63. Sulta´n 'Ali Khwa´razmi. Ali. Shah-b-Mḍ-b-il Kásim commonly known as 'Alá'uddín Al Khwárazmi, the author of a Canon called Sháhi—the royal; also of a Persian epitome from the Elkháni Tables, called the Úmdat úl Elkháníya. Haj. Khal. p. 565, III.

64. Fa´khir 'Ali Nasabi.

The variants indicate a corrupt reading—untraceable.

65. The 'Alai of Shirwa´ni. Faridúddin Abu'l Ḥasan Ali-b-il Karím as Shirwani, known as Al Fahhád, eminent among the later astronomers, the author of several canons besides the one mentioned—See Haj. Khal. p. 567, in two places.

There are two other Canons called 'Alái. H. K. 556-7.

66. Ra´hiri—var. Záhidi—untraceable.

67. Mustawfi—mentioned by Haj. Khal. without author's name.

68. Muntakhab (Selectus) of Yazdi.

69. Abu´ Raza´ Yazdi.

Yazd is a town between Naysabúr and Shíráz. I find no record of either the canon or the astronomer.

70. Kaydu´rah.

71. Ikli´li.

Al Iklíl is the 17th Lunar Station—three stars in the head of Scorpio. I infer from the absence of any mention of such astronomers that these canons are named after stars. I can learn nothing of Ḳaydurah.

72. Na´siri—perhaps called after Násiru'd-Daulah-b-amdán, temp. Mutii bi'lláh, A. H. 334. (946 A. D.)

73. Mulakhkhas. (Summarium).

74. Dastu´r. Dastúr u'l Aml fi Taṣḥiḥ il Jadwal—a Persian commentary by Maḥmúd-b-Mahd.-b-Káḍhizáda (known as Meriem Chelebi, <Arabic> in H. K. and D'Herb.) of the Canon of Ulugh Beg. See H. K. p. 560, III. and Sedillot, clv. I.

75. Murakkab. (Compositus).

76. Miklamah. (Calamarium).

77. 'Asa´. (Baculus).

78. Shatsalah. Var. Shashtalah.

79. Ha´sil. (Commodum).

80. Khatai´. A name of N. China: its people possessed an Astronomical Calendar in common with the Aighur Tribe, v. D'Herb. Art. Igur.

81. Daylami.

This is a bare list of tables of whose authors there is no certain record. Two of them, Khaṭái and Daylam point to the countries where they were in vogue. Kublai Khan the brother of Huláku after his conquest of China, introduced into the Celestial Empire the astronomical learning of Baghdad, and Cocheon-king in 1280, received the tables of Ibn Yúnas from the hands of the Persian Jamálu'ddín. For the extent of Chinese science at this time, see Sedillot. ci. I.

82. Mufrad. (Simplex) of Md.-b-Ayyub.

This Canon is in H. K. without the author's name.

83. Ka´mil (Integer) of Abu Rashid.

There is a commentary of the Shámil of al Búzjáni by Ḥasan-b-Ali al Ḳumnáti, entitled the Kámil, mentioned in H. K. p. 565. III.

84. Elkha´ni.

There are the tables of Naṣíru'ddin Ṭúsi.

85. Jamshi´di. Ghiyáthu'ddín Jamshíd together with the astronomer known as Ḳádḥizádah, assisted Ulugh Beg in the preparation of his Canon. The former died during the beginning of the work, the latter before its completion. H. K. 559. D'Herbelot (Art. zig. Ulug. Beg.) reverses this order and asserts that Jamshid finished it. I suspect that he has copied and mistaken the sense of H. K.

86. Gurga´ni. Another name for the Canon of Ulugh Beg. See Sed. p. cxix.

Whatever they set down, year by year from an astronomical table, as to the particular motions and individual positions of the heavenly bodies, they call an Almanac. It embodies, in fact, the diurnal progression of a planet from its first entrance into Aries to a determinate point in the ecliptic, in succession, and is in Hindi called patrah. The Indian sage considers astronomy to be inspired by divine intelligences. A mortal endowed with purity of nature, disposed to meditation, with accordant harmony of conduct, transported in soul beyond the restraints of sense and matter, may attain to such an elevation that earthly and divine forms, whether as universals or particularized, in the sublime or nether­most regions, future or past, are conceived in his mind. From kindliness of disposition and in the interests of science they impart their knowledge to enquirers of auspicious character, who commit their lessons to writing, and this writing they term Siddhánt. Nine such books are still extant; the Brahm-Siddhánt, the Súraj-Siddhánt, the Sóm-Siddhánt, the Brahaspat-Siddhánt, inspired by Brahma, the sun, moon, and Jupiter respectively. Their origin is referred to immemorial time and they are held in great veneration, especially the first two. The Garg-Siddhánt,* the Nárad-Siddhánt, the Párásar Siddhánt the Pulast-Siddhánt, the Bashistah-Siddhánt,—these five they ascribe to an earthly source. The unenlightened may loosen the tongue of reproval and imagine that these mysteries acquired by observa­tion of Stellar movements, have been kept secret and revealed only in such a way as to ensure the gratitude of reverential hearts, but the keen-sighted and just observer will, nevertheless, not refuse his assent, the more especially as men of innate excellence and outward respectability of character have for myriads of years transmitted a uniform tradition.

Among all nations the Nychthemeron* is the measure of time and this in two aspects, firstly., Natural, as in Turán and the West, from noon to noon, or as in China and Chinese Tartary* from midnight to midnight; but the reckoning from sunset to sunset more universally prevails. According to the Hindu sages, in Jagmot* —the eastern extremity of the globe, they reckon it from sunrise to sunrise; in Rúmak—the extreme west, from sunset to sunset; in Ceylon, the extreme south, from mid­night to midnight and the same computation obtains in Dehli: in Sadh­púr, the extreme north, from noon to noon. Secondly, the Equated also called Artificial, which consists of a complete revolution of the celestial sphere measured by the sun's course in the ecliptic. For facility of cal­culation, they take the whole period of the sun's revolution and divide equally the days thereof and consider the fractional remainder as the mean of each day, but as the duration of the revolutions is found to vary, a difference between the natural and artificial day arises. The tables of Al-Battáni assume it as 59 minutes, 8 seconds, 8 thirds, 46 fourths, 56 fifths and 14 sixths. Those of Elkháni make the minutes and seconds the same, but have 19 thirds, 44 fourths, 10 fifths and 37 sixths. The recent Gurgáni tables agree with the Khwájah* up to the thirds, but give 37 fourths, and 43 fifths. Ptolemy in the Almagest accords in minutes and seconds, but sets down 17 thirds, 13 fourths, 12 fifths and 31 sixths. In the same way ancient tables record discrepancies, which doubtless arise from varying knowledge and difference of instruments. The cycle of the year and the seasons depend upon the sun. From the time of his quitting one determinate point till his return to it, they reckon as one year. The period that he remains in one sign is a solar month. The interval of the moon's departure from a given position to its return thereto with the sun in conjunction or opposition or the like, is a lunar month. And since twelve lunations are nearly* equal to one annual revolution of the sun, they are called a lunar year. Thus both the year and the month are solar and lunar: and each of these two is Natural when the planetary revolutions are regarded and not the computation of days, and Equated when the computation is in days and not in the time of revolution. The Hindu sage divides the year, like the month, into four parts, allotting a particular purpose to each. Having now given a short account of the night, the day, the year and the month which form the basis of chronological notation, we herein set down somewhat of the ancient eras to complete our exposition.