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By Dr Manish Pandit
The criteria for Bhisma Moksha are given quite clearly in the Anushasan Parva of the Mahabharata: these are Magha Masa with coinciding Shukla Astami and Rohini Nakshatra and it must be around midday. (Ref: slide below which is a GP verse but very similar to the Critical edition verse: see my free book chapter 11 for more)
All of these stringent criteria are fulfilled on 17th Jan 3066BCE: In addition, the Moon rises around midday on Shukla Paksha Astami (waxing phase Moon rises in the day in the East, waning phase Moon rises in the night in the East) Thus we have Rohini Nakshatra on 17th Jan 3066BCE(-3065 in Jhora and Redshift as these don’t have a zero year)
Now the question arises, is this a Magha masa? Yes it is a Magha masa, because that year from previous equinox to equinox are 13 new Moons. Thus that year from 3067BCE to 3066BCE, there is an Adhika Masa. This means that, it is undoubtedly a Magha Masa in January 17th 3066BCE. The 13 New moons from Equinox of 16th April for reference are as follows: 20th April, 19th May, 18th June, 18th July, 16th Aug, 15th sept, 14th Oct, 13th Nov, 12th Dec, 11th Jan, 9th Feb, 10th March, and the 9th April.
Precession of Equinoxes linked Bhisma Moksha stringent parameters:
Please note that due to the precession of the equinoxes, Magha masa coinciding with the time frame of January and close after Winter Solstice time frame…. will only occur upto 2200BCE UNLESS there is an Adhika masa in the year in which case we can extend the timeframe upto the 3000BCE age. Prior to 3200BCE, Magha masa for Bhisma Moksha at the time of Winter Solstice becomes a mathematical impossibility. In 5.5K BCE, that time frame becomes a Chaitra masa. This means that any theory of the Mahabharata can only show Bhisma moksha around 2000-3200BCE. (See slide below)
Uttarayan means Winter Solstice or Makar Sankranti or BOTH?
The verse 153:5-6 CE from Anushasan Parva clearly describes the Vritta and Nivratta of Bhisma Moksha and therefore Uttarayana is nothing but Winter Solstice. However the quest arises, whether it is also Makar Sankranti? I have seen a peculiar thing that, that is that Sayana or Tropical ephemeris entry of the Sun into Makar Rashi is accompanied by Winter solstice and the coinciding of these two phenomena is within minutes of each other. This is a fact: In the embedded tweet, I show screenshots from Redshift for Winter Solstice at Greenwich and the Screenshots of Sun’s Sayana or Tropical calender entry into Capricorn/ Makar Rashi in Dec 21st 2022. This coincides within 10 minutes of each other. ref below:
This is exactly what is happening in 3066BCE as well: that is that Sayana or Tropical ephemeris entry of the Sun into Makar Rashi is accompanied by Winter solstice and the coinciding of these two phenomena is within minutes of each other. See embedded tweet:
Why Bhisma Moksha is only on the 4th day past Winter Solstice and not the 1st day past?
I explain this in the video presentation below with Sri PVR Narasimha Rao late in the presentation around 31 minutes in. This is because the Sun appears to stand still at Winter Solstice (Sol Sistere in Latin means exactly that) – the Sun stands still for 3 days at Winter Solstice. However observed Winter Solstice with the naked eye as described by Yudhistira in the text of the Mahabharata only occurs at day 4 and not day 1 post Winter Solstice.
Thus the strict criteria of Magha Masa with coinciding Shukla Astami and Rohini Nakshatra around midday must all happen on the 4th day past Winter Solstice which is OBSERVED WINTER SOLSTICE WITH THE NAKED EYE: this is only possible in the last 7000 years at that time period in Jan 17th 3066BCE and it coincides with Solar ingress of Sun into Makar Capricorn when reckoned from Tropical Calender. This also satisfies the 58 day timeline of Bhisma Moksha when reckoned from time of entry of Bhisma into the battlefield, 3 days prior. Check chapter 11 of my first book nominated for the Lakatos award for more: download here
https://www.academia.edu/42657451/3067BCE_Fresh_Perspective_on_the_Astronomy_of_the_Mahabharata_War
Je Suis 