THE SCIENTIST AND THE SAGE
Swami Sri Yukteswar was born Priya Nath Karar in Serampore, India in 1855. He devoted much of his early life to the world of science and acquired a great deal of knowledge in many subject areas including chemistry, medicine, mathematics, physics and astronomy. He once said: "Truly, a scientist can be a religious man, because both the scientist and the religious man work by means of concentration."
Yet it was his keen interest in the ancient science of astrology that led him to an important observation. He discovered a crucial error in the old astronomical almanacs of India. In short, the spring equinox no longer occurred around March 21st in the Indian kaliyuga calendar system but was off by about 22 days, thus showing a date around April 13th -- a fact which has far-reaching implications.
Although Priya Nath Karar was able to prove his scientific conclusions to other learned men, traditional beliefs made it difficult for him to introduce his new calculations, and it was only long after his death in 1936 that an eminent physicist and professor of physics at Calcutta University, Dr. Meghnad Saha, proposed recommendations to correct the Indian Almanac. Sadly, most of India still believes to be in Kali Yuga.
Hoping to attend a conference in Paris and meeting some of Europe’s educated people, Priya Nath Karar quickly learned French and even wrote a book in that language. Unfortunately, he handed the manuscript to a French Father at Chandan Nagar, who apparently was as deeply interested as disturbed by the historic, scientific and spiritual nature of that book. The book was lost. Today not even a trace of the original manuscript seems to exist anymore.
But Priya Nath, who began to use the name Priyanath Karar Swami after the title 'Swami' was bestowed upon him by Mahamuni Babaji, a revered Himalayan Yogi, remembered what he had written in French. Being inspired by Babaji, Karar Swami incorporated most of the subject matter in a new book, entitled "Kaibalya Darsanam" (exposition of Final Truth). Originally composed in 1894, his work was first published in India by the Secretary of Sadhu Sova, Roy Bahadur Atul Chandra Choudhuri, in 1920.
After being formally initiated into the Swami Order, Karar Swami took the monastic name of Swami Sriyukteswar Giri. In the introduction of his book "Kaibalya Darsanam", Sri Yukteswar provides the reader with a revolutionary astrological and astronomical explanation of the Yuga cycle, the cause of the so-called Precession phenomenon and the celestial motion of our solar system relative to a dual star of our Sun and a Grand Center. Apparently, until his death in 1936, there was no need for any revisions or corrections to the original text.
Reference to this first official 1920 edition was made in an article written by Laurie Pratt (a.k.a. Tara Mata), entitled “Astrological World Cycles”, which appeared in the East-West magazine, Vol 4-11 in September of 1932. Later, in 1949, Sri Yukteswar's book was published under the title “The Holy Science” by the Self-Realization Fellowship in the United States of America. Research is underway to determine if this book is a complete and accurate rendition of the original work of Priya Nath Karar.
Uwe Homann
August 19, 2005
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Appendix
In late 2006, the Sirius Research Group obtained from a friend a copy of the original version of the introduction of “The Holy Science”, published in 1920 by Atul Chandra Chowadhary, the Secretary of Sadhusabha.
Compared to the later SRF version, it offers some nice and inspiring philosophical details (e.g. [the object of the book] "... it will create a real brotherhood among all the followers of all religions").
As for our Sun’s dual, it provides us with a perhaps more accurate astrophysical description "... and the sun again with its planets and moons taking some star for its dual revolve round each other in about 24000 years of our earth ...".
And another quite fascinating difference concerns the so-called “Age of the Gods”. The simplified SRF version reads "That fourfold cycle comprising 12,000 years is called an Age of the Gods. The sum of a thousand divine ages constitutes one day of Brahma; and of the same length is its night."
Compare this quote to the following excerpt from a sloka written by Manu and as interpreted by Sri Yukteswar in the original 1920 English edition:
“Thus 12000 years the sum total of all the periods of these 4 yugas is the age of one of the Daiba Yuga or electric couple, two of which, i.e. 24000 years, makes the electric cycle complete. 1000 of such Daiba Yugas is the day of Brahma the creative power or Creator, when creation exists in manifested state; and the period equal to the above is its night when this creative power sleeps and the creation becomes dissolved.”
According to this Yuga-Cycle, Time and Matter are not always what they appear to be.
Uwe Homann
© Sirius Research Group, 2007
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"The knowledge of science and spiritualism broadens the mind and heart of a person and imbues him with a keen understanding of all riddles and dilemmas in life and with a compassionate and righteous disposition." (Priya Nath Karar, quoted from the biographical works of Swami Satyeswarananda Giri Babaji)
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References:
http://yoganiketan.net/kriyayoga/Kriya_Yoga_and_Sri_Yukteshvar.pdf
http://yoganiketan.net/sriyukteswar/sriyukteswar.pdf
http://www.sanskritclassics.com/biographies.htm
https://www.srfbooks.com/Item.asp?id=1373#
http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Academy/5185/4-11.html#as
http://pib.nic.in/feature/fe0999/f2109991.html
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