Archaeoastronomy in India

Subhash Kak
Oklahoma State University, Stillwater

Our understanding of archaeoastronomical sites in India is based not only on a rich archaeological
record and texts that go back thousands of years, but also on a living tradition that is connected to the
past. Conversely, India has much cultural diversity and a tangled history of interactions with
neighboring regions that make the story complex. The texts reveal to us the cosmological ideas that lay
behind astronomical sites in the historical period and it is generally accepted that the same idea also
apply to the Harappan era of the third millennium BCE (Kenoyer, 1998: 52-53).

In the historical period, astronomical observatories were part of temple complexes where the king was
consecrated. Such consecration served to confirm the king as foremost devotee of the chosen deity, who
was taken to be the embodiment of time and the universe (Kak, 2002a: 58). For example, Udayagiri is an
astronomical site connected with the Classical age of the Gupta dynasty (320-500 CE), which is located a
few kilometers from Vidisha in central India (Willis, 2001; Dass and Willis, 2002). The imperial Guptas
enlarged the site, an ancient hilly observatory going back at least to the 2nd century BCE at which
observations were facilitated by the geographical features of the hill, into a sacred landscape to draw
royal authority.

Indian astronomy is characterized by the concept of ages of successive larger durations, which is an
example of the pervasive idea of recursion, or repetition of patterns across space, scale and time. An
example of this is the division of the ecliptic into 27 star segments (nakshatras), with which the moon is
conjoined in its monthly circuit, each of which is further sub-divided into 27 sub-segments (upa-
nakshatras), and the successive divisions of the day into smaller measures of 30 units. The idea of
recursion underlies the concept of the sacred landscape and it is embodied in Indian art, providing an
archaeoastronomical window on sacred and monumental architecture. It appears that this was an old
idea because intricate spiral patterns, indicating recursion, are also found in the paintings of the
Mesolithic period. Tyagi (1992) has claimed that they are unique to Indian rock art.

According to the Vāstu Shāstra, the structure of the building mirrors the emergence of cosmic order out
of primordial chaos through the act of measurement. The universe is symbolically mapped into a
square that emphasizes the four cardinal directions. It is represented by the square vāstu-mandala, which
in its various forms is the basic plan for the house and the city. There exist further elaborations of this
plan, some of which are rectangular.

It is significant that yantric buildings in the form of mandalas have been discovered in North
Afghanistan that belong to a period that corresponds to the late stage of the Harappan tradition (Kak,
2000a; Kak, 2005b) providing architectural evidence in support of the idea of recursion at this time.
Although these building are a part of the Bactria-Margiana Archaeological Complex (BMAC), their
affinity with ideas that are also present in the Harappan system shows that these ideas were widely
spread.

Archaeoastronomy in India – Subhash Kak 1

Contents

1. Chronology and Overview

2. Pre-historical and Harappan Period
3. Neolithic and Megalithic Sites
4. The Plan of the Temple
5. Observatory in Udayagiri
6. Pilgrimage Complexes
7. Sacred Cities
8. Conclusions

1. Chronology and Overview

India’s archaeological record in the northwest has unbroken continuity going back to about 7500 BCE at
Mehrgarh (Kenoyer, 1998; Lal, 2002), and it has an rock art tradition, next only to that of Australia and
Africa in abundance, that is much older (Pandey, 1993; Bednarik, 2000). Some rock art has been
assigned to the Upper Paleolithic period. There is surprising uniformity, both in style and content, in
the rock art paintings of the Mesolithic period (10,000 – 2500 BCE) (Tyagi, 1992; Wakankar, 1992).

The archaeological phases of the Indus (or Sindhu-Sarasvati) tradition have been divided into four eras:
early food-producing era (c. 6500- 5000 BCE), regionalization era (5000 – 2600 BCE), integration era (2600 –
1900 BCE), and localization era (1900 – 1300 BCE) (Shaffer, 1992). The early food-producing era lacked
elaborate ceramic technology. The regionalization era was characterized by styles in ceramics, lapidary
arts, glazed faience and seal making that varied across regions. In the integration era, there is significant
homogeneity in material culture over a large geographical area and the use of the so-called Indus script,
which is not yet deciphered. In the localization era, patterns of the integration era are blended with
regional ceramic styles, indicating decentralization and restructuring of the interaction networks. The
localization era of the Sindhu-Sarasvati tradition is the regionalization era of the Ganga-Yamuna
tradition which transforms into the integration era of the Magadha and the Mauryan dynasties. There is
also continuity in the system of weights and lengths between the Harappan period and the later historic
period (Mainkar, 1984).

The cultural mosaic in the third millennium BCE is characterized by the integration phase of the
Harappan civilization of northwest India, copper and copper/bronze age cultures or central and north
India, and Neolithic cultures of south and east India (Lal, 1997). Five large cities of the integration phase
are Mohenjo-Daro, Harappa, Ganweriwala, Rakhigarhi, and Dholavira. Other important sites of this
period are Kalibangan, Rehman Dheri, Nausharo, Kot Diji, and Lothal.

A majority of the towns and settlements of the Harappan period were in the Sarasvati valley region.
Hydrological changes, extended period of drought, and the drying up of the Sarasvati River due to its
major tributaries being captured by the Sindh and Ganga Rivers after an earthquake in 1900 BCE led to
the abandonment of large areas of the Sarasvati valley (Kak, 1992). The Harappan phase went through
various stages of decline during the second millennium BCE. A second urbanization began in the
Ganga and Yamuna valleys around 900 BCE. The earliest surviving records of this culture are in Brahmi
script. This second urbanization is generally seen at the end of the Painted Gray Ware (PGW) phase
(1200- 800 BCE) and with the use of the Northern Black Polished Ware (NBP) pottery. Late Harappan
was partially contemporary with the PGW phase. In other words, a continuous series of cultural
developments link the two early urbanizations of India.

