THE ASTRONOMY OF THE AGE OF GEOMETRIC ALTARS

Fire altars were an important part of ritual throughout the ancient wo rld. Geometric ritual, often a part of the fire altars, was intimately connected with problems of mathematics and astronomy. Manuals of alta r design from India explain the basis behind the reconciliation of the lunar and the solar years. This astronomy is based on the use of mean motions. Computation rules from Vedanga Jyotisa, an astronomy manual from the latter part of the second millennium sc that was used during the closing of the age of the altar ritual, are also described.