Mr Achilles D'Sylva Posted on : 13/05/2008 00:41:28

What exactly was Manna from Heaven

It is written in the book of Exodus 16:14-16; that after crossing isthmus children of Israel came to wilderness between Elim and Sinai. It was already the fifteenth day of the second month since they had departed from the land of Egypt. They had nothing to eat. In anguish, they cried out to the Lord and God provided them the food. When children of Israel saw it, they said one to another, it is manna: for they knew not what it was. Then Moses said unto them, this is the bread, which the Lord hath given you to eat. But, what is manna?

Manna comes in several varieties; but none of it is of the kind described in the Bible. One of the common varieties of Manna is a sweet substance; obtained from the cocoons of a Middle Eastern Weevil. Weevil is a popular name for a large number of beetles. The Weevil is known to damage fruit, nuts, grain, trees, etc. Tamarix mannifera, an exudation of plants with slender branches and pink and white flowers; is also known as Manna. A Middle Eastern tamarisk, known as Tarfa; is yet, another form of manna. It is true that both plants being xerophytes are able to inhabit places where water is scanty; and as such, they can withstand draught. Some experts believe that the manna of the Bible, the food given by God to the Israelites, was the lichen Lecanora esculenta, or a related species. When dry, it can be torn from the soil and transported by the wind, producing a "rain" of food. Arabs still gather this lichen and mix it with meal to produce bread. The question is; "would God give us food for asking?"

Israelites were trekking a barren tract. Assuming there was some kind of plant life in the desert; but would it be enough to feed six hundred thousand people for nearly forty years. The author of the book of Exodus says that the wandering Israelites were sore distressed due to want of food. Under an absolute cloud of gloom, they were not singing Hosanna to the Lord; but they were murmuring against him. They were crying out for bread; hoping that God shall rain Bread on them from Heaven. The Manna they received was a substitute for bread. But, it was not given to them simply for asking. Earlier God had banished Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden. While doing so he said to Adam, "In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread". This as a command from God had been true for Adam. Would it not be then equally true for children of Israel too? The food was not given to children of Israel for asking.

Whatever comes from God must come at a time when it is needed the most. Whenever it comes; then it must come as a most unexpected and a beneficial reward. Manna from heaven too was a beneficial and an unexpected reward. Children of Israel received it at a time when they needed it the most. They needed the most is nourishment. They received it at a time when they were badly starved.

For Israelites, manna had been a main source of energy in food. The Bible says each morning Israelites found the ground covered with manna; it was like dew from heaven. Since they found it edible, therefore manna had to be a form of carbon. James Jeans, the British scientist had said, "Life exists in the universe only because; the carbon atom possesses certain exceptional properties". We already know that Carbohydrate is the main source of energy in food. It contains carbon. Thus, for nourishment, our body needs the compounds; that contains carbon. However, the body cannot consume carbon in its pure organic form. Body can accept it only while; it is present in food. Once the food is dissolved in the stomach; the body absorbs only the product, which becomes the source of energy.

What ever is not absorbed; must release back into the atmosphere as Carbon. As free energy, it is recycled; and it forms into nourishing agents again. Thus, there is a constant circulation and transfer of carbon. It is all the time taking place between animals, plants, and the atmosphere. We already know the process. It is Carbon Cycle. Manna from heaven too was a product of Carbon Cycle. The sweat of Israelites had changed into Manna. The deserts are the world's dry places. It has areas where there is very little water. In a desert, the rainfall is very less and irregular. Though it may not have rained a drop for years but then suddenly, a total downpour occurs. The deserts consequently have a very little vegetation for most of the time. It only blooms when the rain eventually comes. The climate in the desert is hot, dry during day, and cold during nights; so cold that it causes ground frost in winter. The land between Elim and Sinai was desolate. Presence of six hundred thousand Israelites had introduced in the desert a kind of life, which was dependent upon plant life for carbon. There was no plant life in the desert to support them. The Israelites had been starving since they had not eaten any food for past several days. Their bodies' egested only sweat and tears. Then how did they survive? Six hundred thousand Israelites were losing lot of sweat because of heat. Thus, their sweat was released back into the atmosphere as Carbon.

As free energy, it had to be recycled. Nevertheless, to recycle this free energy; there was no autotrophic life in the desert. Yet, for completing the carbon cycle there had to be an interchange of energy. At one interface, the same means of sustenance, as another like composition, had formed into a fourth state of matter; it was Manna or Plasma. Fourth state of matter is formed when atoms, instead of being combined into structures that are more complex; are broken up into their main constituent parts. On Earth, the heat generated by electrical discharges in gases too can produce plasmas; for example, lightning strikes can change the air into very hot plasma, though for a very short time. Another important plasma is the Earth's ionosphere; which is about 100 km (60 mi.) above the Earth's surface. In ionosphere a layer of ions and electrons are mixed with the neutral gases of the atmosphere; where the electrons are stripped from the atoms by the ultraviolet light and X-rays emitted by the Sun. The free energy released during the hot, dry day was nothing else but sweat and tears of Israelites. It combined with the neutral gases of the atmosphere and rose up to the Earth's ionosphere. There it was mixed with the layers of ions and electrons. Ultraviolet light and X-ray emitted by the Sun above the hot dry desert thus; had converted the sweat of Israelites into Plasma. This plasma was called Manna. Thus, God fulfilled what he had earlier commanded. He had said, "In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread". What he had said then is true even today.