Stellar Antiquity

Although the ancient Indians were interested in predicting the future, they inadvertently uncovered several truths about the universe. There are about a million manuscripts on various aspects of jyothishastra (texts on astronomy, mathematics, astrology and divination), which have remained largely unexplored and have not been translated. As there is some debate over when the first references to astronomy in Vedic literature can be found, academics believe that ancient Indian astronomy was merely a hodge-podge of ideas introduced by other ancient cultures. However, some academics date the Vedas back to 6500BC, showing that the Vedics were way ahead of their time without outside influences.

One of the key texts highlighting the astronomical ideas of the Vedics is the Vedanga Jyotisa of Lagadha. Sage Lagadha (c. 1180 BC) redacted verses from the Rig and Yajur Vedas pertaining to astronomy. It acted as a handbook for Vedic priests, who used it to determine the time for rituals pertaining to daily life and other specific times of the year. Although it served only as a handbook for the Vedics and not as a treatise on astronomy, the verses redacted within contain clues to the perceptions of the Vedics about the nature of our universe.