The Purana Index v1.c3.s3.8

v1.c3.s3.8

According to its own version in the later chapters dealing with royal dynasties, the scene of the Purāṇa is laid in the reign of the Paurava king Adhisīmakṛṣṇa, who is said to have lived before the commencement of the Kali age. But his contemporaries were Senājit of Magadha and Divākara of the Ikshvāku dynasty. According to Prof. Rapson the genealogy assigned indicates a more definite date; for ‘of his immediate forbears, Aśvamedhatta, Śatānīka, Janamejaya, Parīkshit, all but the first, his father Aśvamedhatta, are no doubt to be identified with kings of the same names who appear in the Brāhmaṇas’. Therefore we have to look for a date prior to 1110 B C for Adhisimakrishna. From this we cannot imagine that the Purana was composed as early as 1110 B C It may be that a particular teacher narrated the ancient Purana when Adhisimakrishna was ruling. The same version was more or less continued orally when it was reduced to writing perhaps in the 5th century B C. But there are portions in dealing with dynasties of the Kali age, where reference is made to the reign of Chandragupta I of the Gupta dynasty and also to the Huns who invaded India some time after. And this portion according to us was added to the verse already existing.