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Mathomathis would like to present an article on Sushruta Samhita | Medical treatment of inflamed ulcers based on the book Sushruta Samhita, volume 4: Cikitsasthana by Kaviraj Kunja Lal Bhishagratna | 1911 | 123,229 words. The article was adopted from the website: https://www.wisdomlib.org/, a detailed explanation is available on the website. This disease may be ascribed to two causes, such as the congenital (Sahaja) and that attributable to the use of injudicious diet. The first type (Sahaja) is due to a defect in the seeds of one’s parents and the second is originated from the use of unwholesome food. The symptoms, which mark the first of these two types, are emaciation and a dryness (of the body), diminished capacity of eating, too much thirst and restlessness; while the symptoms, which usually attend the latter type of the disease, are obesity, voracity, gloss of the body, increased soporific tendency and inclination for lounging in bed or on cushions. A case of emaciation, etc., (viz., the first kind of Prameha) should be remedied with nutritious food and drink, etc., whereas Apatarpana, etc., (fasting, physical exercise, depletory measures etc.), should be adopted in cases of obesity viz., the second kind of (Prameha). Forbidden Articles of Food & Drink:— All patients suffering from Prameha should forego the use of (the different species of wine and fermented liquor known as) Sauviraka, Tushodaka, Shukta, Maireya, Sura, and asava, water, oil, clarified butter, milk, any modification of the expressed juice of sugarcane, cakes, milk-curd, acid, Panaka, the flesh of domestic and aquatic animals and of those which frequent swamps or marshy places Articles of diet:— The use of sufficiently old and matured, Shali and Shashtika rice, barley, wheat, Kodrava, Uddalaka, with the different preparations of Chanaka, Adhaki, Kulattha or Mudga pulse is recommended; or the meal should be taken with the Shakas (potherbs) of bitter or astringent taste cooked with the oils of Nikumbha, lngudi, mustard or. linseed oil; or with the soup of the lean flesh of Jangala animals which are possessed of anti-diuretic properties cooked without any clarified butter and unseasoned with any acid juice. Preliminary Treatment:— The patient should be first anointed with any of the oils (of Nikumbha, lngudi, Sarshapa, Atasi, etc.); or with the medicated clarified butter cooked with the drugs of the Priyangvadi group and should also be treated with strong emetics and purgatives. After the application of purgatives, an Asthapana measure with a decoction of the drugs of the Surasadi group, mixed with honey and Saindhava salt and with the powders of Shunthi, Bhadradaru and Musta by way of an after-throw, should be resorted to. (On the eighth day) in a case attended with a burning sensation, a decoction of the Nyagrodhadi group without (i.e., mixed with a little quantity of) Sneha (oil or clarified butter) should be used (in the manner of an Asthapana). The five Medicinal remedies:— After cleansing the system, the expressed juice of Amalaka mixed with Haridra (powder) and honey should be administered. As an alternative, a decoction of Triphala, Vishala, Deva-daru and Musta or an Aksha (two Tola) measure of the Kalka (powders) of Shala, Kampillaka and Mushkaka (both of them) sweetened with honey and the expressed juice of Amalaka should be taken; or powders of the flowers of Kutaja, Kapittha, Rohita, Vibhitaka and Saptaparna (should be taken with honey, Haridra and the expressed juice of Amalaka), or a decoction of the roots, leaves, barks, flowers and fruits of Nimba, Aragvadha, Saptaparna, Murva, Kutaja, Soma-vriksha, Palasha should be given to the patient. All cases of Meha are often found to yield to the use of any of these five medicinal preparations. Specific Treatments:— Now we shall specifically describe the course of treatment to be adopted in each particular type of the disease (Prameha). A decoction of Parijata should be given in a case of Udaka-meha; a decoction of Vaijayanti in that of Ikshu-meha; a decoction of Nimba in a case of Sura-meha; a decoction of Citraka in a case of Shikata-meha; a decoction of Khadira in a case of Shanair-meha; a decoction of Patha and Aguru in a case of Lavana-meha; a decoction of Haridra and