Does Hindu Astrology Predate Vedic Astrology?

Western astrology is rooted in ancient Egyptian and Babylonian philosophies of life, while Vedic astrology, which originated in the Hellenistic period around 332-30 BCE, is more recent. Some scholars claim that the Babylonians invented the zodiac of 360 degrees around 700 BCE, possibly earlier. India may have received knowledge of the zodiac from Babylonia or even later from Greece. However, as old as the Rig Veda, the oldest Vedic text, there are clear references to Vedic astrology.

The origins of astrology can be traced back to ancient Mesopotamia, particularly Babylon, where astronomers closely observed the night sky and correlated celestial events with earthly occurrences. Indian astrology may be considered “Vedic” in that it is part of today’s Vedic tradition but is much younger than the Vedas and has many elements that were not developed in India but in Mesopotamia, Egypt, and Greece. Some scholars believe that Vedic astrology may have its roots in even older astronomical practices dating back to the Indus Valley civilization.

Babylonian astrology, the first known organized system of astrology, has records that go back to 2000 BC. The earliest evidence for astrology dates from the 3rd millennium BC, with roots in calendrical systems used to predict seasonal shifts. The key ideas found in Babylonian astronomy of 700 BC are already present in the Vedic texts, which even by the most conservative scholars are still present.

Both Vedic and Babylonian astrology have been mediated to India through the Greeks, part of a large site on classical astrology. The zodiac achieved its form we know today under the Babylonians in the first millennium BC, and its origins in the region are debated.

Which civilization started astrology?

Astrology, a form of divination that focuses on the influence of stars and planets on earthly affairs and human destinies, originated in Mesopotamia around the 3rd millennium BC and spread to India. It developed its Western form in Greek civilization during the Hellenistic period and was later incorporated into Islamic culture. Astrology was also significant in ancient China, where horoscopes were customary for newborns and life decisions.

Al-Bīrūnī, a Muslim astronomer, mathematician, ethnographist, anthropologist, historian, and geographer, served over six princes during a period of political turmoil in the eastern Islamic world. He served over six princes known for their bellicose activities.

Faust, a hero in Western folklore and literature, is a German astrologer who sells his soul to the devil in exchange for knowledge and power. There were two historical Fausts, one of whom alluded to the devil multiple times. Despite the Copernican system’s impact on astrology, interest in the subject continues into modern times, with astrological signs believed to influence personality.

What is the true origin of astrology?

Astrology, a branch of divination, originated in Mesopotamia around the 3rd millennium BC and spread to India. It developed its Western form in Greek civilization during the Hellenistic period. Astrology entered Islamic culture as part of the Greek tradition and was returned to European culture through Arabic learning during the Middle Ages. According to the Greek tradition, the heavens are divided according to the 12 constellations of the zodiac, with bright stars casting spiritual influences on human affairs.

Astrology was also important in ancient China, with horoscopes being cast for newborns and life-changing events. Despite the Copernican system eradicating the geocentric worldview required for astrology, interest in astrology has continued into modern times, with astrological signs believed to influence personality.

Is Vedic the oldest?

The Vedas, composed in Vedic Sanskrit, are the oldest scriptures of Hinduism and the oldest layer of Sanskrit literature. There are four Vedas: the Rigveda, the Yajurveda, the Samaveda, and the Atharvaveda. Each Veda has four subdivisions: Samhitas (mantras and benedictions), Brahmanas (comments on rituals, ceremonies, and sacrifices), Aranyakas (text on rituals, ceremonies, sacrifices, and symbolic-sacrifices), and Upanishads (texts discussing meditation, philosophy, and spiritual knowledge).

Some scholars add a fifth category, Upāsanās (worship), which discusses ideas akin to heterodox sramana traditions. The Samhitas and Brahmanas describe daily rituals and are generally meant for the Brahmacharya and Gr̥hastha stages of the Chaturashrama system, while the Aranyakas and Upanishads are meant for the Vānaprastha and Sannyasa stages, respectively. The Vedas are a significant body of religious texts originating from ancient India and serve as the oldest scriptures of Hinduism.

What are the oldest forms of astrology?

Astrology has been a significant cultural tradition for centuries, with various cultures including the Indians, Chinese, and Maya developing elaborate systems for predicting terrestrial events from celestial observations. The Old Babylonian period of Mesopotamia saw the practice of astrology, with Vedāṅga Jyotiṣa being one of the earliest known Hindu texts on astronomy and astrology. Chinese astrology was elaborated in the Zhou dynasty, and Hellenistic astrology after 332 BCE mixed Babylonian astrology with Egyptian Decanic astrology in Alexandria. Alexander the Great’s conquest of Asia allowed astrology to spread to Ancient Greece and Rome, where it was associated with “Challean wisdom”.

After the conquest of Alexandria in the 7th century, astrology was taken up by Islamic scholars, and Hellenistic texts were translated into Arabic and Persian. In the 12th century, Arabic texts were imported to Europe and translated into Latin. Major astronomers like Tycho Brahe, Johannes Kepler, and Galileo practiced as court astrologers. Astrological references also appear in literature, with poets like Dante Alighieri and Geoffrey Chaucer and playwrights like Christopher Marlowe and William Shakespeare.

