VarÄhamihira
Varahamihira, Varaha Mihira also, ( 6th century AD) was an Indian astronomer, mathematician and astrologer.
Life
Varahamihira was the son of a Brahmin Adityadasa and the Maga - sect ( derived from the Iranian Zoroastern ). He comes from the Avanti region in western India. He is said to have lived according to one of his works in Kapitthaka, but you do not know exactly where that was. He mentioned the astronomical center in Ujjain in one of his works, which later Brahmagupta worked, but there is no explicit evidence that he worked there, but probably unsafe traditions and legends in both Hinduism and Jainism. He is said to have acted Vikramaditya II at the court of the ruler Chandragupta, but the data contradict the known life. His life data are not precisely known. Some astronomical data in his astronomical main work are dated 505 AD. In addition, because mentioned him Brahmagupta 628 he lived in the 6th century.
Work
He is the Pancha - Siddhantika known ( canon of five books), a book on astronomy from around 575 There is evidence of older, now lost astronomical works and summarizes the contents of five essays together ( Surya, Romaka, Paulisa, Vasistha, Paitamaha ). Some ( Romaka Siddhanta - Doctrine of the Romans ) give the Greek epicycle theory of the planets and the movement of the sun and moon from the 1st century after Christ returns (including Ptolemaic panels ). Varahamihira corrects the observed values corresponding to the precession have since taken place. The influence of ancient Western Greco-Roman and Babylonian science in his work but is controversial. The Paulisa Siddhanta also are Greek knowledge again, among other things, the calculation of lunar phases and eclipses. The name refers to an unspecified Greeks Paul. The Surya Siddhanta represents the oldest known knowledge of the Indians on astronomy and it was Aryabhata I. known. The Vasistha Siddhanta is to go back to the fabulous ways the same name.
The work also contains interesting facts about the history of mathematics. So there is in his canon many references to a place value system for numbers and he discovered some trigonometric identities:
He improved the sines of Aryabhata I. He succeeded in attaining discoveries Magic squares and with him a version of Pascal's triangle is the calculation of binomial coefficients.
He is known by several popular ( still popular today ) treatises such as the Brihat Jataka - as important astrologer ( Great Great birth or horoscope, even Horas Astra - Science of the hour named, 400 verses in 25 chapters), Laghu - Jataka ( Small birth, an abridged edition of the Brihat - Jakata ) about Horoscopes ( with clear influences of Greek astrology), Brihat Yogayatra ( over priced signs for campaigns and travels, of which there is also an abridged version) and Brhadvivaha - Patala ( the best time of marriage). He wrote an encyclopedia Brihatsamhita (Grand Collection ) with entries on a variety of subjects such as astrology, meteorology, agriculture, architecture, jewels and perfume, rituals and marriage, geography, calendar, plant, politics, business, animals, astronomy ( planetary motion, eclipses ). Also from this last work, his major work, the natural astrology, there are shorter versions, but they are known only by quotations.
His works have also literary quality and passages from his works have therefore been quoted by later writers as model examples.