Instead of wasting his time in hazardous matters, he could have sought a life of simplicity and lofty spiritual thoughts, and thus escape the perpetual turmoil imposed on him by material life.

In fact, even if a materialist wants to enjoy higher material advantages, he can soar to reach planets which offer much more refined pleasures than those available on earth. It is best to prepare to return to the spiritual realm after letting go of the body. However, those who still desire to enjoy material goods can gain other material planets through the powers of yoga. The funny machines used by the astronauts are only a toy and can in no way be used for this purpose. Astanga-yoga, on the contrary, is a material technique allowing one to become master of the vital air by raising it from the navel region to that of the abdomen, then to that of the heart, then between the clavicles, between the eyebrows, and finally at the level of the brain. If he succeeds, the spiritualist, the realized soul, can then go to the planet of his choice. We have been able to scientifically calculate the speed of wind and that of light, but we do not know anything about the speed of the mind or that of the intelligence. We certainly have some experience of the rapidity of the mind since in a fraction of a second our thoughts can transport us to places thousands of kilometers away. Now intelligence is superior to it, and the soul is even more subtle than intelligence. The soul is anti-material, spiritual in nature, unlike the mind and intelligence. Its power and subtlety exceed by hundreds of thousands of times that of intelligence. So we can just get an idea of ​​how fast the soul moves from one planet to another. Moreover, needless to say, it travels by its own strength and does not need a material vehicle.

The bestial civilization only preoccupied with eating, sleeping, defending itself and fulfilling the desires of the senses, has led modern man astray, making him forget how powerful his soul is. We have already explained that the soul is a much brighter, more radiant, and more powerful spiritual spark than the sun, moon, or electricity. Man is wasting his life if he does not realize that his true identity is spiritual. It was to save him from such a civilization that Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu appeared, and with him Lord Nityananda, his full emanation.

The Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam also reports how the spiritualist can travel to all the planets in the universe. In the course of this practice, when he raises his vital force to the top of the skull, it is very likely to spring from the body through the openings of the eyes, nose or ears, these regions of the body form what the we call the seventh orbit of the life force. The spiritualist, however, can plug his orifices by completely suspending the circulation of air in his body. He then carefully fixes his life force between the eyebrows and focuses his mind on the planet he wishes to reach after leaving the body. He can choose to access the abode of Kṛiṣhṇa in the transcendent kingdom of Vaikuṇṭha, from where he will never have to descend into the material universe again, or to go to the Edenic planets of our galaxy. The accomplished spiritualist is free to take either path. For the perfect spiritualist who thus manages to leave his body while retaining full possession of his consciousness, traveling from one planet to another is as easy as, for an ordinary man, going to the local grocery store. As wehave already seen, the material body is only the envelope of the spiritual soul.