Hinduism
is a Scientifically proven religion we can also call it as a way of
life.
What
you are going to read is explained in a very simple manner. I could
have written in deep explaining about the sun, the degrees, other planets
and a lot of things but it would complicate things and my aim is to
put things in front of you in a very simple manner so that every one
can understand.
Before moving further I have kept few photographs so that we can get
a brief idea of our solar system.
Below
is the Image of 27 Nakshatras :
In
astronomy there are many nakshatras which consists of 7 bright stars.
This
Ursa Major points towards Polaris which is in Ursa Minor.
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Ursa Major pointing towards Polaris
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The
Ursa Major is called great bear because its stars are arranged in such
a way that they also seem to form the outline of a great bear. This
constellation consists of seven bright stars arranged in a pattern resembling
somewhat a big bear.
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Earth's North Pole and Polaris
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This constellation is also a closed group of seven stars. The arrangement
of stars in Ursa Minor is similar to those in Ursa Major, the only difference
being that the stars here are closer together and appear to form the
outline of a little bear. The stars here are less bright than those
of Ursa Major.
At the end of the tail of Ursa Minor is a very important star of average
brightness, which is called the pole star. This constellation is also
sometimes called the pole star constellation. It can be seen in the
northern part of the sky in July during the summer season.
The arrangement of stars in the Orion
constellation is as shown in the figure. Orion means hunter. The arrangement
of stars here is supposed to resemble a hunter.
The major stars of Orion shown in the figure are supposed to form the
body of a hunter. The head and limbs of the hunter are formed from other
faint stars, which are not shown in the figure. The constellation is
visible during the winter season.
The Scorpio constellation closely resembles
a scorpion complete with tail and pincers. This constellation is usually
visible in the summer season.
This constellation looks like a cluster
of twinkling gems in the night sky. This constellation is visible in
winter season.
These
7 bright stars are nothing but Saptarishis (According to Hindu and Vedic
tradition, these seven wise men became practically immortal because
of their penance and good deeds) and they keep on changing from time
to time (Manuvantara).
Out of 7 each Rishi was assigned a star making them immortal. Just like
Shukra (Venus) was assigned to Shukracharya.
The Saptarishis in the extreme north near the Dhruva / Polaris, only
one star in the southern sky has been named during vedic period.
Manu
(The Changing North Pole Star) :
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The Changing North Pole Star (manu)
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Because
of the Precession of the Earth, over the period of a Great Year the
north Pole Star changes. This is not because the stars are changing,
but because our Viewpoint of the stars changes very slowly because of
Precession.
Precession can be thought of as the slow movement of the Earth's axis
with respect to the stars. Hence, as the axis is moving, with time it
points to different places in the heavens. The dotted circle on the
figure below shows all the places that the axis will point to over a
complete Great Year. Back in 2700 BC the axis pointed to the star Thuban,
the Snake; now it points to Polaris.
The Changing Pole Star How to understand this star map: Have a look
bottom left, that's the date in years. It starts in 3000 BC, [the BC
years have a minus sign in front] when astrology was just beginning
amongst the Mesopotamian culture, and goes through to 8000 AD. As the
years change the figure is showing you a picture of the night sky at
the time. It stops momentarily at 2000 AD to show you the sky as it
looks now.
Next, have a look at the spot marked Zenith in the center of the star
map. That spot marks the point in the night sky where - over the centuries
- the North Celestial Pole lies. You can see that as the centuries pass,
different stars are the star at the Zenith. [A dotted circular line
has been drawn on the figure so you can see which stars will become
the Pole Star as the centuries pass.] Currently, the star Polaris, a
Ursae Minoris is the Pole Star. Back in 2700 BC the star Thuban, a Draconis,
in the constellation of the Dragon, was be the Pole Star. This is one
of the faintest stars in the sky to have a name, doubtless because it
was of such importance to our astrological ancestors.
Thuban,
Draconis, Vega, etc is nothing but Manu. Hence, with change in Pole
Star (Manu) Saptarishis also change.
Venus
and Shukracharya :
All
the planets rotate in anti-clockwise motion but its only Venus which
rotates clockwise. This is considered unnatural and thus out of all
the planets only Venus (Shukra) is named after Shukaracharya and considered
as Guru of Rakshash (Demons / Daityaguru).
