Vedic Science International Multidisciplinary Peer-reviewed Journal 

The articles below are the official digital versions of peer-reviewed papers from the print edition of the Vedic Science Journal.

Article  Information

Journal: Vedic Science
Volume: 28 | Issue: 3 | Year: 2026
Pages: 40–47
DOI:  https://doi.org/10.66718/vsj.v28.i3.05    
Received: 16 July, 2026
Accepted:  20 August, 2026
Published: 30 Sept., 2026

Dismantling the "Astral Rampart": A Rationalist Refutation of Quantum Mysticism

Sindhu Bhogal, Independent Research Scholar; Ex-Tutor: Veda Niketan & School of Vedic Studies; Arya Samaj South Africa, 87 Harbottle Rd, Sydenham, Durban

Abstract

The popular conflation of quantum physics with Vedic "astral planes" represents a profound epistemological error rooted not in indigenous Indian thought but in colonial-Theosophical fabrications. This paper presents a progressive critique of mystical interpretations of quantum mechanics, arguing that authentic Vedic epistemology—particularly the Nyāya pramāṇa framework—is fundamentally rationalist and empirically grounded. By deploying Dayanand Saraswati's hermeneutic of yukti-vichār (reasoned inquiry) and the etymological methodologies of Yāska and Pāṇini, this analysis demonstrates that Vedic categories such as pañcabhūta are perceptual schemas, not metaphysical "walls." Furthermore, the quantum measurement problem, properly understood through Bohr's articulation, concerns physical apparatus interaction, not yogic consciousness. The "mystic India" narrative is traced to colonial mistranslations and Theosophical occultism, culminating in a reclamation of the Vedic tradition as a rational, scientific epistemology that stands in direct opposition to the very mysticism it is falsely claimed to support.

Keywords

Arya Samaj; Quantum Mysticism; Nyāya Epistemology; Pramāṇa; Yukti-Vichār; Colonial Indology; Pañcabhūta; Observer Problem; Vedic Rationalism; Cyclic Cosmology; Yāska-Pāṇinian Etymology; Epistemological Decolonisation

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How to cite this article

Bhogal, S.  (2026). Dismantling the "Astral Rampart": A Rationalist Refutation of Quantum Mysticism. Vedic Science, 2026 (3), 40-47. ISSN: 0975-0312 (Print). DOI: https://doi.org/10.66718/vsj.v28.i3.05