In 1954, after being humiliated for his words against nuclear weapons, former prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru handed indian citizenship to J. Robert Oppenheimer, the American physicist considered as the "father of the atomic bomb." According to Kai Bird, co-author of the book "American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J Robert Oppenheimer," which served as the basis for the christopher nolan film "Oppenheimer," the physicist did not take the offer seriously since he was a fervently nationalistic American.

In order to shed light on Oppenheimer's demise in 1954, Bird said that the scientist was stripped of his security clearance in "a terrible kangaroo court". According to Bird, he became the main focus of the "witch-hunts" led by former Republican senator Joseph R. McCarthy.

Bird discussed Oppenheimer's interest in Hindu mysticism and the Bhagavad Gita, claiming that the physicist was drawn to the Gita's philosophical views because they were similar to some of his quantum theories about the nature of the universe. According to Bird, Oppenheimer also hired Arthur Ryder, the sole sanskrit expert at Berkeley University, to teach him the language so he could study the Gita in its original form.

Oppenheimer cited the Bhagavad Gita when the Trinity Test, or first successful test of the atomic bomb, took place in mexico on July 16, 1945. Oppenheimer had referred to himself as "I am death, destroyer of the world," in the Bhagavad Gita to express his feelings after seeing the first nuclear bomb explosion. Bird told Hindustan Times that in light of the current global conflict over the presence and potential use of nuclear weapons, Oppenheimer's tale is still pertinent today.
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Oppenheimer

S Venkateshwari

25/07/2023 03:30 AM