Vedic History Reveals a Greater Earth Plane
BY: MAYESVARA DASA
Apr 20, 2018 — IRELAND (SUN) —
Part Four: Pradyumna And Ugrasena In Jambudvipa
In part four of this paper we will look at the conquest of Jambudvipa by Pradyumna (the son of Krishna) on behalf of King Ugrasena. This history is narrated in the Garga Samhita. According to Srimad Bhagavatam and other Puranas, Jambudvipa is the central island of the Vedic Earth (bhu-mandala) and is described as being a hundred thousand yojanas (800,000 miles) in diameter. Since I have not yet read of Ugrasena's sovereignty over Jambudvipa in any other text, I present the following ideas regarding the extent of Urgasena's influence merely as a basis for further research into the subject. The ideas set forth in the following paper require to be substantiated by further evidence from the Puranas. In any case, the idea of King Ugrasena's sovereignty over Jambudvipa is at least consistent with the history contained in Srimad Bhagavatam of this greater Earth area being under the sovereignty of King Yudhisthira and later King Pariksit. We have discussed the history of Yudhisthira and Pariksit in Jambudvipa in the previous papers which can be found here and here.
If the narration from Garga Samhita can be further substantiated, the history of Pradyumna's conquering Jambudvipa on behalf of King Ugrasena informs us once again, that the Vedic literature presents our own Earth as part of a greater Earth plane, not as a globe in space. The pastime of Pradyumna conquering Jambudvipa on behalf of King Ugrasena also helps us to make sense of certain statements in Srimad Bhagavatam that are otherwise incomprehensible if we consider the Earth to be a globe. For example:
"The Yadu dynasty produced innumerable great men of famous deeds. Even in tens of thousands of years, O King, one could never count them all.
I have heard from authoritative sources that the Yadu family employed 38,800,000 teachers just to educate their children.
Who can count all the great Yadavas, when among them King Ugrasena alone was accompanied by an entourage of thirty trillion attendants?" (10.90.40-42)
In Krsna, The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Srila Prabhupada gives a different figure for the number of Ugrasena's army, though the question of such colossal numbers remains the same:
"Srila Sukadeva Gosvami informed Maharaja Pariksit that he had heard from reliable sources that simply to teach the children of the Yadu dynasty there were as many as 38,800,000 tutors, or acaryas. If so many teachers were needed to educate their children, one can simply imagine how vast was the number of family members. As for their military strength, it is said that King Ugrasena alone had ten quadrillion soldiers as personal bodyguards." (Krsna Book, Chapter 90: 'Summary Description of Lord Krishna's Pastimes')
It may be prudent for someone to check the exact figure as translations of numbers from Sanskrit to English can be often problematic. In any case, if one thinks of the Earth as a small globe, the above description of a King of the Earth having either thirty trillion soldiers or ten quadrillion soldiers in his army will appear somewhat laughable and absurd. Certainly, those with no faith in the Vedas will find the statement to be yet another example of why the Vedas read more like fairy-tales than actually history, and hence not a source of knowledge to be taken seriously. Even followers of the Srimad Bhagavatam may question the validity of such statements and a seed of doubt may enter the mind regarding the credibility of Vedic history. Upon hearing of such historical events, a devotee of Krishna may still retain a psychological faith in Krishna, but on a practical level, the devotee may have no faith at all in the account of the historical events described—especially when hearing about the enormous amounts of people involved in Krishna's pastimes. However, if we consider the Earth to be as the Puranas actually describe it (a vast circular plane that extends far beyond our known Earth), and if we understand that Kings like Yudhisthira, Pariksit, and Ugrasena were emperors of Jambudvipa (the massive central island of the Earth circle), then the figure of thirty trillion people belonging to a King's entourage is at least consistent with a greater Earth concept. A skeptic may still not believe in either a greater Earth plane or of the existence of so many people, but for a sincere follower of Srimad Bhagavatam's cosmology, the larger figure is at least compatible with the idea of a much different and bigger Earth that could accommodate such vast numbers of people. The idea of so many people living on a small Earth globe makes no sense at all. If Ugrasena's soldiers alone numbered thirty trillion, what about all the other men, women and children who make up the rest of the population? Our present conception of the Earth cannot accommodate the idea of so many people living on a small planet only 5,000 years ago.