Daru-haridra in a case of Pishta-meha; a decoction of Shaptaparna in a case of Sandra-meha; a decoction of Durva, Shaivala, Plava, Hatha-karanja and Kasheruka, or that of Kakubha and red-sandal wood in a case of Shukra-meha; and a decoction of Triphala, Aragvadha and Draksha mixed with honey in a case of a Phena-meha. All decoctions, to be employed in the foregoing ten types of Kaphaja-meha, should be sweetened with honey (slightly sweetened with honey—D. R). Treatment of Pittaja Prameha:— In the Pittaja types of the disease, a decoction of the drugs of the Shala-saradi group or that of Ashvattha should be administered in a case of Nila-meha; similarly a decoction of Raja-vriksha should be given in a case of Haridra-meha; a decoction of the Nyagrodhadi group, mixed with honey, in a case of Amla-meha; a decoction of Triphla in a case of Kshara-meha; a decoction of Manjishtha and (red) Chandana in a case of Manjishtha-meha; and a decoction of Guduci, seeds of Tinduka, Kashmarya and Kharjura, mixed with honey, in a case of Shonita-meha Palliative Measures:— Now we shall describe the palliative measures to be adopted even in cases of incurable types of the disease. A Kalka compound of Kushtha, Kutaja, Patha, Hingu and Katu-rohini should be taken with a decoction of Guduci and Citraka in a case of Sarpir-meha. A patient afflicted with an attack of Vasa-meha should be made to drink a decoction of Agni-mantha or of Shimshapa. Similarly a decoction of Khadira, Kadara and Kramuka should be given in a case of Kshaudra-meha; a decoction of Tinduka, Kapittha, Shirisha, Palasha, Patha, Murva, and Dusparsa (Duralabha) mixed with honey, or the Kshara, (alkaline water) prepared from the ashes of the bones of an elephant, horse, hog, ass or camel, in a case of Hasti-meha. A gruel (Yavagu prepared in the manner of Shadanga-kalpa) with a decoction […]
The following article on Cosmo Graphical Mapping by JOSEPH E. SCHWARTZBERG is a continuation from the Previous article Cosmo Graphical Mapping | Cosmographies In Hindu Tradition | 103. Apart from painted cosmographies, a half-dozen cosmographic globes (bhugolas), all based largely on Puranic texts, are known to exist. These are of types described by Hindu astronomers, as far back as Aryabhata (b. A.D. 476). Two of these five globes are found today at the British Museum in London, and one each are at the Victoria and Albert Museum, also in London; the Museum of the History of Science at Oxford; and the Bharat Kala Bhavan in Varanasi. Author tries to refer to them as BM(A), BM(B), VA, Oxford, and BKB globes. The sixth globe was reported to Gole by N. P. Joshi of the Archaeological Survey of India, who saw it in an Indian village (location unknown). The simplest of the five globes studied, the VA globe, is a solid wooden sphere, about nineteen centimetres in diameter (shown in previous articles – Figure 5). This globe is believed to have been made in Orissa in the early to mid-nineteenth century. On it land is colored mainly in yellow, mountain ranges in a lighter peach tone, rivers in white, oceans in several colors, among which gray is most common, and text in red. The northern hemisphere of this globe shows Jambudvipa according to the four-continent earth conception (catur-dvipa vasumati). It is depicted by a lotus with four petals whose tips virtually reach the equator. East-west mountain ranges extend across each petal: there are three ranges on each of two petals (those that appear to be centered on 0° and 180° longitude) and only one on each of the others (those that appear to be centered on 90° east and west longitude). The northernmost and southernmost of the former set of ranges are shown as forested. Near what would be the northern pole, a circle within a square denotes Mount Meru, and that appears within a larger square just north of the northernmost mountain ranges. From near Mount Meru, originating within the larger square, rivers flow southward through the middle of each continent. Painted in the four inlets of ocean that separate the northern hemisphere continents are aquatic animals, boats, and four white palaces signifying the cities of Lanka, Romaka, Siddhapura, and Yamakoti, described by astronomers as occupying cardinal points on the equator. The southern hemisphere differs completely from the northern. With its