This article may require to meet Wikipedia's. The specific problem is: Post merge copy edit suggested Please help if you can. June 2018 Vikram Samvat : Vikrama Samvat abbreviated as V. It uses lunar months and solar years. It is the official calendar of Nepal. The Vikram Samvat is notable because many ancient and medieval era inscriptions use it. In the colonial era scholarship, the era was believed to be based on the commemoration of King Vikramaditya expelling the Sakas from Ujjain. However, later epigraphical evidence and scholarship suggests that this theory has no historical basis and very likely was an error. Starting in the 9th century and thereafter, epigraphical artwork uses Vikrama-samvat, suggesting that sometime around the 9th-century, the Hindu calendar era that was already in use became popular as Vikram Samvat, while Buddhist and Jain epigraphy continued to use an era based on the Buddha or the Mahavira. Vikramaditya legends The Jain monk Kalakacharya and the King Kalakacharya Katha manuscript, , According to popular tradition, the legendary king of established the Vikrama Samvat era after defeating the. The enraged monk sought the help of the Śaka ruler King Sahi in. Despite heavy odds but aided by miracles, the Śaka king defeated Gandharvasena and made him a captive. Sarasvati was repatriated, although Gandharvasena 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 modern Paithan in. Later on, Vikramaditya invaded Ujjain and drove away the Śakas. The Ujjain calendar started around 58—56 BCE, and the subsequent Shaka era calendar was started in 78 CE at Pratishthana. Historical origins The association of the era beginning in 57 BCE with Vikramaditya is not found in any source before the 9th century CE. The earlier sources call this era by various names, including Kṛṭa 343 CE and 371 CE , Kritaa 404 CE , the era of the 424 CE , or simply, Samvat. This inscription of ruler Chandamahasena was found at , and is dated Vikrama Samvat 898, 2, Chanda 16 April 842 CE. The earliest known inscription that associates this era with a king called Vikramaditya is dated 971 CE. The earliest literary work that connects the era to Vikramaditya is Subhashita-Ratna-Sandoha 993-994 CE by the Jain author Amitagati. For this reason, multiple authors believe that the Vikram Samvat was not started by Vikramaditya, who might be a purely legendary king or the title adopted by a later king who renamed the era after himself. Earlier, some scholars believed that the Vikrama Samavat corresponded to the of the Indo-Scythian Śaka king. However, this was disputed by Robert Bracey following discovery of an inscription of , which is dated in two eras. The theory seems to be now thoroughly discredited by Falk and Bennett, who place the inception of the Azes era in 47—46 BCE. The traditional New Year of Vikram Samvat 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, Burma, Cambodia, Kerala, Kashmir, Manipur, Odisha, Punjab, Sri Lanka, Tamil Nadu and Thailand In addition to Nepal, the Vikram Samvat calendar is also recognized in and , and in among Hindus. Hindu religious festivals are based on Vikram Samvat. In North India the new year in Vikram Samvat starts from the first day of Chaitra Skukla paksha. In Buddhist communities, the month of Baishakh is associated with or. 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 , the second day of is celebrated as the first day of the Vikram Samvat calendar which is the first day of the month Kartik. The Vikrami era is an ancient calendar and has been historically used by and. It is one of the several regional Hindu calendars that have been in use on the , and it is based on twelve synodical lunar months and 365 solar days. The lunar new year starts on the new moon in the month of. This day, known as Chaitra Sukhladi, is a restricted holiday in India. The Vikrami samvat Bikrami Samvat system has been in use in the Indian subcontinent since ancient times, and remains in use by the in north, west and central India as well as Nepal. In south India, and some parts of east and west India such as Assam, Bengal and Gujarat, saka era has been widely used. With the arrival of the Islamic rule era, the Islamic calendar became the official calendar of various Sultanates and the Mughal Empire. During the colonial rule era of the Indian subcontinent, the Gregorian calendar was adopted and it is commonly used in the urban areas of India and Nepal. The predominantly Muslim