Aurangzeb: Chronicle of a Downfall Foretold

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Aurangzeb’s horoscope had accurately predicted that the Mughal Empire would plunge into chaos after him
Aurangzeb: Chronicle of a Downfall Foretold
A painting of Aurangzeb, circa 1725 (Photo: Getty Images) 

GOD KNOWS!’ exclaimed Jahangir. He was in Ramgarh when a comet shaped like a harba (spear) appeared in the sky on 20 October 1618. His astrologers said it indicated weakness for kings and success for enemies.

Jahangir saw the comet three gharis before sunrise, a luminous vapour in the form of a pillar:

When it assumed its full form, it took the shape of a spear, thin at two ends and thick in the middle. It was curved like a sickle, and had its back to the south, and its face to the north… Astronomers took its shape and size by the astrolabe, and ascertained that with differences of appearance it extended over 24 degrees. It moved in high heaven, but it had a movement of its own, differing from that of high heaven, for it was first in Scorpio and afterwards in Libra. Its declination was mainly southerly. Sixteen nights after this phenomenon, a star showed itself in the same quarter. Its head was luminous, and its tail was two or three yards long, but the tail was not luminous. It has now appeared for eight nights; when it disappears, the fact will be noticed, as well as the results of it.