[ 12 ] European Science. Let me therefore briefly recount & few bright names from the annals of our ancient astronomy that the present work way be taken at its true worth. Not to dive into the antiquity of Hindu astronomy, which is as old as the Vedas and regarding which abler men have measured swords, let me begin the story from the point where we tread on the firm ground of history. It begins with Aryabhala of Kusumapura (Pataliputtra), the Andubarius of the Greeks, the Arjabhar of the Arabs, and the Indian founder of the theory of the earth's daily rotation. He was born in the Saka year 398 (A. D. 476) and wrote his famous work at the age of twenty- three. It was he in whose work we find, as far as our present knowledge goes, the first successful attempt to solve indeter- minate equations of the first degree. He enjoyed a wide repuba- tion which can only be explained by supposing that he was an original observer and made: improvements upon older astronomy. Hindu astronomy was then passing through the state of .ehildhood, and a few years later, we find Vardha-mihira of Avanti (Ujjayini), adorning the court of Vikramaditya the Great, about whom many a tale of adventure and narrow escape from death has been recounted. Varába's encyclopedic knowledge made him famous But he is remembered more as a compiler than as an original worker. His astronomical compilation, named Panchasiddhántiká was written about the Saka year 427 (505 A. D.) Next, the name of Brahmagupta, son of Jishụu, introduces an important chapter in the history of Sanskrit astronomy. He wrote his work, Brahma-sphuta-siddhanta in Saka 550 (628 A.D.) Digitised by Google