six ring continents and intervening oceans, it is essentially like that of the four globes still to be discussed. Interestingly, three of the southern ring oceans are in colors other than the prevailing gray-tan, pink, and turquoise. Substantial text, written in a rather tiny Devanagari script, appears on the globe, but neither transliterations nor translations are available at present. Finally, there are unnumbered black tick marks at five-degree intervals South Asian Cartography along the prime meridian, along another meridian approximately 150 degrees to the west (in the northern hemisphere only), and around the equator. Much older and more interesting than the preceding globe is a not-quite-spherical thin brass container on which is inscribed not only a hybrid cosmography, but also a wealth of minute pictorial detail and text in Devanagari script. This artifact (plate 26), held by the Museum of the History of Science at Oxford, has been the object of detailed scholarly scrutiny by Simon Digby, who considers it not only from the perspective of traditional Indian cosmology, but also as an art historian. Supplementing Digby’s observations are a pair of diagrams kept within the sphere that provide a complete inventory of the regional features it portrays. Many of these features are also found on the BKB globe (Figure: 6, from the previous article), to which Digby’s observations also are largely applicable. Rather exceptionally, the creator of the bhugola at Oxford, one Ksemakarna, undoubtedly a Brahman, inscribed on it both his own name and the date of his work, Saka 1493 (A.D. 1571). The area of provenance, however, is not known. Digby presents evidence for several possibilities but seems to favor the view that the globe was fashioned for a wealthy patron from Saurashtra. He also suggests that the globe’s function was primarily utilitarian, probably for storing food or condiments, and that “the depiction of the regions of the earth upon it was an elegant conceit suggested by its shape.” The mean equatorial diameter of the bhugola is about 26 centimetres, and its height 22 centimetres. Joined by a hinge at the equator, both hemispheres are slightly flattened, but the northern one, though essentially round, comes to a rather gently sloping polar peak. Tick marks at one-degree intervals are inscribed around the equator and small circles are etched in at ninety-degree intervals. The bhugola’s cosmography draws primarily on Puranic sources but modifies their content in light of knowledge derived from post-Ptolemaic Sanskrit astronomers, reconciling the two “in an unscriptural but rational manner.” The upper half of the container represents the continent of Jambudvipa, and the subequatorial remainder, except for the anomalously positioned islands of Lanka and Palanka (= ?), is given over to the other six ring-shaped continents and their intervening oceans in concentric latitudinal bands. These continents necessarily diminish in size toward the southern pole, “in contrast to the common Puranic account in which they increase in size by geometrical progression (2, 4, 8 … ). As on the bhugola the largest ring of land is the closest to the Equator, they also in fact enclose one another in inverse order to that prescribed in the Puranas.” Digby notes that “theoretical distances” are inscribed in yojanas at the equator, but not below it; but he neglects to indicate which features those distances apply to. Meru-over which, astronomers reasoned, Dhruva (the Pole Star) was situated-is positioned at the northern pole rather than at the center of the four quarters of the world, which was the usual Puranic view. This placement meant that if the southernmost Puranic continent, Bharatavarsa […]
