Ancient Aliens or Ancient Indians?

The standard history we all learn is pretty clear: the Wright brothers successfully launched the first airplane in 1903, and the first space shuttle came much later, in 1976. That’s the official story. But what if human history's timeline for flight is completely wrong? What if incredibly advanced planes and spacecraft were zipping around thousands of years ago, and they were even more sophisticated than the technology we have today?

The Controversial Claim

This idea isn't just a fun "what if?"; it was the subject of a controversial paper presented at a major scientific gathering: the 102nd Indian Science Congress in Mumbai. Captain Anand Bodas, a retired principal from a pilot training facility, presented a paper within a session titled "Ancient Sciences through Sanskrit." His claim? Ancient Indians achieved and mastered human aviation and advanced space flight thousands of years ago. According to Bodas, texts from the Vedas, which date back as far as 7,000 years, describe planes (Vimanas) that were unbelievably maneuverable. They could supposedly fly backward and sideways, and even shuttle between different countries, continents, and planets!

Details from the Ancient Texts

The ancient manuscripts provide some truly wild details. For instance, the more than 3,000-year-old texts describe specific information about the pilots themselves:

Pilot Diet: During certain periods, pilots reportedly drank the milk of buffalo, cow, and sheep.

Pilot Clothing: They wore clothes made from vegetation that grew underwater.

The Technology: Bodas indicated that the inventor of the airplane was actually a sage named Bharadwaja, who lived around 7,000 years ago. He also claimed these ancient planes were powered by an array of 40 small engines.

Captain Bodas argues that this knowledge wasn't passed down because of "unofficial history," that is, the original technology was forgotten over time due to foreign rulers and things being stolen from the country.

A Deep Dive into the Vedas

The Vedas are a massive collection of Sanskrit texts originating in Ancient India, constituting some of the oldest religious scriptures in Hinduism. Some parts are known to date back to at least 1700 BCE, but many are believed to be much, much older. The subject of these flying machines, or Vimanas, has long been popular among ancient astronaut theorists, who argue that the texts are evidence of extraterrestrial visitation. However, Captain Bodas insists the ancient Indians invented the technology themselves.

Skepticism and Opposition

It's important to know that this paper, presented at a conference that included six Nobel laureates and other top academics, was met with serious pushback. The Times of India reported that the claims sparked accusations of pseudoscience and the argument that the theory dangerously undermines empirical evidence by relying on ancient religious texts. A NASA scientist, Dr. Ram Prasad Gandhiraman, even started an online petition before the conference to oppose certain lectures thought to mix science, mythology, and Hindu nationalist politics. Yet, not everyone dismissed it. An Indian scientist from the U.S. who attended the event found the examination of ancient testimony compelling:

"Knowledge always grows, its flow never stops... if all this knowledge was available in the ancient days, I need to know where it stopped, why it failed to grow, why there were no advancements?"

The Bigger Picture: Ancient Tech is Not New

The idea that ancient civilizations had advanced technology isn't new.

Central America: Gold trinkets that look remarkably like modern airplanes have been found across Central America.

Egypt: An object looking just like a glider or plane was found in a tomb in Egypt in 1898 and dated to around 200 BCE.

We tend to assume that our current technology, iPhones, YouTube, and electric cars, is the most advanced the world has ever seen. But can we be completely sure? There’s so much about our history that we don’t know or can’t explain. I personally believe that highly advanced civilizations existed before us. They may not have been "advanced" in our modern, digital sense, but they were advanced in their own unique and powerful ways. And just imagine if they did have an ancient version of social media! What would the content have been like? A DIY channel on how to build the pyramids? Or a prank channel with videos on how to mess with people in the future, like "Episode 1: Stonehenge"? What do you think about this story? Do you believe these advanced civilizations and their incredible flying machines could have existed?