History of Dharmashastra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v6.c81.880

v6.c81.880

Several exceptions are engrafted on the general rule about 15 or 16 ghaṭikās before and after a saṅkrānti being the puṇyakāla. Therefore, several works like the Tithitattva (pp. 144-145) and Dharmasindhu (pp 2-3) give brief final conclusions on this topic. I summarize560a the conclusions of the latter work. On the Sun's passage in Meṣa and Tulā the puṇyakāla is fifteen ghaṭikās before and after S (some say ten ghaṭikās); in Vṛṣabha, Simha, Vṛścika, Kumbha S, P is sixteen gh. before S; in Mithuna S, Kanyā, Dhanus and Mīna S, P is 16 gh. after S; in Karkaṭa S, P is thirty gh. after S; in Makara S, P is forty gh. after S. If Saṅkrānti occurs by day when a period of two ghaṭikās or less only remains before the close of the day then in the case of Mithuna, Kanyā, Dhanus, Mīna and also Makara saṅkrāntis P is before S for the gh. specified above against each; if S occurs in the morning at a period of two gh. or less from sunrise then in Vṛṣabha, Simha, Vṛścika, Kumbha and also Karkaṭa S, P is after S for the period specified above. If S occurs at night but before midnight, P is latter half of the daytime before the S; if S occurs at midnight or later than midnight but in the night, P is on two days viz the latter half of the daytime before S and the first half of the day after S; this applies to all S except Makara and Karkaṭa. When Uttarāyaṇa begins in Makara in the night P is the day after S and if S begins in Karkaṭa at night P is the day prior; if Makara S occurs at evening twilight (i. e. during three ghaṭikās after sunset) then P is on the previous day; if Karka S occurs in morning twilight (i. e. during three gh. before sunrise) then P is on the day following the S.