SEVENTHMAHAYUGA PART 3 5626 KR IRS
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Later Purāṇic traditions speculate that Vālmīki was the 24th Vyāsa and
place him in the 24th Dvāpara Yuga, asserting that the Rāmāyaṇa occurred at
the end of the 24th Tretā Yuga. However, such constructs appear to be later
speculative developments. While multiple Vyāsas are acknowledged in
tradition, the formal enumeration of *28 Vyāsas* is generally considered a
later doctrinal formulation, likely systematized during the Gupta period.
It is illogical to place Vālmīki in the 24th Dvāpara Yuga or to assign the
composition of the Ramayana to the end of a distant earlier Tretā Yuga.
It is impossible to sustain the view that Parāśara, the father of
Vyāsa, belonged to the 26th Dvāpara Yuga, that Jātūkarṇya—traditionally
regarded as a teacher of Vyāsa—belonged to the 27th Dvāpara, and that Vyāsa
himself lived in the 28th Dvāpara Yuga. Such a scheme separates closely
connected teacher–disciple generations across vast and impossible cyclical
intervals, which is neither supported by chronology nor by any coherent
genealogical tradition.
Therefore, the notion of a fixed succession of 28 Vyāsas—each
assigned to separate Dvāpara Yugas—may be regarded as a later doctrinal
construct rather than a historically grounded framework. It is more
methodologically sound to set aside this speculative scheme and to place
Vālmīki in the last century of the 28 th Treta Yuga (5677-5577 BCE) within
a more coherent and continuous chronological context.
Exaltation of Planets and the Birth Date of Śrī Rāma: A Critical
Examination Many scholars have aTTempted to determine the birth date of Śrī
Rāma by relying on references to planetary exaltations described in certain
verses of the Valmiki Ramayana.
Traditionally, it is stated that Śrī Rāma was born on Navamī tithi of the
month of Chaitra under Punarvasu nakṣatra. The oſten-cited verses are:
ततो ये समाɑे तु ऋतूनाम् षट् समयु तत च ादशे मासे चैे नावममके मतथौ ने अमदमत
दैवे ˢ उ सं˕ेषु पंचसु हेषु ककक टे ले वाता इंदुना सह
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Exaltation: Astrology vs Astronomy
A critical methodological distinction must be understood that astronomy is
empirical and observational whereas astrology is symbolic, subjective and
interpretative. Therefore, the exaltation (Uccha) is a normative construct
within astrological doctrine and not derived from measurable astronomical
necessity.
14
With regard to the evolutionary history of Indian astrology, internal
evidence from the Ramayana suggests that a form of Vedic astrology was
already established during the Tretā Yuga. John Playfair demonstrated that
the earliest recoverable astronomical observations, as reflected in the
ephemerides used by Indian astrologers, date to approximately 4300 BCE.
Consequently, there is no reliable information regarding the ephemerides in
use prior to this period. It follows that calculating the exaltation of
planets for the era of the Ramayana using later or modern ephemerides is
methodologically questionable. Moreover, since the available ephemerides
themselves evolved after c. 4300 BCE, any attempt to retroactively compute
planetary exaltations for earlier epochs lacks firm empirical grounding.
In Indian astrology, the traditional exaltation points of the Sun, Moon,
and the five planets are as follows:
Deep exaltation point
1 Sun Aries (10 o )
2 Moon Taurus (3 o )
3 Mars Capricorn (28 o )
4 Mercury Virgo (15 o )
5 Jupiter Cancer (5 o )
6 Saturn Libra (20 o )
7 Venus Pisces (27 o )
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It is traditionally believed that all planets were in their exalted or
ideal positions at that time. The planetary positions as described in the
Thema Mundi are as follows:
Sun sign
1 Sun Leo
2 Moon Cancer
3 Mars Scorpio
4 Mercury Virgo
5 Jupiter Sagiarius
6 Saturn Capricorn
7 Venus Libra
A Comet in Mūla Nakṣatra: A Key Anchor for Dating the Events of the
Rāmāyaṇa Era In the Yuddha Kāṇḍa of the Valmiki Ramayana, Lakṣmaṇa
describes the appearance of a comet in Mūla Nakṣatra at the time when the
Vānara army was preparing to march towards Laṅkā:
16 ना तं ना तानां च नम् अमभपीयते । मूलम् मूलवता प टं धूयते धूमकेतुना ॥ सरम्
च एत षवनाशाय रासानाम् उपजितम् । काले काल हीतानां नं हपीडितम् ॥
“Mūla Nakṣatra, associated with Nirṛti (the deity of destruction), is
severely afflicted, being struck by a comet with a luminous tail. This
portent has arisen for the destruction of the Rākṣasas; the star, as though
seized by death, is oppressed by a planet at its final hour.” This
remarkable astronomical observation recorded in the Valmiki Ramayana is, in
principle, verifiable and may serve as a key chronological anchor for
reconstructing the sequence of events in the Rāmāyaṇa era. Maharṣi Vālmīki
describes a comet (dhūmaketu) as touching the root of Mūla Nakṣatra
(prathama pāda), while the same asterism was simultaneously afflicted by a
planet.
