Instruments used in Indian Astronomy Long ago

Among the devices used for astronomy was Gnomon, known as Sanku, in which the shadow of a vertical rod is applied on a horizontal plane in order to ascertain the cardinal directions, the latitude of the point of observation, and the time of observation. This device finds mention in the works of Varāhamihira, Āryabhata, Bhāskara, Brahmagupta, among others. The Cross-staff, known as Yasti-yantra, was used by the time of Bhaskara II (1114–1185 CE). This device could vary from a simple stick to V-shaped staffs designed specifically for determining angles with the help of a calibrated scale. The clepsydra (Ghatī -yantra) was used in India for astronomical purposes until recent times. Ōhashi (2008) notes that: "Several astronomers also described water-driven instruments such as the model of fighting sheep."

Achyuta Pisharati

Achyutha Pisharodi (c. 1550 at Trikkandiyur, Tirur, Kerala, India – 7 July 1621 in Kerala) was an Sanskrit grammarian, astrologer, astronomer and mathematician who studied under Jyeṣṭhadevaand was a member of Madhava of Sangamagrama's Kerala school of astronomy and mathematics. He is remembered mainly for his part in the composition of his student Melpathur Narayana Bhattathiri's devotional poem, Narayaneeyam.

He discovered the technique of 'the reduction of the ecliptic'. He authored Sphuta-nirnaya, Raasi-gola-sphuta-neeti (raasi meaning zodiac, gola meaning sphere and neeti roughly meaning rule), Karanottama (1593) and a four- chapter treatise Uparagakriyakrama on lunar and solar eclipses.

1. Praveśaka

   An introduction to Sanskrit grammar.

2. Karaṇottama

   Astronomical work dealing with the computation of the mean and true longitudes of the planets, with eclipses, and with the vyatūpātas of the sun and moon.

3. Uparāgakriyākrama (1593)

   Treatise on lunar and solar eclipses.

4. Sphuṭanirṇaya

   Astronomical text.

5. Chāyāṣṭaka

   Astronomical text.

6. Uparāgaviṃśati

   Manual on the computation of eclipses.

7. Rāśigolasphuṭānūti

   Work concerned with the reduction of the moon’s true longitude in its own orbit to the ecliptic.

8. Veṇvārohavyākhyā

   Malayalam commentary on the Veṇvāroha of Mādhava of Saṅgamagrāma (ca. 1340–1425) written at the request of Netranārāyaṇa.

9. Horāsāroccaya

   An adaptation of the Jātakapaddhati of Śrīpati.

Nilakantha Somayaji

Kelallur Nilakantha Somayaji, (1444–1544) (also referred to as Kelallur Comatiri was a major mathematician and astronomer of the Kerala school of astronomy and mathematics. One of his most influential works was the comprehensive astronomical treatise Tantrasamgraha completed in 1501. He had also composed an elaborate commentary on Aryabhatiya called the Aryabhatiya Bhasya. In this Bhasya, Nilakantha had discussed infinite series expansions of trigonometric functions and problems of algebra and spherical geometry. Grahapareeksakrama is a manual on making observations in astronomy based on instruments of the time.

Mahendra Dayashankar Gor Sūri

Mahendra Suri authored the Yantra-rāja (The King of Instruments, written in 1370 CE)—a Sanskrit work on the astrolabe, itself introduced in India during the reign of the 14th century Tughlaq dynasty ruler Firuz Shah Tughluq (1351–1388 CE). Suri seems to have been a Jain astronomer in the service of Firuz Shah Tughluq. The 182 verse Yantra-rāja mentions the astrolabe from the first chapter onwards, and also presents a fundamental formula along with a numerical table for drawing an astrolabe although the proof itself has not been detailed. Longitudes of 32 stars as well as their latitudes have also been mentioned. 

Mahendra Suri also explained the Gnomon, equatorial co-ordinates, and elliptical co-ordinates. The works of Mahendra Suri may have influenced later astronomers like Padmanābha (1423 CE)—author of the Yantra-rāja-adhikāra, the first chapter of his Yantra-kirnāvali. He was a pupil of Madana Suri. His father was Dayashankar and mother was Vimla. Dayashankar and Vimla had eight children, four sons and four daughters. Mahendra married a woman by the name of Urmila and had four daughters.

