History of Dharmashastra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v4.c63.t2.791

v4.c63.t2.791

Karṇaparva 94. 51 says: 'Bṛhaspati having entirely covered Rohiṇī has become like the Sun and the Moon'. If at the beginning of the war Bṛhaspati was retrograde and was near Viśākhā, it passes one's understanding how in a fortnight it came to Rohiṇī. Mr. Karandikar suggests that Rohiṇī here is the name of Jyeṣṭhā as in the Tai. S. IV. 4. 10. 1–3. Again in this explanation there are several difficulties. There is nothing to show that at the time of the Bhārata war or of the epic Jyeṣṭhā was called Rohiṇī. The Tai. S. does not employ the name Jyeṣṭhā in its list. It speaks of Rohiṇī once as having Prajāpati for its presiding deity and then as having Indra as the presiding deity. Jyeṣṭhā is well-known to the Mahābhārata and the word is employed by it in other passages. Further, if Bṛhaspati had covered Jyeṣṭhā it can hardly be correct or even useful (for the purposes of chronology) to say that Jupiter was near Viśākhā.