Sumati was a Nepali astronomer of uncertain date. He is estimated to have lived sometime between the 6th and 10th centuries AD, based on the dating of his primary work, the ''Sumati Tantra''. Little else is known about him. He was influenced by

Indian astronomy Astronomy has long history in Indian subcontinent stretching from pre-historic to modern times. Some of the earliest roots of Indian astronomy can be dated to the period of Indus Valley civilisation or earlier. Astronomy later developed as a dis ...

, and his writing reflects knowledge of the '' Sūrya-siddhānta'' in its earlier forms.

The ''Sumati Tantra''

Sumati's only known work is the ''Sumati Tantra'', written in

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...

on palm leaves between 556–960 AD, lies in

Kaiser library The Kaiser Library is a government-run public library in Kathmandu, Nepal. It is located in the Keshar Mahal palace complex. The library was established in 1907 by the then Prime Minister of Nepal, Chandra Shumsher Jang Bahadur Rana for his son, ...

Kathmandu , pushpin_map = Nepal Bagmati Province#Nepal#Asia , coordinates = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = , subdivision_type1 = Province , subdivision_name1 = Bagmati Prov ...

. It is the first astronomical text written by a Nepalese scholar, and is largely based on

, with commentary and discussions of Indian texts like the '' Sūrya-siddhānta'' (5th century AD), as well as

Varāhamihira Varāhamihira ( 505 – 587), also called Varāha or Mihira, was an ancient Indian astrologer, astronomer, and polymath who lived in Ujjain (Madhya Pradesh, India). He was born at Kapitba in a Brahmin family, in the Avanti region, roughly co ...

's '' Pañca-siddhāntikā'' (6th century AD). In 1409, the ''Sumati Tantra'' was translated into the local

Newar language Newar (), or Newari and known officially in Nepal as Nepal Bhasa, is a Sino-Tibetan language spoken by the Newar people, the indigenous inhabitants of Nepal Mandala, which consists of the Kathmandu Valley and surrounding regions in Nepal. ...

by an astrologer named Bardhan, who titled this translation the ''Sumati Siddhānta''. Both texts were commonly used for calendrical and astrological purposes.

References

{{reflist Medieval astronomers Nepalese astronomers 6th-century Nepalese people