Indian Antiquary Vol 37

Author(s): Richard Carnac Temple
Publisher: Swati Publications

Page 52

THE INDIAN ANTIQUARY.
[FEBRUARY, 1908.
These two things seem to be in favour of Dr. Fleet's theory that the Kuşana inscriptions are dated in the Vikrams ers. But the first observation of Dr. Bielhorn that in the Kupana inscriptions, the term year is always rendered either by Sash or Saravatsara, can be met with at once. Dr. Kielhorn himself has said on a previous occasion : " But in reality sandal and sain may be used of the years of any era, and only in quite modern times are those terms by the Hindus themselves employed to distinguish the Vikrama from Saka years."4 In fact the words Varga and Sashvatsara are synonymous and such differentiation can hardly be exact. Again, there are some Kharopthi inscriptions in which the term "year" has been rendered by the word Varsa or its Präkrit equivalent, and these are so intimately connected with the Kuşada group of Indian inscriptions through palæographical similarity that it is impossible to assert that the dates in them can be referred to any era other than that used in the Kuşina insoription themselves. These are
(1) An inscription found in a Hura in Muchai in Yasafzai and referred to in the Report of the exploration by the 10th Sappers, under Captain Maxwell, in 1882. The date is the year 81. This inscription, as far as I know, has not been edited before, so I bave edited it at the end of this paper.
(2) Thé Skarradheri image inscription, the year 179.86 (3) The Káldarra inscription of the year 113.
As to Dr. Kielhorn's second observation, that the Kuşāna dates, with one exception which mentions a Macedonian month, are all season dates, while the dates of the inscriptions of the Western Ksatrapas, all quote ordinary lunar months, it mast be admitted that all Brāhmi inscriptions belonging to the reigns of Kanigka, Havigka, and Vasudeva contain season dates. But the dates in the Kbarogthi inscriptions of these princes contain ordinary solar months
(1) Zeda .. ... ... ... Sam 11, 28th day of Asada (Agadha). (2) Manikyala... ... ...
... ... Sań 18, 20th day of Kartiya (Kärttika).
Sar 18, 20th day (3) Ara (edited at the end of this Sarn 41, 5th day of Pothavada (Praustbapada).
paper). To this may be added two others which do not contain the names of any princes - (4) Ohind ... ... ...
... .... Sam 61, 8th day of Cetra (Caitra).
.. (6) Fateh Jang ... ... ... Sam 68, 16th day of Pothavada (Prausthapada). The dates, with years above one hundred, should also be taken in a line with these (6) Takht-i-Bahai
Sam 108, 5th day of Vesakha (Vaišāk ka). (7) Paja ...
Sam 111, 15th day of Sravana (Srāvana). (8) Kaldarra ...
Sam 113, 20th day of Sravana (Srāvana). (9) Panjtar - ...
-
Sam 122, 1st day of Sravana (Sravana). (10) Skarradheri ... ... ... Sam 179, 10th day of Aşads (Aşadha). (11) Dewai ...
Sau 200, 8th day of Vesakha (Vwisākha). The Brahmi inscription of the year 135 mentions the month and day as " Pagyamāse divase visabo di 20," which seems to be a compromise between solar month dates and sea son dates. Similarly, also, in the Mathara Jaina image inscription of the reign of Kumāra Gupts I of the year 113 we find that the month and the day has been put in a niander which also seems to be a compromise between solar month dates and season dates, “Vijayarājya Sam (100, 10) 3 Karttika Hema) nta mi(sn 8) di(va) sa 20, asyapurvvayām" etc. According to Dr. Kielhorn himself, the solar month is also used in Saka dates. But this use of solar months in Saka dates appears for the first time so late as in the year 944 = 1022 A. D. Bat the months mentioned above are undoubtedly solar months, and in those we see that beginning with the year 11 up to the year 200 the months used in Kusina dates are solar months. With the exception of some of Ugavadāta's inscriptions all Western Kşatrapa
"1. 4., VOL. XX, P. 404.
Stratton, J. A. 0. 8., Vol. XXIV, Part I, p. 1, and plate; and Yogol, Amwal Roport of the Archeological Burvey of India, 1901, p. 855, and plato Lux., No. 9.