Certainly King Ugrasena was no small tribal chief. Lord Balarama says that:
Specifically Balarama says here that Ugrasena is the ruler of all the rulers of the Earth
[ugrasenah—King Ugrasena; kshita—of the earth; isa—of rulers; isah—the ruler]. In our previous papers we have presented many examples from Srimad Bhagavatam that a ruler of the Earth meant to be a ruler of the sapta-dvipa (the inhabited regions of the Earth circle consisting of seven islands—an area of over two hundred million miles. The sapta-dvipa are described in chapter 20 of the fifth canto of Srimad Bhagavatam). This huge area of the Bhu-mandala is governed by empowered representatives of Krishna. For example:
"Thereafter, King Yayati became the ruler of the entire world, consisting of seven islands, and ruled the citizens exactly like a father." (Srimad Bhagavatam 9.18.46)
King Prithu and other Vedic kings mentioned in Srimad Bhagavatam were not simply kings of a so-called Earth globe, but were emperors of the entire sapta-dvipa. The inconceivable potency of such super-human beings to govern such vast areas of the Earth circle is beyond the comprehension of the mundane mind. At the time of Krishna's appearance 5,000 years ago, events seemed to be focused mostly on the center of these seven great islands, namely, Jambudvipa (an area of 800,000 miles diameter). Since Jambudvipa includes Mount Meru (the abode and administrative seat of the devas), it is considered the most important part of the Earth plane making the emperor extremely powerful. This perhaps explains why Lord Balarama goes on to say that Urgasena is so powerful that even Indra and the other planetary rulers (sakradayo loka-pala) obey his orders (yasyadesanuvartinah) (SB 10.68.34). Krishna makes a similar address to Ugrasena:
"Since I am present in your entourage as your personal attendant, all the demigods and other exalted personalities will come with heads bowed to offer you tribute. What, then, to speak of the rulers of men? (SB 10.45.14)
Since (according to Garga-samhita), Ugrasena was emperor of Jambudvipa, he would have played an important role in the government of the universe. Indeed, the fact that Kamsa, the demoniac son of Ugrasena had overthrown him, was obviously a threat to the dharma of the entire universe. So powerful were the demons on Earth at this time that even Brahma had to appeal to Krishna to personally intervene. After Krishna killed Kamsa, he reinstated Ugrasena as King." (SB 10.45.12-13)
Krishna and Balarama with King Ugrasena
In the following conversation some devotees approached Srila Prabhupada for an explanation to the above statement quoted from Sukadeva Goswami regarding the vast number of soldiers in Ugrasena's army. Here Srila Prabhupada's disciples have not quoted from Krishna book correctly, and have quoted a smaller number of four billion soldiers. Nonetheless, their main inquiry is how to understand and present such inconceivable statements to the public:
Devotee (2): …These are philosophical questions. For instance, in Krishna Book there is a statement that King Ugrasena had four billion personal servants. Now you have asked that we go and spread Krishna consciousness to the scientific community…
…And if we say to them, "There was a king whose name was Ugrasena. He had four billion personal servants," they laugh and say, "What did they do for toilets? What did they do for food? Where did they live?"
Prabhupada: So you want to preach this particular portion and no other portion?
Devotee (1): No. We want to... We want to know if the story has an allegorical meaning rather than a literal translation, or that King Ugrasena who was a man who lived five thousand years ago and had four billion bodyguards, or whether the stories within the Bhagavatam, apart from some of them being actual, are allegorical stories. Such as the story of Krishna and Balarama chopping off the the eighty-eight...
Prabhupada: All right. You can give up that portion. You can take other portion.
Devotee (2): We don't mean to give it up.
Devotee (1): We don't mean to give it up.
Devotee (2): We're saying how can we say to them...
Prabhupada: Anyone, anyone...Why you are going to preach that portion to a professor?
Devotee (1): No. When they read your books, they pose that question to us.
