David LinckAll across the world, we nowadays find a large number of people inclined towards astrology, wherein astrology allows individuals to make better decisions for their future and find the right path to move ahead in life. The history of astrology, nevertheless, dates back way back to the Vedic times.
One of the unique and very typical features of Vedic astrology and Indian astrology is its consistency, and Vedic astrology has been practiced with an unwavering continuity for past 5000 years. The uniqueness of the art form is further accentuated by its own typical theology, art, science, literature and philosophy.
The Vedas are the timeless and divine source of knowledge and wisdom, the kind that will never lose their significance, till eternity. While the Vedas form the supreme text in Vedic Astrology, these are also possessed with six supplementary appendixes, known as the vedanganas. The information about astrology and astronomy is derived from one of these vedanganas, which is known as the Jyotish Vedangana. Additionally, the rishis often derived information from the Vedas and used it to enhance their knowledge of the Jyotish vedangana.
In essence, Indian astrology can be broadly divided into two parts, the Siddhanta Bhaga and the Phalit Bhaga, which are the calculative and the predictive parts respectively. In the Rigveda, which is the first of the Vedas, a year has been represented by twelve months, and there is an additional month which correlates the solar and lunar months. Moreover, details of planets in form of Gods can all be found in the Rigveda.
Information and the deep knowledge about astrology has since the ancient times been conveyed through word of mouth, wherein the disciples received teachings from their masters. And we can find a host of ancient books on Vedic astrology. One of the oldest books on Astrology is the ‘Rigjyotisha’, which was written by Lagadha. In the ‘Rigjyotisha’, the two ayans of the year are mentioned. Additionally, the ‘Rigjyotisha’ describes the five types of years, along with their ruling deities. This also explains the precision of equinoxes, and mentions the 27 stars.
Another one of the greatest texts based on Vedic astrology is ‘Brihat Samhita’. The ‘Brihat Samhita’ was written by Varahamihira in the year 123 AD, and comprises of 105 chapters and 4000 verses. Based upon astronomy and astrology, the ‘Brihat Samhita’ shows us ways to apply astrology for public welfare.
In the year 476 AD, Aryabhatta wrote the ‘Aryabhateeya’, this includes a lot of astronomy, mathematics and astronomy. And the ‘Mahabhaskareeya’, based on astro mathematics was written by Bhaskar in 629 AD. The ‘Siddhanta Siromani’ is yet another great book on astronomy, written by Bhaskar. This introduces a host of mathematical concepts, which include square root, cube root and factorial values. Alternately, the ‘Siddhanta Siromani’ talks about planets, the radius of earth, eclipses and seven atmospheric layers.
Neelkantha, Kalyana Verma, Venkatesa and Kalidasa are some of the other authors and teachers from the divine tradition of Vedic astrology, who made significant contributions in form of their books and teachings.
