English
But we do not de- termine the antiquity of books by the most ancient facts or expressions they may contain, but by the most modern. The longitude of Canopus, as given by Vasisht'ha, in the beginning of Cancer, is also in the &irya Siddhanta; and this is more modem than the epoch of the commencement of the modem astronomy, to which all the tables of the Lunar A^terisms refer, whether they be found in a book. Written last year, or a thousand years ago : smd the^ positions of the planets given by the Surya Siddhanta^ show that it is still more modern than even the ob- servation of Vasisht'ha. And to crown all this, the very individual on whose account the age of the. Surya Siddhanta was to be perverted and twisted about, turns out to have been contemporary with Digitized by Google OF THE HINDUS. 201 the emperor Akber. Had the Hindu astronomers given us the longitudes of the stars from the vernal equinoctial point, at the times they respectively wrote, we ishould from thence be able to determine the times in which they lived ; but this they took particular care not to do, knowing well what would be the consequence : on the contrary, they reduce the longitudes reckoned from the vernal equinoctial point, whatever they may find them, to what they would appear to be from the beginning of the Hindu sphere, or Aswim^ at the general epoch, when the vernal equinox was supposed to coincide with it, which being a fixed point, the longitudes must be the same, or nearly so, by all ; and by that means puts it out of the power of the most acute astronomer that ever was, to determine the times when they wrote, or the ages of the books in which they were given ; which shows the complete fallacy of Mr. Cole- brooke's method, if it can be so called. We shall now proceed to Mr. Colebrooke's other point, oh which he seems to have laid so much stress, in supporting the supposed antiquity of Varaha Mihira, &c. Varaha Mihira states, that one solstice is in the beginning of Cancer, and the other in that of Capri- corn. Hence Mr. Colebrooke says, that he. must have lived about thirteen hundred years ago, be- cause he has assumed that the names Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, &c. belong to the signs of the Hindu sideral sphere, beginning from Aswini, and therefore concludes, that the solstitial points were not in the beginning of Cancer and Capricorn for these last thirteen hundred years. But in so doing, Mr. Cole^ brooke has drawn a most incorrect conclusion ; for the real matter of fact is, that the names Aries, D D ^ Digitized by Google 202 THE MODERN ASTRONOMY Tauru3^ &c. as repeatedly stated, belong to the Bigns of the tropical sphere, beginning from the vernal equinoctial point, and not in any manner what* ever to the signs of the Hindu sideral sphere, which we shall now proceed to prove beyond dispute. I have already mentioned, that the tropical sphere was received by the Hindus from the west, I believe about the second or third century of the Christian era, with the names of the signs, the same as they are still in use in Europe : that on introducing the sideral sphere now in use in A.D. 538, the tropical sphere was still retained for certain purposes ; and in order that no confusion should arise, the names Aries, Taurus, &c. were retained for the signs, com- mencing from the vernal equinoctial point, while those of the sideral sphere, commencing from As- mini, were represented numerically only, by which means all confusion was avoided. Now I will show that the same rule is still followed by the modern Hindus ; and for which purpose I beg leave to in* troduce the following table of the sun's right ascen- sion and declination, as now in use, for the end of every sign, reckoning from the beginning of Meska (Aries), or the vernal equinoctial point. PERPBTUAL TABLE OF THE SUN'S RIGHT ASCENSION AND DBCUNATION. Namet of the tlgnt. Sun's Hi at (he eat ;ht ascffisioB i of each sign. 1670' S465 5400 7SS5 9130 10800 lfi47e 14265 16200 18135 T9030 21600 Diflferenceof right ascension. Declination. Itesha, •••••• Aries, V¥i$hm, ••..•• Tiumis* Mithuua, •••••• Gemini, Kmrkmia, • • • • ^ • Canoer, Siiiha, .••••• Leo, Kartya, Virgo, Tvh, •••••• librt, Vrischika, •••••• Scorpio, IHuims, • SiH^itUrias, Makara, Capricomas, JTaMiMtf, ^••••' Aqotffias, M'ma, Pisces, 27° 50' 57 45 00 0 122 15 152 10 180 0 207 50 237 45 270 302 332 lO 860 0 1670^ 1795 1935 1935 1795 1670 1670 1795 1935 1935 1795 1670 11> 43' N. 20 88 24 0 20 88 11 43 0 0 11 43 & 20 88 24 0 20 88 11 48 0 0 Digitized by Google OF THE HIK0US. 203 In the first column we have the names of the signs in Sanscrit, with the same translated. The second and third columns contain the sun's right ascension to the end of every sign. The fourth column contains the differences between the right ascensions in the second column; and the fifth contains the sun's declination at the end of each sign, corresponding to the right ascension. Those, who may not have it in their poww to consult Hindu Vooks or tables, may refer to Mr. S. Davies's papers in the second volume of the Asiatic Researches, pages 271 and 272, where they will find the names of the signs, the sun's right ascension, corresponding to the end of each sign, separately taken, which corresponds with the fourth column above, and the sun's declination for the same points. Alt these, and a great deal more, will be found in a moderm Hindu work, called the Tables of Makaranda, ta which Mr. Davies refers. By reference to the table, it will appear that the sun's right ascension at the end oiMithuna (Gemini), according to the Hindus, is always 540(y or 90^ and that the declination of the sun in the same point m 24^ N. that the sun's right ascension at the end of Dhanm (Sagittarius), is 16200' or 270^ and declina- tion 24° S. Now as the table is perpetual, it follows that the signs named, are not those of the Hindu sphere beginning with AswinJ, but those of the tro- pical sphere, beginning from the mean vernal equi- noctial point : — the Hindu astronomers, by thus inserting the names of the signs in their tables, pre* vent any possibility of mistakei. Brahma Gupta says, that " the very shortest hours of night occur at the end of Mithuna (Granini), and the seasons are governed by the sua's motion. Therefore the Digitized by Google 204 THE MQI>ERN ASTROlfOMY pair of. solstices appear to be stationary by the evidence of a pair of eyes.*' And is not this the case by the above table, which is now in use ? Are hot the solstitial points always in the beginning of Cancer arid Capricorn ? Brahma Gupta did not refer to the Hindu sphere, for the names of the signs do not belong to it; and therefore his own simple expression ought to have been sufficient to point out what he meant, without perverting it to another purpose; nor is it possible that any real astronomer could misunderstand him. Varaha Mihira is equally explicit, and his meaning clear and unequivocal. He says : " At present one solstice is in the beginning of Karkata (Cancer), and the other in that of Makara' (Capricorn) ; and he again says : ^^ The sun, by turning without having reached Makara (Capricorn), destroys the south and the east; by turning back without having reached Karkata (Cancer), the north and east. By turning when he has just passed the summer solstitial point, he makes wealth secure, and grain abundant, since he moves thus according to nature ; but the sun, by moving unnaturally, excites terror.** By this passage of Varaha Minira, the solstices were always in the beginning of Cancer and Capricorn. Are they not so now ? and are they not so by the table above given now in use ? Where is, then, the foundation of the inference drawn from . thence by Mr. Colebrooke, that he lived thirteen or fourteen hundred years ago ? The foundation does not exist in truth, and the whole error arises from Mr. Cole- brooke assuming that the signs named belonged to .the sideral sphere; but this could not be, from the nature of the expression used, which referred to the tropical sphere only, and could not be mistaken. Digitized by Google OF THE mNDUS. 205 I will now adduce another proof from the Tatioa^ chintamani, a modem work by Lakshmidas, who gires examples for calculating the sun's right ascen- sions^ declinations, &c. in all of which he takes care to distinguish the tropical from the sideral sphere.