Vedic Physics: Scientific Origin

of Hinduism
Raja Ram Mohan Roy, Ph.D.
Golden Egg Publishing, 1999 248pp
ISBN: 0-9684120-0-9

reviewed by Allen Gaborro

Ancient religious scriptures,

as much as any
other form of literature, have been thought to
harbor covert meanings which lie in
interpretive layers beyond the vision of the
empirical reader. If in the beginning was the
word, then in its aftermath is an aggregation of
hidden messages that await discovery. In the
Vedic Physics: Scientific Origin of Hinduism,
Dr. Raja Ram Mohan Roy, a research scientist
at the University of Toronto, claims he has
unearthed the genuine, scientific meaning of
the Rgveda, one of the holy books of the Hindu
religion.
Seeing no conflict in applying scientific
knowledge to the sacred Hindu texts, Roy
comes to the conclusion that the Rgveda is in
actuality, an accurate record of cosmology,
whereas in comparison, modern physicists
have failed to explain the formation of the
universe correctly. At least according to Roy,
who reminds us in Vedic Physics that "modern
science is not the only way to investigate the
subtle nature of reality." With the help of
particle physics, coupled with the unwavering
conviction of his Hindu beliefs, Roy attempts to
teach modern science a thing or two by
presenting his case that the Rgveda
unambiguously answers the eternal question of
how the universe evolved.
Working towards that end, Roy surpasses the
traditional view of the Vedic texts-of which the
Rgveda is just one of four-, a view primarily
held in the circles of Western scholarship.
These scholars could envision no other
proposition from the Vedas other than that of a
spiritual, mythological, and psychological
nature, thereby excluding the presence of a
scientific sensibility in them. Roy however,
resuscitates the scientific value of the Vedas by
arguing that the ancient Vedic sages
discovered the existence of a Vedic physics and
cosmology centuries before the advent of
modern science. The sages meticulously
surveyed such essential aspects of cosmology

as "subtle notions of potential and atomic

structure" and the "boundaries of the universe"
in the Vedas long before the theories of Albert
Einstein rose to prominence in the West. By
recapitulating the Rgveda through a scientific
prism, Roy offers to demonstrate a native, premodern scientific knowledge that in various
cases is quite distinguishable from that which
eventually predominated the Western world.
One of the most salient examples of this
opposition between the Vedas and modern
science involves the birth of the universe.
Modern physicists have gravitated in recent
decades towards the famous "Big Bang" theory.
"Big Bang" stipulated that the universe arose
out of the concentration of mass-energy in a
single point. It is from this point that the
universe was filled with tremendous heat,
thereby producing the energy that propelled its
accelerated expansion.
Relying on a deconstructive and analogical
methodology, Roy challenges the Big Bang
theory with his unique interpretation of the
Vedic origin of the universe. To begin with, Roy
is convinced that the universe issued forth from
an absolute vacuum. Mass-energy did not exist
in this initial "cold" phase. It was produced
slowly at first on the surface of the universethe "surface" of a universe coming out of a void
being a strange idea in itself, but one that Roy
presents interesting hypotheses for. He goes on
to say that the creation of mass-energy will
continue like a perpetual assembly line
providing that the expansion of the universe
does not run out of steam. In contrast, there is
no current production of mass-energy in the
Big Bang theory as all of it was produced at the
very outset of the universe's evolution.
Vedic Physics is filled with this kind of carefully
laid out, scientifically-based construction of the
nature of the universe. This is at once one of
the book's attractive but problematic qualities.
Although Roy's ideas are an intellectually
fascinating read, many of them are at the same
time difficult to comprehend at first glance for
the lay reader. Unless one is an expert in or an
aficionado of the field of physics, attempting to
absorb Roy's melange of scientific
interpretations-many of them distressingly
technical and convoluted-will take a fair effort
on the part of someone who has little or no
knowledge of such a complex area of study.

Compounding this problem is the varied

assortment of Hindu terms and names in the
Vedic Physics. Although Roy deserves credit for
being thorough in his inclusion of the key
figures in the Vedic scriptures, his exposition
requires some serious streamlining. Roy
becomes carried away by his ardent passion for
the ancient texts as you can almost feel him
obliviously expanding on an already confusing
glut of characters, supplementary
characterizations, and interpretations in the
text. This consequently makes it a perplexing
chore for novices and newcomers to the Hindu
scriptures to remember, let alone absorb, who
is who in the book, who did what, and what
each term and character represents, not to
mention their relationship to Roy's ideas. A
glossary near the end of Vedic Physics helps to
alleviate this problem somewhat. But with the
dizzying plethora of tongue-twisting
information that Roy throws out, one could be
forgiven for giving in to frustration and even
disinterest.
Yet another complication that is conspicuous in
Vedic Physics is the absolute certainty that Roy
projects through his interpretations. It is one
thing to pose alternative interpretations of an
ancient religious book. It is however, another
matter to portray those interpretations as the
categorical truth and nothing but. Roy suffers
from what Umberto Eco calls "an excess of
wonder" when it comes to his interpretations of
the Hindu texts. Roy's enthusiasm for the
Vedas causes him to "overestimate"-to borrow
again from Eco-what is essentially his
subjective decoding of the scriptures. True,
Roy has displayed a respectable amount of
depth and rigor to support his findings. But this
still does not ensure-nor will it ever-that Roy
has arrived at an interpretation for the Vedas
that will put an end to all others. This is
especially the case for an ancient holy text that
is as susceptible to a broad spectrum of
interpretations as the Rgveda is.
Besides, why should all other interpretations of
the Vedas be considered either misconstrued or
inadequate just because Roy insists he has
raised his standard on the final interpretive
ground? Roy may think that he has ultimately
transcended competing interpretations of the
Vedas, but this does not give him the objective
right to disregard or de-emphasize previous
interpretations, or shun another reader's
venture at undermining his understanding of

the scriptures even if an equally rational and

in-depth case for interpretive license is made.
Any interpretation is worth considering
providing that it is based on sound reasoning
and evidence, for textual interpretation is
meant to be liberally inclusive and not the
private property of an exclusive group or
individual.
Lamentably, Roy remains in steadfast solidarity
with those who would turn away from novel
interpretations other than their own. But never
is one so out of touch with reality as when he
or she believes they have answered all the
questions. Roy's smug confidence in his
interpretations has turned Vedic Physics into a
condition where the readers are first shown the
narrative of their interpretive rejection, a
narrative that is used to marginalize or
extinguish any differing perspectives they may
have. It is too bad because Roy concocts an
interesting blend of science and religion in his
book, not an easy task. Regrettably, it is a
mixture that is eclipsed by interpretive
dogmatism and an alarming affectation of
certitude on the part of the author.