countries of Pakistan and Bangladesh use the Islamic calendar since 1947, but older texts variously included the Bikrami and Gregorian calendar systems. In 2003, the India-based of adopted the , a move that continues to be debated. The Vikrami calendar is the official calendar of Nepal. The Vikrami calendar is similar in conceptual design to the Jewish calendar, but different from the Gregorian calendar. Unlike Gregorian calendar which adds additional days to lunar month to adjust for the mismatch between twelve lunar cycles 354 lunar days and nearly 365 solar days, the Vikrami and Jewish calendars maintain the integrity of the lunar month, but insert an extra full month by complex rules, every 4 years, to ensure that the festivals and crop related rituals fall in the appropriate season. This Indian system of calendar keeping is one of the luni-solar calendar systems innovated in ancient human cultures. Early Buddhist communities of India adopted the ancient Indian calendar, later Vikrami calendar, and then local. Buddhist festivals continue to be scheduled according to a lunar system. The Vikram Samvat has two alternative systems. It started in 56 BCE in the southern purnimanta and 57—56 BCE in the northern amanta systems of the. The Shukla Paksha, when most festivals occur, coincides in both systems. The era is named after King of. The luni-solar Vikram Samvat calendar is 56. For example, the year 2075 VS began in 2018 CE and will end in 2019 CE. The Rana rulers of Nepal made Vikram Samvat the official Hindu calendar in 1901 CE, which started as Samvat 1958. In Nepal, the new year begins with the first day of the month of , which usually falls around 13-15 April in the Gregorian calendar. The first day of the new year is passionately celebrated in a historical carnival that takes place every year in , called. From 2007 AD, is recognized as the national calendar. In India, the reformulated is officially used although not for computing the dates of the traditional festivals. In the Hindi version of the Preamble of the , however, the date of adoption of the constitution, 26 November 1949, is presented in Vikram Samvat Margsheersh Shukla Saptami Samvat 2006. There have been calls for the Vikram Samvat to replace Saka as India's official calendar. Because 12 months do not match a sidereal year exactly, correctional months are added or, occasionally, subtracted kshaya masa. A lunar year consists of 12 months. A lunar month has two fortnights. Each month has 30 tithis, which may vary from 20 — 27 hours. Tithis begin at varying times of day and vary in duration from approximately 19 to 26 hours. Solar calendar The solar months correspond to Sun's position through the sidereal zodiac signs. For the whole month of Vaisakh, the Sun is in Aires Mesha , the Sun is in Vrish for the month of Jyestha, and so on. The table below starts the calendar from the Solar month of Vaisakh. The names of months are S. Solar Month Name Duration 1. Visakh Besakh Baisakh Mid of April to Mid of May 2. Jeth Jestha Mid of May to Mid of June 3. Harh Ashad Mid of June to Mid of July 4. Sawan Shrawan Mid of July to Mid of August 5. Bhadon Bhadhray Bhadra Mid of August to Mid of September 6. Asooj Assun Ashwin Mid of September to Mid of October 7. Kattek Kattun Kartik Mid of October to Mid of November 8. Maghar Marga or Margsheersh Mid of November to Mid of December 9. Poh Poush Mid of December to Mid of January 10. Maah Magh Mid of January to Mid of February 11. Phaggan Falgun Mid of February to Mid of March 12. Lunar calendar The names of the lunar months are as follows with the new lunar year starting on new moon in Chetar: S. Lunar Month Name Duration 1. Chetar Chaitra March to April 2. Visakh Besakh Baisakh April to May 3. Jeth Jestha May to June 4. Harh Ashad June to July 5. Sawan Shrawan July to August 6. Bhadon Bhadhray Bhadra August to September 7. Asooj Assun Ashwin September to October 8. Kattek Kattun Kartik October to November 9. Maghar Marga or Margsheersh November to December 10. Poh Poush December to January 11. Maah Magh January to February 12. Kartikadi starts 7 months later in Kartika. Until 12th century Kartikadi year was common even in North India. Amanta Chaitra Krishna Paksha is Purminata Vaishakh Krishna Paksha. For the Shukla Paksh, the month is the same. A software program, Pancanga, is available to make the calculations. Retrieved 24 October 2014. Archived from on 26 April 2014. Retrieved 28 March 2012.