The presiding deity (devatā) of Mūla Nakṣatra is Nirṛti, traditionally
associated with destruction and dissolution. Accordingly, the appearance of
a comet in this nakṣatra has long been regarded as an inauspicious omen.
The astronomical simulation [Stellarium soſtware, 1P Halley (1986)]
indicates that Venus occupied the Mūla region between 23 August and 23
September 5635 BCE. Significantly, Halley's Comet also appears to have
entered the region of Mūla Nakṣatra around 23 August *5635 BCE.* Its
apparent magnitude is estimated at approximately 2.14 on 23 August, making
it clearly visible to the naked eye aſter sunset. It remained visible in
Mūla Nakṣatra until 23 September and aſter which it gradually faded.
Given the traditional association of Rāvaṇa with Mūla Nakṣatra, the
appearance of Halley’s Comet in this asterism in 5635 BCE may be
interpreted, within the cultural framework of the text, as an omen
signifying the destruction of the Rākṣasas.
On this basis, it may be proposed that the absolute date of Rāma–Rāvaṇa war
can be fixed in 5635 BCE, with this cometary event serving as a potential
chronological marker. Considering its significance as one of the earliest
identifiable observations of Halley’s Comet in antiquity, this event may be
aptly designated as the “Rāmāyaṇa Comet.”
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Lunar and Seasonal Calendar of the Ramayana Era (5677-5577 BCE) Beginning
around 9322 BCE in the post-Vedic period, ancient Indians followed a Māgha
Śuklādi lunisolar calendar based on a five-year (yuga) cycle, with the year
commencing near the autumnal equinox (Śarad ṛtu). At that time, the lunar
month of Māgha coincided with the onset of the Śarad season and thus
functioned as the first month of the calendrical year.
Due to the precession of the equinoxes, the alignment between the sidereal
(nirāyaṇa) lunar months and the tropical seasons gradually shiſted over time.
As a result, the lunar calendar effectively regressed relative to the
seasons by approximately one month over ~2160 years. Ancient Indians appear
to have followed a nirāyaṇa (sidereal) lunar calendar from around 9322 BCE
onward. On this basis, the evolving relationship between lunar months and
seasons may be reconstructed as follows:
• Post-Vedic era (9322 BCE): Māgha aligned with the autumnal equinox (Śarad
ṛtu)
• Rāmāyaṇa era (5677-5577 BCE): Puṣya corresponded to the beginning of
Śarad ṛtu
• Dvāpara Yuga (5577-3177 BCE): Mārgaśīrṣa aligned with Śarad ṛtu
• Mahābhārata era (3162 BCE) : Kārttika marked the onset of Śarad ṛtu
This progression reflects a continuous sidereal framework in which the names
of lunar months remained fixed relative to nakṣatras, while their seasonal
alignment shiſted due to precession. Consequently, by the me of the
Mahabharata, the month of Māgha, which had originally coincided with the
autumnal equinox, had shiſted to occur near the winter solstice.
It is also pertinent to note that Pushya was the Agrayana month during the
Ramayana era whereas Margashirsha was the Agrayana month during the Dvapara
Yuga.
Seasons 9322-7322 BCE
Post Vedic Era 7322-5577 BCE
Ramayana Era 5577-3177 BCE
Dvapara Yuga 3177-1000 BCE
Mahabharata Era Sharad Magha & Phalguna Pushya &
Magha Margashirsha &
Pushya Kartika & Margashirsha Hemanta Chaitra &
Vaishakha Phalguna & Chaitra Magha &
Phalguna Pushya &
Magha Shishira Jyeshtha &
Ashadha Vaishakha &
Jyeshtha Chaitra &
Vaishakha Phalguna &
Chaitra Vasanta Shravana &
Bhadrapada Ashadha &
Shravana Jyeshtha &
Ashadha Vaishakha &
Jyeshtha Grishma Ashvayuja &
Kartika Bhadrapada &
Ashvayuja Shravana &
Bhadrapada Ashadha &
Shravana Varsha argashirsha &
Pushya Karka & Margashirsha Ashvayuja &
Karka Bhadrapada & Ashvayuja
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Seasonal References and the Māgha Śuklādi Calendar in the Rāmāyaṇa In view
of the Māgha Śuklādi calendar within the nirāyaṇa (sidereal) system during
the era of the Ramayana, the seasonal references in the text require
careful re-examination. While describing the Hemanta ṛtu to Rāma, Lakṣmaṇa
refers to the performance of the Agrāyaṇa ritual—a Vedic rite ssociated
with the equinox—in the Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa:
अयम् स काल संाɑ मयो य ते मयंवद अलंकृ त इव आभामत येन संवर शुभ नव आयण
पूजामभर् अɷक मपतृ देवता कृ त आयणका काले सो मवगत कʝषा .
