India · Mahabharata, Vana Parva (Ganguli 42–43)
Arjuna's trip to Indra's heaven
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Indra's driver Matali takes Arjuna up in a celestial car. As they rise, Arjuna sees thousands of cars in the sky, and learns that the lights that look like small stars from earth are really huge bodies, the homes of the righteous.
Summary by the editors. Translation: Summary in my own words
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Read it literally
The narrator learns stars are enormous only by seeing them up close. Ancient astronomy told from a passenger seat.
What scholars say
Same epic.
