History of Dharmashastra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v6.c81.234.4

v6.c81.234.4

Amāvāsyā may have been called darśa because the moon is not seen that day (but would be visible the next day) Another tithi that is famous in the Vedic Literature is Aṣṭakā¹⁶¹ (8th tithi after the full moon in any month, but particularly in Māgha) on which offerings were made to the pitṛs (departed ancestors) Even in very remote times people could have easily marked the four main phases of the moon, viz Full Moon, half moon (8th day thereafter when half of the moon's orb shines), Moon's total absence and 8th day thereafter; and after noting these phases it must not have been very difficult to make close calculations about the periods intervening between the Full moon and the half moon, the New moon and half moon. As a matter of fact the Tai. Br¹⁶² expressly says that the moon is worn away on the 15th and becomes full on the 15th i e. before the Tai. Br. it was well-known that there were 30 lunar days (tithis) in a lunar month. It is stated in the Śat Br¹⁶³ 'the joints of Prajāpati, while he was engaged in creating beings, became loose (or collapsed); the saṁvatsara is indeed Prajāpati and the joints of it (of saṁvatsara) are the two junctions of day and night, Paurṇamāsī, Amāvāsyā and the beginnings (first days) of the seasons'. The words Paurṇamāsī and Amāvāsyā occur very frequently in the Atharvaveda, the Tai.