This indicates that the Agrāyaṇa ritual was already performed on the
autumnal equinox, before the beginning of the Hemanta season during the
Rāmāyaṇa period. Numerous references to Pushya masa in the Ramayana
indicate that Agrāyaṇa ritual was performed in the Pushya lunar month.
As discussed earlier, the extant recension of the Valmiki Ramayana appears
to have been redacted or compiled between 1000–500 BCE, possibly by
scholars from Mithilā. By this time, the Tirhuta (Maithili) Vaiśākhādi
calendar was already in use.
For example, a verse in the Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa states that Rāma’s coronation was
planned in the month of Chaitra:
चीमानयं मास पुय पुजपतकानन ।
यौवरायाय रामय सवामेवपकयताम् ॥
This verse appears in consistent with other internal evidence the Araṇya
Kāṇḍa indicates that Sītā was abducted during the Hemanta season, and
Rāvaṇa granted her a period of twelve months:
णु मथिमल मत् वायम् मासान् वादश भाममतन...
In the Yuddha Kāṇḍa, it is further menoned that Sītā requested a duraon of
one saṁvatsara (year):
सा तु संवसरम् कालम् मामयाचत भाममनी...
These references suggest that Sītā’s abduction occurred at the beginning of
Hemanta, likely during the middle of Māgha.
Subsequently, Rāma and Lakṣmaṇa met Hanumān and Sugrīva, and Rāma slew Vāli
by the end of the month of Phālguna. Sugrīva was then crowned in the month
of Chaitra, aſter which he dispatched Vānara search parties in all
directions at the beginning of Vaiśākha to find Sītā. It is stated in the
Kiṣkindhā Kāṇḍa that the Vānara groups encountered the Vasanta season aſter
one month.
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तेषाम् मासो ʩमताो यो राा समय कृ त तत पु˃मतभाराान् लताशतसमावृतान् ुमान्
वासकान् वा बभूवु भयशिता
During the Ramayana era, the Vasanta season corresponded to the months of
Āṣāḍha and Śrāvaṇa. Hanumān likewise observed the onset of Vasanta in
Laṅkā.
स तु सʼ सवाकाकार˕ो महाकमप पु˃ताान् वसादौ ददशक मवमवधान् ुमान्
अयम् वस सौमम नाना मवहगनामदत सीतया मवहीण˟ शोक सȽपनो मम पूवो अयम् वामषको
मासावण समललागम वृ सौʄ चरो मासा वामषक संमता चारो वामषका मासा गता वषक शत उपमा
मम शोक अमभतɑ˟ तथा सीताम् अपʴत वषाक समय कालम् तु मताय हरीʷर ʩतीतान् चतुरो
मासान् मवहरन् न अवबुते वयम् आʷयुजे मामस कालसंाʩव˕ता ˕ता सोऽमप चातीत मकमत
कायकमुरम् Another passage indicates that the Indra-dhvaja festival,
marking the onset of the rains in South India, was celebrated on the full
moon of Āśvayuja:
इȾ ज इव उद् धूत पौणकमा˟म् महीतले अʷयुक् समये मामस गत सो मवचेतन Thus,
within the nirayana scheme of the Māgha Śuklādi calendar, Āśvayuja—not
Śrāvaṇa— appears to have marked the beginning of the rainy season. It is
likely that later Maithili redactors, who followed the Vaiśākhādi calendar,
misidenfied Śrāvaṇa as the first month of the rainy season.
If these later inconsistencies are set aside, the internal evidence of the
Ramayana suggests that a Māgha Śuklādi calendar based on a five-year yuga
cycle was in use during the Rāmāyaṇa era (5677–5577 BCE). In this
framework, the Hemanta season corresponded to the months of Māgha and
Phālguna. {KR a deduction of different time scale could have been adopted
in Ramayana period but its only an argument for the verses wrt the rtu
samhara of later Kalidasa.}
Accordingly, it is *plausible *that Sītā was abducted at the beginning of
Hemanta, i.e., in the middle of Māgha, and that Rāma defeated Rāvaṇa toward
the beginning of the Hemanta season, thereby rescuing Sītā within the
stipulated period of one year. The Uttara Kāṇḍa further indicates that Rāma
returned to Ayodhyā during the second month of Hemanta ṛtu.
Aſter his coronation, Rāma is said to have visited Aśoka Vana with Sītā and
spent the two months of the Śiśira season there.
तथा तयोमवकहरतो सीताराघवयोमʮरम्
अमत् शुभ का मशमशरो भोगद सदा
योमवकमवधान् भोगानतीत मशमशरागम
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एवं तेषां ययौ मासो मतीय शैमशर सुखं
Evidently, later redactors of the Ramayana—who composed or edited certain
verses—were unaware of the differences between the lunisolar calendar of the
Rāmāyaṇa era and that of their own time. This likely explains the presence
of contradictory seasonal descriptions in the
Text, many Ramayanas exclusive of Valmiki which was authentic.
K Rajaram IRS 5626
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