Aupmanyav
Be your own guru
We were discussing this in another topic which was not appropriate for it. that is why I have started a new topic here. I have collected the excerpts from the book "Orion or the Antiquity of Vedas" by BG Tilak. People who find this interesting can download the book in PDF form at https://archive.org/details/orionortheantiqu021979mbp. The book was published in 1893 
and has 227 pages, but is an excellent work.
"This statement is very important, inasmuch as it shows that the names of at least three constellations, Orion, Canis and Ursa, are not of Egyptian or Chaldean origin. Of these Ursa Major (Greek Arktos) has been already identified with Saptarikshas (Seven Bears) or simply the Rikshas of the Vedas and the Haptoiringa of the Parsis, thus partly confirming the above mentioned statement of Plutarch; and it can be shown, that his observation is equally good in respect of the other two constellations, or that Canis, Orion and Ursa are all of Aryan origin.
We have seen how Mrigashiras (Orion) may have been primitively conceived. After this it is not difficult to identify the other stars. The Rohini is no other than Aldebaran. Rudra is the presiding deity of Ardra, and we may therefore suppose Rudra to be represented by the star in the right shoulder of Orion. But the Aitareya Brahmana (iii. 33) identifies Rudra with Sirius or what} is now called the Mriga-vyadha (the hunter). The Milky Way does not appear to have received a specific name in these old days, and the three sections of the Aryan race the Parsis, the Greeks, and the Indians have no common word to denote the same.
In the later Indian literature we are told that the souls of the deceased have to cross a streamt before they reach the region of Yama (Lord o Death), while the story of Charon shows that even the Greeks entertained a similar belief. What could this river be? With the vernal equinox in Orion, one can easily identify it with the Milky Way, which could then have been appropriately described as separating the regions of gods and Yama, the Devayana and the Pitriyana.
The Greeks have placed near it the constellation of Argos (ship) and two dogs Canis Major and Canis Minor one on each side to guard both the entrances of the Ghinvat Bridge across it. The Rigveda also mentions two dogs of Yama kept to "watch the way," while the Greeks place a three-headed dog at the gates of hell. In RigVeda x.63, 10 we are farther told that the land of the blessed is to be reached by "the celestial ship with a good rudder." The words in the original are ‘daivam navam’. Comparing these with the expression ‘divyasya shunah’ (celestial dogs) in the Atharva Veda VI, 80. 3, and seeing that a ‘divya’ (celestial) representa tion of Rudra is described in later works it seems to me that we must interpret the epithet to mean "celestial" and not simply " divine." Thus the Vedic works appear to place a celestial dog and a celestial ship at the entrance of the other world, and these can be easily identified with the Greek constellations of Argo Navis and Canis, if we suppose the Milky Way to be the boundary of Heaven in these days.
Putting all these passages together, we find that in the Rlgveda, dogs are described as dark and brown, bright and red, possessing four eyes, guarding the house and the way to Yama's region, vomiting and making milk, and above all beginning the new year. All these facts clearly show that the Vedic dogs are the same as the Hellenic or the Iranian, and we can easily and satisfactorily account for all these legends by supposing that the vernal equinox was near the Dog-star in those days, thus making the dog rise with the sun in the beginning of the year at the gates of the Devayana. "We can now also understand how the dogs could have been described as four-eyed. For, if they are correctly identified with Canis near the Milky Way, then the four stars in the body of Canis might naturally be said to be his eyes;
These services are required at the funeral ceremony. It may be here noted that the hymn in the Rigveda which describes Yama's dogs (RigVeda x. 14) is still recited at the time of burning the dead body of a Hindu, Every Brahman has also to give, every day, two small offerings of cooked rice to the two dogs of Yama, Shyama and Shabala, at the time ofthe Paiskvadeva sacrifice. Several deities receive their oblations at this sacrifice. The offerings are placed on the ground in the form of a circle, beginning with the eastern point. The offering to Shyama is placed outside the circle at the south-west and that to Shabala at the north-west point. In other words, Shyama and Shabala are placed cm each side of the western point, in the s&rae way as the dogs appear in the heavens on each side of the Milky Way.
