Within the halo of this universe resides 'Svetadvipa' an island which is surrounded by an ocean of milk and which is the abode of 'Visnu' its name meaning the island ( dvipa ) within the milky white ( sveta ) ocean'.

 

'Svet' and 'svit' are ancient Sanskrit words which can be found in texts such as the Rig Veda, which goes back at least 5000 years, their meaning being 'brightness' 'illumination' and 'white'. They are the origin of the word 'white' as the 'S' is replaced by an 'H' and this becomes the Old English 'hvit' the Danish 'hvid' the Swedish 'vit' the Dutch 'wit' and the word 'white' as confirmed by Professor Max Muller.

 

“Thus wheat was called the white plant 'hvaiteis' in Gothic, it was called 'hvaete' in Avestan, it was called 'kwetys' in Lithuania, it was called 'wheat' in English and all these words point to the Sanskrit 'sveta' meaning 'white.' - Max Muller - lectures on the science of language volume two.

 

 

'Orange' is a colour which is named after the fruits of a tree and one which is indigenous to Vedic India. 'Nagaranga' is the name of the tree whose meaning is the coloured ( ranga ) tree ( naga ) and the red coloured ( ranga ) tree ( naga ) and from this tree we get the orange fruits which are known as 'naranga'.

Naranga journeys from Vedic shores to become the Iranian and Avestan 'narang' and through trade it travels to Europe as the Venetian 'naranza' the Italian 'narancia' the Italian 'arancia' and eventually the word 'orange' whose journey began from the shores of Vedic India.

 

Veda describes Srimati Radharani as the complimentary aspect of the one divine truth and she is known as 'naranga phala sobhita' meaning 'as splendid as a naranga fruit' and she is also known as 'naranga kula mandana' which describes her as 'the transcendental decoration of amorous Krsna'.

 

 

The opposite of 'white" is 'black" and the origins of this word can be found within 'bhraj' a word from Sanskrit whose meaning is to 'shine' to 'illuminate' to 'sparkle' to 'glitter' and this becomes 'bhrajja' meaning to 'roast' to 'fry' and 'bhraja' which means 'fire'.

 

Bhraja which means to 'illuminate' and 'fire' then goes through a common phenomenon where the 'Bh' becomes a Greek 'Ph' which becomes the Latin 'F' as seen in the Greek 'phlegein' meaning to 'burn' and the Latin 'flame' meaning to 'burn'.

 

Bhraja whose meaning is to 'burn' becomes the Indo European 'bhleg' which means to 'burn' and as this does the rounds amongst the European languages it eventually becomes the English 'black' a word which expresses that which has been 'burnt'.

 

 

'Emerald' is a gemstone which expresses the hue of the colour 'green' and in Tamil Nadu we find the world famous 'Meenaksi Temple' whose name is said to mean one whose eyes ( aksi ) are like a fish ( mani ) a reference to the almond like eyes of Meenaksi who is an expansion of goddess 'Parvatti' and whose deity is said by tradition to be carved from a green gem stone.

 

'Emerald Buddha' is the deity of 'Guattama Buddha' seated in the familiar lotus position its formed from semi precious green stone and clothed in gold where it resides in the 'Temple of the Emerald Buddha' on the grounds of the Grand Palace in Bangkok, Thailand.

 

'Emerald' has its origins within 'marakata' a word from Sanskrit meaning the sandy coast ( saikata ) of the desert ( maru ) which were once the gem mines of Cleopatra. 'Marakata' travels to Europe where the Greeks add the letter 'S' to become 'smaragdos' which becomes the Latin 'smaragdus' which becomes the German 'smaragd' the Spanish 'esmerelda' and the English 'emereld'.

 

 

The great prajapati and creator of this universe 'Lord Brahma' was not a happy Deva. His request that his sons who were the 'Four Kumaris' populate the universe with good progeny had been refused and from between his eyebrows appeared 'Rudra' who was 'red' with anger.

 

Rudra is formed from the Sanskrit root 'ru' meaning to 'make a noise' to 'cry' to 'roar' the root of words such as 'rumour' 'ruckus' 'riot' and 'rumpus'. This becomes 'rud' meaning to 'weep' which then becomes 'rudra' meaning that which runs ( dra ) roaring ( ru ) the father of the storm gods known as the 'Maruts' and the expansion of Lord Siva.

 

'Ru' meaning to 'roar' also becomes 'rudh' meaning to 'grow' to 'become red' and this then becomes 'Rudhira' meaning 'red' 'blood red' the 'red planet' and 'mars'. Rudh then becomes the Indo European 'reudh' meaning 'red' the Old English 'read' and eventually the word 'red'.

 

 

Red is also the colour of 'crimson' a deep reddish colour produced from a dye which comes from the dried body of an insect. Its name is formed from the Sanskrit root 'Kr' meaning that which 'performs work' and this becomes 'krmi' meaning 'worm' 'spider' 'ant' and 'krmi" then becomes 'krmija' meaning produced ( ja ) from a worm ( krmi ) which is the meaning of 'crimson'.

 

As 'krmija' departs Vedic shores it takes the familiar route through the Middle East by becoming the Arabic 'quimiz' and from there by trade to Europe and the French 'kermes' and the Italian 'chermes'. The 'cer' is then transformed into 'cre' becoming the Latin 'cremesinus' and the Spanish 'cremesin' which then becomes 'crimson'.

 

Krmi also becomes 'crven' the Slavic word for 'red' and this is seen in 'Czerwony Gora' a popular tourist destination in Poland whose name meaning 'red mountain' is also formed from the Sanskrit 'giri' meaning 'mountain'.