ON THE EQUINOXES; 225 



Admitting then its authenticity, and fuppofing, with mofl of the 

 commentator!, that Va'rahamihira is here intended, by the fmgle 

 word Mikira, which however is a name of the fun, and may here 



allude to the fabled dialogue of Surya with Meya, as is obferved by 

 the fcholiaft Balabhadra;* Hill the paffage is not unambiguous. It 

 does not neceffarily imply oral tuition, and may refer to ioftraHion de« 

 rived from the works of Va'ra'ha j efpecially from the Pancha-fidd'hdn- 

 ticd of that author, in which the Surya-Jtdd'lianta was explained concur- 

 rently with four other treatifes termed Sidd'hdnta. 



To return from this digreffion. It appears from what had 'been be- 

 fore faid, that a work bearing the title of Surya-jidd'kdnta is named 

 as authority by Va'ra'hamihira, in whcfe time, according to his 

 affertion, the place of the fummer folftice was at the beginning of the 

 fign Carcata and in the afterifm Punarvafu. A treatife under the fame 

 title is fimilarly mentioned by Brahmegupta, who has likewife noticed 

 Va'rahamihira himfelf, and who is fuppofed by Bhascara to 

 have lived when the colures had not fenfibly deviated from that 

 polition. 



It may be queftioned whether this teftimony be not overthrown 

 by proofs of a more modern date (between feven and eight hundred 

 years ago) drawn from internal evidence, as fet forth by Mr. Bbntliy, 

 in his ingenious efTays inferted in the 6th and 8th Volumes of our Re- 

 fearches.t 



tama, (the fite of the trmple of Jagannai'ha) : and datet hit work there in 4200 of the Caliyuga. In the 

 body of the work he direct* the difference of longitude to be reckoned from she meridian of Eurujhatiana-. 

 tjheira. ' * 



* Hii commentary it dated in 1465 of VieaAUAOg-jpTA j more this 400 ycjtfi ago* 

 t Vol. 6. p. 572, and Vol.. 8 p. 206. 



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