गुप्त अभिलेख संग्रह (जे. एफ. फ्लीट - गुप्त सम्राटों एवं परवर्ती नरेशों के ऐतिहासिक पाषाण व ताम्रलेख)

THE GUPTA INSCRIPTIONS: INTRODUCTION. 123

then in Maghâ; and the Mahâ-Magha saṁvatsara then commenced, and was cur-
rent on the given date in Gupta-Saṁvat 200. Jupiter's next following rising took
place on Âśvina kṛishṇa 12 of Śaka-Saṁvat 290, corresponding to Friday, the 7th Septem-
ber, A.D. 367; or, by the English calendar, on Saturday, the 8th September. His longitude
then was 157° 42'. By all three systems, he was then in Uttarâ-Phalgunî; and the saṁvat-
sara which then began, must have been named Mahâ-Phâlguna; and it was a repeated
saṁvatsara by the two systems of unequal spaces, but an ordinary saṁvatsara by the
system of equal spaces.
By the mean-sign system, in Gupta-Saṁvat 188 + A.D. 166-67 = A.D. 354-55
= Śaka-Saṁvat 277 current, the Mahâ-Mâgha saṁvatsara commenced on Âśvina śukla 13,
corresponding to Friday, the 16th September, A.D. 354; and it was current through the
whole month of Kârttika in the same year, being followed by Mahâ-Phâlguna on Kârttika
kṛishṇa 4 of Śaka-Saṁvat 278, corresponding to Tuesday, the 12th September, A.D. 355.
And again, in Gupta-Saṁvat 200 + A.D. 166-67 = A.D. 366-67 = Śaka-Saṁvat 289 current,
the Mahâ-Mâgha saṁvatsara commenced on Bhâdrapada śukla 3, corresponding to Thurs-
day, the 27th July, A.D. 366; and it was current through the whole month of Kârttika in the
same year; being followed by Mahâ-Phâlguna on Śrâvaṇa śukla 10 of Śaka-Saṁvat 290,
corresponding to Monday, the 23rd July, A.D. 367. And thus, with this epoch, and by this
system, the Mahâ-Mâgha saṁvatsara was current on the given date in Gupta-
Saṁvat 188 and 200. The results, however, do not in themselves prove anything definite
as to the proposed epoch; for the reason that the current Gupta year itself is not men-
tioned in the record: and by taking different Gupta years, the same results would be
obtained with a different epoch.
With Sir E. Clive Bayley's epoch of A.D. 190-91, Mr. Sh. B. Dikshit finds that,
for Gupta-Saṁvat 187 + A.D. 190-91 = A.D. 377-78 = Śaka-Saṁvat 300 current, in which
year the English equivalent of the given date would be Sunday, the 22nd October, A.D.
377, Jupiter's rising, next before the given date, took place on Bhâdrapada kṛishṇa 4, of
the same year, Śaka-Saṁvat 300, corresponding to Tuesday, the 11th July, A.D. 377; or,
by the English calendar, on Wednesday, the 12th July. His longitude then was 100° 32'.
By all three systems, he was then in Pushya; and the saṁvatsara which then began, must
have been named Mahâ-Pausha. Jupiter's next following rising took place on Bhâdrapada
śukla 3 of Śaka-Saṁvat 301, corresponding to Sunday, the 12th August, A.D. 378; or,
by the English calendar, on Monday, the 13th August. His longitude then was 131° 50'.
By both the systems of unequal spaces, he was then in Pûrvâ-Phalgunî; and the
saṁvatsara which then began, must have been named Mahâ-Phâlguna; the intervening
Mahâ-Mâgha saṁvatsara being omitted. But, by the system of equal spaces, he was then
in Maghâ; and the Mahâ-Mâgha saṁvatsara then commenced, and was current
on the given date in Gupta-Saṁvat 188. Jupiter's next following rising took place
on Âśvina śukla 15 of Śaka-Saṁvat 302, corresponding to Thursday, the 12th September