Gyan flows from guru to shishya, there is no book or kriya or mantra that can replace a guru. It is the guru-shishya parampara that has bestowed Bharatvarsha with the reservoirs of gyan in the form of the Upanishads. In fact, the term upanishad translates as ‘sitting near the guru’ and is formed from two words: ‘upa’ that is near, and ‘nishad’, which means to sit. Just sitting in the company of guru can reveal truths so profound and deep that even till date, many parts of the Upanishads are yet to be explored by modern scientists. Garbha Upanishad, the treatise on conception and growth of a child in the mother’s womb, is an example. Given at least 4,000 years ago by Rishi Pippalaada, the Garbha Upanishad details how conception takes place, factors that determine gender and traits of the baby, the environment inside the womb, the stages in development of embryo and what it goes through. It might come as a surprise, but in the womb itself, the being starts making promises and forg...