Mathomathis would like to present the following article on Buddhist Conception Of The World; The following article is available more on Shodhganga. The Buddhist texts and commentaries furnishes with the Buddhist conception of the world and the system, of which it forms a constituent. But in most cases the descriptions seem to he very much fictitious. Sober geography happens’ to appear before us only when the known and familiar places or countries are to be described. Thus the account of Jambudvipa or the Indian subcontinent is much more reliable from the geographical point of view than that of extra-Indian continents or countries. The oldest Buddhist texts describe the universe as consisting of a single circular world system which is termed as Cakkavala by them. It is surrounded by a mountain of iron which is known as Cakkavala and to which the world system owes its name. These Buddhist authors while describing the Cakkaval (= Sanskrit Cakravala)-cosmos, do not present any sort of interpretation before us and are satisfied only by cataloguing some names and measurements. The basic outlines of the single world system of the “Cakravala-cosmology,, are more or less the same throughout the Buddhist literature and form a prominent feature of the Pali texts as well as the Buddhist Sanskrit ones. The Mahaprajna-piramita-shastra and the Abhidharmakos’a, for instance, are in almost complete agreement with the details of Pali canon and commentaries in this regard. The single circular world system, however, is a prominent feature of also the Hindu and Jain cosmologies, though with many important differences in detail. Randy Kloetzli in his “Buddhist Cosmology” brings out beautifully the essential difference between the two in the following lines: “Stated briefly, it appears that the Pali Cakkavila.is intended as a more or less practical guide to the Bhikkhu in his meditations, while the Sanskrit Cakravala is part of a more self-consciously speculative system”. The Cakkavala is represented as a disk surrounded by seven circular golden mountain ranges. These mountain ranges are arranged concentrically, with Mt. Meru at the centre and the Cakkavala wall of iron at the perimeter. Proceeding outward from the center, the mountains are known as Meru, Yugandhara, Isadhara, Khadirika, Sudassana, Assakenna, Vinataka, Nimindhara and Cakkavala. Mt. Meru has a height of 80,000 yojanas and each of the mountain ranges is one half of the height of the preceding range. All of the mountains except the Cakkavila ring which is made of iron, are excrescences of the golden earth. The excellent waters of the various seas (Sita) fill the regions between the mountain ranges. The mountains penetrate these waters in an extent equal to their height. The inhabited land masses are situated in the great ocean (mahasamudra) which flows about the seventh mountain range. The four land masses located at the points of compass are spoken of as islands (dvipa, Pali dipa), and are known as Purvavideha (Eastern Yideha) in the east, Jambudvipa in the south, Aparagoyana or Ap aragodaniya (Western Pasturage) in the west and Uttarakuru (Northern Kuru-land) in the north. These four islands of the Cakkavala are distinguished from each other in a number of way, particularly with regard to the size, shape and duration of life of their inhabitants. These four Great continents are lit up in succession at an interval of six hours from each other by the sun turning round Meru. All these are said to rest bn a layer of golden earth (Kancanamayi bhumi) which: is definitely fictitious. The importance of this conception, however, cannot be doubted. The Puranas also speak of the lokaloka mountain which surrounds the circular world and is composed of the golden earth. No ring mountain is to be found in the Puranas although a series of seven ring islands and seven seas 5 encircling them occur in.their places. It may be said that the concentric islands and the seven surrounding seas of the Puranas are juxtaposed to the circular mountain system of the Buddhist cosmology.’” The interest of the oldest Buddhist tradition in this regard seems to have been limited to a single world system. But we also find traces of themes associated with multiple world systems in Pali canonical texts. A 10,000 world system .6 is mentioned in the Jatakas, though with little elaboration. It has been dealt with in a systematic way in Buddhaghosa’s Atthasalinl,~” commentary on the Dhammasanganl, which states, that four things are infinite, viz., space, the number of universe, the number of living beings and the wisdom of the Buddha In the Majjhima Nikaya (Samkharuppatti sutta) a sahasso brahma governing a sahassl lokadhatu has been distinguished from a dvisahasso brahma, a trisahasso brahma, a catussahasso brahma, pancasahasso brahma and a satasahasso brahma. These gods rule over 1,000 up to (1000∧100) worlds In the Buddhist