with early aviation in the tale of Icarus and Daedalus. And apart from that, if you stop to consider
the motivations behind record keeping, why on earth would the scribes in Nepal go to all the
trouble of acknowledging their lack of expertise on the subject of flight unless someone else was
already around doing it better than they could? For them to just casually mention it in amongst
the rest of their history makes no sense at all: “Oh and by the way, we can’t fly...” That would be
the same as our current historians bothering to record the fact that man is still incapable of turning
into a tree during the 21st century. The simple fact of it being mentioned at all gives one
immediate cause for thought, and in particular because it’s mentioned in fashion that would
suggest a non-proficiency in the skill in comparison to others, Most traditional texts deal with the
accomplishments of a civilization, not with its shortcomings.
Fig.104The Amazing Vymaanika-Shaastra
As previously mentioned, the Vymaanika-Shaastra is a remarkable work from ancient India. It
is said to be a Religious text but if so, then it is one that seems to contain no religious or moral
significance at all. There are of course the standard praises and recognition of the greatness of the
gods that regularly punctuates the work, but no real story as such. The work serves only to offer
mankind the benefits of aeronautics. Unfortunately the copies of this book that have survived
from antiquity are incomplete making any complete rendering of the narrative now impossible
though we do have a reasonable amount to go on.
The descriptions in the texts are quite technical in places and highly detailed throughout. I was
going to attempt to present a summary of the work in this section however the subject matter is
extremely vast and the lack of any ‘storyline’ make summarisation of the book impossible. I will
though present for you here, a list of some of the various topics that are covered in just the first
chapter of the book, to give you an understanding of the peculiar nature of this remarkable text.
The book opens with this statement:
“I make obeisance to the Divine Being, who is visible on the crest of the
Vedas, who is the fountain of eternal bliss, and whose abode is reached
by Vimaanas.
“Having studied the Shaastraas propounded by previous men of science
to the best of my ability, for the benefit of mankind, I shall deal with the
science of Aeronautics, which is the essence of the Vedas, which will be
a source of joy and benefit to humanity, which will facilitate comfortable