The Medha Journal

Please see below a letter from Dr RN Iyengar to some of his friends, including me and our fellow blogger Kosla Vepa, followed by my reply.

Friends,
Jacobi a German indologist in 1894, argued that the Vedic people knew alpha-Draconis as their Pole Star.This claim was opposed by Whitney, Keith and others who were against arguments, however logical they might have been, that would push the Rigveda to a date more ancient than 1500 BCE. It turns out Jacobi was right, even though his arguments were weak. His opponents, claiming to know the whole of the Vedic corpus, suppressed information that would have helped Jacobi. I have pursued this topic from a totally different perspective. The complete article may be read at

www.scribd.com/doc/20298010/Dhruva-the-A...edicHindu-Pole-Star-

Thanks. RN Iyengar

Dear Dr. Iyengar,
The evidence from BrP and TA assembled so ably by you and discussed is total.
Alpha Draconis should indeed have been the pole star known to the vedic Indians as a Dhruva star and confirmed by the Puranics as the Dhruva star asssociated with the story of Utthaanapada's son.
Jacobi would indeed be pleased. If you choose to use this beautiful analysis to give a range to date the vedic period, you will be more than justified.
Warm regards. Desikan.

Celestial navigation is the oldest of methods ocean goers utilized on excusions at sea. The correlation of the celestial bodies to the devas that is of our line of thought as philosophers or astronomers is in fact a science of the material concept of the universe that is also the science of the spiriual plain. I find the doctors research of the constellation sisumara or the great dolphin as well as his insight on the Rg veda higher up than that of classical astronomers. The Indian outlook perhaps is more complex. It does in fact further all of what I learned about star charts or the material science of the cosmos.

the pole star Dhurva

the place or foot of Vishnu

the star named after Prajapati located in the tail of the constellation or the concepts mentioned are somewhat parallel to the Greek astrological charts although almost all of the facts are new to me.

the article is a great read Partha

Yes, Devagura, the article is indeed very well researched and well presented and therefore , as you and I have found, it is a great read.