Bhāsvatī-sūtra

The manuscript contains the Bhāsvatīkaraṇa, an astronomical treatise belonging to the tradition of Indian Siddhānta astronomy. The opening verses attribute the work to Satānanda, who states that he is presenting the doctrines of astronomy in accordance with the teachings of Varāhamihira and the Sūryasiddhānta. A colophon identifies the work as part of the Pañcasiddhāntasāra tradition: “Iti Śrī Pañcasiddhāntasāre Bhāsvatīkaraṇe Sūryacandrayoḥ Parilekhādhikāro ’ṣṭamaḥ.” This indicates that the text is a karaṇa work intended for practical astronomical calculations and includes chapters dealing with the computation and graphical representation of the Sun and Moon. The manuscript comprises folios 1–24, although folio no. 6 is missing, resulting in a lacuna in the text. Furthermore, verse 2 of the opening section appears to record the date Śaka 1021, which may represent the time of composition of the work. The manuscript thus preserves valuable evidence for the transmission of medieval Indian astronomical knowledge. It belongs to the classical Indian tradition of mathematical astronomy and calendrical computation.