Ancient Indian Historical Tradition c24.s1.23

c24.s1.23

Next, there appears to be nothing to show that the Kāṇvas existed before Ajamīḍha. A Kaṇva is mentioned in Duṣyanta's time. He adopted Śakuntalā, and Duṣyanta met her in his hermitage and married her, but this Kaṇva is expressly called a Kāśyapa (see next chapter), and so could not be a member of the Kāṇvas, who were Āṅgirasas. Kaṇva was his personal name. There is no other mention of any Kaṇva before Ajamīḍha. On the other hand there were many Kāṇvas after him, as the Rigveda shows. By the group of synchronisms at page 163, Sobhari Kāṇva's position has been fixed, and (accepting the Anukramaṇī's ascriptions of authorship) there are the following indications: Pragātha Kāṇva was contemporary with Durgaha's grandsons,¹ and so the positions of his father Ghora, brother Kaṇva and three sons are fixed; Pṛṣadhra Kāṇva was contemporary with Dasyavevṛka;² and Praskaṇva has been noticed above. Through Kakṣīvant Pajriya (ante) can be placed Devātithi Kāṇva,³ Vatsa Kāṇva,⁴ Sadhvaṃśa Kāṇva (who was later than Trasadasyu)⁵ and Medhātithi Kāṇva⁶—all later than Ajamīḍha.