Vedha Shala
¤ An Observatory
This observatory is known as Jantar Mantarin local parlance. The term
Jantar Mantar is a derivative of Yantra and Mantra, the former being
the pattern of lines and colors symbolic of cosmic power and the
latter, the sacred syllables usually chanted for mental and spiritual
peace.
According to the Hindu geographers, the first meridian passes through
Ujjain, and going by modern calculations, the Tropic of Cancer is only
3km away. Perhaps this was the reason why Jai Singh of Jaipur
constructed one of the Jantar Mantars in Ujjain, the others being in
Delhi and Jaipur. It was built in a.d. 1725, when Jai Singh was the
Governor of Malwa under the Mughal Emperor, Muhammad Shah.
This observatory that is much smaller than the ones in Delhi and
Jaipur, lies to the southeast of the town and consists of four
monuments.
¤ Samrata Yantra
The Samrata Yantra is 22 feet high and was used to calculate time.
The inclination of the staircase to the horizon is at 23o
and 10’. On both quadrants, the hours and minutes are marked to
indicate time; from sunrise to noon on the west quadrant, and from
noon to sunset on the east.
¤ Nadi Walaya Yantra
The Nadi Walaya Yantrais a circular dial lying to the south,
comprising of a seven and a half feet long cylinder. The northern face
indicates the time when the sun is in the Northern Hemisphere, the one
on the southern face is for the Southern Hemisphere. Equinoctial days
are calculated with the help of this instrument.
¤ Dignasha Yantra
The Dignasha Yantra lies tothe east of the Samrata Yantra. It
comprises of an outer circular wall 32 feet, 10 inches in diameter and
8 feet, 4 inches in height.
In the centre is a four feet high iron rod to which a wire would be
attached, pointing towards a particular star or planet. The direction
of the wire would then be mathematically used to calculate the
position of stars and planets.
¤ Bhitti Yantra
The Dakshinottara Bhitti or Bhitti Yantra is a wall used as a
meridian instrument.
It is 22 feet in height and length and seven feet in thickness. On
the eastern surface are double quadrants marked with degrees to enable
the declination of the sun and the distance of the zenith to be
calculated. |