Śrīpati

Śrīpati (1019–1066) was an Indian astronomer and mathematician, the author of Dhikotidakarana (written in 1039), a work of twenty verses on solar and lunar eclipses; Dhruvamanasa (written in 1056), a work of 105 verses on calculating planetary longitudes, eclipses and planetary transits; Siddhantasekhara a major work on astronomy in 19 chapters; and Ganitatilaka, an incomplete arithmetical treatise in 125 verses based on a work by Shridhara.

Śrīpati's father was Nagadeva (sometimes written as Namadeva) and Nagadeva's father, Sripati's paternal grandfather, was Kesava. Śrīpati was a follower of the teaching of Lalla writing on astrology, astronomy and mathematics. His mathematical work was undertaken with applications to astronomy in mind, for example a study of spheres. His work on astronomy was undertaken to provide a basis for his astrology. Śrīpati was the most prominent Indian mathematicians of the 11th century.

Lalla

Lalla (c. 720–790 CE) was an Indian mathematician, astronomer, and astrologer who belonged to a family of astronomers. His most famous work was titled Śiṣya-dhī-vṛddhida-tantra, or "Treatise which expands the intellect of students." He is also known for having published the earliest known description of a perpetuum mobile in Śiṣyadhīvṛddhidatantra.

In his work, Lalla drew on his predecessors Āryabhaṭa, Brahmagupta, and Bhāskara I. In turn, he influenced later generations of astronomers, including Śrīpati, Vaṭeśvara, and Bhāskara II (who wrote a commentary on the Śiṣyadhīvṛddhidatantra).

He followed the Ārya-pakṣa or the school of Āryabhaṭa (continued by Bhāskara I), but divided the mahāyuga the traditional way, following the Brāhma-pakṣa school of Brahmagupta. Although he followed Āryabhaṭa, he did not believe in the rotation of the Earth.

His father's name was Trivikrama, and he lived in central India, possibly in the Lāṭa region in mod

Bhāskara II

Bhāskara (also known as Bhāskara II and Bhāskarāchārya ("Bhāskara the teacher"), (1114–1185), was an Indian mathematician and astronomer. He was born near Vijjadavida (Bijāpur in modern Karnataka). Bhāskara is said to have been the head of an astronomical observatory at Ujjain, the leading mathematical center of ancient India. He lived in the Sahyadri region.

Bhāskara and his works represent a significant contribution to mathematical and astronomical knowledge in the 12th century. He has been called the greatest mathematician of medieval India.His main work Siddhānta Shiromani, (Sanskrit for "Crown of treatises,") is divided into four parts called Lilāvati, Bijaganita, Grahaganita and Golādhyāya. These four sections deal with arithmetic, algebra, mathematics of the planets, and spheres respectively. He also wrote another treatise named Karan Kautoohal.

Bhāskara's work on calculus predates Newton and Leibniz by half a millennium. He is particularly known in the discovery of the principles of differential calculus and its application to astronomical problems and computations. While Newton and Leibniz have been credited with differential and integral calculus, there is strong evidence to suggest that Bhāskara was a pioneer in some of the principles of differential calculus. He was perhaps the first to conceive the differential coefficient and differential calculus.

Bhaskaracharya was born into a family belonging to the Deshastha Brahmin community. History records his great-great-great-grandfather holding a hereditary post as a court scholar, as did his son and other descendants. His father Mahesvara was as an astrologer, who taught him mathematics, which he later passed on to his son Loksamudra. Loksamudra's son helped to set up a school in 1207 for the study of Bhāskara's writings.

His Work :

Bhāskara I

Bhāskara (c. 600 – c. 680) commonly called Bhaskara I to avoid confusion with the 12th century mathematician Bhāskara II) was a 7th century Indian mathematician, who was apparently the first to write numbers in the Hindu-Arabic decimal system with a circle for the zero, and who gave a unique and remarkable rational approximation of the sine function in his commentary on Aryabhata's work. This commentary, Āryabhaṭīyabhāṣya, written in 629 CE, is the oldest known prose work in Sanskrit on mathematics and astronomy. He also wrote two astronomical works in the line of Aryabhata's school, the Mahābhāskarīya and the Laghubhāskarīya.