Devotee (2): They read it. They say to us.
Devotee (1): And unless we can answer that question...
Prabhupada: They ask to only you, but they never ask to us.
Revatinandana: They have. Sometimes they ask me.
Prabhupada: That's all right. Let them ask. But you can tell away that (?) but you don't repeat this thing. You can give up that portion. You read other portion.
Devotee (1): But then because so many things they have to accept on faith without knowing, it then weakens their faith as to what they should accept and why should they accept Krishna, who they can't see any more than King Ugrasena's four billion bodyguards.
Prabhupada: Don't accept. Don't accept.
Devotee (2): But we want them to accept. The point is, if we say to a scientific man, "There was four billion," and if our statement is wrong...
Prabhupada: But our position is that if some portion we cannot understand, it is our incapability.
Devotee (2): That is all right. But since we are...
Prabhupada: That's all. Unless we have got this faith we cannot use these Puranas. In the Puranas there are many such statements.
Devotee (2): Yes, but we just want to understand.
Prabhupada: Therefore many people, they do not accept Puranas. So what can be done?
Devotee (2): We're just trying to understand it because we've never dealt with Puranas before. We have been your disciples. But when we present this to the scientific community, because you have said that if one word is wrong, the whole philosophy is wrong, so they will say to us...
Prabhupada: So let them take it and throw out, don't read it. That's all.
Devotee (2): But then they discredit the Bhagavad-gita. We don't like that when they discredit the Bhagavad-gita.
Prabhupada: Why? They don't believe. What is the use?
Devotee (2): Well, because we also want to know how did they have four billion personal servants just so that we'll be able to convince them and also...
Prabhupada: If a king has four billion servants, so it is not very astonishing. Why do you think that a king shall have only four servants?
Devotee (2): Well, there's only two billion people on the planet right now.
Prabhupada: That's all right.
Devotee (2): So where did they all go?
Prabhupada: I say you don't believe, you don't take it. Why you are insisting on that point? If you don't believe, you don't take it. If you don't believe the whole book or the whole society, then who forbids you?
(Room Conversation June 26 1975, Los Angeles)
Despite the hindrances in our contemporary ability to comprehend or believe in the existence of such large numbers of people on the Earth, Sukadeva Goswami's statement makes logical sense when we come to understand that Ugrasena was the emperor of Jambuvdipa; and since Jambudvipa is an area of the greater Earth measured at 800,000 miles in diameter then this would account for his huge entourage that would include attendants, armies, government administrators etc. Ugrasena's conquest over Jambuvipa is described in the Garga Samhita. The following translation is by Danavir Goswami:
"Ugrasena said: whoever among you is clever and able to conquer all the kings of Jambudvipa in battle and whoever is equal to Lord Indra in archery shall eat this betel leaf. (7.2.9)
Narada said: O King of Mithila, when all the other leaders among the Yadavas fell silent, the son of Queen Rukmini alone came forward and bowed down in front of King Ugrasena. This great soul, the enemy of Sambara, then accepted the betel leaf. (7.2.10)
Pradyumna said: I shall fight with all the kings of Jambudvipa and will certainly emerge victorious. I will return after forcefully exacting great tribute from them (7.2.11) Jambuvipa – in Jambudvipa; sthitan – who rule in; nrpan – kings"
All of the verses specifically mention Jambudvipa:
ugraseno yadavendro
raja rajesvara mahan
jambu-dvipa – nrpan jitva
rajasuyam karisyati
"The king of the Yadavas, Ugrasena is the great king of all kings. He will perform the Rajasuya sacrifice after defeating all the kings of Jambudvipa." (Garga Samhita 7.6.6)
In the purport to this verse, Danavir Goswami describes Jambudvipa as the central island of Bhu-mandala and 800,000 miles in diameter. He goes on to say that 'the earth planet we inhabit is a very small land mass situated in the southern portion of Jambudvipa called Bharata-varsha…King Ugrasena intended to become the emperor of Jambudvipa through the subjugation of its kings by Pradyumna and the Yadava army.'
