10-02-2007, 09:36 AM
x-post from Ancient India thread
<!--QuoteBegin-aruni+Sep 27 2006, 05:21 PM-->QUOTE(aruni @ Sep 27 2006, 05:21 PM)<!--QuoteEBegin-->Reclaiming the Chronology of Bharatam
B. N. Narahari Achar
Date of the MahËbhËrata War based on Simulations using Planetarium Software
[right][snapback]58076[/snapback][/right]
<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Aruni,
On related subject (came in email):
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->There are two issues here: one is astronomical observation; the other is astronomical computation.
It is clear that Veda Vyasa was recording observed celestial events using them as his day's clock and calendar to realte events on the earth. There is little evidence of astronomical computation in the Great Epic, the Mahabharata which contains over 150 very specific astronomical observations and events such as the sequence of lunar-solar-lunar eclipses occurring within 13 tithi-s each, Bhishma waiting for the arrival of the uttarayana punyakaala to leave his mortal body, the starting and arrival nakshatra of the 42-day pariyatra by Shri Balarama along River Sarasvati and the celestial position of planets on each day of the 18-day war, apart from astronomical discussions during Krishna-Karna samvaada and the references to comets as demonstrated by Narahari Achar.
Remarkable work is ongoing to relate astronomical information contained in ancient texts of Bharatam to scientifically falsifiable geological events such as the formation of a rann, incursions of the sea or earthquakes or impacts of meteorites.
We have miles to go. The work is outside of itihaasa. It is related to time, more specifically, to kaala, mahaakaala in the bharatiya perceptions of the time as a cyclical continuum, an inexorable cosmic rhythm. These explorations will take us into realms beyond physics or astronomy into relating individual consciousness to cosmic consciousness, aatman to paramaatman.
We run into problems of semantics with critical terms such as graha. When does a graha refer to a planet and when does it refer to a comet in the ancient texts? Surely, unraveling of historical time (aha, chronology) cannot be performed by historians alone but has to be a collaboration between those who can fathom the mysteries of technical terms in the Veda and in Samskrtam, Jaina, Bauddha texts and those who can see parallels with the observations of scientists of a variety of disciplines ranging from mathematics and astronomy to atoms/strings and the big bang (or collapse, or whatever). Very ancient history has to be written by scientists and language scholars in a new collaborative enterprise which has to emerge. We have the bharata nidhi, the treasure of texts; we need the young nation to take up the challenge of reading this nidhi and conveying the contents to the present and future generations.
How do we explain the metaphor of Mahaakaala of Ujjain?
-xx
<!--QuoteBegin--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->
<b>Astronomical calculations in ancient India based on scientific research</b>
HTC, Dec. 7, 2006
"THE ASTRONOMICAL calculations made in ancient India and recorded in Puranas and other texts were not mythical but were based on scientific research which is corroborated even by the modern science", said eminent historian and epigraphist, Prof. TP Verma.
He was delivering a lecture on "The Science of Manvantara" organised by the Jnana-Pravaha, Centre For Cultural Studies and Research in Samne Ghat area here on Wednesday.
Prof. Verma, former head of the Ancient Indian History, Culture and Archaeology Department in Banaras Hindu University (BHU), said that 'manvantara' represented by an intelligent being called Manu, is an astronomical unit of time denoting one cycle of life on earth, which is equivalent to 30,84,48,000 years.
"During this period, the Sun with its planets completes one circle of our galaxy, which is termed as Parameshthi-Mandala in our ancient literature. A period of 14 such cycles of 'manvantaras' is estimated as whole life of the earth", he said, adding, "Notably, modern science believes the earth to have come into existence 4.5 billion years ago, which is endorsed by the Atharva-Veda".
"Such complicated and precise astronomical calculations also establish that script and art of writing in ancient India was in vogue long before it is now believed to have been", he said. Prof. Verma further informed that according to ancient Indian calculations, Shri Krishna was born in 3210 BC, which was the junction period of Dvapara and Kali Yugas.
