Indian Chronology (Solar, Lunar and Planetary): A Practical Guide to the Interpretation and Verification of Tithis, Nakshatras, Horoscopes and other Indian Time-records, B.C. 1 to A.D. 2000 c25: Chapter XIX. Use of Ephemeris or Table XII (Solar Dates)

Indian Chronology (Solar, Lunar and Planetary): A Practical Guide to the Interpretation and Verification of Tithis, Nakshatras, Horoscopes and other Indian Time-records, B.C. 1 to A.D. 2000 c25

Language: English

Chapter XIX. Use of Ephemeris or Table XII (Solar Dates)

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128. The main interest of the present work to the general Indian reader will lie in its enabling him to discover for himself the chief data given in Panchângams for any year between B.C. 1 and A.D. 2000. Panchângams in India are strictly confined to the year to which they relate, and the greatest difficulty is sometimes felt in verifying an Indian date only two or three years' old, while forecasting a date a year or two hence for the purpose of a marriage or any other future event is a matter of equal difficulty. By the use of the present work, future and past events can be dated according to the rigour of the Indian calendar and that with the greatest ease.

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129. For the use of the general Indian reader, a special table called Table XII has been inserted in the present work, which gives solar dates, new moons and lunar and solar anomalies for the eighty years ending with A.D. 1919, *i.e.*, for 70 years before 1910 and 10 years after that date. Before instructing the reader how to look up dates in this special table, we shall give a few brief hints as to Indian time.

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130. Indian time is kept in *ghatikas* (Tam. *naligais*) or sixtieth parts of a day, each *ghatika* being equivalent to 24 minutes of English time (⅖ of an hour), and in *palas* (Tam. *vinadis*) or sixtieth parts of a *ghatika*, each *pala* being equivalent to 24 seconds of English time. The *ghatikas* and *palas* are reckoned, not from midnight to midnight as in English time, but from sunrise to sunrise. Now, as the moment of sunrise depends on the latitude and longitude of each place, there should, strictly speaking, be as many *panchângams* as there are places in India. Indian astronomers get over this difficulty by calculating time in the first place according to one central latitude and longitude, and then applying the necessary corrections in order to deduce the time for other places. The central latitude is the Equator and the central longitude is that of Ujjain (75° 46' 6" East of Greenwich) where there was an ancient observatory. To combine the central latitude and the central longitude, they imagined an island called Lankâ in the Indian Ocean, situated on the equator and having the same longitude as Ujjain. This Lankâ is, of course, not Ceylon.

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131. The standard time in the Indian calendar is therefore called Lankâ time, and 6 a.m. at Lankâ is the mean sunrise from which all times are, in the first instance, calculated. The time marked in Table XII is invariably Lankâ time, *i.e.*, time reckoned from 6 a.m. at Lankâ. The correction to be made at the present epoch (A.D. 1840 to A.D. 1920) in order to deduce the actual time from local sunrise at thirty of the most important places in India is given in seconds of time in the column "Total Correction" in Table XIII. In no calendar that we are aware of is the correction worked out for so many places in India in a shape ready for instant use.

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¹³² We are now ready to use Table XII, and we will first learn how to look up solar dates in that table. Solar dates, *i.e.*, dates based solely on solar months, are in use in the Tamil and Malayalam tracts of Southern India (*i.e.*, in the Tamil Districts, in Malabar, in Travancore, and in Cochin) and in Bengal: elsewhere lunar dates are chiefly in use.

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133. A solar date is thus cited:—

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(Tamil) Sâdhârana varusham, Âni 15.

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(Malayalam) Kollam 1086, Dhanus 20.

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(Bengal) San 1316, Mâgha 28.

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134. TAMIL SOLAR DATES.—The year Sâdhârana is one of 60 years comprised in Jupiter's cycle. The revolutions of the cycle from A.D. 967 to A.D. 1926 are clearly indicated with corresponding English years in Table I. The reader will find that in the current cycle Sâdhârana is A.D. 1910, and this fact is also indicated in Table XII under A.D. 1910.

