1884.J G. Tliibaiit —Vardha Miliiras PanchasiddhantiJcd. 265 
furnishes the proof. The real eastern longitude (from Greenwich) of 
Ujjain is 75° 51' 45", that of Benares 83° 3' 4", that of Alexandria 29° 
52'; therefore, the seconds being neglected, Ujjain is in 46° E. Long. 
Benares in 53° 11' E. Long’, from Alexandria. If we now, on the other liand^ 
calculate the difference in longitude of the mentioned three places from 
the difference in time stated by Varaha Mihira we obtain 44° as the 
longitude of Ujjain from Alexandria and 54° as the longitude of Benares 
from the same place. The error involved in Varaha Mihira’s deter¬ 
mination is not inconsiderable, but not greater than might have been 
expected, certainly not too great for our assuming with confidence that 
YavanajDura is to be identified with Alexandria.^ As a transfer of Hel¬ 
lenic astronomy to India could not have taken place without some 
determination of the interval in longitude we might assume such a deter • 
mination to have been made even if no trace of it had been preserved in 
India ; still it is satisfactory to find the determination explicitly stated 
in the book which professes to give an account of the fundamental Sid- 
dhantas. 
Before leaving this subject we must refer to another passage of the 
Panchasiddhantika which is quoted by Bhattotpala, and which has been 
supposed to contain likewise a statement about the difference in longi¬ 
tude between Ujjain and Alexandria. It occurs in the 15th adhyaya 
and need not be reprinted here in full as it has already been published 
by Professor Kern in his paper on some fragments of Aryabhata, Journal 
of the Boyal A.siatic Society, Vol. XX, 1863 and again in the Preface to 
his edition of the Brihat Samhita, p. 53. The two lines immediately 
concerning us here are given by Professor Kern, as follows : 
and rendered “ Sinhacharya states the sum of days (to begin) from sun¬ 
rise at Lanka and, if we adopt this, they must begin in the country of 
the Yavanas at the time that ten muhiirtas of the night are past.” From 
this Professor Kern concludes that in the opinion of Varaha Mihira the 
meridian of Yavana-pura has a longitude west from the meridian of 
* Professor Kern notices the possibility of Yavanapnra being not Alexandria 
but Constantinople, but rejects it on the ground of no first meridian ever having 
been drawn over the latter place. If we identified Yavanapnra with Constantinople 
we should reduce the above-mentioned error of longitude by one degree ; but never¬ 
theless its identification with Alexandria is much more likely if we consider firstly 
the general importance of Alexandria ; secondly, its geographical position with regard 
to India, and thirdly, its having been the place where the system of Greek astronomy 
was finally elaborated. 