 He was "probably a Marathi astronomer". He was born at Bori, in Parbhani district of Maharashtra state in India in 7th century.

His astronomical education was given by his father. Bhaskara is considered the most important scholar of Aryabhata's astronomical school. He and Brahmagupta are one of the most renowned Indian mathematicians who made considerable contributions to the study of fractions.

100 Missions 50 Eventful Years - ISRO

Source: ISRO

Varāhamihira-Astronomer, Astrologer & Mathematician

Varāhamihira was an astronomer and mathematician who studied and Indian astronomy as well as the many principles of Greek, Egyptian, and Roman astronomical sciences.

He was  also known as Varaha or Mihira, was an who lived in Ujjain. He is considered to be one of the nine jewels (Navaratnas) of the court of legendary ruler Vikramaditya.

He was the first one to mention in his work Pancha Siddhantika that the ayanamsa, or the shifting of the equinox is 50.32 seconds.

BRIEF OF INDIAN ASTRONOMY

India's contribution to the science of astronomy is priceless. From Aryabhata to Bhaskara to Chandrasekhara Samanta, Indian astronomers and astronomy raconteurs can be credited with interesting theories and discoveries. The detailed mathematical treatment of the science of astronomy can be traced back to around 400 A.D, but the origin of the science itself can be traced back to a much earlier period. Some references regarding nakshatras, solar and lunar months etc., are available in the Vedas, and more details are available in the puranas. The earliest astronomical text available is the 'Vedanga-Jyothisham ' (1200 BC). As the name itself suggests, this text is a part of the Vedic literature. 

Brahmagupta - Indian mathematician and astronomer

Brahmagupta (598–668 AD) was an Indian mathematician and astronomer who wrote many important works on mathematics and astronomy. His best known work is the Brāhmasphuṭasiddhānta (Correctly Established Doctrine of Brahma), written in 628 in Bhinmal. Its 25 chapters contain several unprecedented mathematical results.

Life and work

Brahmagupta is believed to have been born in 598 AD in Bhinmal city in the state of Rajasthan of Northwest India. In ancient times Bhillamala was the seat of power of the Gurjars. His father was Jisnugupta. He likely lived most of his life in Bhillamala (modern Bhinmal in Rajasthan) during the reign (and possibly under the patronage) of King Vyaghramukha. As a result, Brahmagupta is often referred to as Bhillamalacarya, that is, the teacher from Bhillamala. He was the head of the astronomical observatory at Ujjain, and during his tenure there wrote four texts on mathematics and astronomy: the Cadamekela in 624, the Brahmasphutasiddhanta in 628, the Khandakhadyaka in 665, and the Durkeamynarda in 672. The Brahmasphutasiddhanta (Corrected Treatise of Brahma) is arguably his most famous work. The historian al-Biruni (c. 1050) in his book Tariq al-Hind states that the Abbasid caliph al-Ma'mun had an embassy in India and from India a book was brought to Baghdad which was translated into Arabic as Sindhind. It is generally presumed that Sindhind is none other than Brahmagupta's Brahmasphuta-siddhanta.

Lagadha - 1st Astronomer From India

The Vedāṅga Jyotiṣa is an Indian text on Jyotisha, redacted by Lagadha 

The text is foundational to the Vedanga discipline of Jyotisha. It is dated to the final centuries BCE. As the text describes rules for tracking the motions of the sun and the moon, its dating in the final centuries BCE seems implausible as the more sophisticated horoscopic astrology and advanced astronomical knowledge possessed by the Indians. In the Vedanga Jyotisha, Lagadha praises Jyotisha as the crowning subject in the ancillary Vedic studies of human enlightenment.

The Vedanga Jyotisha is available in two recensions: one of 36 verses associated with the Rigveda and another of 45 verses associated with the Yajurveda. There are 29 verses in common.

