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Varahamihira
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Daivajna Varahamihira (Devanagari: ?????????; 505 – 587), also called Varaha, or Mihira was an Indian astronomer, mathematician, and astrologer who lived in Ujjain. He is considered to be one of the nine jewels (Navaratnas) of the court of legendary king Vikramaditya (thought to be the Gupta emperor Chandragupta II Vikramaditya). Though little is known about his life, he supposedly hailed from South Bengal, where in the ruins of Chandraketugarh there is a mound called the mound of Khana and Mihir.
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Encyclopedia
Daivajna Varahamihira (Devanagari: ?????????; 505 – 587), also called Varaha, or Mihira was an Indian astronomer, mathematician, and astrologer who lived in Ujjain. He is considered to be one of the nine jewels (Navaratnas) of the court of legendary king Vikramaditya (thought to be the Gupta emperor Chandragupta II Vikramaditya). Though little is known about his life, he supposedly hailed from South Bengal, where in the ruins of Chandraketugarh there is a mound called the mound of Khana and Mihir. Khana was the daughter-in-law of Varaha and a famous astrologer herself. Modern Shakadvipi brahmins, esp astrologers, regard Varah Mihir as their ancestor, although there is no ancient documentary proof in favour of this belief.
Works
Pancha-Siddhantika
Varahamihira's main work is the book (or Pancha-Siddhantika, "[Treatise] on the Five [Astronomical] Canons) dated ca. 575 CE gives us information about older Indian texts which are now lost. The work is a treatise on mathematical astronomy and it summarises five earlier astronomical treatises, namely the Surya Siddhanta, Romaka Siddhanta, Paulisa Siddhanta, Vasishtha Siddhanta and Paitamaha Siddhantas. It is a compendium of native Indian as well as Hellenistic astronomy (including Greek, Egyptian and Roman elements).
The 11th century Arabian scholar Alberuni also described the details of "The Five Astronomical Canons":
- "They [the Indians] have 5 Siddhantas:
- Surya-Siddhanta, ie. the Siddhanta of the Sun, composed by ,
- Vasishtha-siddhanta, so called from one of the stars of the Great Bear, composed by Vishnucandra,
- Pulisa-siddhanta, so called from Paulisa, the Greek, from the city of Saintra, which I suppose to be Alexandria, composed by Pulisa.
- Romaka-siddhanta, so called from the Rum, ie. the subjects of the Roman Empire, composed by Srishe?a.
- Brahma-siddhanta, so called from Brahman, composed by Brahmagupta, the son of Jish?u, from the town of Bhillamala between Multan and Anhilwara, 16 yojanas from the latter place."
Brihat-Samhita
Varahamihira's other most important contribution is the encyclopedic Brihat-Samhita.
Varahamihira also made important contributions to mathematics. He was also an astrologer. He wrote on all the three main branches of Jyotisha astrology:
Brihat Jataka - is considered as one the five main treatises on Hindu astrology on horoscopy.
Daivaigya Vallabha
Laghu Jataka
Yoga Yatra
Vivaha Patal
His son Prithuyasas also contributed in the Hindu astrology; his book "Hora Saara" is a famous book on horoscopy.
Western influences
The Romaka Siddhanta ("Doctrine of the Romans") and the Paulisa Siddhanta ("Doctrine of Paul") were two works of Western origin which influenced Varahamihira's thought.
A comment in the Brihat-Samhita by Varahamihira says: "The Greeks, though impure, must be honored since they were trained in sciences and therein, excelled others....." ("mleccha hi yavanah tesu samyak shastram kdamsthitam/ rsivat te 'p i pujyante kim punar daivavid dvijah" (Brihat-Samhita 2.15)).
Some important trigonometric results attributed to Varahamihira
He not only presented his own observations, but embellished them in attractive poetic and metrical styles. The usage of a large variety of meters is especially evident in his Brihat Jataka and Brihat-Samhita.
1. ^ "the Pańca-siddhantika ("Five Treatises"), a compendium of Greek, Egyptian, Roman and Indian astronomy. Varahamihira's knowledge of Western astronomy was thorough. In 5 sections, his monumental work progresses through native Indian astronomy and culminates in 2 treatises on Western astronomy, showing calculations based on Greek and Alexandrian reckoning and even giving complete Ptolemaic mathematical charts and tables. Encyclopedia Britannica (2007) s.v.Varahamihira ^
2. E. C. Sachau, Alberuni's India (1910), vol. I, p.153
External links
- Various editions in English and Sanskrit. (PDF)
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