History of Dharmashastra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v1.c6.s77.5

v1.c6.s77.5

The Kālanirṇaya of Mādhavācārya has been published several times. In the following the B. I. edition has been used. He states that he wrote this work after he composed his commentary on the Parāśarasmṛti.⁸⁹⁸ The work is divided into five *prakaraṇas*. The first (Upodghāta) deals with a scholastic disquisition on *kāla* (time) and its real nature; the 2nd (called *vatsara*) speaks of the year, its various lengths according as it is *cāndra*, *sāvana* or *saura*, of the two *ayanas*, of the seasons and their number, of the months (*cāndra* and *saura*), of the intercalary months, and the religious acts allowed and forbidden in intercalary months, of the two *pakṣas* (fortnights); the third *prakaraṇa* (pratipatprakaraṇa) deals with the meaning of the word *tithi*, duration of a *tithi*, the fifteen *tithis* of a *pakṣa*, two kinds of *tithis*, viz. śuddhā (i. e. not intermixed with another *tithi* on the same day) and *viddhā* (intermixed with another *tithi* on same day), rules about the preference of the first *tithi* for particular religious rites and observances (for Gods and Manes) when intermixed with the preceding and following *tithis*, the fifteen *muhūrtas* of the day and of the night; the *fourth* (dvitīyādi-tithi-prakaraṇa) extends the application of the rules about *pratipad* to the *tithis* from the second to the fifteenth and decides on what *tithi* (whether intermixed with the preceding or the following) certain *vratas*, such as Gaurīvrata on the third, Janmāṣṭamī on the 8th, were to be performed; the *fifth* (*prakīrṇaka* i. e. miscellaneous) deals with rules about the determination of *nakṣatras* for various acts, the *yogas* and *karaṇas* and rules about saṁkrānti and eclipses and the actions proper for them.