the greatest fraud on the Vedas

[Guest guest]

Namaste,

 

Well, Jyotisha may or may not be mentioned in Vedas. But that is immaterial. It

is one of the Vedangas (veda+angas, i.e. limbs of Veda). RigVeda, YajurVeda etc

are the four heads of the Veda Purusha (the personification of Vedic knowledge).

There are other limbs of Veda Purusha and Jyotisha IS mentioned as one, i.e. as

a Vedanga.

 

So I personally don't see anything wrong in the name "Vedic astrology". It is a very apt name.

 

Just FYI, the BA distance education course offered by SJC and Kavikulaguru

Kalidas Sankrit University is called BA in "Vedanga Jyotish". That is a very

appropriate Sanskrit name for Vedic astrology.

 

Regarding the history of astrology, this gentleman has his own unfounded views,

just as I have my own unfounded views, and we don't know who is correct. He may

think that Indians did not know any astronomy before 2nd century AD. But planets

and rasis/nakshatras occupied by them on various dates were mentioned by Valmiki

in Ramayana and by Vyasa in Mahabharata. The author probably thinks that they

lived after 2nd century AD. Well, he may be right. Or he may be badly off.

 

So it is useless to talk about the historical factors.

 

May Jupiter's light shine on us,

Narasimha

-------------------------------Free Jyotish

lessons (MP3): http://vedicastro.home.comcast.netFree Jyotish software

(Windows): http://www.VedicAstrologer.org

SJC website:

http://www.SriJagannath.org-------------------------------

 

> thought the list might want to digest this missive against astrology:> > Vedic

astrology - the greatest fraud on the Vedas > Avtar Krishen Kaul, President, All

India Calendar Reform Committee> Predictive gimmicks of "Vedic astrology" are

being peddled all around us these days! However, there are no Rashis

(astrological signs) in the Vedas though nakshatras i.e. the real

constellations have been referred to times without number. So have the Sun and

the moon. Similarly, Brihaspati (Jupiter) and Shukra (Vena--Venus) have been

indicated at certain places, but only with reference to their being preceptors

of Devas and Asuras respectively. Rahu/Kethu have been indicated as Swarbhanu

and that also only in the context of eclipses. Thus planets like Budha

(Mercury), Mangal (Mars) and the much dreaded Shani (Saturn) are conspicuous by

their absence in the Vedas! Besides, the 3500 year old Vedanga Jyotisha, the

earliest work of Vedic astronomy, just enunciates the methodology of

calculating tithi, nakshatra, solar and lunar months like Tapah/Magha etc.

apart from Ayanas and adhikamasas-intercalary months. There also no rashis

(astrological signs) have been mentioned nor any other planets except the sun

and the moon. Same is the case with Yajur and Atharva Jyotisha. Jain

astronomical works like Surya Pragyapti of the early centuries of pre-Christian

era also are silent about Rashis and planets! Garga Hora is also silent to the

extent that not even weekdays have been mentioned in any of these shastras!> >

Surya Sidhanta of about 2nd century AD is said to be the first work of

astronomy containing details of planetary calculations with reference to

ecliptic and the Equinoxes etc. The Surya sidhanta that we have these days

gives entirely different fundamental arguments from the Surya Sidhanta as given

by Varahamihira in his Pancha Sidhantika! As everybody knows, this Surya

Sidhanta is supposed to have been "revealed" by the sun god to a Yavana named

Maya! Surprisingly, even Varahamihira himself refers to yavanas as "mlechhas"!

In other words, the sun god did not find even a single Hindu soul in the whole

of the pre-Christian India worthy of such "divine" knowledge that he had to

reveal it to a "mlechha"! Do you know why? Because we in India did not believe

in our fate being "revealed" to us! We believed in "doing our duty"! As per the

Gita, when Arjuna said that he was not sure as to whether Kauravas or Pandavas

would win the battle, Bhagwan Krishna did not ask him to go and enquire from a

jyotishi whether he would win or lose the war but He just advised him that if

he (Arjuna) got killed in the battlefield he would go to the heavens and if he

won the war he would be the "master of all he surveyed". Clearly, Lord Krishna

Himself did not believe in "fate being revealed" and "remedial measure

suggested as per planetary indications". > > The meaning is very clear: There

were no jhyotishis around then and if there were any, they were not to be

consulted! > > Not only our shastras but even the sidhantas like the Surya

sidhanta or Aryabhati etc. have never asked us to prepare any horoscopes from

them and then find out how we were going to fare in our lives! In fact they are

quite silent about predictive astrology. Right from the Vedanga Jyotisha to

Sidhanta Shiromani - the alpha and omega of Hindu astronomy, the sidhantas say

that for determining the proper timings for conducting Vedic rituals -

yajnyas--- these sidhantas are to be used. It is only Varahamihira who has

written something on predictive astrology and also compiled Panchasidhantika!

