Indian Antiquary Vol 41

Author(s): Richard Carnac Temple, Devadatta Ramkrishna Bhandarkar
Publisher: Swati Publications

Page 36

THE INDIAN ANTIQUARY
[FEBRUARY, 1912.
Again, the Maitrayaniya-Samhita i. 5. 5. 6, says:
भग्नीषोमीयया त्रयोदशी उपस्थयोऽस्ति.
मासस्त्रयोदशः तमेवैतयाप्त्वावरुधे. “The thirteenth lunar day is to be propitiated by the immolation of a beast sacred to Agni and Sôma. There is the thirteenth month; it is that thirteenth month which he catches hold of by this offering."
These and other references to the New Year's Day and the thirteenth month intercalated solely for the purpose of keeping the seasons or the months in their proper places in the year, are enough to show that the Vedic poets kept a calendar with far more scientific precision than we are pleased to credit them with. Whether we will or no, the fact cannot be denied that the idea of a thirteenth month, i.e, an intercalated month, could not have dawned upon the mind of the Vedic poets unless they had been quite familiar with the true lengths of several kinds of years. There is also reason to believe that, before the system of adjusting the difference between any two kinds of years by the insertion of an intercalary month was begun, the practice was to adjust them by adding sets of intercalary days, such as 9, 11, 12, 21, and so on. That such was the custom, is clear from the following passage of the Kathasakhâ-Brahmana, quoted in the Smrititattra.
भर्धमासा वै अधस्तात्संतः भकामयत मासास्स्थामतिः ते द्वादशाहं क्रतुमुपायन् त्रयोदशं प्राह्मणं कृत्वा तस्मिन् सुष्वा उदतिष्ठन् तस्मात्सोऽनायतनः इतरानुपजीवतीति. तस्मादशाहस्य त्रयोदशेन प्राह्मणेन भवितव्यमिति कठशा. CIWIETR.
अस्यायों जयस्वामिना व्याख्यात:ते चार्धमासा स्त्रयोदशं मलमासं ब्राह्मणं कृत्वा द्वादशाहं ऋतुमुपायन् उपाहृतवंतः तस्मिन्मलमासे मृष्टवा संमार्य किमित्याकांक्षायां भरातीरिव्यध्याहियते. अरातीः पापानि संमाय उदतिष्ठन्. पापभारशून्या उत्थिता भभवनित्यर्थःसत्र पापनिर्मार्जनार्थवादात् संभवत्कालानंतरं कर्म तत्र न कर्तव्यम् न तु निरवकाशमिति. अर्थवाधात् विधिकल्पनायाः प्रतीतिबाधेनवोचिस्यात्. अतो नित्यनैमित्तिकशांतिकारः मलमासेन पर्युदासः सोऽनायतन इति नाप्यस्य चैत्रादिवत प्रतिनियतस्थानमित्यर्थः इतरानुपजीवतीति मासांतरेषु चंद्रक्षयवृद्धिभ्य. तस्योपजननात्,
"Being at a lower level [i.e., being less than a month], the half-months desired that they might grow into months. They approached the twelve days' sacrifice. Having appointed a Brahmaņa as a thirteenth priest [in addition to the twelve priests) and having washed off (the sins) on him, they got up. Hence it is that he (the thirteenth month or the priest who represents it] is homeless and dependent for his existence upon others. Hence there ought to be a thirteenth Brahmaņa priest in every twelve days' sacrifice. This is a passage from the Brdhmaņa of the Katha School.
" This passage is thus commented upon by Jayasvâmin :-Having represented the thirteenth, . dirty,' month by a Brahman priest, those half-months collected the twelve-days' sacrifice, [ie.. converted it into a month's sacrifice). Having washed off in that dirty' month,-if it is asked what was that which they washed off on the dirty' month, we have to understand the word ardti,
enemies';-having washed off the enemies, i.e., the sins, they got up, i.e., they rose up free from the burden of sin. From the descriptive statement of washing off the sins, it follows that the sacrificial performance which can possibly be observed in the subsequent month should neither be undertaken during the dirty' month nor be given up. The inference of a rule from a descriptive statement is reasonable inasmuch as the sense of the descriptive'statement can otherwise have no application whatever.7 Hence the performance of obligatory, casual, expiatory, and other religious rites is prohibited in a dirty' month. It is homeless': i.e., like Chaitra and other months, it has not a fixed place of its own in the year. Dependent for its existence upon others, i.e., the thirteenth month comes into existence owing to the waxing and waning of the moon in the intervals of months."
(To be continued.)
• Smrititatea. Calcutta ed., 1096, p. 782.
Here the rule is that the sacrifice should neither be performed in the dirty' month nor be given up, but should be performed in the subsequent month. The statement is that of washing off the sins in the dirty month: