Astronomia Vedica Part III
By Govind
Kumar
All events are connected by Time, all places
are connected by Space and all effects are connected by Cause in the
Space-Time-Causality equation. The Science of Time ( Astrology ) and the
Science of Cause ( Transcendental
Philosophy ) assume great significance in
the realm of superconscient learning
Kala Nirnayah,
Computation of Time
The Elements Used in the
Computation of Time
The main element used is
the Sun itself. One solar day is the time taken by the earth to rotate around
its own axis. One solar day is made up of 24 solar hours, one solar hour is
sixty minutes and one minute is sixty seconds.
The time taken by
Soorya, Sol to
make a circuit of the Zodiac from the First Point of the Sidereal Zodiac is
called a Samvatsara, Sidereal Year. This is 365.25363 solar days. A Tropical Year is the
time taken by the Sun to make a circuit of the Tropical Zodiac This is
365.242194 solar days.
Anuvatsaram, Parivalsaram, Indha Vatsaram eva cha
Samvatsaram Vatsarascha Vaidooryeva Prabhashase
These are the five types of
years
1) Solar
Year, Saura Varsha
2)
Jupiterian Year, Barhaspatya
3)
Savana Year, Vatsara
4) Lunar
Year, Inda Valsara
5)
Sideral Year, Nakshatra Varsha
Samvatsara, Solar
Year
The time taken by Sol (
Sun ) to cross one degree is called a solar day. When the Sun crosses from one
Sign to another, this is called Surya Sankrama ( transit to another sign ).
The time taken from one Surya Sankrama to another is called one solar month.
The motion of the Sun is
fastest at the first week of January and is slowest at the first week of July.
In other words, since the Sun's motion is fastest in the Vedic months of
Sagittarius and Capricorn, it takes only 29 days for the Sun to traverse 30
degrees of Sag and Cap. Conversely, it takes 32 days for Sol to traverse 30
degrees of Cancer, since his motion is slowest at Apogee, in the Vedic month
of Cancer.
Barhaspathya,
Jupiterian Year
One Barhaspathya is time
taken by Jove ( Jupiter ) to traverse 30 degrees of a sign. The duration is
361 days and a Jupiterian Cycle is roughly 12 years.
Vatsara or
Solar Year, Savana Year
One Savana day is reckoned
from Sunrise to Sunrise. 30 such Savana day is called one Savana month. 360
such days is one Savana year.
Inda
Vatsara, Lunar Year
A lunar month is the time
calculated from one New Moon to the next New Moon. Since during a solar year,
12 Full Moon were visible , the Zodiac was divided into 12 constellations. 12
Lunar months constitute one Lunar Year. This is 354.367 days. This is 11 days
less than the solar year.
Nakshatra Vatsara ,
Sidereal Year
One sidereal day is time
taken by Luna to traverse a constellation of 13 degrees and 20 minutes. The
Moon takes 27.3 days to revolve around the earth. 27.3*12 is one Sidereal Year
and it is 327.6 days.
Savana Dina, pparent Solar Day
The time taken by the
earth to rotate around its own axis. From a geocentric perspective, the Sun
moves one degree per day.
Nakshatra Dina,
Sidereal Day
This is the time taken by
the earth to rotate around its own axis with regard to Sidereus, the
constellation of fixed stars. This is 23 hours and 56 mins and 4.0953 seconds.
Bhaga, Kala &
Vikala, Degree, Minute & Second
The divisions of the 360
degree Circle , which is the Zodiac, which is the Ecliptic.
Nadis, Vinadis, Tatparas
An apparent Solar Day is
24 hours. According to Indian Astronomy, a solar day is 60 Nadis. 60 Vinadis
is one Nadi ( Nazhika ) and 60 Tatparas is one Vinadi. There are minuter
subdivisions like Pratatparas ( 60 Pratatparas constitute one Tatpara ),
corresponding to micro seconds and nano seconds in Western time calculations.