The setting for the hymns of the Rigveda, which is India’s most ancient literary text, is the area of Sapta
Saindhava, the region of north India bounded by the Sindh and the Ganga rivers although regions

Archaeoastronomy in India – Subhash Kak 2

around this heartland are also mentioned. The Rigveda describes the Sarasvati River to be the greatest of
the rivers and going from the mountains to the sea. The archaeological record, suggesting that this river
had turned dry by1900 BCE, indicates that the Rigveda is prior to this epoch. The Rigveda and other early
Vedic literature have astronomical references related to the shifting astronomical frame that indicate
epochs of the fourth and third millennium BCE which is consistent with the hydrological evidence. The
nakshatra lists are found in the Vedas, either directly or listed under their presiding deities, and it one
may conclude that their names have not changed. Vedic astronomy used a luni-solar year in which an
intercalary month was employed as adjustment with solar year.

The shifting of seasons through the year and the shifting of the northern axis allow us to date several
statements in the Vedic books (Sastry, 1985). Thus the Shatapatha Brāhmana (2.1.2.3) has a statement that
points to an earlier epoch where it is stated that the Krittikā (Pleiades) never swerve from the east. This
corresponds to 2950 BCE. The Maitrāyanīya Brāhmana Upanishad (6.14) refers to the winter solstice being
at the mid-point of the Shravishthā segment and the summer solstice at the beginning of Maghā. This
indicates 1660 BCE. The Vedānga Jyotisha mentions that winter solstice was at the beginning of
Shravishthā and the summer solstice at the mid-point of Ashleshā. This corresponds to about 1300 BCE.

The nakshatras in the Vedānga Jyotisha are defined to be 27 equal parts of the ecliptic. The nakshatra
list of the late Vedic period begin with Krittikā (Pleiades) whereas that of the astronomy texts after 200
CE begin with Ashvini (α and β Arietis), indicating a transition through 2 nakshatras, or a time span of
about 2,000 years.

The foundation of Vedic cosmology is the notions of bandhu (homologies or binding between the outer
and the inner). In the Ayurveda, medical system associated with the Vedas, the 360 days of the year
were taken to be mapped to the 360 bones of the developing fetus, which later fuse into the 206 bones of
the person. It was estimated correctly that the sun and the moon were approximately 108 times their
respective diameters from the earth (perhaps from the discovery that the angular size of a pole removed
108 times its height is the same as that of the sun and the moon), and this number was used in sacred
architecture. The distance to the sanctum sanctorum of the temple from the gate and the perimeter of
the temple were taken to be 54 and 180 units, which are one-half each of 108 and 360 (Kak, 2005a).
Homologies at many levels are at the basis of the idea of recursion, or repetition in scale and time. The
astronomical basis of the Vedic ritual was the reconciliation of the lunar and solar years (Kak, 2000a;
Kak, 2000b).

Texts of the Vedic and succeeding periods provide us crucial understanding of the astronomy and the
archaeoastronomy of the historical period throughout India. The medieval period was characterized by
pilgrimage centers that created sacred space mirroring conceptions of the cosmos. Sacred temple
architecture served religious and political ends.

The instruments that were used in Indian astronomy include the water clock (ghati yantra), gnomon
(shanku), cross-staff (yasti yantra), armillary sphere (gola-yantra), board for sun’s altitude (phalaka yantra),
sundial (kapāla yantra), and astrolabe (Gangooly, 1880). In early 18th century, Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II
of Jaipur (r. 1699-1743) built five masonry observatories called Jantar Mantar in Delhi, Jaipur, Ujjain,
Mathura, and Varanasi. The Jantar Mantar consists of the Ram Yantra (a cylindrical structure with an
open top and a pillar in its center to measure the altitude of the sun), the Rashivalaya Yantra (a group of
twelve instruments to determine celestial latitude and longitude), the Jai Prakash (a concave
hemisphere), the Laghu Samrat Yantra (small sundial), the Samrat Yantra (a huge equinoctial dial), the
Chakra Yantra (upright metal circles to find the right ascension and declination of a planet), the
Digamsha Yantra (a pillar surrounded by two circular walls), the Kapali Yantra (two sunken
hemispheres to determine the position of the sun relative to the planets and the zodiac), and the
Narivalaya Yantra (a cylindrical dial).

Archaeoastronomy in India – Subhash Kak 3

 2. Pre-historical and Harappan Period

The city of Mohenjo-Daro (2500 BCE), like most other Harappan cities (with the exception of Dholavira
as far as we know at this time) was divided into two parts: the acropolis and the lower city. The
Mohenjo-Daro acropolis, a cultural and administrative centre, had as its foundation a 12 meter high
platform of 400 m  200 m. The lower city had streets oriented according to the cardinal directions and
provided with a network of covered drains. Its houses had bathrooms. The city’s wells were so well
constructed with tapering bricks that they have not collapsed in 5000 years. The Great Bath (12 m  7
m) was built using finely fitted bricks laid on with gypsum plaster and made watertight with bitumen.
A high corbelled outlet allowed it to be emptied easily. Massive walls protected the city against flood
water.