This is evidently based upon RigVeda viii. 14. 13, where Indra is described as rt cutting the head of Namuchi with the foam of waters, and the same incident is again referred to in RigVeda x. 61. 8. Therefore, even if we reject later speculations with respect to "why foam or froth should have been used” and decline to solve the question by assuming a compact between Indra and Namuchi, yet we have to account for the fact that in the Rigveda itself Indra is said to have used the foamy weapon to destroy his enemy. What could this foamy weapon be ? If Namuchi was killed at the gates of the Devayana and his bead still lies there, the watery foam conld be no other than the broad belt of the Milky Way which crossed the heavens at the same parts.
This is a description of the Ganges on the head of the celestial form of Shiva, and the author of Mahimna, who, in verse 22, refers to the story of Rudra piercing Prajapati with an arrow, and says that the whole story is still illustrated in the sky, evidently meant to describe by it the Milky Way which passes over the head of the star of Rudra. Now if the poetic imagination of the author of Mahimna can perceive foam in the Milky Way, I see no reason why the virgin, imagination of the Vedic poets should not rise to that pitch. Dr. Haug speaking of the Vanant Yashta, observes that the constellation Vanant, by which the Parsi Dasturs (Zoroastrian priests) understand the Milky Way is said to stand directly 'over Hell,' and further the Dasturs are of opinion tha't this constellation is the weapon (Vazra) which is constantly aimed by Mithra at the head of the Daevas, as stated in the Khurshed Yasht.
Namuchi’s legend can thus be simply and naturally accounted for if we assign to the equinoxes the position which we have deduced from other passages in the Vedic works. I may point but that we do not hereby account for the original idea of Vritra. Tlat is evidently a still older legend. But his existence at the gate of Hell and his decapitation by the foamy weapon the two chief elements in the later Vedic traditions are satisfactorily explained by placing, as originally proposed the vernal equinox in the constellation of Orion, and identifying Namuchi alias Vritra with the constellation of Mrigashiras or the antelope's head, situated just below the Milky Way."
If you do not understand the terms or names, I will be happy to help.
and has 227 pages, but is an excellent work."This statement is very important, inasmuch as it shows that the names of at least three constellations, Orion, Canis and Ursa, are not of Egyptian or Chaldean origin. Of these Ursa Major (Greek Arktos) has been already identified with Saptarikshas (Seven Bears) or simply the Rikshas of the Vedas and the Haptoiringa of the Parsis, thus partly confirming the above mentioned statement of Plutarch; and it can be shown, that his observation is equally good in respect of the other two constellations, or that Canis, Orion and Ursa are all of Aryan origin.
We have seen how Mrigashiras (Orion) may have been primitively conceived. After this it is not difficult to identify the other stars. The Rohini is no other than Aldebaran. Rudra is the presiding deity of Ardra, and we may therefore suppose Rudra to be represented by the star in the right shoulder of Orion. But the Aitareya Brahmana (iii. 33) identifies Rudra with Sirius or what} is now called the Mriga-vyadha (the hunter). The Milky Way does not appear to have received a specific name in these old days, and the three sections of the Aryan race the Parsis, the Greeks, and the Indians have no common word to denote the same.
In the later Indian literature we are told that the souls of the deceased have to cross a streamt before they reach the region of Yama (Lord o Death), while the story of Charon shows that even the Greeks entertained a similar belief. What could this river be? With the vernal equinox in Orion, one can easily identify it with the Milky Way, which could then have been appropriately described as separating the regions of gods and Yama, the Devayana and the Pitriyana.
