On Yuan Chwang's Travels in India, 629–645 A.D. v1.c8.s3.6

v1.c8.s3.6

Our author next goes on to enumerate the divisions, natural and artificial, of the month and the year in India. He distinguishes between the common four-fold division of the seasons, and the three-fold one used by Buddhists. The latter division was into a hot season (Grīshma) followed by a rainy season (Varsha), and then a cold season (Hemanta). We have next the names of the months of the year in their order beginning with Chaitra. Then comes an interesting passage which, as it appears in our texts, presents some difficulty. The meaning seems to be something like this—