The absence of monumental buildings such as palaces and temples makes the Harappan city strikingly
different from its counterparts of Mesopotamia and Egypt, suggesting that the polity of the Harappan
state was de-centralized and based on a balance between the political, the mercantile, and the religious
elites. The presence of civic amenities such as wells and drains attests to considerable social equality.
The power of the mercantile guilds is clear in the standardization of weights of carefully cut and
polished chart cubes that form a combined binary and decimal system.

Mohenjo-Daro and other sites show slight divergence of 1° to 2° clockwise of the axes from the cardinal
directions (Wanzke, 1984). It is thought that this might have been due to the orientation of Aldebaran
(Rohinī in Sanskrit) and the Pleiades (Krtikkā in Sanskrit) that rose in the east during 3000 BCE to 2000
BCE at the spring equinox; the word “rohinī” literally means rising. Furthermore, the slight difference
in the orientations amongst the buildings in Mohenjo-Daro indicates different construction periods
using the same traditional sighting points that had shifted in this interval (Kenoyer, 1998).

Mohenjo-Daro’s astronomy used both the motions of the moon and the sun (Maula, 1984). This is
attested by the use of great calendar stones, in the shape of ring, which served to mark the beginning
and end of the solar year.

Dholavira
Dholavira is located on an island just north of the large island of Kutch in Gujarat. Its strategic
importance lay in its control of shipping between Gujarat and the delta of the Sindh and Sarasvati
rivers.

The layout of Dholavira is unique in that it comprises of three “towns,” which is in accord with Vedic
ideas (Bisht, 1997; Bisht, 1999a; Bisht, 1999b). The feature of recursion in the three towns, or repeating
ratios at different scales, is significant. Specifically, the design is characterized by the nesting proportion
of 9:4 across the lower and the middle towns and the castle. The proportions of 5/4, 7/6, and 5/4 for the
lower town, the middle town, and the castle may reflect the measures related to the royal city, the
commander’s quarter, and the king’s quarter, respectively, which was also true of Classical India (Bhat,
1995).

A Dholavira length, D, has been determined by finding the largest measure which leads to integer
dimensions for the various parts of the city. This measure turns out be the same as the Arthaśāstra (300
BCE) measure of dhanus (arrow) that equals 108 angulas (fingers). This scale is confirmed by a terracotta
scale from Kalibangan and the ivory scale found in Lothal. The Kalibangan scale (Joshi, 2007;
Balasubramaniam and Joshi, 2008) corresponds to units of 17.5 cm, which is substantially the same as
the Lothal scale and the small discrepancy may be a consequence of shrinkage upon firing.

Archaeoastronomy in India – Subhash Kak 4

The analysis of the unit of length at Dholavira is in accord with the unit from the historical period
(Danino, 2005; Danino, 2008). The unit that best fits the Dholavira dimensions is 190.4 cm, which when
divided by 108 gives the Dholavira angula of 1.763 cm. The subunit of angula is confirmed when one
considers that the bricks in Harappa follow ratios of 1:2:4 with the dominating size being 7  14  28
cm (Kenoyer, 1998). These dimensions can be elegantly expressed as 4  8  16 angulas, with the unit of
angula taken as 1.763 cm. It is significant that the ivory scale at Lothal has 27 graduations in 46 mm, or
each graduation is 1.76 mm.

Figure 1. Map of Dholavira (Bisht, 1997)

With the new Dhloavira unit of D, the dimensions of Mohenjo-Daro’s acropolis turn out to be 210  105
D; Kalibangan’s acropolis turn out to be 126  63 D. The dimensions of the lower town of Dholavira are
405  324 D; the width of the middle town is 180 D; and the inner dimensions of the castle are 60  48
D. The sum of the width and length of the lower town comes to 729 which is astronomically significant
since it is 27  27, and the width 324 equals the nakshatra year 27  12.

Continuity has been found between the grid and modular measures in the town planning of Harappa
and historical India, including that of Kathmandu Valley (Pant and Funo, 2005). The measure of 19.2
meters is the unit in quarter-blocks of Kathmandu; this is nearly the same as the unit characteristic of
the dimensions of Dholavira. It shows that the traditional architects and town planners have continued
the use of the same units over this long time span.

Figure 2. Astronomical seal from Rehman Dheri

Archaeoastronomy in India – Subhash Kak 5

Rehman Dheri
A 3rd millennium seal from Rehman Dheri, showing a pair of scorpions on one side and two antelopes
on the other, that suggests knowledge of Vedic themes. It has been suggested that this seal represents
the opposition of the Orion (Mrigashiras, or antelope head) and the Scorpio (Rohini of the southern
hemisphere which is 14 nakshatras from the Rohini of the northern hemisphere) nakshatras. The arrow
near the head of one of the antelopes could represent the decapitation of Orion. It is generally accepted
that the myth of Prajapati being killed by Rudra represents the shifting of the beginning of the year
away from Orion and it places the astronomical event in the fourth millennium BCE (Kak, 2000a).

3. Neolithic and Megalithic Sites

Interesting sites of archaeoastronomical interest include the Neolithic site of Burzahom from Kashmir in
North India, and megalithic sites from Brahmagiri and Hanamsagar from Karnataka in South India.