The Greeks have placed near it the constellation of Argos (ship) and two dogs Canis Major and Canis Minor one on each side to guard both the entrances of the Ghinvat Bridge across it. The Rigveda also mentions two dogs of Yama kept to "watch the way," while the Greeks place a three-headed dog at the gates of hell. In RigVeda x.63, 10 we are farther told that the land of the blessed is to be reached by "the celestial ship with a good rudder." The words in the original are ‘daivam navam’. Comparing these with the expression ‘divyasya shunah’ (celestial dogs) in the Atharva Veda VI, 80. 3, and seeing that a ‘divya’ (celestial) representa tion of Rudra is described in later works it seems to me that we must interpret the epithet to mean "celestial" and not simply " divine." Thus the Vedic works appear to place a celestial dog and a celestial ship at the entrance of the other world, and these can be easily identified with the Greek constellations of Argo Navis and Canis, if we suppose the Milky Way to be the boundary of Heaven in these days.
Putting all these passages together, we find that in the Rlgveda, dogs are described as dark and brown, bright and red, possessing four eyes, guarding the house and the way to Yama's region, vomiting and making milk, and above all beginning the new year. All these facts clearly show that the Vedic dogs are the same as the Hellenic or the Iranian, and we can easily and satisfactorily account for all these legends by supposing that the vernal equinox was near the Dog-star in those days, thus making the dog rise with the sun in the beginning of the year at the gates of the Devayana. "We can now also understand how the dogs could have been described as four-eyed. For, if they are correctly identified with Canis near the Milky Way, then the four stars in the body of Canis might naturally be said to be his eyes;
These services are required at the funeral ceremony. It may be here noted that the hymn in the Rigveda which describes Yama's dogs (RigVeda x. 14) is still recited at the time of burning the dead body of a Hindu, Every Brahman has also to give, every day, two small offerings of cooked rice to the two dogs of Yama, Shyama and Shabala, at the time ofthe Paiskvadeva sacrifice. Several deities receive their oblations at this sacrifice. The offerings are placed on the ground in the form of a circle, beginning with the eastern point. The offering to Shyama is placed outside the circle at the south-west and that to Shabala at the north-west point. In other words, Shyama and Shabala are placed cm each side of the western point, in the s&rae way as the dogs appear in the heavens on each side of the Milky Way.
This is evidently based upon RigVeda viii. 14. 13, where Indra is described as rt cutting the head of Namuchi with the foam of waters, and the same incident is again referred to in RigVeda x. 61. 8. Therefore, even if we reject later speculations with respect to "why foam or froth should have been used” and decline to solve the question by assuming a compact between Indra and Namuchi, yet we have to account for the fact that in the Rigveda itself Indra is said to have used the foamy weapon to destroy his enemy. What could this foamy weapon be ? If Namuchi was killed at the gates of the Devayana and his bead still lies there, the watery foam conld be no other than the broad belt of the Milky Way which crossed the heavens at the same parts.
This is a description of the Ganges on the head of the celestial form of Shiva, and the author of Mahimna, who, in verse 22, refers to the story of Rudra piercing Prajapati with an arrow, and says that the whole story is still illustrated in the sky, evidently meant to describe by it the Milky Way which passes over the head of the star of Rudra. Now if the poetic imagination of the author of Mahimna can perceive foam in the Milky Way, I see no reason why the virgin, imagination of the Vedic poets should not rise to that pitch. Dr. Haug speaking of the Vanant Yashta, observes that the constellation Vanant, by which the Parsi Dasturs (Zoroastrian priests) understand the Milky Way is said to stand directly 'over Hell,' and further the Dasturs are of opinion tha't this constellation is the weapon (Vazra) which is constantly aimed by Mithra at the head of the Daevas, as stated in the Khurshed Yasht.
Namuchi’s legend can thus be simply and naturally accounted for if we assign to the equinoxes the position which we have deduced from other passages in the Vedic works. I may point but that we do not hereby account for the original idea of Vritra. Tlat is evidently a still older legend. But his existence at the gate of Hell and his decapitation by the foamy weapon the two chief elements in the later Vedic traditions are satisfactorily explained by placing, as originally proposed the vernal equinox in the constellation of Orion, and identifying Namuchi alias Vritra with the constellation of Mrigashiras or the antelope's head, situated just below the Milky Way."
If you do not understand the terms or names, I will be happy to help.
Last edited:
