UNITED STATES, September 3, 2024 (Sciengine): Solar eclipses are among the most spectacular and mysterious astronomical events observed since antiquity. Recently, astronomers have even identified a mention of a total solar eclipse in the Rig Veda, an ancient Hindu text, which could date back around 6,000 years. This discovery highlights how ancient texts can enrich our understanding of historical celestial phenomena. The Rig Veda is a set of Hindu texts compiled around 1500 BC, but containing much older accounts. This collection of sayings and hymns, often symbolic and allegorical, refers to various astronomical events. For example, it describes the spring equinox occurring in the constellation Orion and later in the Pleiades, valuable clues for modern astronomers. These positions allow us to date the events described to approximately 4500 BCE and 2230 BCE, respectively. This proves that the Rig Veda contains memories of events well before its writing.

Two astronomers, Mayank Vahia and Mitsuru Soma, have also recently analyzed passages in the Rig Veda that describe the sun as being “pierced” by darkness and sadness, descriptions that suggest a solar eclipse. These passages do not mention the story of Rahu and Ketu, two characters in Hindu mythology associated with eclipses. By studying these clues and using astronomical calculations, Vahia and Soma identified two potential dates for this eclipse: October 22, 4202 BC and October 19, 3811 BC. These two dates are well before the oldest known references to eclipses. The previous record holders were a clay tablet discovered in Syria, mentioning an eclipse in 1375 BC or 1223 BC, and a rock engraving in Ireland potentially dating to 3340 BC. The discovery in the Rig Veda therefore pushes back our knowledge of the first observations of solar eclipses by several millennia. Details of the study are published in the Journal of Astronomical History and Heritage.

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