Burzahom, Kashmir
This Neolithic site is located about 10 km northeast of Srinagar in the Kashmir Valley on a terrace of
Late Pleistocene-Holocene deposits. Dated to around 3000 - 1500 BCE, its deep pit dwellings are
associated with ground stone axes, bone tools, and gray burnished pottery. A stone slab of 48 cm  27
cm, obtained from a phase dated to 2125 BCE shows two bright objects in the sky with a hunting scene
in the foreground. These have been assumed to be a depiction of a double star system (Kameshwar Rao,
2005).

Figure 3. Burzahom sky scene

Brahmagiri, Karnataka
The megalithic stone circles of Brahmagiri in the Chitradurga district of Karnataka in South India,
which have been dated to 900 BCE, show astronomical orientations. This site is close to Siddapur where
two minor Aśokan rock edicts were found in 1891. Kameswara Rao (1993) has argued that site lines
from the centre of a circle to an outer tangent of another circle point to the directions of the sunrise and
full moon rise at the time of the solar and lunar solstices and equinox.

Archaeoastronomy in India – Subhash Kak 6

 Figure 4. Megalithic stone circles of Brahmagiri

Hanamsagar, Karnataka.
Hanamsagar is a megalithic site with stone alignments pointing to cardinal directions. It is located on a
flat area between hills about 6 km north of the Krishna river at latitude 16o 19’ 18” and longitude 76o 27’
10”. The stones, which are smooth granite, are arranged in a square of side that is about 600 meters
with 50 rows and 50 column (for a total of 2,500 stones), with a separation between stones of about 12
m. The stones are between 1 to 2.5 m in height with a maximum diameter of 2 to 3 m. The lines are
oriented in cardinal directions. There is a squarish central structure known as chakri katti.

It has been argued that the directions of summer and winter solstice can be fixed in relation to the outer
and the inner squares. Kameswara Rao (2005) suggests that it could have been used for several other
kind of astronomical observations such as use of shadows to tell the time of the day, the prediction of
months, seasons and passage of the year.

Figure 5. Alignments at Hanamsagar

Archaeoastronomy in India – Subhash Kak 7

 4. The Plan of the Temple

The sacred ground for Vedic ritual is the precursor to the temple. The Vedic observances were
connected with the circuits of the sun and the moon (Kak, 1993; Kak, 1995; Kak, 1996). The altar ritual
was associated with the east-west axis and we can trace its origins to priests who maintained different
day counts with respect to the solstices and the equinoxes. Specific days were marked with ritual
observances that were done at different times of the day.

Figure 6. The three altars of the Vedic house: circular

(earth, body), half-moon (atmosphere, prāna), square (sky, consciousness)

In the ritual at home, the householder employed three altars that are circular (earth), half-moon
(atmosphere), and square (sky), which are like the head, the heart, and the body of the Cosmic Man
(Purusha). In the Agnichayana, the great ritual of the Vedic times that forms a major portion of the
narrative of the Yajurveda, the atmosphere and the sky altars are built afresh in a great ceremony to the
east. This ritual is based upon the Vedic division of the universe into three parts of earth, atmosphere,
and sky that are assigned numbers 21, 78, and 261, respectively. The numerical mapping is maintained
by placement of 21 pebbles around the earth altar, sets of 13 pebbles around each of 6 intermediate
(136=78) altars, and 261 pebbles around the great new sky altar called the Uttara-vedi, which is built
in the shape of a falcon; these numbers add up to 360, which is symbolic representation of the year. The
proportions related to these three numbers, and others related to the motions of the planets, and angles
related to the sightings of specific stars are reflected in the plans of the temples of the historical period
(Kak, 2002b; Kak, 2006a; Kak, 2009; Kaulācara, 1966).

Figure 7. The falcon altar of the Agnichayana altar

The Agnichayana altar is the prototype of the temple and of the tradition of architecture (Vāstu). The
altar is first built of 1,000 bricks in five layers (that symbolically represent the five divisions of the year,
the five physical elements, as well as five senses) to specific designs. The altar is constructed in a
sequence of 95 years, whose details are matched to the reconciliation of the lunar and solar years by
means of intercalary months.

Archaeoastronomy in India – Subhash Kak 8

In the ritual ground related to the Agnichayana ceremony, the Uttara-vedi is 54 units from the entrance
in the west and the perimeter of the ritual ground is 180 units (Kak, 2005a). These proportions
characterize many later temples.

The Temple Complex at Khajuraho

The town of Khajuraho extends between 79° 54’ 30” to 79° 56’ 30” East and 24° 50’ 20” to 24° 51’ 40”
North, in Chhatarpur district, in Madhya Pradesh. The temples of Khajuraho were built in 9th -12th
century CE by the Chandela kings. Originally there were 84 temples, of which 23 have survived. Of the
surviving temples, 6 are associated with Shiva, 8 with Vishnu, and 5 with the goddess (Singh, 2009b).

Figure 8. Mapping of the nakshatras to the solar months

At the eastern edge of the temple complex are the Dantla hills, with a peak of 390 m at which is located
a shrine to Shiva, which is a reference point for the temple entrances. All the temples excepting the
Chaturbhuja face the east. The southeastern edge has the Lavanya hill that is separated from the Dantla
hills by the eastward flowing river Khudar. At the foothills of the Lavanya hill at a height of 244m is the
shrine of goddess Durga as Mahishasurmardini.

The shrines to Shiva and Durga on the Dantla and Lavanya hills span the polarities of spirit (Purusha)
and matter (Prakriti), which are bridged by the river between the hills. The temples of Khajuraho are
popular pilgrimage centers during two spring festivals: Shivaratri that falls on the new moon of
Phalguna (February/March), and Holi, which falls on the full moon of Chaitra (March/April).

