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Mahāvīra and Buddha
Inconsistencies in Ceylonese Chronology
Some inconsistencies in the chronology described by the Ceylonese chronicles are so obvious that it surprises us how they were accepted as the authoritative sources by the historians. For instance, the Purāņic and the Jain chronologies assign 100 and 150 years respectively to the Nanda dynasty, whereas the Mahāvamsa ascribes only 22 years to the whole dynasty, and more surprisingly, we find that no place is given to this important dynasty of India in the chronological list supplied by the Dipavamśa. Another inconsistency of the Ceylonese chronology is that whereas in the Purāṇas the king Siśunāga Kākavarna, etc. are enumerated as the predecessors of Ajātaśatru, the Ceylonese
551 519 501
Dr. Shanti Lal Shah (Chronological Problems) Ajātašatru Darsaka Udayina The Old Nandas
Nandivardhana Kākavarna add Mahănandina The New Nandas Nanda (Barber) Nanda II (Mahāpadma) Candragupta
467
447
404 382 316
1. Refer to Muni Kalyan Vijayji, op. cit. p. 24, for a detailed
discussion of the topic Prof. Lassen had observed long ago. "In den Berichten die Nandas herrschtin den Singhalesischen Schriften offenbareine Verwirrung." (Indian Antiquary, Vol. II, p. 61) "The account about the Nandas recorded by the Singhalese chronicles reveal a confusion". Dr. Smith (op. cit.) and Dr. Radha Kumud Mukherjee (Hindu Sabhyată, p. 267) have explicitly refuted this belief of Ceylonese chronicles.
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