Chandrayan 3 ka safalta se, desh bhar mein vaigyanik tez dimaag jagne lage hain aur chamak rahe hain. Yeh bilkul badiya samay hai humare itihaas mein, jab hume vichar karna chahiye ki manav jati ki chand se itni adhik pravritti kyun hai.
Arrey bhai bhai, Poor Prakash Raj ne toh phir se troll kha liya, aur woh bhi kis baat pe? Bas ek baar phir se woh purani joke ko dohra ke, jiska main point yeh hai ki agar chand par utarne ki baat ho, toh wahaan kisko dekh sakte hain hum. Chand ko dekhte hue log saalon se fascinate hain. 17th century mein Johannes Kepler ne likhi ek novel, Somnium yaani The Dream, woh ek early science fiction ka kaam hai. Usmein ek khwaab hai jisme chand par jaane ki kahani hai, yaani Levania pe. Lekin yeh khwaab ka template, kaha gaya hai ki Kepler ne critics se bachne ke liye smart narrative tool ki tarah use kiya tha. Raj sahab, suno toh sahi: 1633 mein Galileo ko uske heliocentrism ko support karne ke liye doshi thahra diya gaya tha, aur Somnium jo 1608 mein likhi gayi thi aur 1634 mein publish hui thi, usmein bhi wahi theory support ki gayi thi.
Arey yaar, ab toh social media pe Prakash Raj ko memes se leke trolls ka toofan dekhne ko milega. Bichara sirf ek joke dohra ke, lekin uski kahaani toh 17th century tak jaati hai. Internet wale toh bas maze le rahe hain uske expense pe!
Wahi samay par, Church of England ke Bishop, Francis Godwin, ne likhi thi “The Man in the Moone.” Is kitaab mein, gansas yaani wild swans ke sahare, Spanish Domingo Gonsales chand par bhatak kar pahuchte hain. Chand ke nivasi, yaani Lunars, jaise ki unhe pata chalta hai, lambi log hain jo ek paap-mukt, apradh-rahit zindagi ji rahe hain. Un sabko acchi sehat hai aur woh khud se swasth hote hain. Aur haan, Godwin ke Lunars “Christianity ke saman” dharm ko follow karte hain! Isro ke vaigyanik apni apni raaye rakh sakte hain, lekin French satire, Cyrano de Bergerac ke dwara likhi gayi, jo 1657 mein publish hui, usmein protagonist Paris se chand ki taraf udne nikalte hain apne sharir par bandhe hue botalo ki madad se.
Yeh toh hai kuch aise prachin kisse, jo hamare itihas mein mojud hain, aur jo chand ki taraf ki kalpana ko lekar likhe gaye. Itne saalon se, logon ki imagination chand se judi hui hai aur aise kai mazedaar kisse hain jinmein se kuchh hamesha yaad rahe hain.
Kuch asafal prayatnon ke baad, Bergerac ke protagonist from “The Other World: Comical History of the States and Empires of the Moon,” Cyrano, ant mein chand par pahunch jaate hain. Yahaan ke logon ke char pair hote hain aur unki sangeetmay awaaz hoti hai. Vikram aur Pragyan ke chand par utarne ke baad, Pradhan Mantri Narendra Modi ne badhaai bhari bhashan diya. Unhone ek Hindi bachchon ka chand ke baare mein rhyme ko bhi quote kiya. Unhone yeh kehke bataya ki “Chandamama door ke” ka concept jaldi hi “Chandamama tour ke” mein badal jayega, yaani ek din chand par jaana aam baat ho jayegi. Paas, door aur antariksh yatra ki baat karte hue, 1898 mein American astronomer Garrett P. Serviss ne ek novel likha tha jisme kuchh prithvi vaasi Mars ki yatra karte hain. Aur jab woh ajeeb duniya par utarte hain, toh wahaan kisko milte hain? Ek aurat jo ki unki purvaj kai saalon pehle Martian hamle mein Kashmir se lapatak gaye the. Serviss ne use Aina ka naam diya.
Wah, yeh toh kamaal ka twist hai! Antariksh mein safar aur alag-alag duniyon ki kalpana humesha se logon ko prabhavit karti aayi hai. Itihas mein aise anokhe aur mazedaar kisse hain jo hamein yeh dikhaate hain ki insaan ki soch kitni rachnatmak ho sakti hai.