Everything about Varahamihira totally explained
Daivajna Varāhamihira (
Devanagari: वराहमिहिर;
505 –
587), also called Varaha, or Mihira was an
Indian
astronomer,
mathematician, and
astrologer born in
Ujjain. Varahamihira's picture may be found in the Indian Parliament alongside
Aryabhata's, of whom he was a follower. He is considered to be one of the nine jewels (
Navaratnas) of the court of legendary king
Vikramaditya (thought to be the
Gupta emperor
Chandragupta II Vikramaditya).
Works
Pancha-Siddhantika
Varahamihira's main work is the book (or
Pancha-Siddhantika, "[Treatise] on the Five [Astronomical]
Canons) dated ca.
575 CE gives us information about older Indian texts which are now lost. The work is a treatise on mathematical astronomy and it summarises five earlier astronomical treatises, namely the
Surya Siddhanta,
Romaka Siddhanta,
Paulisa Siddhanta,
Vasishtha Siddhanta and
Paitamaha Siddhantas. It is a compendium of
native Indian as well as
Hellenistic astronomy (including Greek, Egyptian and Roman elements).
The 11th century Arabian scholar
Alberuni also described the details of "The Five Astronomical Canons":
» "They [theIndians] have 5 Siddhāntas:
*Sūrya-Siddhānta, ie. the Siddhānta of the Sun, composed by Lāṭa,
» *Vasishtha-siddhānta, so called from one of the stars of the Great Bear, composed by Vishnucandra,
*Pulisa-siddhānta, so called from Paulisa, the Greek, from the city of Saintra, which I suppose to be Alexandria, composed by Pulisa.
» *Romaka-siddhānta, so called from the Rūm, ie. the subjects of the Roman Empire, composed by Śrīsheṇa.
*Brahma-siddhānta, so called from Brahman, composed by Brahmagupta, the son of Jishṇu, from the town of Bhillamāla between Multān and Anhilwāra, 16 yojanas from the latter place."
Brihat-Samhita
Varahamihira's other most important contribution is the encyclopedic
Brihat-Samhita.
Varahamihira also made important contributions to
mathematics. He was also an astrologer. He wrote on all the three main branches of
Jyotisha astrology:
Brihat Jataka - is considered as one the five main treatises on Hindu astrology on horoscopy.
Daivaigya Vallabha
Laghu Jataka
Yoga Yatra
Vivaha Patal
His son Prithuyasas also contributed in the Hindu astrology; his book "Hora Saara" is a famous book on horoscopy.
Western influences
The Romaka Siddhanta ("Doctrine of the Romans") and the Paulisa Siddhanta ("Doctrine of Paul") were two works of Western origin which influenced Varahamihira's thought.
A comment in the Brihat-Samhita by Varahamihira says: "The Greeks, though impure, must be honored since they were trained in sciences and therein, excelled others....." ("mleccha hi yavanah tesu samyak shastram kdamsthitam/ rsivat te 'p i pujyante kim punar daivavid dvijah" (Brihat-Samhita 2.15)).
Some important trigonometric results attributed to Varahamihira
»
»
He not only presented his own observations, but embellished them in attractive poetic and metrical styles. The usage of a large variety of meters is especially evident in his Brihat Jataka and Brihat-Samhita.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Varahamihira'.
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