their zodiac from the Hellenic infant! This proof engenders another:
the relative antiquity of the astronomical texts shall be henceforth
determined upon the presence or absence in them of asterisms and
zodiacal signs, the former being undisguisedly Greek in their names, the
latter are "designated by their Sanskrit names which are translated from
the Greek" (p. 255). Thus "Manu's law being unacquainted with the
planets," is considered as more ancient than Yajnavalkya's Code, which
"inculcates their worship," and so on. But there is still another and a
better test found out by the Sanskritists for determining with
"infallible accuracy" the age of the texts, apart from asterisms and
zodiacal signs any casual mention in them of the name "Yavana," taken in
every instance to designate the "Greeks." This, apart "from an internal
chronology based on the character of the works themselves, and on the
quotations, &c., therein contained, is the only one possible," we are
told. As a result the absurd statement that "the Indian astronomers
regularly speak of the Yavanas as their teachers" (p. 252). Ergo, their
teachers were Greeks. For with Weber and others "Yavana" and "Greek"
are convertible terms.
But it so happens that Yavanacharya was the Indian title of a single
Greek--Pythagoras; as Sankaracharya was the title of a single Hindu
philosopher; and the ancient Aryan astronomical writers cited his
opinions to criticize and compare them with the teachings of their own
astronomical science, long before him perfected and derived from their
ancestors. The honorific title of Acharya (master) was applied to him
as to every other learned astronomer or mystic; and it certainly did
not mean that Pythagoras or any other Greek "Master" was necessarily the
master of the Brahmans. The word "Yavana" was a generic term employed
ages before the "Greeks of Alexander" projected "their influence" upon
Jambudvipa, to designate people of a younger race, the word meaning
Yuvan "young," or younger. They knew of Yavanas of the north, west,
south and east; and the Greek strangers received this appellation as
the Persians, Indo-Scythians and others had before them. An exact
parallel is afforded in our present day. To the Tibetans every foreigner
whatsoever is known as a Peling; the Chinese designate Europeans as
"red-haired devils;" and the Mussalmans call every one outside of Islam
a Kuffir. The Webers of the future, following the example now set them,
may perhaps, after 10,000 years, affirm, upon the authority of scraps of
Moslem literature then extant, that the Bible was written, and the
English, French, Russians and Germans who possessed and translated or
"invented" it, lived in Kaffiristan shortly before their era under
"Moslem influence." Because the Yuga Purana of the Gargi Sanhita speaks
of an expedition of the Yavanas "as far as Pataliputra," therefore,
either the Macedonians or the Seleuciae had conquered all India! But
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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