(Kadamba Kanana Swami, Modra, Slovakia, 2011)
People used to think that God lived somewhere on the clouds, and there on the clouds there would be heaven and angels and all these things. But nowadays most of us have been flying above the clouds, and no angels! We came today on Ryanair but there were no angels
In Mumbai they interviewed one of the first astronaut, who ever flew into outer space named Neil Armstrong. So they asked him:
“So Mr Armstrong when you were up there flying into outer space, did you have any religious experience?”
He said:
“No! I didn’t see a sign of God up there, but maybe He was on the other side of the universe”.
They thought that if God was not on the clouds than at least He would be more higher up than the universe, so at least the astronauts can see Him.
In the Bhagavatam it is described that Krishna took Arjuna outside of this universe, and it is described that the universe is covered by different shells:
First a thick layer of earth; then a layer of water which is ten times as thick; then a whole shell of fire ten times as thick; and a layer of air which is also ten times as thick; then the layer of sky and the layer of the ultimate holding crust which are also ten times as thick.
So in this way the universe is covered by different shells. Krishna and Arjuna travelled through these layers and outside of the universe they met Lord Maha Vishnu. So we cannot think:
“If we don’t see any angels on the clouds, so that is a proof that there is no God!”
In the Bhagavad Gita it is said:
Naham prakasah sarvasya
yoga-maya-samavrtah (BG 7.25)
That Krishna the Supreme Lord remains invisible from the non devotees. He covers Himself by illusory energy, and He is only visible to those who are becoming His devotees. So the Bhagavad Gita teaches this science….the science of devotional service and this is the great secret:
‘That when we surrender in the devotional service to Krishna, then He becomes visible to us!’