Sanskrit text Mahavastu we read that the Buddhaksetra is the equivalent of sixtyone. triple chiliocosms, while an upaksetra is four times as large Ekasastim trisahasrani Buddhaksetram pariksitam Ato caturgunam jneyam upaksetram tathividhsm. The Mahaprajna-para-mitasastra and the Avatamsakasutra also speak of this thousand world system. For the most part, however, it is the trisahasra mahasahasra lokadhatu which emerges as the cosmological equivalent of the buddhaksetra. A very well-known passage on this concept, occurs m the Anguttara Nikaya. Now, we may speak a few words about the great mountain Mem or Maha Meru. According to some scholars Mt. Meru appears to be an exaggeration of the Himalayan range. It has been described as being at the summit and at the base 10,000 yojanas in diameter and in circumference 31,428 yojanas, 2 gows, 22 isubus, 18 yastis or stay.es and 1 cubit. Leaving out the upper part at the distance of 42,000 yojanas from the summit on a level with the rocks called Yugandhara, it is 30.000 yojanas in diameter and in circumference, 94,285 yojanas, 2 gows, 68 isubus, 11 yastis and 3 cubits, and in the centre it is 50,000 yojanas in diameter and in circumference 157,142 yojanas, 3 gows, 34 isubus, 5 yastis, and 5 cubits. From the base […]
Hindu Scriptures & Sanskrit Literature | Mathomathis would like to present an article on Root By Kadambi Srinivasan | Published by | Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams | Tirupati 2019. The following article will explain about the creation of the universe by adopting the concepts of vedas and upanishad. Do note that, every concepts including the so called “modern science” has its own way on intercepting the cosmic creations. Readers are expected to have an open thought before making any judgemental thoughts in the article explained. King Prithu: One of the descendants of Dhruva was a tyrant named Vena. He would not listen to advice from his ministers and continued with his reign of terror. The Rishis then invoked the God of death and Vena died. After the death of Vena, the land had no king to rule. Eventually with the help of penance of the Rishis a boy and a girl was born. They named the boy as Prithu. The girl was named Archis. From the lakshanas, the Rishis knew that he was born from an amsha (part of) of Lord Narayana. Archis was Sri Maha Lakshmi. When he was old enough, the boy was crowned as king. After he was crowned as king, the Rishis called him Prithu, the great protector of the world. Prithu noticed that his subjects were thin and emaciated. He concluded that Earth was not yielding enough. So he confronted Mother Earth and decided to punish her. Mother earth got frightened and explained that as time passed sinful acts were being committed everywhere. In a fit of anger she decided that the people were not fit enough to enjoy the wealth provided to them. However, she promised that she will now agree to yield enough food for all people. Everyone then got what he wanted. King Prithu was very pleased with the earth and her bounty, that he made her his beloved daughter. Since then mother Earth came to called as Prithvi. He was the first king that ever won the hearts of the people. From his time kings have been called “Rajas”. “Ranj” means charm, “Ranjayati iti Raja”. Prithu was the first Raja – “Adiraja”. King Prithu performed one hundred Ashvamedhas. King Prithu’s grandson was Havirdhana who married Havirdhani. They had six children and the eldest was Barhishat. He married Shatadruti, daughter of the lord of the seas. Ten sons were born to this couple and they were famed as Prachetas. King Barhishat believed in the performance of yagnays and he performed many. Sage Narada took interest in him and initiated the Brahma Vidya advising him that it was the way for salvation. King Barhishat followed his advice. Prachetas, the ten sons of King Barhishat, were great devotees of Lord Narayana. Lord Mahadeva was pleased with them and decided to help them. He taught them Rudra Gita and asked them to repeat it with a steady mind in order to gain the favour of Lord Narayana. They did that. The Lord Narayana was pleased with their devotion and asked them to marry Marisha, daughter of an Apsara. He also told the brothers that she will bear them a son whose fame will spread all over the world. All