Stars Aligned? Decoding the Conflicting Horoscopes of Emperor Akbar
Published on 4/17/2024
The Akbarnama, Abu'l Fazl's monumental chronicle of Emperor Akbar's reign, is far more than a simple list of events. It's a deeply philosophical work, weaving together history, theology, and even the sciences of the time. One fascinating section that highlights this blend is the discussion surrounding Akbar's birth horoscopes.
It might seem strange to modern readers, but astrology was a respected science in the 16th-century Mughal court. Scholars from various traditions – Persian, Greek, and Indian – applied their knowledge to chart the celestial influences at the moment of the Emperor's birth. Yet, when these charts were compared, a curious discrepancy emerged.
The Celestial Puzzle: Virgo vs. Leo
The core of the puzzle lay in the Ascendant, the zodiacal sign rising on the eastern horizon at the precise moment of birth. According to the calculations based on the Greek (specifically, Ulugh Beg's Gurgāni) tables, the Ascendant fell in Virgo. However, the Indian astrologers, using their own methods and tables, placed the Ascendant in Leo.
This wasn't a minor difference. The Ascendant is considered paramount in astrology, shaping the native's personality, life path, and destiny. A Virgo Ascendant suggests traits like intellect, meticulousness, and service, while a Leo Ascendant points to leadership, majesty, and inherent power. Both could arguably apply to Akbar, but the technical disagreement was significant.
Seeking Explanations: Precession and Ancient Tables
Abu'l Fazl, ever the meticulous scholar, sought to understand this conflict. He noted that some attributed the difference to the ongoing debate among astronomers about the motion of the fixed stars – what we now call the precession of the equinoxes. Different schools of thought had varying calculations for the rate of this slow, westward shift of the zodiacal signs over centuries.
He explains that ancient philosophers, unaware of this slow movement, fixed the zodiacal signs relative to the stars. Later astronomers, observing the shift, developed new tables. The Indian calculations, he suggests, might align with older observations that didn't account for the full extent of precession, while the Greek/Persian tables reflected newer measurements. He even calculates that, based on a precession rate of one degree per seventy years, the difference of seventeen degrees between the systems could account for over a thousand years separating the observations upon which the tables were based.
The Master Astrologer Steps In
To resolve the matter definitively, Akbar commissioned the renowned scholar and scientist Amir Fathu'l-lah of Shiraz. Amir Fathu'l-lah, using Greek and Persian canons, performed his own calculations. His finding? The auspicious horoscope, based on his rigorous methods, placed the Ascendant in Leo – aligning with the Indian astrologers, but through a different computational path.
This outcome, while seemingly resolving the technical debate in favor of Leo, still left a layer of mystery. Why the initial discrepancy, even among the most learned?
Divine Jealousy and Hidden Truths
Here, Abu'l Fazl introduces a profound, almost mystical, interpretation. He suggests that the initial disagreement wasn't merely a scientific error but a deliberate act of "Divine wisdom" and "Divine jealousy" (hikmat-i-ilāhī). The full truth of Akbar's extraordinary destiny, he posits, was meant to remain partially veiled, hidden from the "evil-disposed and inwardly blind" and even from the complete grasp of the most "keen-sighted, penetrating, minute inquirers."
It was as if the heavens themselves conspired to protect the mystery of this "cavalier of the plain of majesty," revealing glimpses of his greatness through different lenses, but keeping the ultimate, unified vision just beyond reach for most.
The Unifying Truth: A Destiny Unmatched
Crucially, despite the technical differences in the charts, Abu'l Fazl emphasizes that all the horoscopes, when interpreted, agreed on the fundamental points of Akbar's destiny. They all foretold his lofty spiritual and temporal rank, his collection of inward and outward excellencies, his sway over the visible and invisible worlds, his long life, soundness of body, equable disposition, and his role as a just and benevolent ruler.
This agreement, across different systems and calculators, served as the ultimate proof for Abu'l Fazl. The stars, whether seen through a Greek or Indian lens, confirmed the unparalleled greatness of the Emperor.
More Than Just Science
The episode of Akbar's horoscopes in the Akbarnama is a window into the intellectual world of the Mughal court. It shows the engagement with complex scientific ideas like precession, the reliance on established knowledge systems from diverse cultures, and the belief in celestial influences on human affairs.
But more than that, it reveals Abu'l Fazl's unique approach to history. He doesn't shy away from presenting conflicting data. Instead, he uses it as a springboard for deeper reflection, ultimately attributing the apparent contradictions to a higher, divine plan that underscores the exceptional nature of his subject. It's a reminder that for Abu'l Fazl, Akbar's history was not just a record of a reign, but a manifestation of divine will on Earth, a truth so profound that even the stars themselves could only hint at it, sometimes in discordant whispers, before the full light of his life revealed the harmonious reality.
This blend of empirical observation, scholarly debate, and theological interpretation makes the Akbarnama a truly unique historical text, reflecting a world where science, philosophy, and faith were deeply intertwined in the service of understanding and glorifying the Emperor.