The author of the Brihat Samhita is:

Concept

Historical authorship questions are solved by linking a work to its intellectual tradition, period, and the scholar’s established corpus.

A reliable identification uses the title’s subject area and cross-checks it against other well-known works by the same scholar.

Application

The Brihat Samhita is a sixth-century Sanskrit compendium on astronomy, astrology, natural phenomena, architecture, and related subjects. It is attributed to Varahamihira, the scholar associated with Ujjain.

Contrast

• Aryabhatta is chiefly associated with the Aryabhatiya, a mathematical and astronomical treatise.

• Brahmagupta wrote the Brahmasphutasiddhanta and the Khandakhadyaka.

• Varahamihira wrote the Panchasiddhantika and the Brihat Jataka in addition to the Brihat Samhita.

• Nagarjuna is associated primarily with Madhyamaka Buddhist philosophy and works such as the Mulamadhyamakakarika.

Cross-check

Varahamihira’s authorship is consistent with the Brihat Samhita’s encyclopedic treatment of astronomy and allied subjects, while the signature works of the other named scholars belong to different corpora.

Result: Varahamihira.