Showing of Planetary Sketches Indian man: You like that. Prabhupada: Yes. Indian man: Yes, it is nicer. Prabhupada: That I have seen. I told him in Switzerland. Yes. From Switzerland they’ll… Indian man: So big mountain. Prabhupada: Yes. Indian man: And he took (indistinct) in other planets? Prabhupada: Yes. Indian man: The same with this Meru Mountain, it spreads… Prabhupada: They cannot explain what is that. But I have seen it. Where it has gone, nobody knows. Just see. Down, hundred miles, and up… You cannot see more than hundred… But it appears like the instruction. Tamala Krsna: This is Jambudvipa, part of Jambudvipa. That is Ilavrta-varsa in the square. We have… These mountains are each two thousand yojanas high. Indian man: After Mandara Meru, Mandara, that Mandara Mountains… And here he began to meditate. He meditated for six thousand years on this Mandara Mountain here. Then Parvati came, and she… Then next… These two mountains are like (describes sketch of planetary system, very difficult to hear) And here is the beautiful Indu stream(?). And it’s heart is… Eight hundred miles. Tamala Krsna: Where is it? Indian man: On the Mandara Mountain. There are four different streams. This is Ilavrta-varsa. Yasodanandana: This area? Indian man: Yes. Prabhupada: Sivaloka? Sivaloka? Indian man: Yes, it is not actually Sivaloka, but residence of Lord Siva. Tamala Krsna: One of his… He described it that like during the summertime you go to a hill station. Each demigod has their place where they also go. Indian man: Sivaloka is different, but Lord Siva is… Prabhupada: Summer residence. Tamala Krsna: Yes. Prabhupada: Why not? If a man can have summer residence, Lord Siva… Indian man: Actual residence is in Satyaloka. Brahma is there in Satyaloka. That means 2,200,000,000 miles away from sun planet. Prabhupada: That… Then it is universe. Indian man: Yes, in the universe. It is very high. Prabhupada: And where is that cakra? Indian man: Cakra? Prabhupada: That polestar, center? Tamala Krsna: That will be in another… Indian man: We will give another picture. Prabhupada: Oh. Tamala Krsna: This picture only shows mainly part of Jambudvipa and especially Ilavrta-varsa, the middle of… Prabhupada: So Brahmaloka is in Jambudvipa? Indian man: No, no, no. Brahmaloka is in Satyaloka. Prabhupada: Oh, then what is this? Indian man: This is Mount Meru. Prabhupada: But you said Brahmaloka. Indian man: Brahmapuri. Prabhupada: Brahmapuri, that. Indian man: Summer residence. Tamala Krsna: The middle part. Indian man: And then there are eight different residences of different loka-palas, Indra, Agni, Varuna… Prabhupada: Summer residence. Tamala Krsna: Yes, on top of Meru, like a hill station. (laughter) Indian man: You won’t find many even like a (indistinct). Prabhupada: And they simply find rocks and sand. How nonsense… Tamala Krsna: Because that’s all there is in Arizona. Prabhupada: (laughs) That is… Do it nicely, carefully. Indian man: So scientists cannot try to realize the height of this mountain… Prabhupada: Not advised. Indian man: They come just here. Prabhupada: I have seen. They can go little higher than that earth. That’s all. They cannot go even that peak. As soon as they go, finished. Indian man: This is more than six lakhs’ miles from the earth, the height of Mount Meru. Tamala Krsna: The airplane goes about eight miles. Five thousand feet equals one mile. And they go forty thousand. So how much is forty thousand? Eight miles. Devotee (1): Forty thousand feet divided by five means approximately eight miles. Tamala Krsna: Airplane goes eight miles high, and this Meru Mandapa(?) is 800,000 total, a hundred thousand yojanas, one lakh of yojanas. So this is very high, nearly 600,000 miles high. An airplane only goes five miles. Devotee (1): Eight miles. Tamala Krsna: They have no idea about distances. Indian man: If we rise above, man, six thousand miles, then we will arrive at sun planet. Prabhupada: Yes. Indian man: And then more, eight lakhs miles, that means moon planet. Prabhupada: Then miles? They could not explain why Sunday first. Tamala Krsna: Right. That question stumps. Prabhupada: Common sense. Sunday, Monday. Sunday. Sun must be first. Then… This is my commonsense interpretation. Yasodanandana: You have written in Bhagavatam like