Devdutt Pattanaik claims Bhagavad Gita quote in Oppenheimer was misinterpreted
Christopher Nolan has once again captivated audiences with his latest film, «Oppenheimer,» hailed by fans as one of the greatest cinematic achievements of the century. The movie revolves around the life of J.
Robert Oppenheimer, the eminent physicist, and the father of the atomic bomb. In a pivotal moment of the film, Oppenheimer reflects on the aftermath of creating the devastating atom bomb and recites verses from the Bhagavad Gita.
The verse he cites has been popularly translated as, «Now I become Death, the destroyer of worlds. I suppose we all thought that, one way or another.» However, Indian mythologist and writer Devdutt Pattanaik has recently challenged this interpretation, asserting that Oppenheimer misconstrued the original quote from the ancient text.
Speaking with The Indian Express, Pattanaik elucidated the accurate translation as, «If the radiance of a thousand suns were to burst into the sky, that would be like the splendor of the Mighty One… I become death, the destroyer of worlds.» Pattanaik's expertise in mythology prompted him to conduct in-depth research when he first encountered the contested quote. His investigation led him to Bhagavad Gita's chapter 11, verse 32, which reveals the phrase 'kaal-asmi,' meaning 'I am time, destroyer of the world.' Thus, Oppenheimer's rendition of the verse as 'I am death' was, in fact, a misinterpretation.
The mythologist further explained, «For a scientist, if he has used this sentence… And I have seen that video also of his, where he keeps saying, ‘I am death, I am death.’ It is very clearly, ‘I am time’. ‘Kaal’ means ‘time.’ That is what he is saying, but of course, he gets excited because he’s seeing death and destruction at a massive scale, and he’s obviously
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