The Indian civilization is one of the oldest continuous ones in the world. During its 5000 year old history it has developed its own unique approach to the basic questions of Cosmology. This development led the ancient Indians to a full-fledged system that became the basis of their Religion and Law. The current talk will start with surveying the different schools of cosmology and matters of chronology. The latter is important because native Indian approach in this regard is quite different from those of the western scholars. The remainder of the talk will be centered on answering some key cosmological questions from the Indian point of view.
1. What is the nature of Time and Space?
2. How does the Creation take place?
3. What are the constituents of the Cosmos?
4. What is the extent of Cosmos in space?
5. How does the Cosmos develop and unfold in time?
6. Are there Multiverses?
The answers will be compared and contrasted with those given by the Modern Cosmology wherever possible.
Dr. Vinod Mishra received a Ph.D. in Physics from Stony Brook University in 1983. For the next twelve years, he taught and conducted research in Nuclear Theory, Quantum Fluids and Quantum Chromodynamics (QCD) at at various academic institutions like Nordic Institute for Theoretical Atomic Physics (NORDITA), Ohio State University, Kent State University, and Case Western Reserve University. In 1995, he joined Bell Labs and worked in the areas of wireless and optical communications. He joined DISA in 2006 and currently holds the position of Technology Planner in its Chief Technology Office. He is proficient in Sanskrit and writes on topics related to ancient India as a hobby.