2 and a half Nadis is one hour or 24 minutes is one Nadi.
While as per Western
calculations, a day is reckoned from midnight to midnight, an Indian day is
reckoned from sunrise to sunrise and a Hijra day is calculated from sunset to
sunset.
Nirayana Samvatsara,
Sidereal Solar Year
The time taken by the Sun
( from a geocentric perspective ), to make a circuit of the Sidereal Zodiac .
This is 365 days, 6 hours 9 minutes and 9.8 seconds.
Sayana Samvatsara, Tropical Solar Year
This is the time taken by
the Sun to make a circuit of the Tropical Zodiac. This is 365 days 5 hours 48
minutes and 45.2 seconds. This is 20 minutes and 24.6 seconds less. This is
because the First Point of Aries moves 50.3 seconds per year.
Bhagana Poorthi Kala,
Sidereal Period of the
Moon
The time taken by Luna to
make a circuit of the Sidereal Zodiac. This is 27 days 7 hours 43 minutes 11.5
seconds.
Thidhi Kala, Synodic Period
SP is the the time between 2
successive conjunctions. For the Moon, it is the time taken from New Moon to
New Moon.
Samvatsara, Solar Month & the Laws
of Planetary Motion
SM is the time taken by the Sun
to traverse one Sign. The motion of the Sun is fastest at Perigee ( near the
earth ) and slowest at Apogee ( away from the Earth). ( This is the
Earth-in-reflex, as it is the earth which is moving and not the Sun ) . In
other words, the motion of the earth is fastest at Perihelion and slowest at
Aphelion. During the sidereal months of Sagittarius and Capricorn, the Sun is
nearest to the earth. It takes only 29 days to traverse 30 degrees of a sign.
During the months of Gemini and Cancer, the Sun is away from the earth and it
takes 31.477 days for the Sun to traverse 30 degrees of a sign. The slowest
motion of the Sun is 57 minutes and 11 seconds. The fastest motion of the Sun
is 61 minutes 10 seconds. That is why some Sagittarius and Capricorn ( Vedic
months ) have 29 days and Cancer and Gemini ( Vedic months ) have 32 days, as per the Vedic
Calender. The orbit of a planet is always elliptical, with the Sun as the
focus of the ellipse. ( Suryaha Jagata Chakshu ).
The
orbital period of a planet ( Bhagana Kala ) bears relationship to the Madhyama
Manda Karna ( Semi-major axis ) of the planet. ( O P = MMK^1.5 ). (
These principles, discovered by Aryabhata, Bhaskara & Brahmagupta earlier
were rediscovered in the West by Kepler as the Laws of Planetary Motion.
)
Kali Era & Kali Day
The beginning of the Kali
Era was 3102 BC, February 18 on a Friday. Then the First Tropical &
Sidereal Points were in 0 degrees Beta Arieties ( Aswini ). All planets
were in the same point at that time. If you add 3102 to the English era, you
get the Kali Era.
Ahargana
is the elapsed Kali day number, the days elapsed from the start of the Kali
Era. If you divide Ahargana by 7 and find the modulus, you can know the day of
the week. If the remainder is one, it is Saturday, if it is two, it is Sunday
and so on.
Day of the Week =
Ahargana%7 ( % is the modulus operator in Foxpro ).
Njattu Velas,
Solar Periods
The constellation tenanted
by the Sun is called Njattu Velu. In a day, the Sun traverses less than one
degree ( less 59.13 seconds ). Sol takes 13,14 days to traverse 13 degrees 20 minutes and so the
duration of a Njattu Vela is 13, 14 days.
Njattu Velas are important
from the perspective of Agriculture. Karthika Njattu Vela is the time when the
Sun transits the constellation of Karthika & Thiruvathira Njattu Vela is
the time when the Sun transits the constellation of Aridra ( Thiruvathira ).
Aridra, Karthika, Chothi and Chitra Njattuvelas give plenty of rains and
farmers use this time productively.