“We knew the world would not be the same. A few people laughed, a few people cried, most people were silent. I remembered the line from the Hindu scripture the Bhagavad Gita. Vishnu is trying to persuade the Prince that he should do his duty and to impress him takes on his multiarmed form and says, ‘Now, I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds.’ I suppose we all thought that one way or another.”
~ J. Robert Oppenheimer, Physicist, (1965), The Decision to Drop the Bomb ~
While our world grapples with the potential for a nuclear war, these words of J. Robert Oppenheimer as he recounted witnessing the first nuclear test explosion ring very loud. I must add, at least in my mind, in more ways than one.
The event that may have changed the fate of the human race was ironically called the Trinity Test: a code name given to the first atomic explosion on our planet at that point in time, as far as we know. The story goes that Oppenheimer chose this name as inspired by the poetry of John Donne, a seventh century poet and author of Holy Sonnets. Take note that the concept of trinity has a pivotal place in both Christianity and Hinduism.
In Christianity, trinity means the unity of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit as three persons in one Godhead. In Hinduism, trinity represents a triad of gods consisting of Brahma, the Creator; Vishnu, the Protector; and, Shiva, the Destroyer, as the three highest manifestations of the ultimate reality. Ironically, once again, the site of this first explosion on Earth was part of the Alamogordo Bombing Range known in Spanish as Jornada del Muerto, roughly translating to “journey of death,” just south of Los Alamos, New Mexico!
Here are some of the other eyewitness accounts of that event (Italics below are mine.):
“… there was an enormous flash of light, the brightest light I have ever seen or that I think anyone has ever seen. It blasted; it pounced; it bored its way right through you. It was a vision which was seen with more than the eye. ... It looked menacing. It seemed to come toward one.”
~ [Witnessing the first atomic bomb test explosion.] — Isidor Isaac Rabi, Nobel Prize Winning Physicist, (1970),
Science: The Center of Culture ~
“The whole country was lighted by a searing light with the intensity many times that of the midday sun. It was golden, purple, violet, gray and blue. It lighted every peak, crevasse, and ridge of the nearby mountain range with a clarity and beauty that cannot be described but must be seen to be imagined.”
~ Thomas Farrell, Major general, US Army (July 18, 1945) [quote in] Groves’ Memorandum for the Secretary of War, General Leslie R. Groves. ~
“The most striking impression was that of an overwhelming bright light …. We saw the whole sky flash with unbelievable brightness in spite of the very dark glasses we wore … the flash of the bomb was many times brighter than the sun.”
~ Emilio Segrè, Nobel Prize Winning Physicist (1945) ~
Oppenheimer further recalled that the experience of watching the explosion brought to his mind the Greek legend of Prometheus. Whereby Prometheus was punished by Zeus for giving fire to man. Oppenheimer also reported fleeting thoughts of Alfred Nobel’s futile hope that the invention of dynamite would deter future wars.
It is quite apparent to me that Oppenheimer was beset with conflict about spearheading the making of the first atomic bomb, while he fully understood its long-term implications for humanity.
On the other hand, being Jewish himself, the atrocities committed by the Nazi party and the implications of Germany’s quest for an atomic bomb were not lost on him.
I believe when Oppenheimer invoked the verse from the Bhagavad Gita, he was thinking on two different planes. To understand this, let’s first examine the context of this specific verse.
This verse is from the Bhagavad Gita, which is part of the ancient Indian epic Mahabharata - considered in Indian thought to describe the biggest war in human history, involving unimaginable loss of life. In this epic, the warrior Arjuna is feeling hamstrung by the dilemmas of facing his friends and family in the war. His charioteer, Lord Krishna – representing an avatar of Lord Vishnu of the Hindu Trinity – tells him that he must perform his duty and uphold dharma (“righteousness”). Lord Krishna further tells him that the death of mortals is determined by Him regardless of the means. At this point, Arjuna implores Lord Krishna to reveal his cosmic self. Below is a description of the cosmic self of Lord Krishna as described by Arjuna (once again, italics are mine):
“Arjuna sees the entire creation in the body of the God of gods with unlimited arms, faces, and stomachs. It has no beginning or end and extends immeasurably in all directions. His radiance is similar to a thousand suns blazing together in the sky. The sight dazzles Arjuna, and his hair stands on end. He witnesses the three worlds trembling with fear of God's laws and the celestial gods taking His shelter. He can see several sages offering prayers and singing hymns exalting God. Then Arjuna sees the Kauravas, along with their allies, rushing into the mouth of this formidable form, who look like moths rushing with great speed toward the fire to perish.”
~ Bhagavad Gita. Chapter 11: Viśhwarūp Darśhan (Vision of the Cosmic Form) Yog through Beholding the Cosmic Form of God ~
I believe that while witnessing the Trinity Test, Oppenheimer had a visual recollection of the description of Lord Krishna’s cosmic self, as he had read the Sanskrit version of Gita while at the University of California in Berkeley, and, I suspect, many times thereafter. By invoking this verse from Gita, Oppenheimer was not only reaffirming his recollection, he was also attempting to reconcile his conflicting feelings about making the bomb.
Right now, the entire world is facing the same dilemma as faced by Arjuna, Oppenheimer, other scientists who worked on the Manhattan Project, and the then President Harold S. Truman. The last time the world faced this dilemma, we lost more than 250,000 people in Japan. Let’s hope that we have learned from that experience, because this time around, if a nuclear war is waged, the toll of suffering and destruction to the family of mankind (Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam) will be much, much more devastating.
And, while we must uphold the dharma (righteousness) - just as the wisdom offered by Lord Krishna in the Mahabharata, one of The Manuals of the Cosmos,™ helped Arjuna make the right decision - our present-day world should use the same wisdom to overcome the current challenge.
And, that’s all folks...
At least for now…
Until next time…
“It is already becoming clear that a chapter which had a Western beginning will have to have an Indian ending if it is not to end in self-destruction of the human race … At this supremely dangerous moment in human history, the only way of salvation is the ancient Indian way.”
~ Dr. Arnold Toynbee, British historian [In a private conversation as reported in] (1979), The Spiritual Heritage of India: A Clear Summary of Indian Philosophy and Religion, Swami Prabhavananda ~
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