Does Vedic astrologers of the old days really have means to measure time accurately?

I often wondered, if Vedic astrology is so dependent on the accuracy of the birth time, right down to the minutes, how do the ancient astrologers measure time? If there is no effective way of tracking time to such precision, will that imply astrology is simply hogwash, despite its antiquity? Well, in Jaipur, North India, there is an astronomical observation site called the Jantar Mantar, which was built in the early 18th century (1739 to be exact). It includes a set of some twenty main fixed instruments which were blown up to astronomical (pun) size. One of the most important instruments is known as the Vrihat Samrat Yantra (great king of instruments), which is the world’s largest stone sundial. How accurate it is? It can predict the time with accuracy up to within two seconds! Therefore, we know that more than 2 hundred years ago, the ancient Indians really do have already an effective way to measure time with such amazing accuracy. The following video will show you a close look of these instruments:

Ancient Indian Astronomy

Vedic Astrology in Singapore

Not long ago, a couple who engaged me to for the selection of their wedding and solemnization date asked me why I used Vedic Astrology to perform the task instead of the usual Bazi method. I explained to them that the former uses more precise timing and thus can produce more accurate results with high level of certainty. “If that is the case, then why is it that most of my friends and relatives have not heard about Vedic Astrology before?” they asked me in return. Well, that is indeed a valid question. It is actually a very culturally-based thing. Most of the Indians in Singapore do use Vedic Astrology in many major events of their life, be it auspicious date selection, moving house or even marriage compatibility matching. However, this practice is limited to their community only. For the Chinese, we have intrinsically within our culture our very own systems like bazi and ziwei doushu, with many well established masters out there selling their wares. The level of awareness of an equally powerful system (if not better and more ancient) is almost non-existent, especially among couples getting married, whose knowledge on the custom of choosing auspicious dates came from their parents, who in turn believes that such services can only be found along Waterloo Street among the Chinese fortune tellers.

Another observation I had today was when I went to Kinokuniya Orchard and saw a few hundred English and Chinese books on bazi, ziwei doushu, palmistry, face reading, feng shui and tarot reading but yet there were only THREE (yes THREE!!!) books on Vedic Astrology (2 in English and 1 in Chinese). No wonder not many Singaporeans know about it, because there is simply not enough information out there, apart from the cultural reason mentioned earlier on. Hence, I would like to take this chance to be the catalyst and hope to change all this through my writing and sharing. It is not easy but it can be done.