Brief Summary of the Book
The Orion
Or research onto
The Antiquity of Vedas
Tilak states
that the high antiquity of the Egyptian civilization is an accepted fact.
However, the scholars hesitated to accept the antiquity of Vedic Civilization
earlier than 2400 BCE. He has tried, to show and explain in this book, that the
traditions recorded in the Rgved point to a period around 4000 BCE, when the
vernal equinox was in Orion (The Dog Star), or when the Dog-star commenced the
equinoctial year.
He reasons
how legends corroborated in later Sanskrit works are corroborated by the
legends of Iran and Greece. He has placed all this evidence, in the form of
explanations and interpretations of various texts, quoted by him. He has used
the astronomical method for his interpretation of the Sanskrit texts. He has
not touched upon the antiquity of the epic texts the Ramayan and Mahabharat, as
he found that some accounts in the Puranas are conflicting.
He discusses
how time was documented by ancient Aryans in performing various rituals. In
doing so the Aryans must have had some sort of method to calculate time. Vedic
literature and legends across the Indian continent were also important sources,
which he has considered. He shows how all legends, originating from the same
astronomical configuration as recorded in Vedic and later Puranic texts existed
in Greeks, Parsis, Germans, Egyptians and others in a similar form.
Tilak states
that the opinions of the scholars were formed based on the traditions current
during their times. This was evident from their treatises and hence the notions
of Christian scholars do not place antiquity beyond 4000 BCE. However, some
Indian theologists and scholars believe Vedas to have come down from unknown
antiquity.
He admits
that the astronomical method of determining antiquity is a bit vague because it
cannot determine the exact dates of all Vedic hymns or works. However, it is
definitely logical and more accurate than the linguist methods. He also states
and corrects the misconception that Hindu astronomers could not have borrowed
it from Greeks/ Egyptians. The extraordinary history of Indian science is
similarly ignored or, as some would argue, deliberately downplayed. The Vedic
priests/ Aryas seem to have mastered the art of timekeeping all for their
yearly rituals.
He has,
therefore confined his work to the interpretation of Vedic texts and related
Puranic accounts and astronomical references therein to corroborate his
findings, in deciding the antiquity of the Vedas and corresponding evolution of
the Aryanic race. He claims that there is no reasonable objection to placing
the Vedic literature further back by 1000 years or so around 4000 BCE.
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