The Genius of Sawai Jai Singh II 2025
On our journey to Jaipur and Ranthambore, we stepped back into 18th-century India, where we encountered a monarch whose reign was a brilliant fusion of political acumen and scientific innovation. He is identified as one of the most enlightened and youngest rulers of the kingdom of Amber. Yes! You guessed it right. He is none other than Sawai Jai Singh II. More than being just a ruler, he was a polymath, an astronomer, and a visionary city planner whose ideas shaped Amber and left a mark on Indian history.
Sawai Jai Singh was an astronomer who constructed five Jantar Mantars located in Delhi, Jaipur, Ujjain, Varanasi, and Mathura. We learnt from our guide that the Jantar Mantar observatory of Jaipur is the most advanced one. He created several instruments to calculate time, like the sundials in Jaipur for summer and winter respectively.
We came to know through our guide that there were only two days in a year when the sundials did not work. This was because of Earth’s slightly tilted axis and its elliptical orbit around the Sun. He even constructed two hemispherical instruments, known as the Jai Prakash Yantra, to track the position of celestial bodies. We were fascinated by the Digamsa Yantra, which is an instrument used to measure the azimuth, that is, the angular position of a celestial body along the horizon. This instrument was helpful in determining the position of stars and planets in the sky. Additionally, we learnt about the Dhruva Darshak Patrika, which locates the position of the North Star.
Sawai Jai Singh was a versatile genius who loved science and innovation. He constructed the city of Jaipur and developed advanced technology to observe the stars. He kept his legacy of learning and knowledge alive with the aim of creating a better future.
Team Members: Aarav, Adhiraj, Aryahi, Ishan, Janhvi, Kushal, Raunak, Saisha, Sangbida, Tanay, Tanush (The Newtown School, Kolkata).
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