Aryabhata

Aryabhata or Aryabhata I (476–550 CE) was the first in the line of great mathematician-astronomers from the classical age of Indian mathematics and Indian astronomy. His most famous works are the Āryabhaṭīya (499 CE, when he was 23 years old) and the Arya-siddhanta.

The works of Aryabhata dealt with mainly mathematics and astronomy. He also worked on the approximation for pi.

    

       

Time and Place of birth

Aryabhata mentions in the Aryabhatiya that it was composed 3,630 years into the Kali Yuga, when he was 23 years old. This corresponds to 499 CE, and implies that he was born in 476.

Aryabhata was born in Taregna (literally, song of the stars), which is a small town in Bihar, India, about 30 km (19 mi) from Patna (then known as Pataliputra), the capital city of Bihar State. Evidences justify his birth there. In Taregna Aryabhata set up an Astronomical Observatory in the Sun Temple 6th century.

Indian Astronomy Calendars

The divisions of the year were on the basis of religious rites and seasons (Rtu). The duration from mid March—Mid May was taken to be spring (vasanta), mid May—mid July: summer ("grishma"), mid July—mid September: rains (varsha), mid September—mid November: autumn, mid November—mid January: winter, mid January—mid March: dew (śiśira).

In the Vedānga Jyotiṣa, the year begins with the winter solstice. Hindu calendars have several eras:

• The Hindu calendar, counting from the start of the Kali Yuga, has its epoch on 18 February 3102 BC Julian (23 January 3102 BCE Gregorian).
• The Vikrama Samvat calendar, introduced about the 12th century, counts from 56–57 BCE.
• The "Saka Era", used in some Hindu calendars and in the Indian national calendar, has its epoch near the vernal equinox of year 78.
• The Saptarshi calendar traditionally has its epoch at 3076 BCE.

History Of Indian Astronomy

Some cosmological concepts are present in the Vedas, as are notions of the movement of heavenly bodies and the course of the year. As in other traditions, there is a close association ofastronomy and religion during the early history of the science, astronomical observation being necessitated by spacial and temporal requirements of correct performance of religious ritual. Thus, the Shulba Sutras, texts dedicated to altar construction, discusses basic astronomical concepts such as the cardinal directions. Jyotiṣa Vedānga as the science of observing the heavens in order to correctly perform Vedic sacrifice arises after the end of the Vedic period, during ca. the 6th to 4th centuries BCE, and the work of Lagadha is informed by these earlier traditions.

By the early centuries of the Common Era, Indo-Greek influence on the Vedanga tradition becomes evident with texts such as Romaka Siddhānta and Yavanajataka. Later astronomers mention the existence of various siddhantas during this period, among them a text known as the Surya Siddhanta. But these weren't fixed texts but rather an oral tradition of knowledge, and their content is not extant. The text today known as Surya Siddhanta dates to the Gupta period and was received by Aryabhata.

Jyotisa - Indian Astronomy

Historical Indian astronomy (Jyotiṣa) develops as a discipline of Vedanga or one of the "auxiliary disciplines" associated with the study of the Vedas. The oldest extant text of astronomy is the treatise by Lagadha, dated to the Mauryan era (final centuries BCE).

As with other traditions, the original application of astronomy was thus religious, and would be considered astrology in modern terminology. Hindu astrologywas heavily influenced by Hellenistic astrology during the early centuries of the Common Era, notably by the Yavanajataka, a Sanskrit translation of a Greek text disseminated from the 2nd century.

Indian astronomy flowered in the 6th century, with Aryabhata, whose Aryabhatiya represented the pinnacle of astronomical knowledge at the time, and significantly influenced medieval Muslim astronomy. Other astronomers of the classical era who further elaborated on Aryabhata's work include Brahmagupta,Varahamihira and Lalla. But an identifiable native Indian astronomical tradition remains active throughout the medieval period and into the 16th or 17th century, especially within the Kerala school of astronomy and mathematics.

INDIAN ASTRONOMY

India also has huge background of Astronomy.

We have started a new label dedicated to Indian Astronomy.

This Category is dedicated to the Medieval  Indian astronomy to the Modern Indian astronomy.

Comments are most welcomed . . .