Indian Antiquary Vol 19

Author(s): John Faithfull Fleet, Richard Carnac Temple
Publisher: Swati Publications

Page 12

THE INDIAN ANTIQUARY.
[JANUARY, 1890.
Gurau) also would work ont satisfactorily Thursday, 10 July, A.D. 1399), if namely we were to take the year 293 as a currerst year. But in no way would it be possible to explain with the assumed epoch the first of our dates (the year 74, Vaišlikha-vadi 12 Gurau); for, with that epoch. the date should fall either in A.D. 1180 or in A.D. 1181, according as the year 74 might be considered a current or expired year, and we have seen that Vaisakha-vadi 12 was a Thursday neither in A.D. 1180 nor in A.D. 1181. And besides, it may well be urged that a year commencing with Margasira, though not altogether unknown, would certainly be something very nnusual, the actual existence of which in more modern times should be assumed only when thereby all independent dates are duly accounted for, and when no simpler course, that woull account for all such dates, is open to us; that with the assumed epoch we are obliged to regard the dates in dark fortnights partly as purnimanta and partly as amánta dates; and that the percentage of dates which with the above epoch we have to regard as dates in current years (3 ont of 6), is larger than that we are accustomed to in this respect in the case of other eras. The main objection to the assumed epoch, however, would of course always be this, that it does not account for the week-day of the oldest date of the era which hitherto has become known to us.
If we now turn to the epoch suggested to us by Abu-l-Fazl, according to whose account the difference between a Lakshmanasêna year and the corresponding Saka year would be 1041 years, and the correctness of whose figures would appear to be corroborated by the MS. date La-saṁ 505 = Såkê 1546, we shall find that with that epoch all the six dates which have been examined above, work out in the simplest manner possible. And judging from these six dates, I feel no hesitation in saying that the Lakshmanasêne year was an ordinary southern (Karttikadi) year, with the amanta scheme of the lunar fortnights; and that the first day of the first current year of the era was Karttika-sudi 1 of the expired Saka year 1041, = the 7th October A.D. 1119,7 = the day of the Julian period 2,130,052. On the basis of these data, the results of my calculations are as follows:
(a) Date 6; the year 433, Kârttika-vadi 7 Sukre. The year 433 is a current year, and, with the anánta scheme of the lunar fortnights, the corresponding date (for 433 + 1040 = Saka 1473 expired) is Friday, 20 November A.D. 1551, when the 7th tithi of the dark half ended 10 h. 33 m. after mean sunrise.
(6) Date 5; the year 424, Pausha-sadi 10 Sukrd. The year 424 is an expired year, and the corresponding date (for 424 + 1041 = 'Saka 1465 expired) is Friday, 4 January, A.D. 1544, when the 10th tithi of the bright half ended 17 b. 9 m. after mean sunrise.
(c) Date 3; the year 376, Pausha-vadi 13 Budhe. The year 376 is an expired year, and with the amánta scheme of the lunar fortnights, the corresponding date (for 376 + 1041 = Saka 1417 expired) is Wednesday, 13 January, A.D. 1496, when the 13th tithi of the dark half ended 10 h. 38 m. after mean sunrise.
(a) Date 2; the year 317, Chaitra-sudi 1 Gurau. The year 317 is an expired year, and the corresponding date (for 317 + 1042 = Saka 1359 expired) is Thursday, 7 March A.D. 1437. By Professor Jacobi's Tables, the first tithi of the bright half commenced 0 b. 43 m. before mean sunrise of Thursday, 7 March, and ended 0 h. 17 m. after mean sunrise of Friday, 8 March ; but calculated by the Brahma-Siddhanta the tithi ended about one hour before mean sunrise of the Friday.
• See Alberinf'India, Sachan's Translation, Vol. II. p. 8. + To convert a year of the Lakshmanasena era into an expired Saks year, we accordingly have to add
1040 to a current La year, when the date falls in Karttiks - PhAlguna; 1041 to a current La. year, when the date falls in Chaitra - Ravina ; 1041 to an expired La. year, when the date falls in Karttika-Phalgana 1042 to an expired La. year, when the date falls in Chaitra-Akvina.