The image below shows Danavir Goswami's depiction of our Earth in relation to Jambudvipa. This scene shows the 800,000 mile circular island of Jambudvipa surrounded by the vast salt-water ocean. Our Earth is shown as the small globe-shaped island amidst eight others:
A close-up looks like this:
Danavir Goswami's depiction of Earth at the southern side of Jambudvipa
We personally feel that although Danavir Goswami has something of the right idea in showing our Earth's location to Jambudvipa, we do not agree with his presentation of our area of Bharata-varsha as a globe-shaped planet. To be consistent with the description of Bharata-varsha's location on the southern side of Jambudvipa, our Earth should be depicted as simply part of the same terrestrial plane, and not an incongruous globe-shaped planet floating on the salt-water ocean. The continents of our Earth should be depicted lying flat in the salt-water ocean as the other islands of Bharata-varsha are depicted in image 2. Since the salt-water ocean is 800,000 miles across, the Pacific, Atlantic, and other oceans of our Earth area are just a tiny drop of the great salt-water ocean that surrounds all of Jambudvipa. The natural inference is that our own oceans must lead into other parts of the larger salt-water ocean, and thus do not curve around some imagined globe-shaped planet. The globe idea is just the unwarranted imposition of a modern idea of the Earth onto Sukadeva Goswami's original description of Bharata-varsha and it's location on the southern side of Jambudvipa.
The above presentation of Bharata-varsha as globe-shaped has no scriptural basis and leads to many contradictions. For example, in order to explain various phenomena, Danavir Goswami in his Vedic Cosmos documentary, has to sometimes depict the Earth as a globe floating in space, and at other times as a globe floating on the great salt-water ocean surrounding Jambudvipa. Bharata-varsha can be one thing or the other, but not both simultaneously. If we are adjoined to Jambudwipa, then we have to accept that our own area of the Earth is surrounded by other areas of Jambudvipa, and thus our continents are part of the same horizontal plane, and not a globe-shaped planet. The natural conclusion is that our Earth plane continues and that there is more Earth surrounding our own. Likewise, if Danavir Goswami, wishes to present the contrary idea that Bharata-varsha manifests to our vision as a globe-shaped planet surrounded by dark space, then he must explain the absence of the rest of Jambudvipa in the so-called pictures of the Earth released by space agencies such as NASA. The explanation provided so far for the absence of the rest of Jambudvipa in these images, is that Jambudvipa is higher dimensional and can't be detected by our conditioned senses. We have argued against this idea in this paper.
We suggest that rather than giving credence to these images of a so-called Earth globe, Danavir Goswami and others who support this globe idea, may better serve Srimad Bhagavatam by spending some time to investigate the authenticity of such images. We have argued in previous papers that the images of an Earth globe are fake, and the reason we can't see the rest of the Earth in such photos is because no one has ever made it into outer space in order to take such photos of the Earth's vast plane. The rest of the Earth is presently beyond our perception not because it is in another dimension, but because we are prevented by higher powers from going there, or from seeing it. Thus Srila Prabhupada emphasized that we have to 'see through the eyes of shastra.'
So let's think about this for a moment: The Garga-samhita relates that 5,000 years ago, the eldest son of Krishna (Pradyumna), was leading an army from Bharata-varsha to conquer Jambudvipa. So where is this huge land mass of 800,000 miles diameter? For those who consider India or even this whole world to be Bharata-varsha, and who think that Bharata-varsha is a globe-shaped planet floating in space, the question arises as to where
Pradyumna was marching with his army? This so-called Earth planet is only 24,900 miles in circumference! The history of Pradyumna conquering Jambudvipa is actually another clue to understanding our Earth is not a globe floating in space as it has been presented. The Vedic history concerning Pradyumna's conquest of Jambudvipa informs us once again, that according to Vedic literature, our Earth is part of a greater Earth plane from which we have somehow become disconnected.
