The Arctic Home in the Vedas c9.35.4

c9.35.4

In later literature, we find a tradition that the path of the sun lies through regions which are lower (*adhah*) than the abode of the Seven Ṛiṣhis, or the constellation of Ursa Major.¹ That the ecliptic lies to the south of the constellation is plain enough, but it cannot be said to be below the constellation, unless the zenith of the observer is in the constellation, or between it and the North Pole, a position, possible only in the case of an observer in the Arctic region. I have already quoted a passage from the Ṛig-Veda, which speaks of the Seven Bears (*Ṛikṣhāḥ*), as being placed on high in the heavens (*uchchhāḥ*). But I have not been able to find out any Vedic authority for the tradition that the sun’s path lies below the constellation of the Seven Bears. It has also been stated previously that mere southerly direction of the sun, even if completely established, is not a sure indication of the observer being within the circum-polar region, as the sun will appear to move always to the south of the observer even in the temperate zone. It is, therefore, not necessary to pursue this point further. It has been shown that the Ṛig-Veda mentions the long night and the long day, and we shall see in the next chapter that the months and the seasons mentioned in this Old Book fully accord with the theory we have formed from the evidence hitherto discussed.