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135. Looking down the columns in Table XII under A.D. 1910, we find the following entries against Âni:—

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3 Je. 14. 32 6 Jl. 15.

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These abbreviated entries give us the following useful information:—

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The month of Âni in A.D. 1910 begins on June 14, the day of the week being 3, i.e., Tuesday.

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The same month of Âni contains 32 days, the 32nd day being July 15, the corresponding day of the week being 6, i.e., Friday.

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Now, to deduce the 15th day of Âni, the first being given, is an easy matter: for we have only to add 14 to "3 June 14" and we get "17 June 28."

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Now "17" for the day of the week is obviously 3, for we must cast out sevens, i.e., whole weeks, when the figure indicating the day of the week exceeds 7.

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We thus answer: "Sâdhârana, Âni 15" is Tuesday, 28 June, A.D. 1910.

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136. Tamil years may also be quoted by Kaliyuga or Saka eras, and the years belonging to these eras are also indicated opposite the A.D. year in Table XII. We there see that A.D. 1910 corresponds to Kaliyuga 5011 and Saka 1832.

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137. The reader should now note a peculiarity in the citation of Indian years, namely, that as a rule the years are "expired", not "current". To understand the difference between these expressions, we go back to the first year of Kaliyuga, which began on 18th February 3102 B.C. We are apt to call that the beginning of the first year: but Hindu reckoning prefers to call it the beginning of the year 0, and what it calls the year 1 is really what we should call the second year, i.e., the "expired" year 1, and so the difference of 1 runs throughout the reckoning between "expired" (gata) and "current" (varttamâna) years. In the present work, following the bulk of the authorities, all purely Indian eras (except the Kollam Ându) are expressed in expired years, and A.D. and Kollam years are alone expressed as current years. When the reader wants a "current" year for an Indian era (except Kollam), he should add 1 to the figure given in this work.

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138. Malayalam Dates.—We have just stated that the Kollam or Malayalam era reckons current not expired years: and we find from Table XII that Kollam Ânḍu 1086, cited in our example, began in South Malabar in the month of Chingam (Tam. Avani) A.D. 1910 and in North Malabar in the next month Kanni (Tam. Purattâsi). To help the memory, we may recollect that "Simha" (the sign of the zodiac from which Chingam is derived) and "South Malabar" begin with "S". In fact "S-M" may stand equally for "SingaM" and "South Malabar"; while both "N. Malabar" and "Kanni" contain a strong "n" (unlike the soft nasal *n* in Chingam.)

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139. We find from Table XII that "Kollam 1086, Dhanus" begins on Thursday, 15 December 1910, and ends (the number of days in Dhanus being 30) on Friday, 13 January 1911. Now between 20 Dhanus and 30 Dhanus the difference is 10, and so we deduct 10 from 13 January 1911 and get 3 January 1911 as the equivalent of "Kollam 1086, Dhanus 20". To find the day of the week, we deduct 10 from 14 (next higher multiple of 7) *plus* 6, that is from 20, and we get 10, which is equivalent to 3 Tuesday.

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Bengal Solar Dates.

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140. Our specimen date is San 1316, Mâgha 28.

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We find from Table XII, p. 151, that San 1316 (expired) is the Solar year corresponding to A.D. 1910-11; and from Table XII, p. 136, that the 1st of Solar Mâgha falls on Sunday, 15 Jan. 1911; while the 29th of Solar Mâgha (the last day of the month) is Sunday February 12. Obviously the 28th Mâgha is Saturday, February 11, A.D. 1911.

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*N.B.—Our Table XII treats the B. San years as expired. It will be seen, however, from Sec. 112 (6) that B. San years are usually cited as current. To convert the expired years in Table XII into current, add, as usual, 1.*

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141. The reader will note that each Bengal Solar month has the same name as the Lunar month commencing during that Solar month; whereas in the Tamil country each Solar month is named after the Lunar month which began *before* the Solar month in question. This is an important practical difference to be borne in mind in calculating Bengal and Tamil Solar dates. For instance Tamil Kârtigai is the next month to Bengal Solar Kârttika.