The Lakshmana temple, one of the oldest of the complex, is considered the axis mundi of the site. It was
built by the king Yashovarman (925-950) as symbol of the Chandela victory over the Pratiharas and a
record of supremacy of their power. This temple is oriented to the sunrise on Holi.

Archaeoastronomy in India – Subhash Kak 9

The groups of temples form three overlapping mandalas, with centers at the Lakshmana (Vishnu), the
Javeri (Shiva), and the Duladeva (Shiva) temples. Their deviation from true cardinality is believed to be
due to the direction of sunrise on the day of consecration (Singh, 2009).

The temple, as a representation of the cosmos and its order, balances the asuras (demons) and the devas
(gods), as well as inheres in itself other polarities of existence. In the Lakshmana Temple, Vishnu is
depicted in a composite form with the usual calm face bracketed by the faces of lion and boar. The
conception of the sanctum is as a mandala (Desai, 2004).

The planetary deities, the grahas, encircle the temple in the following arrangement:

Surya (Sun)
Soma (Moon) Mangala (Mars)
Brhaspati (Jupiter) Budha (Mercury)
Shani (Saturn) Shukra (Venus)
Ganesha Durga

Ganesha and Durga are the deities of the ascending and the descending nodes of the moon,
respectively. The temple is envisioned like Mount Meru, the axis of the universe, and the planets move
around it.

5. The Udayagiri Observatory

Udayagiri (“hill of [sun]-rise’’] is one of the principal ancient astronomical observatories of India. It is
located at 23o31’ N latitude on the Tropic of Cancer in Madhya Pradesh, about 50 kilometers from
Bhopal, near Vidisha, Besnagar and Sanchi. An ancient site that goes back to at least the second century
BCE, it was substantially enlarged during the reign of the Gupta Emperor Chandragupta II
Vikramaditya (r. 375-414). This site is associated with 20 cave temples that have been cut into rock;
nineteen of these temples are from the period of Chandragupta’s reign (Dass and Willis, 2002).

Figure 9. Udayagiri layout (Balasubramaniam , 2008)

It appears that the ancient name of Udayagiri was Vishnupadagiri, or the “hill of the footprint of
Vishnu,” and the name Udayagiri is after the Paramara ruler Udayaditya (c. 1070-93). The hill is shaped
like a foot. A saddle connects the northern and southern hills, and a passageway is located at the place
where the northern hill meets the saddle. The Gupta period additions and embellishments at Udayagiri
were concentrated around this passage. Most of the cave temples are located around the passageway.

On the summer solstice day, there was an alignment of the sun’s movement with the passageway. The
day mentioned in the dated Chandragupta II Vikramaditya period inscription in cave 6 has been
calculated to be very close to the summer solstice of the year 402 CE. On this day, the shadow of the

Archaeoastronomy in India – Subhash Kak 10

Iron Pillar of Delhi, which was originally located at the entrance of the passageway, fell in the direction
of the reclining Vishnu panel (Balasubramaniam, 2008).

On the northern hilltop, there exists a flat platform commanding a majestic view of the sky. Several
astronomical marks have been identified at this platform, indicating that this was the site of the ancient
astronomical observatory.

6. Medieval Pilgrimage Complexes

Medieval pilgrimage centers fulfilled many functions including that of trade and business. They were
important to the jyotishi (astrologer) who would make and read the pilgrims’ horoscope. The better
astrologers were also interested in astronomy and this knowledge was essential for the alignment of
temples and palaces.

Every region of India has important pilgrimage centers, some of which are regional and others pan-
Indic. The most famous of the pan-Indic centers are associated with Shiva (Varanasi), Krishna
(Mathura, Dwarka), Rama (Ayodhya), Vishnu (Tirupati), and the 12-yearly rotation of the Kumbha
Mela at Prayag, Haridwar, Ujjain, and Nashik. For pilgrimage centers such as Chitrakut, Gaya,
Madurai, Varanasi, Vindhyachal, and Khajuraho, the question of alignments of temples to cardinal
directions or to direction of the sun on major festivals has been studied by scholars (Singh, 2009b). Here
we will consider the sun temples of Varanasi (Malville, 1985; Singh, 2009a and 2009b).

Figure 10. Khajuraho: Landscape Geometry and Topography (Singh, 2009b).

The Sun Temples of Varanasi

Varanasi is an ancient city dating from the beginning of the first millennium BCE, whose Vedic name is
Kashi (Sanskrit for “radiance”), a name that continues to be used together with Banaras. Of its many
temples, the most important is Kashi Vishvanath Temple, or “Golden Temple,” dedicated to Lord

Archaeoastronomy in India – Subhash Kak 11

Shiva, the presiding deity of the city. Because of repeated destruction by the sultans and later by
Aurangzeb, the current Vishvanath is a relatively modern building. It was built in 1777 by Maharani
Ahilyabai of Indore, and its shikhara (spire) and ceilings were plated with of gold in 1839, which was a
gift from Maharaja Ranjit Singh (Singh, 2009a and 2009b).

Figure 11. Sun Shrines: Cosmic Order and Cyclic orientation of Time (Singh, 2009a).

Archaeoastronomy in India – Subhash Kak 12

Shiva represents both the axis of the universe as well as that of one’s inner being. One of the great
festivals celebrated in Varanasi is Shivaratri which is celebrated on the 13th day of the dark fortnight of
the Phalguna month (February-March). On that day you can see the sun rise in the east with the new
moon just above it, which is represented iconographically by Shiva (as the sun) wearing the moon on
his head.

