Parahita
Encyclopedia
Parahita is a system of astronomy prevalent in Kerala
and Tamil Nadu
, India
. It was introduced by the Kerala astronomer Haridatta
, (c. 683 AD).
Nilakanthan Somayaji (1444–1544), in his DrkkaraNa, relates how Parahita was created based
on the combined observations of a group of scholars who had gathered for a festival at Tirunāvāy on the banks of the Bhāratappuzha River. The Sanskrit
etymology literally means "for the benefit of the common man", and the intention was to simplify astronomical computations so that everyone could do it.
Parahita is a significant step in the simplification of the siddhantic
tradition.
Of the two texts of the system, Grahacāranibandhana and Mahāmārganibandhana, only the former is known. The system simplified the computational cycle of the Aryabhatiya
by introducing a sub-aeon of 576 years and introduced a zero correction called vVāgbhāva based on which the system worked accurately around the time of Haridatta.
Also Haridatta simplified the representation of numerals from the cumbersome notation of Aryabhata
to the katapayadi system which gained wide currency in later Kerala mathematics. In the katapayadi system, numerals may be represented by various letters so that the large numerical tables required for astronomical computations could be represented as verses and memorized.
The work Grahacāranibandhana-sangraha (932 AD) gives further details of the parahita technique. The methods were revised and some of the constants updated by Parameswara in his DrggaNita (1483), and by Achyuta Pisharati
in his rAsigolasphuTanIti (1600).
Kerala
or Keralam is an Indian state located on the Malabar coast of south-west India. It was created on 1 November 1956 by the States Reorganisation Act by combining various Malayalam speaking regions....
and Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu is one of the 28 states of India. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu lies in the southernmost part of the Indian Peninsula and is bordered by the union territory of Pondicherry, and the states of Kerala, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. It was introduced by the Kerala astronomer Haridatta
Haridatta
Haridatta was an astronomer-mathematician of Kerala, India, who is believed to be the promulgator of the Parahita system of astronomical computations. This system of computations is widely popular in Kerala and Tamil Nadu. According to legends, Haridatta promulgated the Parahita system on the...
, (c. 683 AD).
Nilakanthan Somayaji (1444–1544), in his DrkkaraNa, relates how Parahita was created based
on the combined observations of a group of scholars who had gathered for a festival at Tirunāvāy on the banks of the Bhāratappuzha River. The Sanskrit
Sanskrit
Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
etymology literally means "for the benefit of the common man", and the intention was to simplify astronomical computations so that everyone could do it.
Parahita is a significant step in the simplification of the siddhantic
Siddhanta
Siddhanta, a Sanskrit term, roughly translates as the Doctrine or the Tradition. It denotes the established and accepted view of a particular school within Indian philosophy.-Hindu philosophy:...
tradition.
Of the two texts of the system, Grahacāranibandhana and Mahāmārganibandhana, only the former is known. The system simplified the computational cycle of the Aryabhatiya
Aryabhatiya
Āryabhaṭīya or Āryabhaṭīyaṃ, a Sanskrit astronomical treatise, is the magnum opus and only extant work of the 5th century Indian mathematician, Āryabhaṭa.- Structure and style:...
by introducing a sub-aeon of 576 years and introduced a zero correction called vVāgbhāva based on which the system worked accurately around the time of Haridatta.
Also Haridatta simplified the representation of numerals from the cumbersome notation of Aryabhata
Aryabhata
Aryabhata was the first in the line of great mathematician-astronomers from the classical age of Indian mathematics and Indian astronomy...
to the katapayadi system which gained wide currency in later Kerala mathematics. In the katapayadi system, numerals may be represented by various letters so that the large numerical tables required for astronomical computations could be represented as verses and memorized.
The work Grahacāranibandhana-sangraha (932 AD) gives further details of the parahita technique. The methods were revised and some of the constants updated by Parameswara in his DrggaNita (1483), and by Achyuta Pisharati
Achyuta Pisharati
Acyuta Piṣāraṭi was an Sanskrit grammarian, astrologer, astronomer and mathematician who studied under Jyeṣṭhadeva and was a member of Mādhava of Sañgamāgrama's Kerala school of astronomy and mathematics...
in his rAsigolasphuTanIti (1600).