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*N.B.—All Solar months were originally named from the corresponding Lunar months; and each Lunar month was in turn named from the nakshatra in which the moon ordinarily is at Full Moon in that month. See Table XI.*

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Commencement of the Solar Month or Sankranti.

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142. The astronomical commencement of a solar month is the moment of Sankrânti, i.e., the moment when the sun enters a sign of the Zodiac. To ascertain the moment of Sankrânti, we must add up two figures, namely, (1) the ghaṭikas and palas (and if we like the day of the English month) entered in Table XII against "Commencement of the Solar Year", and (2) the days, ghaṭikas and palas entered in the Eye-Table under the month of which we wish to know the Sankrânti or moment of commencement.

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Thus, in the case of the three months which we selected as examples, the Sankrântis are as follows:—

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| | Arya Siddhanta. | Surya Siddhanta. |
| Commencement of Solar Year corresponding to A.D. 1910-11. | 13 April 1910, 6 ghaṭ. 3 palas. | 12 ghaṭ. 13 palas. |
| Sankrânti or moment of commencement of Tamil Ani. | 62 days 21 ghaṭ. 20 palas. | |
| Do. do. Malayâlam Dhanus | 246 days 19 ghaṭ. 9 palas. | |
| Do. do. Bengal Solar Mâgha | | 275 days 38 ghaṭ. 13 palas |
| Sankrânti of Tamil Ani, A.D. 1910: 62 days 27 ghaṭ. 23 palas. | ... | (1) |
| or 75 days (counting from 1 April 1910): 27 ghaṭ. 23 palas | ... | (2) |
| Sankrânti of Mal. Dhanus, A.D. 1910: 246 days 25 ghaṭ. 12 palas | ... | (3) |
| or 259 days (counting from 1 April 1910) : 25 ghaṭ. 12 palas | ... | (4) |
| Sankrânti of Beng. Solar Mâgha A.D. 1910-11 : 275 days 50 ghaṭ. 44 palas | ... | (5) |
| or 288 days (counting from 1 April) 50 ghaṭ. 44 palas. | ... | (6) |

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143. Results (2), (4) and (6) enable us to express the three Sankrântis in terms of the English Calendar : for by reference to Table VIII we find that—

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(1) *Ani* Sankrânti, 75 days from 1 April 1910, is 14 June 1910, 27 g. 23 p.

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(2) *Dhanus* Sankrânti, 259 days from 1 April 1910, is 15 Dec. 1910, 25 g. 12 p.

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(3) *Mâgha* Sankrânti, 278 days from 1 April 1910, is 13 Jan. 1911, 50 g. 44 p.

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These results agree with the commencement of Tamil *Ani* and Malayâlam *Dhanus* for 1910 as entered in Table XII, but the Sankrânti of Bengal Solar *Mâgha*, as above determined (13 January 1911), is not the commencement of that month as entered in Table XII, p. 136 (15 January 1911).

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144. To account for this difference, we must observe that though the moment of a Solar Sankrânti is the same all over India for the same Siddhânta, the commencement of the corresponding month for civil purposes is not necessarily the same all over India. The following rules on the subject are adopted from Messrs. Sewell & Dikshit's "Indian Calendar".

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(1) In Orissa the Solar month of the Amli and Vilâyati eras begins on the day of Sankrânti, at whatever moment of the day the latter may happen. Accordingly in Orissa, the three Solar months above named would begin on the Sankrânti days, *i.e.*, the 14th June 1910, the 15th December 1910 and 13th January 1911 respectively.

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(2) In Bengal, when the fraction of the day at which the Sankrânti happens does not exceed 45 ghaṭikas, the Solar month begins on the next day: and when the Sankrânti occurs after 45 ghaṭikas, the Solar month begins on the next day but one. Accordingly the Bengal months corresponding to *Ani* A.D. 1910 (Bengal Solar *Ashâdha*) and Malayâlam *Dhanus* A.D. 1910 (Bengal Solar *Pausha*) will commence on 15 June 1910 and 16 December 1910 respectively and not on 14 June and 15 December 1910 (the days of the Sankrânti), while Bengal Solar *Mâgha* A.D. 1910-11 will not commence till 15 January 1911 (*i.e.*, 2 days after the Sankrânti).