We attribute the disconnection of our own area of the Earth from the rest of Jambudvipa as being caused by the on-set of Kali-yuga. The Srimad Bhagavatam describe that the inhabitants of Jambudvipa enjoy the conditions of treta-yuga and are thus not affected by Kali-yuga (5.17.12). This is confirmed in many Puranas; for example, in the Linga Purana, Bharata-varsha is distinguished from the other eight varshas because they do not experience the succession of yugas:
"There is natural perfection in all the eight excellent subcontinents beginning with Kimpurusha. Without any strain the subjects are always happy. The opposite of joy is not seen in them. They have no fear from death or old age. They have neither dharma or adharma. There is no distinction such as the excellent, the middling, and the base. In all these eight sub-continents there are no subdivisions of yugas." (Linga Purana, Chapter 47: 13-15; translation by JL Shastri, 1951, Delhi)
The Linga Purana goes on to explain that duties for the four yugas only occur in Bharata-varsha:
"It is only here [bharata-varsha] that human beings endeavour for heavenly pleasures and salvation. O leading sages, only here they pursue the duties specified for each yuga, not elsewhere." (Ibid, Chapter 52, verse 32)
In the Vishnu Purana it is also stated:
"...In the Bharata-varsha it is that the succession of four Yugas, or ages, the Krita, the Treta, the Dwápara, and Kali, takes place." (Vishnu Purana, Book 2, Chapter 3, translated by Horace Hayman Wilson, 1840)
We infer that Bharata-varsha must be affected by some type of quarantine that prevents us from accessing the other parts of Jambudvipa. Due to their nature as heavens on Earth (SB 5.17.11), the other eight varshas are immune to the influence of Kali-yuga. Thus, the rest of the Earth plane is not in another dimension—we are simply prevented from travelling far enough to see the rest of it. The restrictions on travel have to do with karma. One is placed in various parts of the Earth, heavens or hells, according to one's karma.
Pradyumna is an expansion of the Supreme Personality of Godhead and is not restricted by karma, thus He and His army were able to travel over a landmass that is 100,000 yojanas (800,000 miles) in diameter. For those who have no faith in a transcendental reality, the following account of Pradyumna's mode of transport will make no sense; but for those who can appreciate that Pradyumna is an expansion of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the idea of travelling on transcendental horses and elephants into an area of the Earth that is beyond our known Earth is appreciated as the history of marvelous and colourful events that took place at the end of the last yuga cycle.
We should bear in mind that the Vedic literature describes various forms of technology existing side by side much as they do in our modern world. For example, in chapters 76 and 77 of the tenth canto of Srimad Bhagavatam, Sukadeva Goswami describes how Pradyumna fought alongside His father Krishna to destroy the flying aircraft (vimana) that belonged to Shalva:
Throughout Srimad Bhagavatam and other Puranas, various kinds of vimanas (aircraft) are described alongside descriptions of flying chariots:
Since these two different concepts of travelling through space exist simultaneously in the same body of literature, the idea of a flying chariot does not indicate a lack of science or technology in the Vedic culture, but rather indicates knowledge of a more subtle form of science that can move both people and animals through time and space without the requirement of metal machines.
Modern machines such as cars and airplanes are perhaps not as advanced as we think—we have only to consider the horrendous trail of pollution, environmental destruction, and road deaths that are left behind in their production. One may think that if the devas were superior in knowledge then they would fight with 'advanced technology' like tanks, jet airplanes, missiles, and machine guns, but these types of weapons and machines would be considered quite gross and primitive by the more refined devas. Vedic science enables one to move at one's will to any point in the universe without the need for any vehicle or machine. We read for example of great sages like Vyasa and Narada Muni who constantly appear and disappear from one location to the next. Due to their renounced mode of life, they do not travel on a personal conveyance of any kind.
The more ksatriya-natured devas like Indra and Yama use a mode of transport of some sort, and thus they travel on chariots or elephants that are indicative of their kingly stature. Horse drawn chariots and elephant carriers are much more aesthetically pleasing, and are used even today on occasions of pomp and ceremony:
It should be appreciated that for the devas, a conveyance is more of a pleasure than a necessity. To facilitate their service in governing the universe, devas like Indra, Surya, Yama, Agni, and Varuna etc, are empowered by Krishna with practical omnipresence. The devas do not require any conveyance in order to manifest their presence at any place in the universe; rather the devas can simply appear and disappear anywhere at their will. Krishna, likewise, likes to ride on Garuda from one place to another, even though He is exists in all places simultaneously.
