The Polar Night — One of the many evidences in Rāmāyaṇa that leads to 12209 BCE
An astronomical evidence from Rāmāyaṇa which also corroborates the dates of Shri Nilesh Oak
Description
The dialogue between Sugriva and his Vanara party is happening during the beginning of Vasanta- Spring season and they all are in Kiśkindhā which is identified near today’s Hampi in Karntaka.
The description in question is from Kiśkindhā kāṇḍa where Sugriva is now telling about the Yama’s capital (rājadhānī) envelopped in darkness, lies beyond the end of the earth.
Shloka
राजधानी यमस्यैषा कष्टेन “तमसावृता”।
एतावदेव युष्माभिर्वीरा वानरपुङ्गवाः।।4.41.46।।
शक्यं विचेतुं गन्तुं वा नातो गतिमतां गतिः।
वीरा: वानरपुङ्गवाः heroic monkeys, एषा that is, यमस्य राजधानी capital of Yama, कष्टेन with pitch, तमसा darkness, आवृता covered, युष्माभिः by you folks, एतावदेव till there only, विचेतुम् to search, गन्तुं वा or to go, शक्यम् possible, अतः beyond this place, गतिमताम् for those who advance, गतिः path, न not.
‘O heroic monkeys that is the capital of Yama (god of death) covered with pitch darkness. You can go till that place. Beyond, there is no access for the earthlings.
We have a verse before the above one where the location of the yAmya is set.
अन्ते पृथिव्या दुर्धर्षास्तत्र स्वर्गजितः स्थिताः।
ततः परं न वस्सेव्यः पितृलोक स्सुदारुणः।।4.41.45।।
ततः then, पृथिव्याः the earth, अन्ते at the end, दुर्धर्षाः unassailable, स्वर्गजितः those who had conquered heaven, स्थिताः stay in, ततःपरम् beyond that place, सुदारुणः dreadful, पितृलोकः world of the deceased ancestors, वः for you, सेव्यः possible to enter, नः not.
‘The divine people who have earned a place in heaven stay there at the end of their life on earth. Beyond, lies the dreadful world of deceased ancestors. It is not possible for you to enter that place.
Analysis
The above verse clearly shows the place situated at the end of the earth towards south.
Now concentrate on the words “tamasā āvṛtā”; that means covered with darkness, from the verse 4.41.46 given above. Normally, colloquially Yama’s abode is misunderstood to be a “dark place”. Here it is describing an astronomical phenomena called polar night. The phenomenon happens when the sun is in the northern hemisphere and the southern polar zone is dark for six months during that time. In the northernmost and southernmost parts of earth, a phenomenon known as the polar night causes the night to linger for 24 hours. Only within the polar circles this phenomena happens. Antarctica is the only landmass in the Southern Hemisphere that is sufficiently south to experience polar nights.
The spring equinox, summer solstice, and autumn equinoxes occur in the first six months of the year when the sun is in the Northern Hemisphere. As a result, the Antarctic Circle suffers winters and darkness for a total of six months throughout the spring-autumn season in the Northern Hemisphere, as is also indicated in the Sūryasiddhānta.
Now, when the sun is in the Southern Hemisphere, the opposite is felt. This means that throughout the six months when the northern hemisphere experiences the cycle of the autumnal equinox, winter solstice, and vernal equinox, the Antarctic will always have 24 hours of daylight and no darkness. In other words, at and beyond -90ºS, as Sugriva states, “Heroic monkey, this is the capital of Yama (the deity of death), covered in the pitch black of the earth.” is only possible if the sun was in the Northern Hemisphere when he spoke with Vānaras.
See and compare what Nilesh Oak Ji said in his work, Rāma Rāvaṇa Yuddha / Historic Rāma, which had hapened in 12209 BCE. The Vega evidence was used to establish the upper bound of the Rāmāyaṇa’s time frame. He also looked for additional proof of the Aśvayuja (Ashwin month) full moon, which coincided with the start of the Vasanta/Spring season. (Ashwin month occurs between mid-September and mid-October in modern times.) The crucial period of time for Rāmāyaṇa was determined by these two major parameters. (Buy Nileshji’s book right away for further details on this subject.)
The month of Aśvayuja experiencing vasanta/spring season is the time when the polar night can be witnessed in the southern polar cap. This can only happen during the 10,500–15000 BCE, and with Polestar Vega during 10,500–14000 BCE.
Takeaway
Rāmāyaṇa is the ultimate Itihāsa-History with many astronomy evidence leading to the correct timeframe of 12209 BCE.