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(3) In Southern India, in the Tamil country, when the fraction of the day at which the Sankrânti occurs does not exceed 30 ghaṭikas, the Solar month begins on the same day. That is why the beginning of Tamil *Ani* A.D. 1910 coincides with the day of the Sankrânti, 14 June 1910. When the Sankrânti occurs after 30 ghaṭikas, the Solar month begins on the next day. This is why the Tamil month *Tai*, corresponding to Bengal Solar *Mâgha*, A.D. 1910-11 is shown in Table XII as having commenced on 14 January 1911, *i.e.*, the day after the *Sankrânti*.

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145. The authors of the "Indian Calendar" also state that in Malabar, when the *Sankrânti* occurs after 18 *ghaṭikas*, the Solar month commences on the next day. If this were so, Malayâlam *Dhanus* in A.D. 1910-11 would commence on 16th December 1910. As a matter of fact, however, all the Malayâlam *Panchângams* show *Dhanus*, A.D. 1910-11, as commencing on the same day as the Tamil *Mârgali*, *i.e.*, on 15 December 1910. This fact imports an element of doubt into the so-called "Malabar rule" laid down by Messrs. SEWELL & DIKSHIT; and till the contrary is shown to be the case, we must assume that the Tamil rule is followed in Malabar.

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146. The Bengal rule laid down by the same authorities is practically applied in Table XII, page 136 (Ephemeris for Bengal). Whatever may be the rules as regards the commencement of a civil month in *any* part of India, the data given in Table XII and the Eye-Table will enable any one to apply his own civil rule with certainty. The dates entered in Table XII for the commencement and end of Solar months apply in strictness only to Southern India and to the *Ârya Siddhânta*. For the *Sûrya Siddhânta* and for tracts where a different civil rule from that in force in Southern India is followed, suitable corrections may have to be applied, as in Table XII, page 136 (Ephemeris for Bengal).

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147. To illustrate the difference between *Sankrântis* according to *Ârya* and *Sûrya Siddhântas*, we will give a practical example from a case which recently came under the author's notice. A person produced a Tamil horoscope which contained among other data the following note on the date of his birth:—

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"A.D. 1856, June 28, *Ani* 16."

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A reference to the Tamil *panchângams* of the year A.D. 1856 showed that according to all of them, 28 June 1856 A.D., corresponded to 17th, not to 16th *Ani*.

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The apparent discrepancy was explained by the sole fact that the person, though now residing in Southern India, was born at Belgaum where the *Sûrya Siddhânta* is followed, and where presumably the horoscope was cast by a Tamil Astrologer.

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The Solar year corresponding to A.D. 1856 commenced on 11 April A.D. 1856, at 14 *ghaṭ.* 6 *palas* according to *Sûrya Siddhânta* (Table X) and at 7 *ghaṭ.* 55 *palas* according to *Ârya Siddhânta*. (Table XII.)

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For *Ani Sankrânti* by the Tables II and XIX, we have to add 62 days 21 *ghaṭ.* 20 *palas* according to *Sûrya Siddhânta*, and 62 days 19 *ghaṭ.* 34 *palas* according to *Ârya Siddhânta*.

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∴ According to *Sûrya Siddhânta*, *Ani Sankranti* occurred on the 73rd day (reckoned from 1 April 1856) at 35 *ghaṭ.* 26 *palas* (*i.e.*, after 30 *ghaṭ.*)

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According to *Ârya Siddhânta*, *Ani Sankrânti* occurred on the 73rd day (reckoned from 1 April 1856) at 27 *ghaṭ.* 29 *palas* (*i.e.*, before 30 *ghaṭikas*).

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148. In accordance with the civil rules for Solar months current in the Tamil country (Sec. 144 *supra*) the month of *Ani* in A.D. 1856 began (according to *Sûrya Siddhânta*) on the 74th day reckoned from 1 April 1856, *i.e.*, on the 13th June 1856 (*vide* Table VIII), and the 16th *Ani* was 13 + 15 = 28th June 1856.