It is because of the Supreme Personality of Godhead's love of variety that He creates various modes of transport: some modes of transport are mechanical like cars and airplanes, and some are natural like elephants and horses.
The elephants in Pradyumna's army, however, were endowed with mystic power by which they could travel both on the ground as well as in the air:
"Some of the elephants were descendants of Airavata; some had four tusks, and some had three trunks. Still others resembled Garuda. They were chained around their necks, and could move both on the ground and in the air. (7.3.12)
Gaccanti – move; bhuvi – on the ground; ca – as well as; ambare- in the sky"
"Some were brought from the Malaya Hills and others from the Himalaya Mountain (Hima–adri). Some of them came from Mauranga, and others from the forest around Kailasa." (Garga Samhita, 7.3.11)
Please note than the Himalaya is described in Srimad Bhagavatam as being 80,000 miles high and 16,000 miles wide (SB 5.16.9). One would assume that the Himalaya in India is just a small part of this great mountain that extends further along the greater Earth plane.
In the verse below it also mentions that on the occasion of Lord Krishna fighting Narakasura, the demon had elephants that came from the ocean of milk. As mentioned in part one of this paper, the ocean of milk is actually part of the Earth plane. It is one of the seven oceans surrounding the Earth's seven islands, and is some millions of miles away from Bharata-varsha. This detail again confirms the fact that Krishna's pastimes involved a much greater Earth concept:
"The Lord severed the heads, thighs, arms, legs and armor of these opponents led by Pitha and sent them all to the abode of Yamaraja. Narakasura, the son of the earth, could not contain his fury when he saw the fate of his military leaders. Thus he went out of the citadel with elephants born from the Milk Ocean who were exuding mada from their foreheads out of excitement." (SB 10.59.14)
The Srimad Bhagavatam (SB 3.15.20, 3.15.26, and 3.15.32) describes that Vaikuntha is full of spiritual airplanes (vimanas) full of splendour, opulence, and many wonders. Pradyumna could have taken transcendental vimanas to Earth with Him, but for the pastime of conquering Jambudvipa, He used transcendental horses and elephants. Again, the mention of both airplanes and flying animals in the same Vedic literature does not necessarily indicate a primitive imagination that dreams up ideas of flying horses and chariots; rather it infers a description of a more advanced science than we presently know.
The cities of the devas are likewise described as being full of vimanas; Sukadeva Goswami describes Indra's celestial city as follows
"The city was full of courtyards, wide roads, assembly houses, and not less than one hundred million airplanes. The crossroads were made of pearl, and there were sitting places made of diamond and coral." (SB 8.15.16)
Despite the presence of celestial airplanes, Indra prefers to go to war on his mystical elephant carrier called Airavata. As mentioned in the verse above, some of Pradyumna's elephants were descendants of Airavata. Perhaps the desire to travel on an elephant has to do with the ksatriya spirit of fighting with more natural methods, rather than the cowardly methods of modern warfare in which Presidents sit in safe underground bunkers, and launch a reign of terror on innocent men, women, and children via the guns and rockets of soldiers, pilots, and sailors who likewise rarely enter the battlefield. Facing an opponent face to face with a sword or similar weapon is an act requiring the skill and courage of any true warrior.
Sitting faceless inside a tank, or using an airplane to drop a bomb from the safe distance of two miles in the sky is typical of the warfare of the impotent generals and soldiers of kali-yuga, who nonetheless pride themselves of engaging in 'advanced warfare.' Despite the appearance of airplanes during Krishna's pastimes, the general mode of weapons and vehicles used at the time of Krishna's appearance reflects His own chivalrous spirit, and aesthetic taste. Personally, the idea of Krishna flying on the back of Garuda has more aesthetic appeal than the idea of Krishna sitting in the cockpit of an F-16.
