‘Divyastras’ by Nimish Tanna
Venkat Raman
If you were to watch special programmes on History Channel and read ancient Indian literature, you will be astounded by the fact that more than 5000 years ago, Indians had mastered the art of space walk, mind travel and possessed advanced science and technology.
The two great Epics of India-Ramayana and Mahabharata also describe the ‘Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD),’ used in warfare, destroying lives and properties.
However, there were strict guidelines for use of these weapons; they were to be deployed only on the battlefield and not against civilians; conflicts will be held only at a specified site and only from Sunrise to Sunset.
Book on Divine Weapons
All these weapons were known as ‘Divyastras,’ (Divine Weapons), given to warriors as a reward for their devotion and years of prayers, under strict guidelines, breaching which would either render the weapons useless or bring untold misery to the deployer.
Now, a book, titled, ‘Divyastra’ written by Nimish Tanna brings out the essence of these weapons, to educate the growing generation on the responsibilities that befall on those who possessed these WMD.
Says Mr Tanna: “Thousands of years ago, Indian Yogis possessed the knowledge to obtain the weapons of the Gods. However, this knowledge could only be transferred from a Guru to his disciple by word of mouth. In today’s world, one mystic, who calls himself Guruji, still possesses this knowledge and is using it to empower an innocent person’s life. Only, this empowerment could be a deception and the innocent person is a thirteen year old boy with a stutter…
“In this intertwining tale, an ambitious yet unsuccessful Shankar, in search of his identity, is manipulated to embark on a never-told-before fantasy tale; only to rediscover the father he never knew and unmask the mystical Guruji.
“Amidst this confounding concoction of ancient myths, deluding personas and dispersed emotions, will Shankar ever be able to separate fact from fiction and find his true identity?
Here are a few samples from the Book:
“What would be the most lethal weapons of that time?,” asks Shankar.
WMD of The Trinity
Dr Vyas says, “All the weapons were brutal in nature but the scriptures show that the three most dangerous and feared Divyastras were ‘Brahmastra,’ ‘Vaishnavastra’ and ‘Pashupatastra,’ each of them presided by the Gods of Trinity, namely Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva respectively. These weapons had the power to lethal devastation and were infallible. An entire army could perish with blast of such weapons. The effects of the explosion would travel for miles and destroy everything that would come in their way. Land may turn irreversibly infertile and all sources of water may get contaminated. Generations to follow may suffer from its detrimental effects.”
The student observes, “So, if the most dangerous weapons of the Trinity are emulated by our era, do you think that we are nearing the saturation point of innovation? Why do you say we have a long way to go when today’s Science has already mastered those technologies?”
Dr Vyas, replies with patience and consideration: “‘I don’t think we are any closer to the saturation point yet. I believe that these scriptures tell us a lot more than what we comprehend at this point.”
Penetrating questions
Are Divyastras more powerful than the modern nuclear weapons?
Do human beings today possess the knowledge to retrieve the ancient WMD?
Was there a system of transferring knowledge in those days?
These and many other questions, and answers to each of them, make the Book an interesting read. The young man remarks, “Every progress in today’s Science is just a reoccurrence of what have been mastered thousands of years ago. Would you say that the fate of our ancestors is our destiny too?”
Epics and Science Fiction
In his blog on ‘World Mysteries,’ James Harman, a researcher, says that the Ramayana and the Mahabharata seem like science fiction.
“Not only did aircraft exist such as Vimanas and Vailxi (as the Atlantian craft are called), they had nuclear weapons. There seems to be a fear of educating the worlds people about the distant past. Even empires and leaders of China’s past to Christians to Arab peoples would destroy history in such a way that records of their amazing cultures and events are nearly all wiped out. Indian Epics however are still with us intact. Records of South American history all but gone. Fear, and other factors have removed most of history before 5,000 years. Some only 1000 years ago. In the America’s just 300 -500 years all most all lost! Today, perhaps some UFO records are going the way of fears gate! However, again a few stories live on.”
Nimish Tanna with his wife Farnaz Bharwani