But we must not forget that he has not produced any single original

astronomical work of his own but just compiled a work of five sidhantas!

Ironically, in all those five sidhantas viz. i) Paulisha, (i) Romaka, (iii)

Vasishtha (iv) Pitamaha, and (v) Surya Sidhanta, only the last one viz. the

Surya sidhanta gives the fundamental arguments for planetary calculations! And

Varaha has referred to it as the "most accurate" one. By implication the Surya

Sidhanta we have with us today is not "that accurate" either! In other words,

even the Greco-Chaldean planetary astronomy imported by us in India has been

tampered with. > > Not surprisingly, Varahamihira has used more Greek words in

his works of predictive astrology like Brihat Jatakam and Brihat (Varahi)

Samhita etc, thus showing his "indebtedness" to Greek astrologers! > > Even if

we presume for a moment that our ancestors of post Varahamihira had nothing

else to do except for preparing horoscopes, the funniest point is that even

Varahamihira himself would not have been able to prepare his own horoscope

correctly from his own much praised Surya Sidhanta since the fundamental

arguments in that Surya Sidhanta also are absolutely wrong as per modern

astronomical data, courtesy NASA/JPL Same is the case with all the other later

sidhantas including the Sidhanta Shiromani of Bhaskara - II of 12th century! >

> It is thus clear that to call any predictive system as Vedic is playing a

great fraud on the Vedas. It is also against the Consumer Protection Act since

it is a misrepresentation of facts. It has also resulted in our becoming a

laughing stock in the eyes of the whole world since we are celebrating

geographical phenomena like Winter/Summer Solstice (Makara/Karka Sankrantis)

and Spring/Autumn Equinoxes (Mesha/Tula sankrantis) also at least after 24 days

of the real phenomena thanks to the so called non-existent nirayana rashichakras

galore invented by "Vedic astrologers". > > We have to put a full stop to all

this and every Hindu is requested to kindly stop celebrating festivals on wrong

days like Pitramavasya on the day of actual Dipavali and so on. > > For further

details you are requested to kindly visit: > >

HinduCalendar> > [Non-text portions of this

message have been removed]

[Guest guest]

No idea why you had to reply someone who does not even understand

the effect of equinoctical precession on the zodiacs.

 

I had written to him more than 6 months ago on this very thing, and

explained how ludicrous it was to go by tropical zodiacs, totally

ignoring precession. Not surprisingly, I got no reply.

 

I remember reading his suggestion somewhere to "make a bonfire of

present Hindu calendars". That is not the language of a person

intent on making a reasoned exegesis.

 

gravipause

 

 

vedic astrology, "Narasimha P.V.R. Rao"

<pvr@c...> wrote:

> Namaste,

>

> Well, Jyotisha may or may not be mentioned in Vedas. But that is

immaterial. It is one of the Vedangas (veda+angas, i.e. limbs of

Veda). RigVeda, YajurVeda etc are the four heads of the Veda Purusha

(the personification of Vedic knowledge). There are other limbs of

Veda Purusha and Jyotisha IS mentioned as one, i.e. as a Vedanga.

>

> So I personally don't see anything wrong in the name "Vedic

astrology". It is a very apt name.

>

> Just FYI, the BA distance education course offered by SJC and

Kavikulaguru Kalidas Sankrit University is called BA in "Vedanga

Jyotish". That is a very appropriate Sanskrit name for Vedic

astrology.

>

> Regarding the history of astrology, this gentleman has his own

unfounded views, just as I have my own unfounded views, and we don't

know who is correct. He may think that Indians did not know any

astronomy before 2nd century AD. But planets and rasis/nakshatras

occupied by them on various dates were mentioned by Valmiki in

Ramayana and by Vyasa in Mahabharata. The author probably thinks

that they lived after 2nd century AD. Well, he may be right. Or he

may be badly off.

>

> So it is useless to talk about the historical factors.

>

> May Jupiter's light shine on us,

> Narasimha

> -------------------------------

> Free Jyotish lessons (MP3): http://vedicastro.home.comcast.net

> Free Jyotish software (Windows): http://www.VedicAstrologer.org

> SJC website: http://www.SriJagannath.org

> -------------------------------

>

> > thought the list might want to digest this missive against

astrology:

> >

> > Vedic astrology - the greatest fraud on the Vedas

> > Avtar Krishen Kaul, President, All India Calendar Reform

Committee