Public Talk: Garga’s Knowledge of the Crow (vāyasavidyā) and the Dawn of South Asian Ornithology

This talk explores a collection of crow omens from South Asia, aiming to elucidate the epistemological underpinnings of their understanding. The content reveals a fascinating blend of empirically based knowledge and religious ritual, both rooted in empirical observation. When this rational approach is applied to bird omens, particularly those associated with corvids, the collection can be interpreted as representing an early form of “ornithology” within the South Asian context.

In this talk, we will delve into the Gārgīyajyotisa texts, the earliest extant collection of Brahmanic Astral Science, compiled by a certain Garga likely in the Northwest of the Indian subcontinent around the beginning of the Common Era. Through these texts, we will illustrate the mode of thought that underpins the knowledge of the crow, or vāyasavidyā, as presented by Garga.