Vikram Samvat (Vikram Samwat, Vikram Sambat, Bikram Samvat, Bikram Samwat, Bikram Sambat or Vikram's Era) (Devanagari:विक्रम सम्वत्) (abbreviated as V.S. or B.S.) is the calendar established by Indian emperor Vikramaditya. The Vikram calendar was commonly used in North India, and is still used. It uses lunar months and solar sidereal year. It the official calendar of Nepal is also termed Bikram Sambat, but is is computed using the tropical year.
The Vikrama Samvat is said to have been founded by the emperor Vikramaditya of Ujjain[1] following his victory over the Sakas in 56 BCE, although it is popularly (and incorrectly) associated with the subsequent king Chandragupta Vikramaditya. It is a lunar calendar based on ancient Hindu tradition (see Hindu calendar and Vedic time keeping). The Vikram Samvat calendar is 56.7 years ahead (in count) of the solar Gregorian calendar. For example, the year 2056 BS began in CE 1999 and ended in CE 2000. The new year begins with the first day after the new moon, in the month of Chaitra, Chaitra Shuddha 1 or Chaitra Shukla Paksha Prathama; which usually falls in March-April in the Gregorian calendar. The nine-day Navaratri festival season begins on this day, culminating on Ram Navami day. In Nepal, it begins in mid-April and marks the start of the solar new year.
In India, the reformulated Saka Calendar is officially used, although in the Hindi version of Preamble of The Constitution of India, the date of adoption of constitution 26 Nov 1949 is presented in Vikram Samvat (Margsheersh Shukla Saptami Samvat 2006 ). There have been calls for Vikram Samvat to replace Saka as India's official calendar.[2]
[edit] Months
[edit] Indian Hindu & Nepali | No. | Name | Nepali | Days | | 1 | Baishakh | बैशाख | 30 / 31 | | 2 | Jetha | जेठ or ज्येष्ठ | 31 / 32 | | 3 | Asar | असार or आशाढ | 31 / 32 | | 4 | Saaun | साउन or श्रावण | 31 / 32 | | 5 | Bhadau | भदौ or भाद्र | 31 / 32 | | 6 | Asoj | असोज or आश्विन | 30 / 31 | | 7 | Kartik | कात्तिक or कार्तिक | 29 / 30 | | 8 | Mangsir | मंसिर or मार्ग | 29 / 30 | | 9 | Poush | पुष or पौष | 29 / 30 | | 10 | Magh | माघ | 29 / 30 | | 11 | Falgun | फागुन or फाल्गुण | 29 / 30 | | 12 | Chaitra | चैत or चैत्र | 30 / 31 | | [edit] North Indian | |
[edit] History
This calendar derives its name from the original king Vikramaditya of Ujjain. After the rise of the Rana oligarchs in Nepal, Vikram Sambat came into unofficial use along with the official Shaka Sambat for quite some time. They discontinued Shaka Sambat in its 1823rd year, and replaced it with Vikram Samwat for official use since then to date. Vikram Sambat came into official use in its 1958th year. The calendar is widely in use in western India, where it is known as the Vikram Samvat.
The date is supposed to mark the victory of king Vikramaditya over the Sakas, who had invaded Ujjain. Alternatively, it has been thought by some scholars to correspond to the Azes era, of the Indo-Scythian king Azes I, but this seems to be now thoroughly discredited by Falk and Bennett who place the inception of the Azes era in 47/6 BC.[3]
Kalakacharya and the Saka King (Kalakacharya Katha-Manuscript,Prince of Wales Museum, Mumbai
The story is described in "Kalakacharya Kathanaka", a much later work by a Jain sage called Mahesara Suri (probably circa 12th century CE). The Kathanaka (meaning, "an account") tells the story of a famed Jain monk Kalakacharya. It mentions that Gardabhilla, the then-powerful king of Ujjain, abducted a nun called Sarasvati who was the sister of the monk. The enraged monk sought the help of the Saka ruler, a Sahi, in Sakasthana. Despite heavy odds (but aided by miracles) the Saka king defeated Gardabhilla and made him a captive. Sarasvati was repatriated, although Gardabhilla himself was forgiven. The defeated king retired to the forest, where he was killed by a tiger. His son, Vikramaditya, being brought up in the forest, had to rule from Pratishthana (in modern Maharashtra). Later on, Vikramaditya invaded Ujjain and drove away the Sakas. To commemorate this event, he started a new era called the Vikrama era. This story seems to be somewhat jumbled, as the original Vikramaditya began his rule from Ujjain, and not from Pratishthana. The Ujjain calendar started around 56 BCE to 58 BCE, and the subsequent Shalivahan Saka calendar was started in 78 AD at Pratishthan.
[edit] Culture
The traditional New Year of Bikram Samwat is one of the many festivals of Nepal, marked by parties, family gatherings, the exchange of good wishes, and participation in rituals to ensure good fortune in the coming year. It occurs in mid-April each year, and coincides with the traditional new year in Assam, Bengal, Maharashtra,Burma, Cambodia, Kerala, Manipur, Orissa, Punjab, Sri Lanka, Tamil Nadu and Thailand.
In addition to Nepal, the Bikram Sambat calendar is also recognized in northern India, eastern India, and in Gujarat among Hindus. In Buddhist communities, the month of Baishakh is associated with Vesak, known as Visakah Puja or Buddha Purnima in Nepal, India and Bangladesh, Visakha Bucha in Thailand, Waisak in Indonesia and Wesak in Sri Lanka and Malaysia. It commemorates the birth, Enlightenment and passing of Gautama Buddha on the first full moon day in May, except in a leap year when the festival is held in June. Although this festival is not held on the same day as Pahela Baishakh, the holidays typically fall in the same month (Baishakh) of the Bengali, Hindu, and Theravada Buddhist calendars, and are related historically through the spread of Hinduism and Buddhism in South Asia.
In Gujarat, the fourth day of Diwali is celebrated as the first day of the Vikram Samvat calendar.[citation needed]
[edit] Conversion
The traditional Vikram Samvat and traditional Saka Samvat use lunar months and thus need to add adhika months or delete kshaya months. The Kyoto University Panchanga Converter Program provides this conversion capability.
The basic rule of thumb for conversion (this formula does not give the precise date, but is useful for obtaining a rough estimate)
Nepali Date to English Date: Subtract - 56 Years - 8 Months - 16 Days
English Date to Nepali Date: Add - 56 Years - 8 Months - 16 Days
There are also few online websites that are helpful in converting between these dates exactly and correctly. Some of them are:
- 100 Years of Vikram Samvat Nepali Calendar
- Nepali Calendar Date Converter
- Rajan Nepal's Date Converter
- Vikram Sambat Nepali Calendar
- Nepal Law Commission
- Date Converter
- Vikram Samvat Date Converter
- General Post Office
- Entertainment Nepal
- Kishore Thapa
- Nepali Calendar
- Himali Sherpa
[edit] See also
[edit] References
