History of Months IV: India, China, The French Revolution & The Cruelty of April
This is the fourth and last article in the series “History of Months”. I will discuss months in India and China, and finally the Calendar of the French Revolution. As an appendix, I bring up T.S. Eliot's words that ”April is the cruellest month”. Is there any truth in such a claim?
Hindu Months - India
Indian calendars are a complicated matter, because there are many different ones. There is no reason to discuss them all in detail, and those interested in details are referred to special literature. Both calendars and principles for astrology are based on Vedic material; Vedanga Jyotisha and later Surya Siddhanta, possibly with some adoptions from Babylonian-Egyptian sources. The Hindu calendars are lunisolar or solar and designed by science, not religion.
One version of the names of the lunar months is:
1. Chaitra (March - April)
2. Vaisākha (April - May)
3. Jyeshta (May - June)
4. Āshādha (June - July)
5. Shravana (July - August)
6. Bhādra or Bhadrapadha (August - September)
7. Aswayuja (September - October)
8. Kartika (October - November)
9. Agrahayana, or Māgashirsha (November - December)
10. Pushya (December - January)
11. Māgha (January - February)
12. Phalguna (February - March)
Several other calendars use similar names.
Months are named by the "nakshatra" in which its full moon appears. A "nakshatra" is a part of a division of the ecliptic into 27 nakshatras (with a 28th intercalary one).
Indian-style calendars are used for cultural and religious purposes in several non-Indian countries, especially Buddhistic ones.
The Indian solar calendar uses the months Mesha, Vrishabha, Mithuna, Kataka, Simha, Kanyaa, Tulaa, Vrishika, Dhanus, Makara, Kumbha, Miina; which are names of the signs of the zodiac the sun passes through, beginning with "Aries".
Chinese Months
The Chinese calendar is lunisolar and attributed to Huang-di, the Yellow Emperor, in the year 2637 BC Gregorian time, which is from when years are counted. There is some dispute even among the Chinese of whether this starting point is the right one. 2697, for instance, is sometimes used instead.
The calendar has been reformed a few times through history since, most notably by introducing the Taichu calendar in 104 BC.
The names of the months in Chinese are quite uninteresting, their nature is too logical. They are simply numbered; first moon, second moon, third moon, etc.
Chinese alchemy has correspondences and combinations associated with the months - Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches, and the five elements, but we may save that for another time.
The French Revolutionary Calendar
The French Revolutionary calendar is a unique attempt to create a secular calendar, based on hatred of everything related to religion or the monarchy of the old French system [l'ancien régime]. 1793-1805 and during the 18 days of the Paris Commune in 1871, it was official. At first, 1789, the year of the revolution, was year I. When, after some confusion, the question was finally settled, year I was counted from the autumnal equinox (22 September) 1792. So, it was no longer based on the revolution, but on the official creation of the republic in 1792. Thus its French name: "Calendrier républicain". On 1 January 1806, Napoleon abolished it. The beginning of year I, however, was not decided upon until 24 November 1793, so the system was introduced retroactively.
Being a short historical parenthesis, at that of very local use, it is hardly important enough to be included here. In literature and history, however, one comes across it now and then, so some acquaintance with it is not out of order.
Months were divided into three ten-day weeks, just as the oldest weeks of history, those of old Egypt. [The reason was not to copy Egypt though, the French republicans were obsessed with the decimal system and wanted everything to be based on 10.] At last 5-6 extra days [jours complémentaires] were placed in each year to synchronise the calendar with the solar year.
The year began at the autumnal equinox, determined, not by calculation, but by real life observation in Paris; and the months were:
1. Vendémiaire: grape harvest; from Latin "vindemia".
2. Brumaire: fog; from French, "brume".
3. Frimaire: frost; from French "frimas".
4. Nivôse: snowy; from Latin "nivosus".
5. Pluviôse: rainy; from Latin "pluvius".
6. Ventôse: windy; from Latin "ventosus".
7. Germinal: germination; from Latin "germin".
8. Floréal: flower; from Latin "flos".
9. Prairial: pasture; from French "praine".
10. Messidor: harvest; from Latin "messis".
11. Thermidor: summer heat; from Greek "thermon".
12. Fructidor: fruit; from Latin "fructus".
Appendix: The Cruelty of April
April is the cruellest month, breeding
Lilacs out of the dead land, mixing
Memory and desire, stirring
Dull roots with spring rain.
(The beginning of "The Waste Land" by T.S. Eliot)
"April is the cruellest month", wrote T.S. Eliot. Is his statement justified?
Yes, to some extent it is. In many parts of the Northern Hemisphere's non-Tropical areas, April is the statistically dominant month for suicide, depression, and various mental ailments and emotional problems. The reason for this is not really known but might be related to early spring, nutritional deficiency, and a long time (the whole preceding winter) with too little sunlight.
T.S. Eliot's poem can be found in its entirety here:
https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/47311/the-waste-land
Read the whole series:
Zodiac, Month, Year: Some Scientific Elementa
History of Months I: Julian - Gregorian - Christian Months
History of Months II: Islamic/Arabic Months
History of Months III: Ancient Egypt & Babylonia
History of Months IV: Indian, China, The French Revolution & The Cruelty of April
Other related articles:
About Zodiacs & Astrology (Egyptian, Babylonian, Indian, Chinese)
The Dog Star & The Dog Days, about Sirius & the Old Egyptian Calendar.
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