Note: Readers’ discretion is advised in reports that mention cultural beliefs or superstitions. Down To Earth encourages scientific temperament in dealing with extreme weather events.
Historically, calendars or almanacks have served as an important tool for timekeeping and planning as ancient cultures lacked any alternative method for such purposes. Often, these almanacks have made headlines for containing prophecies about future events which are sometimes found to be true. One such prophecy was validated on October 25 when Cyclone Dana made its landfall in Odisha’s Kendrapara and Dhamra.
A prediction of the annual Odia almanack or the ‘Khadiratna Panjika’ warned on its 196th page that the eastern state will witness the onslaught of a cyclone between October 17-30.
It also predicts another cyclone from November 5 to 9 and November 11 to 15 this year, Pandit Harisankar Mishra, a noted astrologer of Odisha, informed Down To Earth (DTE).
As a common practice across the country, traditional households keep a copy of the almanack to know the exact dates and auspicious timings for religious rituals and ceremonies. In Hindi speaking northern parts of the country, such almanacks are popularly known as panchangs.
These calendars are also checked while scheduling wedding ceremonies, festivals and other rituals.
Interestingly, the Odia almanacks had accurately predicted the super-cyclone in 1999 and other such natural disasters in the state from time to time.
These almanacks rely upon astrological studies of constellations and the positions of stars in order to predict such events.
“Specifically when malefic planets like Saturn and Mars are involved in such planetary patterns, it provides insight into future events. We also analyse the position of the Sun relative to the Moon to predict natural disasters and other incidents. Earth’s weather was influenced by sunspots, which are magnetic storms on the surface of the Sun and this factored heavily in our forecasts,” Mishra explained.
Achyutananda Das, a 16th century saint from Odisha, had also written about doomsday in his famous book titled Achutananda Malika.
If his prophecies are to be believed, the global warming and subsequent rise in the water level in the Bay of Bengal will result in Puri being submerged in the sea as per the Achutananda Malika.
Das is reputed as the Michel de Nostredame of Odisha.
“Das was right in his prediction as the sea is marching menacingly towards the Odisha coast due to climate change and other factors,” Mishra added.
But meteorologists, scientists and rationalists brushed aside the prediction of almanacks.
Logically, astrologers are not equipped to predict natural disasters as it is scientifically impossible to predict natural calamities on the basis of planetary positions and their influence on Earth.
“They sometimes make guesswork to hoodwink the gullible people,” said Sarat Chandra Sahu the former Director of the Regional Meteorological Centre in Bhubaneswar.
Debendra Sutar, a noted rationalist, also echoed Sahu’s remarks.
“Astrology is not a science and people should not believe any prediction of the astrologers. Sometimes out of 100 predictions, few may be true on the basis of which they boast about their correct predictions. But they never say anything about their wrong predictions,”Sutar told DTE.