The Rise of Nava-grahas
In Vedic times, graha meant malevolent spirits who hurt mothers and babies. It had nothing to do with planets. The 3000-year-old Vedic Jyotisha had nothing to do with predicting the future. It was a practical science of timekeeping — fixing solstices, calibrating the lunar calendar, scheduling sacrifices. The Rig Veda mentions no grahas at all. It does, however, preserve a shadowy figure called Svarbhanu who causes a solar eclipse before the sage Atri drives him off…
















