J. Robert Oppenheimer
Physicist and wartime director of the Los Alamos laboratory
- Born
- 1904, New York City
- Died
- 1967, Princeton, New Jersey
- Known for
- Directing Los Alamos in the Manhattan Project
- Trinity test
- July 16, 1945
- Interests
- Studied Sanskrit and read the Bhagavad Gita
- Security clearance
- Revoked 1954
The physicist who led the atomic bomb laboratory at Los Alamos and later recalled a line from the Bhagavad Gita about the Trinity test.
What is J. Robert Oppenheimer known for?
J. Robert Oppenheimer (1904–1967) was an American theoretical physicist who directed the Los Alamos laboratory during the Second World War, where the first atomic bombs were designed. He oversaw the Trinity test in New Mexico in July 1945. In 1954, during the early Cold War, his security clearance was revoked after a contested hearing.
Oppenheimer studied Sanskrit and read the Bhagavad Gita in the original. In a 1965 television interview he said the Trinity explosion brought to mind the Gita's line 'Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds' (11.32). The image of a radiance like a thousand suns (11.12), describing Krishna's divine form, is also linked to his reaction.
These quotations are often combined with Mahabharata battle scenes to suggest ancient nuclear war. The verses themselves describe Krishna's cosmic form, not a weapon.
He quoted the Bhagavad Gita after the first atomic test, and the site notes how his quote is misused in fake 'ancient nuke' passages.
Sources
- Bhagavad Gita, ch. 11, trans. Edwin Arnold (The Song Celestial, 1885), sacred-texts.comPrimary text
- Encyclopaedia Britannica, 'J. Robert Oppenheimer'Reference
- Wikipedia, 'J. Robert Oppenheimer'Reference
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