There are several pilgrimage circuits in Varanasi for circumambulating the city. The Panchakroshi
circuit has 108 shrines on it, and the four inner circuits have a total of 324 shrines. It is also known for
the circuit of the Aditya shrines. The Adityas are the 7 or 8 celestial gods, although their number is
counted to 12 in later books. In Puranic India, they are taken to be the deities of the twelve solar
months. The Aditya temples were also razed during the centuries of Muslim rule, but have been re-
established at the same sites and are now part of the active ritualscapes (Singh, 2009a).

Several Aditya shrines have been located with the aid of descriptions in the Kashi Khanda and
pilgrimage guides (Singh and Malville, 1995; Singh, 2009a and 2009b). Six of these lie along one sides of
an isosceles triangle with a base of 2.5km. The triangle surrounds the former temple of
Madhyameshavara, which was the original center of Kashi. Pilgrims walking along the triangle are
symbolically circumambulating the cosmos.

7. Sacred Cities

There are numerous sacred cities in the Indian sub-continent that were either built to an archetypal
master plan or grew organically by virtue of being connected to a specific celestial deity. Some of the
important sacred cities are:

1. Varanasi
2. Vijayanagara
3. Ayodhya
4. Mathura
5. Bhaktapur
6. Tirupati
7. Kanchipuram
8. Dwarka
9. Ujjain

Robert Levy viewed the Indian sacred city as a structured “mesocosm”, situated between the
microcosm of the individual and the macrocosm of the culturally conceived larger universe (Levy,
1991). Such a city is constructed of spatial connected mandalas, each of which is sustained by its own
culture and performance. The movements of the festival year and rites of passage constitute a “civic
dance”, which defines the experience of its citizens.

The life-cycle passages and festivals dedicated to the gods affirm the householders’ moral compass,
identities and relationships. But there also exist other deities, represented generally by goddesses, who
point to the forces of nature outside of moral order. These are brought into the larger order through
tantric invocations and amoral propitiatory offerings. Performances invoking the goddess are the
responsibility of the king and the merchants.

Sacrality and Royal Power at Vijayanagara

The city of Vijayanagara (also known as Hampi) was founded in the 14th century and sacked in 1565.
The best known kings associated with Vijayanagara are Harihara I and II and Bukka Raya I (ca. 1336-
1404), and Krishnadevaraya and his half-brother Achyutadevaraya (1509-42). From the mid-14th
century to 1565, the city was the capital of the Vijayanagara Empire. According to the Persian

Archaeoastronomy in India – Subhash Kak 13

ambassador Abdur Razaaq (1442 CE): “The City of Vijayanagara is such that the pupil of the eye has
never seen such a place like it, and the ear of intelligence has never been informed that there existed
anything to equal it in the world.”

Figure 12. Vijayanagara City

Hampi had for centuries been an important pilgrimage city due to its mythic association with river
Goddess Pampā and her consort Virupaksha, or Pampāpati. An inscription dated 1163 CE records a
mahādāna, a religious offering in the presence of Lord Virupaksha of Hampi by the Kalachuri King
Bijjala. The region was part of the kingdom of Kampiladeva until 1326 when the armies of Mohammed
Bin Tughlaq defeated the king and imprisoned the two sons of Sangama, Hukka and Bukka. Some

Archaeoastronomy in India – Subhash Kak 14

years later the Sultan sent the two as governors of the province. In 1336 they broke free from Tughlaq
allegiance and established the Sangama dynasty with its capital at Vijayanagara.

The destruction of Vijayanagara in 1565 was captured vividly in the account of Robert Sewell (1900):
“They slaughtered the people without mercy; broke down the temples and palaces; and wreaked such
savage vengeance on the abode of the kings that, with the exception of a few great stone built temples
and walls, nothing now remains but a heap of ruins to mark the spot where once the stately buildings
stood… They lit huge fires in the magnificently decorated buildings forming the temple of
Vitthalaswami near the river, and smashed its exquisite stone sculptures. With fire and sword,
crowbars and axes they carried on day after day their work of destruction. Never perhaps in the history
of the world has such havoc been wrought so suddenly on so splendid a city; teeming with a wealthy
and industrious population in the full plenitude of prosperity one day and on the next seized, pillaged
and reduced to ruins amid scenes of savage massacre and horrors beggaring description.”

Hampi has a strong association with the Ramayana and the names of many sites in the area bear names
mentioned in the epic. These include Rishimukha, Malyavanta hill and Matanga hill along with a cave
where Sugriva is said to have kept the jewels of Sita. The site of Anegundi is associated with the
kingdom of Angad, son of Vali. The Anjaneya Parvata, a hill to the west of Anegundi, is the fabled
birthplace of Hanuman.

Hampi is also linked with the river goddess Pampā and the legend of her marriage to Lord Virupaksha
or Shiva. Each year, in the month of Chaitra (March-April), this marriage is re-enacted, with the priests
of Virupaksha temple devoutly performing every ritual from Phalapūjā (betrothal) to Kalyānotsava
(marriage) in the temple.

The Sacred Center of the city lies south of the Tungabhadra River, and it is dominated by four large
complexes of the Virupaksha, Krishna, Tiruvengalanatha (Achyutaraya) and Vitthala temples. The
major temples are either close to cardinality, departing by an average of 10’, or are oriented to major
features of the sacred landscape.

