Dimitri’s post raises a very interesting problem concerning Indian knowledge of moonlight as solar reflection, rather than the product of its proper luminosity. Someone once pointed out to me a passage from the Nirukti - I’ve forgotten the details- that strongly suggests knowledge of the lunar reflection. But was this very widely known and accepted?
Matthew On Sun, Sep 7, 2025 at 15:14, Patrick Olivelle <[[email protected]](mailto:On Sun, Sep 7, 2025 at 15:14, Patrick Olivelle <<a href=)> wrote: > Thanks, Matthew. That makes sense, and then in bahulapakṣagataḥ the ‘gataḥ’ > would mean “gone into” rather than “in” as it has generally been translated. > And, as Dmitrii points out, it must be the morning of the first day of the > dark half, just after the full moon day. That makes great senses. Thanks. > > Patrick > >> On Sep 7, 2025, at 7:52 AM, Matthew Kapstein <[email protected]> wrote: >> >> Dear Patrick, >> >> Might it not be, more simply, that he seemed like a (formerly) full moon >> that was now waning? There need not be an astronomical contradiction. >> >> best, >> Matthew >> >> On Sun, Sep 7, 2025 at 14:45, Patrick Olivelle via INDOLOGY < >> [[email protected]](mailto:On Sun, Sep 7, 2025 at 14:45, Patrick >> Olivelle via INDOLOGY <<a href=) > wrote: >> >>> Dear All: >>> >>> Aśvaghoṣa in his Saundarananda (5.53) compares Nanda’s shaven head to the >>> full moon in the “bahulapakṣa”, which I take to be the kṛṣṇapakṣa. But, as >>> far as I understand, there is no full moon in the dark fortnight of the >>> month. Am I missing something in this simile? Is he saying that the full >>> moon, it it appeared in the dark fortnight, would have looked as pathetic >>> as Nanda’s shaven head? Thanks for any input. Here is the verse: >>> >>> nandas tatas tarukaṣāyaviraktavāsāś cintāvaśo navagṛhīta iva dvipendraḥ / >>> pūrṇaḥ śaśī bahulapakṣagataḥ kṣapānte bālātapena pariṣikta ivāvabhāse // >>> >>> With best wishes, >>> >>> Patrick >>> >>> _______________________________________________ >>> INDOLOGY mailing list >>> [email protected] >>> https://list.indology.info/mailman/listinfo/indology >> >> This message is from an external sender.[Learn more about why this >> matters.](https://ut.service-now.com/sp?id=kb_article&number=KB0011401)
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