History of Dharmashastra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v7.c99.1189

v7.c99.1189

Kṛṣṇajanmāṣṭamīvrata 128–143, (see under Vāsudeva and Megasthenes), acc. to Jayantīnirṇaya, tithi is principal matter in Janmāṣṭamīvrata, while in Jayantīvrata nakṣatra Rohiṇī is the principal matter 133; antiquity of Kṛṣṇa or Vāsudeva worship 129–131, 953, Besnagar Ins of Greek Heliodorus refers to Vāsudeva as Devadeva 131; celebrated on the 8th of dark half of Śrāvaṇa and on 8th of Bhādrapada dark half acc to some 128–129, conclusions of Tithitattva about the exact times of, 134; current in Northern and Central India from about 500 B. C., if not earlier, 131; description of Kṛṣṇa’s birth in Bhāgavata is commonplace and vague 131, eighth tithi may be with Rohiṇī or without it and several possible combinations of tithi, nakṣatra, time and week day are set out, 134; exact time and tithi of Janmāṣṭarī celebration is much discussed in medieval works 134; Ghosundi Inscription of 2nd or 1st century B. C mentions the worship of Saṅkarṣaṇa and Vāsudeva 131, is *Nitya* as well as *Kāmya* 133, Jain tradition about Kṛṣṇa 129; Jayantī and Janmāṣṭamī distinguished, 132, Jayantī fast occurring on Wednesday or Monday yields far greater results than in other cases 135, Kṛṣṇa, a Vedic poet, in Ṛg. invokes Aśvins 129, Kṛṣṇa Āṅgirasa, author of Ṛg. VIII 86–87, 129, Kṛṣṇa is depicted in Mahābhārata as a composite personality viz as a prince, friend of the Pāṇḍavas, a great warrior, statesman and philosopher and also as Avatāra of Viṣṇu 129-130; life of, among cowherds in Bhāgavata, and Viṣṇu and other Purāṇas 129; Kṛṣṇa was one of the Vṛṣṇis, stories and dramatic representations about his killing Kaṁsa and imprisoning Bali existed before the Mahābhāṣya 130; Kṛṣṇa cult, various phases of, acc to Dr R. G. Bhandarkar, 131; Kṛṣṇa's birth on Rohiṇī nakṣatra, of which Prajāpati is the Lord, 131n; account of birth of K. from Bhaviṣyottara together with astrological aspects 131-132; K. belonged to the Candravamśa and Budha in legend and astrology is son of the Moon and so Monday and Wednesday on 8th of Śrāvaṇa were deemed to yield great results 135n, Mahābhārata on Kṛṣṇa 129, 953; main items in K. vrata are fast, worship of Kṛṣṇa, *jāgara*, listening to and repeating hymns and stories of exploits of Kṛṣṇa and pāraṇā 135; principal items in K. vrata, views differ on, 137-38; most important vrata and utsava celebrated throughout India 128; most sublime praises of Kṛṣṇa in Mahābhārata by Yudhiṣṭhira, Draupadī and Bhīṣma, 129, nakṣatra of Kṛṣṇa's birth was Abhijit acc. to Harivaṁśa 133; numerous verses on the māhātmya of, in Agni, Matsya, and Padma Purāṇas 129; names one hundred and eight of Kṛṣṇa set out in Brahmāṇḍa 977n, pāraṇā in K. in some cases may be at night, particularly for Vaiṣṇavas 139, passed away thirty-six years after Bhārata war, 687n; people called Vāsudevaka and Ārjunaka before Pāṇini's times 130, principal time for celebration of K. is midnight of 8th of Śrāvaṇa dark half (of Bhādrapada if month is pūrṇimānta), 134, procedure of K. vrata 135-137, procedure in Dharmasindhu employs Puruṣasūkta in K. vrata, while some other works mention no vedic mantra 137; question whether Janmāṣṭamīvrata and Jayantīvrata are identical or different vratas is decided differently by different authors 132-133, reference to Kṛṣṇa Devakīputra in Chān. Up. receiving instruction from Ghora-Āṅgirasa 129; special rules about pāraṇā of Janmāṣṭamī and Jayantī fast 138-139; the K. festival is not found in Kṛtyakalpataru on Vrata, but a brief reference is made to it in Niyatakālika section of that work 139-40; usage in some territories like Mahārāṣṭra of 'Gopāla-kālā', 139, Weber's theory that the ritual of K. festival was transferred to India from outside based on three points, examined and shown to be baseless 140-143.