Pradyumna's horses were also capable of moving through space at their will:
"All the horses kept in the stables of Sri Krishna, the great soul, the most complete Supreme Personality of Godhead were brought along in the expedition." (7.3.21)
"Some of these horses O king were from Svetadvipa, Vaikuntha, Ajitapada, and Rama Vaikuntha. All of these were also taken along.
Their speed was equal to that of the wind or the mind (vayu-vega – as fast as the wind; mano-vegat – as fast as the mind) and their hooves never touched the ground. O king of Mithila, they could move quickly even on threads of raw cotton yard or over bubbles." (7.3.25)
"Some of the horses who were let loose from the stables had wings (sa-paksah) and others had divine bodies (divya angah)" (7.3.29)
"Some among the horses were from the linage of Uccaihsrava, and others were descendants of the horses of Suryadeva. Some of them were taught by the Asvini Kumaras and some used by Varuna." (7.3.30)
Here we are informed that some of the horses were coming directly from the spiritual world and others from the abodes of the demigods. Although these horses can all move by their will in any direction (including the sky), some are specifically mentioned as having wings:
We find similar concepts in Ancient Greek history:
In the purport to Garga Samhita 7.3.30 by Danavir Goswami we have further information that only 5,000 years ago there was contact between our area of the Earth and the other areas of Jambudvipa. In the purport Danavir Goswami writes:
"It is said that Ucchaihsrava, meaning 'auspicious' always wanders in the tract of land within Jambudvipa which is therefore called Bhadrasva-varsha. "Bhadra" means auspicious, and "ashva" means horse."
Danavir Goswami does not pick up on the point that if horses descended from Uccaihsrava (who roams in Bhadrasva) were used by Pradyumna who lived in Bharata-varsha, then there must have been contact between these two places on the Earth plane. Bhadrasva-varsha is hundreds of thousands of miles away from Bharata-varsha and is located on the Eastern side of Jambudvipa. In the map below we can see the distance between Bharata-varsha and Bhadrasva-varsha:
Again the inference is that the Earth plane continues into areas that are presently unknown to us, but which were connected during the time of Krishna's appearance 5,000 years ago.
In any case, Uccaihsrava is not an ordinary horse, and certainly the descendants of Uccaihsrava used by Pradyumna must have been of a similar extraordinary nature: Krishna says:
"Of horses know Me to be Uccaihsrava, produced during the churning of the ocean for nectar. Of lordly elephants I am Airavata, and among men I am the monarch. (SB 10.27)
PURPORT
The devotee demigods and the demons (asuras) once took part in churning the sea. From this churning, nectar and poison were produced, and Lord Siva drank the poison. From the nectar were produced many entities, of which there was a horse named Uccaihsrava. Another animal produced from the nectar was an elephant named Airavata. Because these two animals were produced from nectar, they have special significance, and they are representatives of Krishna."
The other horses in Pradyumna's army were coming from Vaikuntha (the spiritual world) and from Svetadvipa (the Lords transcendental abode in the Ocean of Milk). Again, let us bear in mind that the Ocean of Milk is actually one of the Bhu-mandala's seven oceans, and thus part of the greater Earth plane. The other horses were descendants of the horses used by the demigod Surya, and some were gifts of Varuna. All in all, they were not ordinary animals, but servants endowed with mystic siddhis to travel at the speed of mind and traverse any hurdle. They could travel on land, water, and air. Thus Pradyumna's army was using a more advanced science that enabled them to travel into the other varshas of Jambudvipa—areas of the Earth that even our modern rockets, ships, airplanes, and submarines are unable to access.
A skeptic would argue that modern satellites, rockets, ships, etc., fail to detect and enter these areas of a greater Earth plane for the simple reason that they don't exist, and because the Earth really is a globe which has been explored, measured and photographed in it's entirety. The idea of Pradyumna's army travelling on magical horses and elephants into areas of the Earth beyond our own is treated simply as a fairy-tale, and not to be taken seriously. It is for those members of ISKCON who accept the truth of Srimad Bhagavatam and other Vedic literatures to argue otherwise. Establishing the real nature of the Earth is the responsibility of those preparing for it's depiction in the up and coming Temple of Vedic Planetarium.
