Interesting verse from Agastya Samhita - An ancient Indian treatise

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 2.5 India License.

संस्थाप्य मृण्मये पात्रे ताम्रपत्रम् सुसंस्कृतम् ।

छादयेत शिखिग्नीवेनार्दाभिः काष्ठपांसुभिः ॥

दस्तालोष्ठो निघातव्यः पारदाच्छादितस्ततः ।

संयोगात जायते तेजो मित्रावरुण संज्ञितम् ॥

अनेन जलभंगोस्ति प्राणोदानेषु वायुषु।

एवम् शतानाम् कुंभानाम् संयोगः कार्यकृत्स्मृतः ॥

वायु बंधक वस्त्रेण निबद्धो यंमस्तके l

उदान: स्वलघुत्वे बिभर्त्याकाश यानकम ll

sansthaapya mrinmaye patre taamrapatram susanskritam

chhaadayet shikhigni venaardabhi kaashthpaamsubhi:

dastaaloshto nighaatavya: paaradaachhaditasta:

sanyogaat jaayate tejo mitraavarun sangyitaam

anena jala-bhangosti praanodaaneshu vayushu

evam shataanam kumbhaanam sanyoga: karyakrit smrita:

vaayu-bandhak vastrena nibaddho yan-mastake

udaan: swa-laghutve bibhartyaakaash yaanakam

"Take an earthen pot, place a copper sheet, and put the shikhigreeva in it. Then, smear it with wet sawdust, mercury and zinc. Then, if you join the wires, it will give rise to energy (Tejas) called Mitravaruna. This will lead to disintegration of water into Praan vayu and Udaan vayu. A chain of one hundred jars is said to give a very active and effective force. The Udaan Vaayu thus created can then by trapped into an air-tight cloth with some tactic. If this is achieved, owing to self-buoyancy of Udaan vayu, it is possible to build a structure capable of flying in air"

- अगस्त्य संहिता शिल्प सूत्र - From Agastya Samhita, Shilpa Sutra (theory of architecture) - Most probably composed after 500 BC.

This verse gives following information

1. energy is produced by this particular assembly of chemicals and wire, that energy is of dual nature.

2. water can be split using that energy.

3. upon splitting of water, 2 gasses are produced

4. the energy can be amplified if the cells are assembled in series.

5. There exists a material OR a fabric which is airtight and which can be harnessed to build a structure which won't allow air to escape

6. Udaan vaayu, which is produced after splitting water, can be trapped in such air-tight assembly.

7. Udaan vaayu is light and self-buoyant

8. the self-buoyancy of Udaan vaayu can be harnessed to build a structure which is capable of flying in air.

Why Mitra-Vaarun?

Mitra-Varun are twin deities like Ashwinikumar.. They always exist in pair, like Dyava-Prithvi... The energy which is generated from above mentioned assembly exists in pair and cannot exist individually.

This refers to positive and negative terminals of cell and charges of electric field. One cannot exist without another, they have to exist in pair, just like Mitra-varuna..

Just an example of analytical and deductive nature of human brain in ancient times.. This verse is attributed to a person who existed around 2000 BC, although the language is not similar to one which was prevalent in 2000 BC. This language and style of writing is Post-Paninian Sanskrit (after 500 BC).