Further south of the Sacred Center is the Royal Center, which is divided into the public and private
realms. The division is achieved by a north-south axis, which passes almost precisely between the king's
100-column audience hall in the east and the queen's large palace in the west. The Ramachandra temple
pierces the axis by connecting the private and the public domains. In the homology of the king and the
deity, the king is able to inhere in him the royalty and divinity of Rama.

The Virabhadra temple is on the summit of Matanga hill, which is the center of the vāstu-mandala and
the symbolic source of protection that extended outward from it along radial lines. As viewed from a
point midway between the audience hall and the queen’s palace, the shikhara of the Virabhadra lies only
4 minutes of arc (4’) from true north. The ceremonial gateway in the corridor west of Ramachandra
temple joined with the summit of Matanga hill departs from true north by 0.6 minutes of arc (0.6’)
(Malville, 2000).

The orientations of the major axes of the small temples, shrines, and palaces of the urban core are in
marked contrast to those. The smaller structures are rotated away from cardinality for the four
o
directions by 17 , suggesting that they were influenced by the position of the rising sun on the morning
when it crosses the zenith.

The bazaar streets of the Virupaksha, Vitthala and Krishna temples are set between 13 and 15 degrees
south of east. Malville (2000) speculates that there may be some link between these orientations and the
rising point of the star Sirius.

Archaeoastronomy in India – Subhash Kak 15

 8. Conclusions

Interest in archaeoastronomy and art, as connected to temples and ancient monuments, has increased in
India as the country’s prosperity has increased. This increase is also owing to the major archaeological
discoveries that have been made in the past few decades and the importance of temple tourism.

The principal authority over significant sites is the Indian Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) and its
sister institutions that function at the state level as Departments of Archaeology and Museums. In 1976,
the Indian Government initiated projects to excavate three great medieval cities: Fatehpur Sikri in Uttar
Pradesh, Champaner in Gujarat, and Vijayanagara in Karnataka, which are UNESCO World Heritage
sites. The wealth of discoveries made in these cities is strengthening the movement to expose and
preserve other sites in the country. The efforts at excavation, conservation, and research can only be
expected to increase. In particular, greater attention will be given to the archaeoastronomical aspects of
the monuments.

Acknowledgements. I am thankful to R. Balasubramaniam, Michel Danino, McKim Malville, and Rana

P.B. Singh for their advice. The essay is dedicated to the memory of R. Balasubramaniam who passed
away in December 2009.

This article is the unabridged version of an essay written for the International Council on Monuments
and Sites (ICOMOS). An abridged version appeared as a chapter titled “India” on pages 101-110 in the
book “Heritage Sites of Astronomy and Archaeoastronomy in the context of the UNESCO World
Heritage Convention: A Thematic Study” edited by Clive Ruggles and Michel Cotte that was published
jointly by the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) and the International
Astronomical Union (IAU), Paris, in 2010.

Select Bibliography

Balasubramaniam, R.
2008 On the mathematical significance of the dimensions of the Delhi Iron Pillar. Current Science 95:
766-770.

Balasubramaniam, R. and Joshi, J.P.

2008 Analysis of Terracotta Scale of Harappan Civilization from Kalibangan. Current Science 95: 588-
589.

Bednarik, R. G.
2000 Early Indian petroglyphs and their global context. Purakala 11: 37–47.

Bhat, M.R.
1995 Varāhamihira’s Brihat Samhitā. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass.

Bisht, R. S.
1997 Dholavira Excavations: 1990-94. In Facets of Indian Civilization Essays in Honour of Prof. B.
B. Lal, ed. J. P. Joshi. New Delhi: Aryan Books International, vol. I: 107-120.

1999a Urban planning at Dholavira, a Harappan City; in, Malville, John McKim and Gujral, Lalit
M. (eds.) Ancient Cities, Sacred Skies. Cosmic Geometries and City Planning in Ancient India. New
Delhi: Aryan Books International for Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts, 11-23.

Archaeoastronomy in India – Subhash Kak 16

1999b Harappans and the Rigveda: Points of convergence. In The Dawn of Indian Civilization, edited by
G.C. Pande. Centre for Studies in Civilizations, Delhi, 393-442.

Danino, M.
2005. Dholavira's geometry: A preliminary study, Puratattva 35: 76-84.

2008. New insights into Harappan town-planning, proportions and units, with special reference to
Dholavira, Man and Environment 33: 66-79.

Dass, M. I. and Willis, M.

2002. The lion capital from Udayagiri and the antiquity of sun worship in Central India. South Asian
Studies 18: 25-45.

Desai, D.
2004. Manifestation of order in art: the iconic scheme at Khajuraho. In Rita: The Cosmic Order, Madhu
Khanna (ed). New Delhi: D.K. Printworld.

Gangooly, P. (ed.)
1880. Surya Siddhanta, Translated with Notes and Appendix by Rev. Ebenezer Burgess, Motilal
Banarsidass, New Delhi, 1960.

Joshi, J.P.
2007 Excavations at Kalibangan, The Harappans, Volume II, Part I, New Delhi: Archaeological Survey
of India Report, 2007.

Kak, S.
1992 The Indus tradition and the Indo-Aryans. Mankind Quarterly 32:195-213.

