Interplanetary Travel

Individually, however, one can attempt to go to any planet he desires. But this is only possible by psychological changes within the mind of a particular person. The mind is the nucleus of the material body. The gradual evolutionary process of the material body depends more or less on the psychological changes in the mind. The change of bodily construction of a caterpillar into a butterfly, and in modern medical science the conversion of a man's body into that of a woman or vice versa-all depend more or less on the psychological change of the mind.

In The Bhagavad-gita it is said that, at the time of death, if anyone concentrates his mind upon the form of the Personality of Godhead, Sri Krishna, and thus doing relinquishes his body, he at once enters into the spiritual existence of the anti-material world. This means that anyone who strives constantly for psychological changes within the mind, going from master to the spiritual form of Godhead by the performance of the prescribed rules of devotional service, can easily attain to the kingdom of God in the anti-material sky.

And in the same way if anyone desires to enter into any planet of the material sky, he can go there just after quitting the present body-i.e., after death-and enter into the atmosphere of the particular planet he desires. Thus if someone wants to enter the Moon planet as science is now attempting to do, or the Sun planet or Mars, one can do so simply by performing certain acts meant for that purpose.

The Bhagavad-gita confirms this in the following words: "In whatever condition one quits his present body, in his next life he will attain to that state of being without fail." (8.6) In the Mahabharata, of which the Gita is a part, we find the story of Maharaj Bharata, who in spite of a life of severe penances foolishly thought of his stag at the time of death, and thus became a deer in his next birth. But because of his life of austerity, he was granted clear consciousness of his past. This is a very important point. The atmosphere created at the time of death is but an aftereffect of the actual deeds which one performs during his life.

In the Gita the process of entering into the Moon planet is mentioned. There it states that materialistic men who have no information of the kingdom of God are generally mad after the acquisition of wealth, fame and adoration. Such men are interested in progress and welfare work for the family and for self-satisfaction, and they may extend these activities into social or national welfare. Such men obtain the desired object by material activities, through the prescribed mechanical or ritualistic discharge of duties, and are thus inclined to satisfy the "Pitris," or the bygone forefathers, as well as other controlling gods by sacrifices such as are presented in the revealed scriptures.

Addicted to such acts of sacrifice and ceremonial observance, such men enter the Moon planet after death. When a person is thus promoted to the atmosphere of the Moon he gets the necessary strength to enjoy the drinking of Somarasa, a celestial beverage.

The Moon planet is the place where the demigod Chandra is the predominating Deity. The atmosphere and amenities of life there are far more comfortable and advantageous than those that we have here. But, reaching there, if a person does not utilize the opportunity to get promotion to still better planets, then he is degraded and is made to come down again to this planet or some other similar to Earth. And even though such materialistic persons may attain to the topmost planetary system, they ultimately are annihilated at the time of the periodic general disappearance of the cosmic manifestation.

So far as the planetary systems in the spiritual sky are concerned, there is an unlimited number of such "Vaikunthas" there, and the ratio is that that manifestation of the lord's internal potency is three times greater than this material sky, which is manifested by the external energy.