Why I prefer the Indian Calendar to Judo-Christian Calendar
Judo-Christian calendar is related to the birth or death of Christ.
Though he was called the star of wonder his arrival did not have any special stellar or celestial configuration to go by.
Whereas the ancient Indian calendar was based on semi-scientific reasoning.
Hindu calendar is a collective name for most of the luni-sidereal calendars and sidereal calendars traditionally used in Hinduism.
The Hindu calendars have undergone many changes in the process of regionalization.
Some of the more prominent regional Hindu calendars include the Nepali calendar, Punjabi calendar, Bengali calendar, Odiya calendar, Malayalam calendar, Kannada panchanga, Tulu calendar, Tamil calendar, Vikrama Samvat used in Northern India, and Shalivahana calendar in the Deccan States of Karnataka, Telangana, Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh.
The common feature of many regional Hindu calendars is that the names of the twelve months are the same (because the names are based in Sanskrit).
The month which starts the year also varies from region to region.
The Buddhist calendar and the traditional lunisolar calendars of Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Thailand are also based on an older version of the Hindu calendar.
Most of the Hindu calendars derived from Gupta era astronomy as developed by Āryabhaṭa and Varāhamihira in the 5th to 6th century. These in turn were based in the astronomical tradition of Vedāṅga Jyotiṣa, which in the preceding centuries had been standardized in a number of (non-extant) works known as Sūrya Siddhānta.
Regional diversification took place in the medieval period.
The astronomical foundations were further developed in the medieval period, notably by Bhāskara II (12th century).
Differences and regional variations abound in these computations, but the following is a general overview of the Hindu lunisolar calendar.
The Indian national calendar or "Saka calendar" was introduced in 1957 based on the traditional Hindu calendars.
The Indian calendar is known by the Hindu word "panchanga".
The calendar is based on the lunar cycle. A day is measured as the period between one sunrise and the next. A month is the period from one moon cycle to the next. A year is measured from the beginning of a season until its return.
A lunar month lasts 28 days.
A lunar year lasts 12 lunar months or 354 solar days.
Since a period of twelve lunar months fall short of a solar year by 11 days, an additional month is added to the calendar at five-yearly intervals. This month is known as the "adhika".
Each month is divided into the two cycles (waxing and waning) of the moon (new moon to full moon and back). The period of the new moon is called "amavesya" and the period of the full moon is called "purnimavesya".
A season is called a "rtu" (pronounced 'ritu') and there are four seasons in a year. In the course of history two calendar eras have been adopted, they are the vikrama era and the shaka era.
The Shakas were a nomadic tribe of Central Asia who were displaced by the Yue Chi tribe (one of several nomadic tribes who conducted raiding parties into China, resulting in the construction of the Great Wall of China to exclude such intrusions).
The displaced Shakas migrated to northern India in the first century BC.
The Shakas established rule over large parts of the area. In 58 BC, they were defeated by a local regional king, Vikramaditya, who ruled over central India.
To commemorate his victory over the Shakas, the king introduced a new calendar era, the vikram era.
Many years later another Shaka king defeated the Vikramaditya dynasty and established a new era, known as the shaka era, the one which is still the official calendar system in India today.
Considering that we live on planet Earth, today marks a momentous occasion – an occasion so significant that even the moon is celebrating.
It’s Earth Day and tonight’s full moon will be specially shining in the nighttime sky to prove it.
Every April, the moon reveals its stellar beauty in the form of a Pink Moon.
Sadly, this doesn’t mean that the moon turns rosy.
It instead signifies that a micro- or mini-moon will be dancing across the inky black sky. This type of moon appears as it sounds, emerging smaller than normal because, according to EarthSky, tonight’s moon will reach apogee:
The furthest point from the Earth.
The Farmers’ Almanac reports that this moon was named after the herb moss pink (also known as wild ground phlox), since this plant is one of the first to blossom during springtime.
The Pink Moon is also referred to as the Full Sprouting Grass Moon, Egg Moon, and the Full Fish Moon. The latter two monikers were established because coastal tribes witnessed shad swim upstream to lay their eggs when this moon revealed itself.
With this in mind, the Pink Moon also represents fertility in many circles.
Mystically speaking, SpringWolf’s Pagan’s Path suggests that we take this time to work on our relationships and to solve any problems that may be affecting this area of our lives.
In general, Witchipedia reveals that if you begin a new business venture on the day of a full moon, it will bring you good luck.
However, you may also want to consume extra Vitamin C today because being sick whilst the full moon glows can mean that you’ll be sick for quite some time.
Though the mini-moon began its nighttime reign last night, it can be spotted for around three days. You can also watch this phenomenon on Slooh’s website tonight, starting at 8pm EST. Either way, Happy Earth Day!
We hope all you moon mavens out there have your telescopes ready!