ten of them married Marisha. A son was born to them and he was Daksha. It was the same Daksha Prajapati who insulted Lord Mahadeva. He was born as a human being for the sin he committed. Prachetas crowned Daksha as the king and left for the forest. However, he too left for the forest to perform Tapas. In the previous article, it was mentioned that Svayambhu Manu had two sons – Priyavrata and Uttanapada. We learnt earlier that Uttanapada’s son was the famed Dhruva. Priyavrata was the eldest son of the Manu. However, he had no desire to rule the kingdom and left for the forest to perform Tapas. Uttanapada and later Dhruva ruled the land. However, when Daksha, their descendant, left for the forest, the land was without a ruler. Lord Brahma went to Priyavrata and persuaded him to take up the reins of ruling the kingdom. Priyavrata married Barhishmati, daughter of Vishvakarma. Ten sons and a daughter were born to them. Agnitra was the eldest son. Three of his brothers left to the forest to perform Tapas. Agnitra and his six other brothers ruled the seven islands. The daughter Ojasvati was married to Shukra and their daughter was Devayani. People were happy during his rule. Priyavrata was interested in tracing the path of the Sun. He equipped himself with a chariot fast enough to travel with the Sun. He travelled with the Sun around the Earth seven times. The moats formed by the quick progress of his chariot became the seven great seas. They were named:- Lavan Ikshu Sura Sarpi Dadhi Kshira and Madhu. The earth divided into seven islands. They were named:- Jambu Plaksha Shalmali Kusha Krauncha Shaka and Pushkara King Bharata:- Agnitra’s son was Nabhi and he had no children. He performed a great sacrifice where he worshipped Lord Narayana. The Lord was pleased with Nabhi and promised that he will be born as a son to Nabhi. The child was named Rishabha. Rishabha was crowned as the king after Nabhi. Rishabha married Jayanti the daughter of Indra. They had hundred sons; the eldest of them was Bharata. Bharata was a great king and the land was called Bharatavarsha after him. After a long number of years, Bharata decided to retire to the forest. He distributed his kingdom among his sons he went away to the ashrama of sage Pulaha near Haridwar. He worshipped Lord Narayana with great devotion. His heart was filled with peace born out of renunciation and detachment. One day he rescued a new-born deer when her mother died. He brought up the deer with great care and was greatly attached to it. His meditation and prayers were all things of the past. And when he died Bharata’s mind was on the deer. Since his thoughts were on […]
Mathomathis would like to present article on Indian Astronomy | Astronomical Dating of Events | 103 by the author Kosla Vepa Published by Indic Studies Foundation, 948 Happy Valley Rd., Pleasanton, Ca 94566, USA. Previous article can be found here (Indian Astronomy | Astronomical Dating of Events | 105 (Date Of Krishna)) Their website can be located Indicstudies.us. The studies is also conducted by N.S. Rajaram PhD. Author’s in the volume 1 of their research start their discussion on a topic called Why are History and the Chronology Important by Kosla Vepa PhD. One consequence of the mix up of the names of Asokaditya of the Guptas with Asoka of the Mauryas is the misdating of Buddha. According to Puranic evidence, there had expired 1500 years after Pariksit, when Mahapadmananda was coronated. Between Pariksit and the Nandas, there were three royal dynasties, Brhadratha, Pradyota and Sisunaga families. The Nandas who ruled Magadha for 100 years, were followed by Mauryas, Sunga, Kanva and Andhras. Candragupta founded the Mauryan dynasty with the help of Canakya. His son was Bimbisara and grandson was Asokavardhana. The Maurya- s ruled for a total of 316 years and were replaced by the sunga-s. The Kanva-s who succeeded the Sunga-s were themselves supplanted by the Andhra-s, who ruled for a total of 506 years. Then followed the reign of srigupta-s for a period of 245 years. This age has been termed the ‘Golden Age’ in the history of Bharata. It is Samudragupta of the srigupta dynasty who was known as “Asokaditya Priyadarsin” The “Inscriptions of Asoka” belong to this Gupta emperor and not to Asoka Maurya , who came to power after 218 years after Buddha. Buddha was the son of King Suddhodana who was the 23rd king of the Iksvaku dynasty and Puranic-records point to 1807 BCE as the date of attaining nirvana by Buddha. Just as in the case of Krsna, it appears that his date of birth is calculated after determining the date of parinirvana (final departure). Buddha’s nirvana Kota Venkatachelam has determined that Buddha’s nirvana occurred on the vaisakha Purnima, on March 27, 1807 BCE. Simulations show that astronomically this is indeed the situation as shown in Figure A. Many other scholars also agree as to the date of Buddha’s nirvana. Support for this date is derived from an independent Buddhist source, samyutta nikaya. For about three months before his death, Buddha was staying in sravasti. During this time there occurred the winter solstice, a lunar eclipse, followed by a solar eclipse. Simulations show that the winter solstice occurred on January 5, 1807 BCE. There was a lunar eclipse on January 26, 1807 BCE, which was followed by a solar eclipse on February 10, 1807 BCE, as shown in Figures B and C. It can also be seen from Figure 18 that winter solstice occurred earlier when the Sun was near dhanis{ha (the position which corresponds to 270 degrees along the ecliptic). This is exactly as recorded in samyutta nikaya, Part I, Sugatha-Vagga, Book II, Chapter I, Devaputtasam yuttam, sutta-s 9, and 10. It is interesting to compare these simulations with the calculations of Professor Sengupta, who was trying to confirm which of the usual dates, 544 BCE or 483 BCE is to be ‘accepted’ for the event of Buddha nirvana. He found that two eclipses as mentioned in the samyutta nikaya would be possible in 560 BCE, however this would be in conflict with the dates 483 BCE and 544 BCE which have been touted as possible dates of Buddha’s nirvana. Professor Sengupta considers 544 BCE to be the better date as it is closer to 560 BCE. However, the proper conclusion should be that neither of these dates Atha kho bhagava candimaM devaputtaM arabha rahuM asurindaMgathaya ajjabhasi || thatagataM arahantaM | candima saranaM gato || rahu candaM pamu~cassu | Buddha lokanukaMpakati || SN (I. ii . 1. 9.3) || Atha kho bhagava suriaM devaputtaM arabha rahuM asurindaM gathaya ajjabhasi || thatagataM arahantaM | suriyaM saranaM gato || rahu pamu~ca suriyaM | Buddha lokanukaMpakati || SN (I. ii . 1. 10.3) || are the correct ones according to saMyutta nikaya. But, 1807 BCE is consistent with the eclipse data. It should be pointed out that a search from 1900 BCE to 400 BCE for the set of astronomical data, namely, winter solstice, lunar eclipse, solar eclipse followed by vaisakha purnima, yields about a dozen dates: 1807 BCE, 1694BCE, 1659BCE, 1564BCE, 1510BCE, 1250BCE, 1192BCE, 1138BCE, 1119BCE, 1062BCE, 1007BCE, 765BCE, 690BCE and 560BCE. If the restriction of a time limit of about three months is imposed, the last three do not qualify, leaving only the dates prior to 1000 BCE. The astronomical information is not sufficient to further narrow the possible choice. It is interesting to note that the ‘traditionally’ accepted dates, 544 BCE or 483 BCE do not fit the picture, neither do the recently revised later dates. Buddha’s Birth: This has been discussed in great detail by Kota Venkatachelam and by Vedavyas, who gives the planetary positions at the time of Buddha’s birth on March 10, 1887 BCE. (vaisakha suddha purnima, visakha naksatra). The simulations for March 10, 1887 BCE (Figure D) shows that all the planetary positions agree with those given by Vedavyas, but the naksatra is clearly citra and not visakha. The next purnima occurs at visakha on April 9, 1887 BCE, but some of the planetary positions would have changed. Thus the date given by Vedavyas cannot be confirmed using the planetarium software. It appears that the positions of the planets were calculated by Vedavyas, after obtaining the time of Buddha’s birth on the basis of Puranic, Buddhist, and Tibetan, Chinese, Ceylonese and Japanese Buddhist sources. Table below. Planetary longitudes at the time of birth of Buddha according to Vedavyas Vaisakha suddha purnima, visakha naksatra, Tuesday at 12:15 p.m. 1887 BCE Sun 4, 54′ mesa Aries Moon 28,6′ tula Libra Mars 28,24′ mina Pisces Mercury 10,30′ mina Pisces Jupiter 8,12′ Kanya Virgo Venus 23,24′ mesa Aries Saturn 16,48′ […]