________________
MAY, 1887.]
THE YEARS OF THE GUPTA ERA.
149
which, it is drawn up. Sometimes it will be 1264. Therefore, in arriving at Sunday, the the English date, sometimes the Indian. We 25th May, he has adopted Mr. C. Patell's ini. shall see immediately that, in this Verawal tind day, in preference to his own. And I will inscription, the principal record is the Valabhi follow the same course for the rough purposes date; and that the Vikrama date accidentally, for which the initial day may here be utilised. as well as the Hijra date naturally, was en. The double Ashadha included four lunar tirely subordinated to it. Possibly, we may fortnights. In northern Saka-Saṁvat 1186 hereafter obtain instances, in which the reverse and northera Vikrama-Samvat 1921, they comof this will be found to have been the case. menced and ended, theoretically and approxiBut they will not avail to disprove any of the mately, on respectively the 75th and 133rd pointed and unavoidable conclusions, regarding solar days of the year;" i.e. on respectively the epoch of the Gupta-Valabhi era and the the 13th May and the 10th July. And, accordscheme of its years, which are absolutely forced ing to the regular northern system, of the on as by the circamstances of the present four fortnights, the first (dark) belonged to Verawal date.
the natural month; the second (bright), and The second point to be noticed is that the
| the third (dark), to the intercalated month; and month Åshidha, which fell in A.D. 1264,-i.e. the fourth (bright), to the natural month. both the Åshadha of northern Saka-Samvat But, in southern Saka-Samvat 1186 and south1186 and northern Vikrama-Samvat 1321, and ern Vikrama-Saávat 1320, they commenced the slightly different ÅshAdha of southern and ended, theoretically and approximately, Saka-Samvat 1186 and southern Vikrama- on respectively the 90th and 148th solar days Saṁvat 1320,-was an intercalary month." of the Saka year;" i.e. on respectively the The effect of this intercalation was as follows: 28th May and the 25th July. And, of the The initial day of Saka-Samvat 1186, both | four fortnights, if we adopt the present regular northern and southern, and of the northern southern system, the first (bright), and second Vikrama-Samvat 1321, was Saturday, the 1st (dark), belonged to the intercalated month; March, A.D. 1264, according to Gen. Cunning and the third (bright), and the fourth (dark), ham," and Friday, the 29th February (the to the natural month." Now, we have, primu English year being a Leap-year), according to facie at least, to look on the date as belonging Mr. C. Patell." With Gen. Cunningham's to the dark fortnight of the natural Ashadha ; own initial day, and by his own theory and partly because the record contains no qualifiprocess,- vis. that Ashådha krishạn 13 fell on catory term, indicative of the intercalated the 87th solar day of the year, from and inclu- month; and partly because of the well-known sive of the initial day,--the resulting English prohibition of official, ceremonial, and religious date would be Monday, the 26th May, A.D. acts in an intercalated month." And the
" See Cunningham's Indian Eras, p. 179.-The fact is also proved by K. L. Chhatre's Tables. In c. Patell's Chronology, p. 150, the intercalation is entered opposite (Saka-Samvat 1188 and) soathern Vikrama-Samvat 1321. This is in accordance with a mistake that runs all through his Table I. pp. 94 to 183. The intercalations are given by him correctly for the Saks years. But he has omitted to point out that, in applying them to the Vikram years, which throughout his Table, are the sonthern Vikrams years, they must, in consequence of the way in which the years of the two eras overlap, be
for the months Chaitra to Alvina, both inclusive, are concerned, for the Vikrama year preceding that opposite to which they are entered ; at least, I can find no note in his book to that effect.-A reference to the Table at p. 143 above, will shew at once that an intercalation of any month from Chaitra to Asvins in. clusive, in, for instance, Saks-Sathvat 1186, northern or southern, did fall in northern Vikrama-Sauvat 1321, but in southern Vikram Sarvat 1820. .
13 Indian Eras, p. 179. Chronology, p. 150. 15 See Indian Eras, p. 109, and Chronology, p. 71. 46 C. Patell's Chronology, p. 71. WA verse that is quoted as being in the Brahma. Siddhanta indicates a more ancient custom (see page 109
above), according to which the first (bright), and the second (dark) fortnights would belong to the natural month; and the third (bright) and the fourth (dark), to the intercalated month. When this custom was changed, the object of the change evidently was to make the period covered by the intercalated fortnights the same all over India, the reason for this being that intercalated month are nindya, or to be looked on as under prohibition : so that oeremonial and religious rights oould not be performed in them; and it would obviously be highly in. convenient, especially on the border-land of the divid. ing-line between Northern and Southern Indis, that the nrohibition should not be applicable to exactly the same lunar periods. The change of custom must have been made long before the period of the present inscription. I have mentioned this earlier custom here, bbcause it is one of the general surroundings of the date. But the question is of no vital importance in this case, because the date is a northern, not a southern one.
Only if, ia one and the same year, there are two in. tercalary months (which are always accompanied by the expunction of a month, which may be one of the two, or a third month), then the first intercalated month is pridasta, or 'stamped me excellent or approved of the second being, as usual, windya, or 'to be looked on AS under prohibition.
