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IV - THE BHAGAVATA RELIGION AND THE GĪTĀ 775
Knowledge of the Brahman and Samkhya philosophy in the Maitrāyanyupanisad, but in many places, phrases or even stanzas from the Chāndogya, Brhadāranyaka, Taittiriya, Katha, and Išāvāsya are seen being taken as authorities The actual names of these Upanisads are not mentioned in the Maitryupanisad; but as, in quoting these phrases, words implying quotation such as 'evam hyāha' or 'uktam ca' (ie, so it is said') are placed before the quotations, there is no doubt that these quotations are taken from some other book, and are not written by the writer of the Maitryupanisad; and one can easily determine which Upanisad has been quoted from, by a reference to these other Upanisads Now, where the description of the Brahman in the shape of hāla' (Time) or 'samvatsara' (Year) is made in the Maitryupanisad (Maitryu 6 11), it is stated that: "the Daksināyana (i e, when the Sun seems to travel towards the South-Trans ) lasts from the day when the Sun anters to Maghā constellation until it reaches the centre-point of the Śravisthā, that is, the Dhanisthā constellation (cf "mughadyam śrausthārdham"); and that the Uttarāyana (or Udagayana. during which the Sun seems to travel towards the NorthTrans. ) used to be from the beginning of the Sārpa, that is, the Āślesā constellation, in an inverse order upto the centre-point of the Dhanisthā constellation, that is, counting backwards as Āślesā, Pusya, etc.". It is quite clear that these expressions, which show the method of calculation of the Udagayana must have been used with reference to the period of the Udagayana which was then in vogue; and in this way, the date of that Upanisad can easily be mathematically calculated. But no one seems to have considered the matter from this point of view. This state of the Udagayana, referred to in the Maitryupanisad, is earlier than the state of the Udagayana referred to in the Vedānga-Jyotisa; because, it is clearly stated in the Vedānga-Jyotisa that the commencement of the Udagayana is from the beginning of the Dhanisthā constellation, whereas in the Maitryupanisad, the commencement is from the middle of the Dhanisthā. There is a difference of opinion as to whether the term 'ardham' in the phrase 'sravisthārdharn' is to be interpreted as meaning 'exactly half' or 'somewhere between Dhanisthā and Satatārakā'. Whatever may be the