that. Prabhupada: Yes. And these rascals say moon first. Devotee (2): Srila Prabhupada, previously we painted in the art department… Just like Varaha lifted the earth, and the earth was a globe, and we showed also a globe of the earth. How does that relate to this? Previously, when we painted, we showed the earth a ball. So now the artists will be very confused. How it fell in the Garbha Ocean as a ball? Yasodanandana: It depends on what we mean by earth. The Western conception of earth is just five continents and a few oceans, but according to Bhagavatam, earth means Jambudvipa, because earth is connected with Jambudvipa. Devotee (2): So whole Jambudvipa fell. Indian man: Bhagavata describes the height of Himalayas, eighty thousand miles. Prabhupada: No, about this earth globe. Indian man: About the earth it describes four billion miles. Tamala Krsna: That means Jambudvipa. Indian man: No, that means complete earth, four billion miles. That is eight lakhs miles, Jambudvipa. Tamala Krsna: Four billion is the universe. Indian man: Bhu-mandala. Tamala Krsna: Bhu-mandala. Oh, the Bhagavatam describes Bhu- mandala as earth. Prabhupada: Oh. Yasodanandana: Bhumi. Indian man: …has come right from the ocean, from the bottom of the ocean. Prabhupada: So explained there. Then this question is solved. Tamala Krsna: Yes. The whole Bhu-mandala fell. Indian man: So the universe is round, and from bottom of the Garbhodaka ocean to top of Satyaloka there is four billion miles. Then the again, from east to west again is another four billion miles. Because Bhu-mandala is situated in between the earth. Prabhupada: Explain. He’ll explain. Yasodanandana: (background talking) Indian man: (background talking) Tamala Krsna: And that is salt water ocean, behind it. Yasodanandana: Salt water ocean goes all around. Indian man: All around. Tamala Krsna: It’s actually a circle, but we have shown one area, so it become flat. Indian man: This is a circle. And this is (indistinct). And this is Brahma-varsa(?). And this is (indistinct). This is now eighty thousand miles high and sixty thousand miles wide, these mountains. And these… Prabhupada: All marble. Mountain. Tamala Krsna: What are they made of? Yasodanandana: Each mountain is made of a different kind of stone. Some are made of gold; some are made of coral; some of them, stones, are lapis lazuli, that blue stone that Krsna wears. Each mountain has different variety. Prabhupada: They will be puzzled. These material scientists will be puzzled. (laughter) Indian man: But according to Srimad-Bhagavatam, in the beginning of creation we have relation with all this, in India. Even five thousand years ago Pariksit Maharaja went and he conquered this area. I have translated this. This Tattvata-varsa was conquered by… And this Ramya-varsa was also conquered. And Vardhanya also… And then this is Bharata-varsa, this whole world. Tamala Krsna: Where? Indian man: This. Tamala Krsna: That is Bharata-varsa. Indian man: Yeah, and he was presiding here. He was living here. And then he crossed this mountain. Prabhupada: Crossed? Indian man: Yes. And he conquered it. Not only he saw, he conquered it. And it is surrounded by five other oceans. And again this is surrounded by (indistinct). And is surrounded by (indistinct). Again there are ten mountains. Tamala Krsna: That is what we’re painting next. Indian man: Next time we’ll show you. Tamala Krsna: Bhu-mandala, the whole Bhu-mandala, these different oceans and dvipas. That will be in color. Prabhupada: Very nice. Tamala Krsna: This Puskara, he did the… Puskara: I made the mess. (laughs) Prabhupada: He’ll do something wonderful in arts. Krsna will be… No complaint. All right. Jaya. Devotees: (obeisances) Prabhupada: Vedic planetarium. Indian man: Next step will be planetary system. Prabhupada: All right. Indian man: The third planetary system, above Mount Meru. Prabhupada: Jaya. You have taken lunch? Upendra: Yes, Prabhupada. [break] Prabhupada: …there is sun, and above that, there is moon. And they are going to moon. They are going nowhere, simply taking laboratory photo, studio photo, and cheating. Why this cheating can go on? You do not know. That’s all. Who is insisting that “We must know”? (end)
by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
June 28, 1977, Vrndavana