Astrology was considered a scholarly tradition, accepted in political and academic contexts, and connected with other studies such as astronomy, alchemy, meteorology, and medicine. However, new scientific concepts in astronomy and physics called astrology into question, leading to its decline in academic and theoretical standing.

Did astrology originate in Babylon?

Babylonian astrology, the first organized system of astrology, emerged in the second millennium BC and was used by priests in Babylon and Assyria to determine the will and intentions of gods. It was one of the two main means for priests to ascertain the will of the gods, alongside the inspection of sacrificial animal livers. While there is speculation that astrology may have appeared in the Sumerian period, the evidence of ancient celestial omens is insufficient to establish an integrated theory.

The history of scholarly celestial divination is generally reported to begin with late Old Babylonian texts around 1800 BC, continuing through the Middle Babylonian and Middle Assyrian periods around 1200 BC.

Is Vedic astrology the oldest?

Astrology in India has its roots in the Vedic period, with the Vedanga Jyotisha being the only work of this class to have survived. It contains rules for tracking the motions of the sun and moon in a five-year intercalation cycle. The date of this work is uncertain, as its late style of language and composition conflict with some internal evidence of a much earlier date in the 2nd millennium BC. Indian astronomy and astrology developed together, with the earliest treatise on Jyotisha, the Bhrigu Samhita, compiled by the sage Bhrigu during the Vedic era.

The documented history of Jyotisha in the subsequent newer sense of modern horoscopic astrology is associated with the interaction of Indian and Hellenistic cultures through the Greco-Bactrian and Indo-Greek Kingdoms. The oldest surviving treatises, such as the Yavanajataka or Brihat-Samhita, date to the early centuries AD. The Samhita (Compilation) is said to contain five million horoscopes, comprising all who have lived in the past or will live in the future. The first named authors writing treatises on astronomy are from the 5th century AD, the date when the classical period of Indian astronomy can be said to begin.

Which astrology is more accurate, Vedic or Western?

Vedic astrology is superior to Western astrology due to its distinctive dasha system, which is based on Nakshatras, and thus enables more precise forecasting of future occurrences.

Are Vedas older than Mesopotamia?

The civilization of Mesopotamia, which dates back approximately 3, 000 to 4, 000 years, is not the same as that of the Vedic civilization.

How many years old is the Vedic astrology?

Indian astrology emerged around 1200 BCE when monk Lagadha compiled the Vedānga-Jyotiṣa, which described lunar and solar months, seasons, years, yugas, constellations, eclipses, planets, and zodiac signs. From 500 BCE to the Christian era, nineteen sages composed Siddhāntas, including Candra-prajnapti, Sūrya-prajnapti, and Jyotiṣakaraṇḍaka. The Sūryasiddhānta, the ancient Indian astrology text, was composed around 200 BCE. In the first five centuries of the Christian era, Jain made significant contributions to the subject.

What is the oldest house system in astrology?

The whole sign house system, also known as the “Sign-House system”, is a 30° house division system used in Hellenistic and Indian astrology. It is believed to be the oldest form of house division and may have been developed around the 1st or 2nd century BCE. The system was passed on to the Indian and early Medieval traditions of astrology, but its transmission to India from Western locales is contested.

In the Medieval period, around the 10th century, whole sign houses fell into disuse in the western tradition. By the 20th century, it was completely unknown in the western astrological community, but it was continually used in India until the 1980s and 1990s. The distinction between equal houses and whole sign houses lies in the fact that the cusp of the 1st house is the beginning of the sign that contains the ascendant, while in equal houses the degree of the ascendant is itself the cusp of the 1st house.

There is debate surrounding the claims that whole sign houses was the original form of house division and the dominant form among ancient astrologers. Some argue that it is never explicitly mentioned in the text of any ancient astrologer when explaining how to divide up the houses, while others argue that it breaks with principles of primary motion and demotes the value of angularity.

The whole sign house movement is argued to have decontextualized Hellenistic astrological texts from those that preceded and proceeded them. In Europe, most astrologers previously associated with traditional astrology never really took up whole sign houses. Martin Gansten argues that in Valens, houses were often provisionally approximated by sign position alone, but calculation of places by degree was consistently upheld in principle as more accurate and useful.

How true is Vedic astrology?

Astrology has been criticized by the scientific community for lacking explanatory power for describing the universe. Scientific testing has been conducted, but no evidence has been found to support the premises or purported effects outlined in astrological traditions. Despite its status as a pseudoscience, astrology retains a position among the sciences in modern India. In 2001, India’s University Grants Commission and Ministry of Human Resource Development introduced “Jyotir Vigyan” or “Vedic astrology” as a discipline of study in Indian universities, stating that it allows for accurate predictions on time scale. This decision was backed by a 2001 judgement of the Andhra Pradesh High Court.

Despite widespread protests from the scientific community and Indian scientists working abroad, the Supreme Court dismissed a petition in 2004 that astrology was not a promotion of religion. In 2011, the Bombay High Court referred to the 2004 ruling when it dismissed a case challenging astrology’s status as a science. As of 2014, astrology continues to be taught at various universities in India, and there is a movement to establish a national Vedic University to teach astrology alongside the study of tantra, mantra, and yoga.