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

76 CORPUS INSCRIPTIONUM INDICARUM, VOL. III.
year. On the other hand, when the Nêpâlese abandoned this offshoot of the southern
Vikrama era, and introduced the Vikrama era itself from the neighbouring parts of
Northern India, they adopted it in its northern variety, with Chaitra sukla 1 as its initial
day, and with the Pûrṇimânta northern arrangement of the fortnights; as is proved by
Mr. Sh. B. Dikshit's calculations of the dates in dark fortnights, recorded in the inscrip-
tion of queen Lalitatripurasundarî.¹ The dates are, Vikrama-Saṁvat 1874, Bhâdrapada
krishṇa 9, Śukravâra² or Friday; Vikrama-Saṁvat 1875, Mârgaśîrsha krishṇa 5, Budha-
vâra or Wednesday; and Vikrama-Saṁvat 1877, Jyêshṭha krishṇa 10, Ravivâra or Sun-
day. By the Amânta southern arrangement, the week-days do not come out right at all.
While by the Pûrṇimânta northern arrangement, the English equivalents are, as required,
Friday, the 5th September, A.D. 1817; Wednesday, the 18th November, A.D. 1818; and
Sunday, the 7th May, A.D. 1820.
These facts amply establish my position that we cannot have either the Pûrṇimânta
northern arrangement of the fortnights coupled with a southern year and era, or the Amânta
southern arrangement of the fortnights coupled with a northern year and era. And now
I shall bring forward some perfectly conclusive evidence, to prove that the scheme of
the months of the Gupta-Valabhî year proper was the regular Pûrṇimânta northern scheme;
and that, therefore, in this era, in its original constitution, we cannot be concerned with
any southern reckoning at all.
The Khôh copper-plate grant of the Parivrâjaka Mahârâja Saṁkshôbha, of the
year 209 (A.D. 528-29), No. 25, page 112, is dated "in the enjoyment of sovereignty
by the Gupta kings; in the Mahâ-Âśvayuja saṁvatsara;” and, as regards other details,
in fortunately a double manner. In line 2 f. we have—Chaitra-mâsa-śukla-paksha-trayô-
daśyâm (where, in apposition with trayôdaśyâm, we have to supply tithau),—“on the
thirteenth tithi, or lunar day, of the bright fortnight of the month Chaitra.” And at the
end, in line 24, in numerical symbols, this date is repeated as—Chaitra di³ 20 7 (where
the abbreviation di stands for dina, dinê, divasa, or divasê),—“(the month) Chaitra; the
(solar) day 20 (and) 7.” This double record is explicable only on the understanding that,
in the scheme of the months of the Gupta year, the dark fortnights stood first, according

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¹ Ind. Ant. Vol. IX. p. 193 f.
² The published text has śuklê, which is obviously a mistake for śukrê.
³ In my printed version of this inscription, the second numerical symbol is given as 9, with a
reference (page 112, note 4) to a note that it might possibly be 7, 8, or 9. Mr. Sh. B. Dikshit having
found by calculation that this tithi was the twenty-seventh solar day in the month, I now substitute 7
for 9 (see page 274, note 2).—The point that is proved by this double record had been missed, until
I brought it to notice in the Ind. Ant. Vol. XVI. p. 145; because Gen. Cunningham, who first brought
the inscription to notice, read the first symbol in line 24 as 10, instead of 20, and overlooked the
second symbol altogether. He thus obtained "Chaitra, day 10;" and added the remark "this figure
should be 13, to agree with the written date given above" [in line 2 f.] (Archæol. Surv. Ind. Vol.
p. 15). There are, however, distinctly two symbols, meaning 20 and 7; or, together, 27.