to do with a

2,000-year-old text could stretch the limits of credibility. But this sense

of incredulity may need to be set aside as we try to understand what the

Puranic texts contain.

Many of the Puranas have passages relating to the sun. These

passages could be read without discerning much by way of science.

Each set of verses sounds like an interesting description or a charming

story. It is like trying to appreciate a single piece of a jigsaw puzzle,

without reference to any of the other parts or the complete picture.

In this case, the overarching view is provided by our knowledge of the

lifecycle of a star.

Of the two stories in this chapter, the first is relatively brief and

outlines the birth of a star such as our sun. We begin with an overview

of the science of the origin of stars.

The most widely accepted mechanism for star formation is called

the nebular hypothesis. According to this hypothesis, stars are formed

in massive clouds of molecular hydrogen, called ‘giant molecular

clouds’ (GMC). GMCs could be anything between 15 to 600 light-years

in diameter. They are large enough to cover a big part of a constellation

and are referred to by the constellation’s name, such as the ‘Orion

molecular cloud’ (OMC). They are not very dense, but given their

immense size, they carry a lot of mass. As stars are born within them,

they are also called ‘stellar nurseries.’

These giant clouds are unstable but can stay unchanged for long

periods of time. However, as a result of some perturbation, the mass

in these clouds starts to coalesce into smaller denser clumps. These

clumps then begin to rotate, collapse and form a giant sphere of gas.

The Sun

23

This ball of gas starts to collapse in on itself by the force of its own

gravity.

Just before becoming a star, it is a large sphere of gas that emits

neither heat nor light. For all external purposes, it is inert and lifeless.

The Puranas have verses that describe the stage of a proto-star as an

inert ball of gas.

The Puranas describe the sun as the son of Sage Kasyapa, born of

his wife, Aditi. The sun is called by many names, one of them being

Martanda. The story here describes how the name ‘Martanda’ came

to be. The story is mentioned in a few of the Puranas. Here is an

extract from the Brahmanda Purana describing the birth of the sun

from Aditi.

276-278. In the beginning the holy lord created an egg within her

belly. The powerful foetus was within the egg.

It goes on to describe the egg as it was born.

284-288. When it was taken out of the belly it resembled a dead

lump … Since he was born dead (Mrta) as an egg (Anda), Savitr

(the sun) is called Martanda by the learned men.

Brahmanda Purana, Book II, Section iii, Ch. 7

The word ‘Martanda’ is a compound of the two Sanskrit words—mrta

meaning ‘dead’ and anda meaning ‘egg.’ These verses, thus, succinctly

describe two events. First that everything in the cosmic egg originated

from the fetus of the egg, which is the sun. And second that the sun was

not this bright an orb at its inception. It was an inert ball of gas, which,

over time, became the sun we are all familiar with.

The second story relates to the sun in its youth and its transition to

a mature star. As before, we begin with the science.

The process of gravitational collapse of the star continues, and the

ball of gas starts to radiate heat and then light. It then gets to the second

stage of its life, that of a young star, and is known as a ‘young stellar

object.’ But the core is still not hot enough to initiate hydrogen fusion,

the source of energy of our sun. The young star generates heat and light

from the pressure of gravitation.

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