Presiding over the lecture, renowned Sanskrit scholar, Prof. KD Tripathi observed, "It is the high-time when we should again revert back to our ancient tradition and try to make deeper probing of our rich and vast knowledge recorded in our literature and which has now become mysterious for us". "We are deeply impressed by the researches done in the western world and accept blindly, but we are unaware of the fact that we already possessed such knowledge, which unfortunately we lost due to our ignorance", he said.   Â
http://www.hindustantimes.com/news/5922_18...02500030002.htm
<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
<!--QuoteBegin-aruni+Sep 27 2006, 05:21 PM-->QUOTE(aruni @ Sep 27 2006, 05:21 PM)<!--QuoteEBegin-->Reclaiming the Chronology of Bharatam
B. N. Narahari Achar
Date of the MahËbhËrata War based on Simulations using Planetarium Software
[right][snapback]58076[/snapback][/right]
<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Aruni,
On related subject (came in email):
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->There are two issues here: one is astronomical observation; the other is astronomical computation.
It is clear that Veda Vyasa was recording observed celestial events using them as his day's clock and calendar to realte events on the earth. There is little evidence of astronomical computation in the Great Epic, the Mahabharata which contains over 150 very specific astronomical observations and events such as the sequence of lunar-solar-lunar eclipses occurring within 13 tithi-s each, Bhishma waiting for the arrival of the uttarayana punyakaala to leave his mortal body, the starting and arrival nakshatra of the 42-day pariyatra by Shri Balarama along River Sarasvati and the celestial position of planets on each day of the 18-day war, apart from astronomical discussions during Krishna-Karna samvaada and the references to comets as demonstrated by Narahari Achar.
Remarkable work is ongoing to relate astronomical information contained in ancient texts of Bharatam to scientifically falsifiable geological events such as the formation of a rann, incursions of the sea or earthquakes or impacts of meteorites.
We have miles to go. The work is outside of itihaasa. It is related to time, more specifically, to kaala, mahaakaala in the bharatiya perceptions of the time as a cyclical continuum, an inexorable cosmic rhythm. These explorations will take us into realms beyond physics or astronomy into relating individual consciousness to cosmic consciousness, aatman to paramaatman.
We run into problems of semantics with critical terms such as graha. When does a graha refer to a planet and when does it refer to a comet in the ancient texts? Surely, unraveling of historical time (aha, chronology) cannot be performed by historians alone but has to be a collaboration between those who can fathom the mysteries of technical terms in the Veda and in Samskrtam, Jaina, Bauddha texts and those who can see parallels with the observations of scientists of a variety of disciplines ranging from mathematics and astronomy to atoms/strings and the big bang (or collapse, or whatever). Very ancient history has to be written by scientists and language scholars in a new collaborative enterprise which has to emerge. We have the bharata nidhi, the treasure of texts; we need the young nation to take up the challenge of reading this nidhi and conveying the contents to the present and future generations.
How do we explain the metaphor of Mahaakaala of Ujjain?
-xx
<!--QuoteBegin--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->
<b>Astronomical calculations in ancient India based on scientific research</b>
HTC, Dec. 7, 2006
"THE ASTRONOMICAL calculations made in ancient India and recorded in Puranas and other texts were not mythical but were based on scientific research which is corroborated even by the modern science", said eminent historian and epigraphist, Prof. TP Verma.
He was delivering a lecture on "The Science of Manvantara" organised by the Jnana-Pravaha, Centre For Cultural Studies and Research in Samne Ghat area here on Wednesday.
Prof. Verma, former head of the Ancient Indian History, Culture and Archaeology Department in Banaras Hindu University (BHU), said that 'manvantara' represented by an intelligent being called Manu, is an astronomical unit of time denoting one cycle of life on earth, which is equivalent to 30,84,48,000 years.
"During this period, the Sun with its planets completes one circle of our galaxy, which is termed as Parameshthi-Mandala in our ancient literature. A period of 14 such cycles of 'manvantaras' is estimated as whole life of the earth", he said, adding, "Notably, modern science believes the earth to have come into existence 4.5 billion years ago, which is endorsed by the Atharva-Veda".
"Such complicated and precise astronomical calculations also establish that script and art of writing in ancient India was in vogue long before it is now believed to have been", he said. Prof. Verma further informed that according to ancient Indian calculations, Shri Krishna was born in 3210 BC, which was the junction period of Dvapara and Kali Yugas.
Presiding over the lecture, renowned Sanskrit scholar, Prof. KD Tripathi observed, "It is the high-time when we should again revert back to our ancient tradition and try to make deeper probing of our rich and vast knowledge recorded in our literature and which has now become mysterious for us". "We are deeply impressed by the researches done in the western world and accept blindly, but we are unaware of the fact that we already possessed such knowledge, which unfortunately we lost due to our ignorance", he said.   Â
http://www.hindustantimes.com/news/5922_18...02500030002.htm
<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->