The Orion, or Researches into the Antiquity of the Vedas c6.62

c6.62

*Quoted in Narrien's Origin and Progress of Astronomy, p. 31. †Quoted by Sonâkara on Ved. Jy. 5. तेषां च सर्वेषां नक्षत्रणां कर्मसु कृत्तिकाः प्रथममाचक्षते श्रविष्ठा तु संहयायाः। appears to have been eventually lost sight of by the later writers and all references to *uttarâyaṇa* were understood to be made solely to the six months from the winter to the summer solstice, an error from which even Bhâskarâchârya did not escape, though he perceived the absurdity caused by it in some cases. At the present day we on the southern side of the Narmadâ begin the year at the vernal equinox for all *civil* purposes, but still all the *religious* ceremonies prescribed to be performed in the Uttarâyaṇa, are performed during the Uttarâyaṇa beginning with the winter solstice, a position quite the reverse of that described by Garga. When we at the present day have been thus using the system of a double year-beginning, we need not be surprised if the ancient Aryas, after shifting the commencement of the year to the winter solstice, managed to keep up the old and the new system together by assigning the different beginnings of the year to different purposes as indicated by Garga. It was the only alternative possible if nothing old was to be entirely given up.