1993 Astronomy of the Vedic Altars. Vistas in Astronomy 36:117-140.

1995 The astronomy of the age of geometric altars. Quarterly Journal of the Royal Astronomical Society
36:385-396.

1996 Knowledge of planets in the third millennium BC. Quarterly Journal of the Royal Astronomical
Society 37:709-715.

2000a The Astronomical Code of the Rigveda. New Delhi: Munshiram Manoharlal.

2000b Birth and early development of Indian astronomy. In Astronomy Across Cultures: The History of
Non-Western Astronomy, Helaine Selin (ed). Kluwer, 303-340.

2002a The Aśvamedha: The Rite and Its Logic. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass.

2002b Space and cosmology in the Hindu temple. Presented at Vaastu Kaushal: International
Symposium on Science and Technology in Ancient Indian Monuments, New Delhi, November
16-17.

2005a The axis and the perimeter of the temple. Presented at the Kannada Vrinda Seminar Sangama
2005 held at Loyola Marymount University, Los Angeles.

2005b Early Indian architecture and art. Migration and Diffusion – An International Journal 6: 6-27.

2006a Art and cosmology in India. Patanjali Lecture, University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth, May 5.

Archaeoastronomy in India – Subhash Kak 17

2006b Cosmology and sacred architecture in India. In Sangama: A Confluence of Art and Culture
During the Vijayanagara Period, Nalini Rao (ed.). Delhi: Originals.

2009 Time, space and structure in ancient India. Presented at the Conference on Sindhu-Sarasvati
Civilization: A reappraisal, Loyola Marymount University, Los Angeles, February 21 & 22, 2009.

Kameswara Rao, N.
1993 Astronomical orientations of the megalithic stone circles of Brahmagiri. Bulletin, Astr. Soc.
India. 21: 67-77.

Kameswara Rao, N.
2005 Aspects of prehistoric astronomy in India. Bulletin, Astr. Soc. India 33: 499-511.

Kaulacāra, R.
1966 Śilpa Prakāśa. Boner, A. and Rath Sarma, S. (eds.). Leiden: E.J. Brill.

Kenoyer, J. M.
1998 Ancient Cities of the Indus Valley Civilization. Oxford University Press.

Lal, B.B.
1997 The Earliest Civilization of South Asia. New Delhi: Aryan Books International.

2002. The Saraswati Flows on: the Continuity of Indian Culture. New Delhi: Aryan Books International.

Levy, R.
1991 Mesocosm: Hinduism and the Organization of a Traditional Newar City in Nepal. Berkeley:
University of California Press.

Mainkar, V.B.
1984 Metrology in the Indus Civilization. In Frontiers of the Indus Civilization. B.B. Lal and S.P. Gupta
(eds.). New Delhi: Books and Books.

Malville, J. M.
1985 Sun Worship in Contemporary India. Man in India: A Quarterly Journal of Anthropology 65: 207-
233.

2000 The Cosmic Geometries of Vijayanagara. In, Ancient Cities, Sacred Skies: Cosmic Geometries and
City Planning in Ancient India, edited by J.M. Malville and L.M. Gujral. Indira Gandhi National
Centre for the Arts and Aryan Books International, New Delhi, 100-118.

Maula, E.
1984 The calendar stones from Moenjo-Daro. In Interim Reports on Fieldwork Carried out at Mohenjo-
Daro 1982-83, vol. 1, eds. M. Jansen and G. Urban. Aachen and Roma, 159-170.

Pandey, S.
1993 Indian Rock Art. New Delhi, Aryan Books International.

Pant, M. and Funo, S.

2005 The grid and modular measures in the town planning of Mohenjodaro and Kathmandu
Valley, Journal of Asian Architecture and Building Engineering 4: 51-59.

Archaeoastronomy in India – Subhash Kak 18

Sewell, Robert
1900 A Forgotten Empire: Vijayanagara. Kessinger Publishing, 2004 (Reprint).

Sastry, T.S. Kuppanaa,

1985 Vedanga Jyotisa of Lagadha. New Delhi: Indian National Science Academy.

Shaffer, J.G.
1992 The Indus valley, Baluchistan, and Helmand traditions: Neolithic through Bronze Age. In R.
Ehrlich (ed.), Chronology in Old World Archaeology. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press.

Singh, Rana P.B.

2009a Banaras, Making of India’s Heritage City. Planet Earth & Cultural Understanding Series, No. 3.
Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars Publishing.

2009b Cosmic Order and Cultural Astronomy: Sacred Cities of India. Planet Earth & Cultural
Understanding Series, No. 4. Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars Publishing.

Singh, Rana P.B. and J. M. Malville

1995 Cosmic Order and Cityscape of Varanasi (Kashi): Sun Images and Cultural Astronomy.
National Geographical Journal of India, 41: 69-88.

Tyagi, G.S.
1992 Decorative intricate patterns in Indian rock art. In M. Lorblanchet (ed.), Rock Art in the Old
World. New Delhi: Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts.

Wakankar, V.S.
1992. Rock painting in India. In M. Lorblanchet (ed.), Rock Art in the Old World. New Delhi: Indira
Gandhi National Centre for the Arts.

Wanzke, H.
1984 Axis systems and orientation at Mohenjo-Daro. In Interim Reports on Fieldwork Carried out at
Mohenjo-Daro 1982-83, vol. 2, eds. M. Jansen and G. Urban. Aachen and Roma, 33-44.

Willis, M.
2001 Inscriptions at Udayagiri: Locating domains of devotion, patronage and power in the eleventh
century. South Asian Studies 17: 48.

Archaeoastronomy in India – Subhash Kak 19