Megnath hears about Hanuman’s perseverance and is even more motivated to learn about flight controls.
Ravana: Son, flight techniques will help you fly these machines. But you must gain more knowledge become stronger and better than me.
Megnath: How? Who will teach me what you don’t know?
Ravana: There are four beings who are the greatest in the universe. There is much you can gain from them.
Megnath: Who are they?
Ravana: Lord Brahma, the creator of the Universe; Lord Vishnu, who protects it; Lord Shiva, the one who destroys all that is unwanted; and...
Ravana hesitates...
Megnath: Who is the fourth, Dad?
Ravana: I always believed that Shiva is the strongest being until I realised there is someone more powerful than him — his wife Goddess Kali.
Megnath: Women are truly strong, Dad! Do you know that a normal mortal body can bear only 45 del (units) of pain but, during childbirth, a woman feels up to 57 del of pain?
Ravana: It’s incredible!
***
Megnath: I will start gaining knowledge from these four gods. But what should I learn from them?
Ravana: Something that will make you the most powerful living being — the technologies behind their powerful weapons.
Megnath: Oh! What are those?
Ravana: From Vishnu learn about the Agni astra (guns) — the weapon which can destroy one person instantly, and Narayana astra (missiles), which can destroy a whole army in an instant. From Brahma, learn about the Brahma astra (nuclear fission bombs). From Shiva get the Pasupata astra (nuclear fusion bombs).
Megnath: Daddy, what about Kali?
Ravana: I am yet to discover the secret of her strength. Hopefully, we will find out soon.
***
Megnath: Okay, Dad. By the way, I have seen guns and missiles. But what are Brahma astra and Pasupata astra?
Ravana: Brahma astra is a nuclear fission bomb. It’s a way of producing high amounts of energy by splitting a heavy nucleus into two lighter nuclei.
Megnath: Isn’t a nucleus the centre of an atom?
Ravana: That’s right. It is the small, dense region that contains protons and neutrons. The outer shell has the electrons.
Megnath: What is nuclear fusion?
Ravana: Fusion is the opposite of fission. It means to combine two light nuclei to create high energy.
Megnath: I am confused. How can splitting and combining nuclei create so much destructive energy?
Ravana: That’s the beauty of physics. By the way, your body is made up of 7 octillion atoms. An octillion is 7 followed by 27 zeros. Imagine, how much energy you have!
Megnath: Wow! But, if both fission and fusion produce such destructive energy, why should I learn about them?
Ravana: I only asked you to learn about them; not use the knowledge for destructive purposes. You can use this science to create something constructive like how Lord Brahma created humans with 7 octillion atoms of energy.
Megnath: I understand.
Ravana: Don’t ever think that having destructive weapons will make you powerful. Many of our ancestors failed because of that assumption. Being constructive will makes you more powerful. So, use the knowledge you gain for constructive purposes only.
Megnath: You totally changed my perspective, Dad! Technology and knowledge can make people stronger and this, in turn, powers a nation’s growth and subsequently that of the entire world and human race. This is the real meaning of becoming strong!
Ravana is surprised by Megnath’s ability to understand and process the learning he receives. Megnath starts to pray to gods to gain knowledge. But he doesn’t know that Goddess Kali is going to bless him with an unknown weapon that will make him the most powerful warrior in Treta Yuga!
To be continued
The author is the founder and CEO of Vaayusastra Aerospace, an IIT-Madras incubated ed-tech startup that offers Air Science workshops for children between five and 14 years.
