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| Story and Photos: Nipatporn Pengkaeo |
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Traditional astronomy in Thailand encompassed both astronomy and astrology, and was based on the geo-centric belief which professed that the earth was the center of the universe. Dating back roughly 5,000 years, it is believed that traditional astronomy was first introduced to Thailand from India. During the time of the great Asok's successful conquest of the Indian subcontinent, the Indians in the south and the Brahman priests were forced to flee India. They sought refuge in Southeast Asia, and their traditions, wisdom, and understanding of the stars followed them. Thailand embraced these traditions and quickly developed them into her own, studying the placement and movement of the stars as they corresponded to both important happenings in the Kingdom as well as daily life in general. The popularity and importance of traditional astronomy soon after was evidenced by the fact that rulers, military leaders, and political personalities all eventually consulted the stars and their charts as a matter of routine. |
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With the incursion of scientific discovery on traditional knowledge, as well as the acceptance of western influence and ideas in the Kingdom, traditional astronomy in Thailand was forever changed. Astronomy and astrology were forever divorced from one another. With the aid of improved stargazing equipment, Galileo announced to the world that the earth was not the center of the universe in 1609, and introduced the idea of a helio-centric system instead, in which the planets moved around the sun. That and many other similar discoveries, compounded by the decreasing dependency on stargazing for daily functional purposes that many inventions such as the watch afforded, created two paths of development for traditional astronomy in Thailand - one for astronomy as a science and one for astrology as more of a pastime. |
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Astronomy developed into a useful science that was testable, based on true observation and facts. Astrology - stargazing in anticipation of both fortunate and difficult happenings in our lives - also developed its own sophistication. But although its popularity continued, the lack of testable hypotheses severely decreased the value of astrology for our daily lives and society.
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