Utpala, also known as (') was an astronomer from Kashmir region of present-day India, who lived in the 9th or the 10th century. He wrote several Sanskrit-language texts on astrology and astronomy, the best-known being his commentaries on the works of the 6th-century astrologer-astronomer VarÃÂhamihira.
Utpala dates two of his commentaries on VarÃÂhamihira's works to the year 888 of the Shaka kÃÂla. Assuming that Utpala refers to current year of the Shaka era beginning in 78 CE, these works can be dated to 965-966 CE.
These dates align with a list of astronomers that places Utpala in the Shaka year 890 (c. 968 CE); this list was procured by W. Hunter at Ujjain, and published by H.T. Colebrooke.
However, there are some problems with placing Utpala around 966 CE:
This, combined with the absence of the date (Shaka 888) in another manuscript of Utpala's work, led Kane to theorize that Utpala must have flourished no later than c. 850 CE.
Historian Ajay Mitra Shastri theorizes that by "Shaka kÃÂla", Utpala means the Vikrama era beginning in 57 BCE, not the Shaka era beginning in 78 CE. Shastri notes that historical Indian texts use the term "Shaka" to denote either the Shaka era, or a calendar era in general. Moreover, in his commentary on Bá¹Âhat-saá¹ÂhitÃÂ, Utpala writes: "that time, when the barbarian rulers called Shakas were destroyed by the illustrious Vikramaditya, is known by the name Shaka". Thus, according to Shastri, year 888 of the "Shaka kÃÂla" in the manuscripts of Utpala's work equates to the Vikrama year 888, that is, c. 830 CE. Shastri further notes:
The colophons of some manuscripts claim that he was a relative of VarÃÂhamihira (6th century). For example, a manuscript titled Prashna-jnana claims that he was a son of VarÃÂhamihira. Some manuscripts of Prashna-mahodadhi or Shat-pancha-shika, a work by Pá¹Âthuyaà Âas (the actual son of VarÃÂhamihira), claim that Utpala was the father of Pá¹Âthuyaà Âas. However, these claims are incorrect.
None of Utpala's works mention his geographical location. However, Al-Biruni's India (c. 1030 CE) identifies him as a native of Kashmir. Varuá¹ÂabhaÃÂÃÂa's first commentary on Brahmagupta's Khaá¹Âá¸ÂakhÃÂdyaka-karana (1040 CE) also makes a similar statement. This identification is corroborated by the fact that Utpala's works feature several words characteristic of Kashmiri influence.
According to Al-Biruni, Kashmir and Varanasi remained the major centres of Hindu learning during his time, amid the disruptions caused by the Islamic conquest of northern India. Several Brahmins from neighbouring regions such as Peshawar took refuge in Adhiá¹£á¹ÂhÃÂna, the capital of Kashmir. Utpala appears to have become an authoritative figure in the astral science among the Brahmins of Kashmir.
The opening stanza of Utpala's commentary on Laghu-jataka invokes Mahadeva, which suggests that he was a Shaivite.
Utpala's extant works include:
Besides Saá¹ÂhitÃÂ-vivá¹Âti and Praà Âna-cà «á¸ÂÃÂmaá¹Âi, Al-Biruni mentions the following works by Utpala, which are now lost:
In Jagac-candrikÃÂ, Utpala quotes verses from another of his lost works, on Vastu-vidya (architecture).
A verse found at the end of some manuscripts of Kalyana-varman's SÃÂrÃÂvalë suggests that the original text remained incomplete for over three hundred years, before Utpala completed it.
The manuscripts of Utpala's surviving works may contain some alterations and omissions by copyists. For example, Al-Biruni attributes a statement about the original name of Multan to Saá¹ÂhitÃÂ-vivá¹Âti, but this statement is not present in the surviving manuscripts. According to this statement, Multan was originally called Yavana-pura, then Hamsa-pura, then Baga-pura, then Shamba-pura, then Mula-sthana (literally "original place").
Modern interpretations of VarÃÂhamihira's works, such as Bá¹Âhat-saá¹Âhitàand Bá¹Âhaj-jÃÂtaka, rely largely on Utpala's explanations. Utpala refers to several earlier commentaries on Bá¹Âhat-saá¹ÂhitÃÂ, but his commentary is the only one still extant.
Utpala quotes several Sanskrit and Prakrit works, which are now lost, including those attributed to the semi-legendary figures such as Garga, Parashara, and Rshiputra..
Utpala is known for quoting six verses from Surya Siddhanta which are not found in its extant version. These six verses can be found in the 'Introduction' by S.Jain to the translation of Surya SiddhÃÂnta made by E. Burgess.
As a commentator, Utpala devotes considerable effort to correctly interpret the text, using scientific methods far ahead of this time. He provides variant readings of various terms and refers to the views of the earlier commentators. He identifies some parts of the Bá¹Âhat-saá¹Âhitàtext available to him as later forgeries, and provides reasons for doing so. He admits his lack of expertise at places; for example, while commenting on the Gandha-yukti section of the Bá¹Âhat-saá¹ÂhitÃÂ, he states that is not well-versed with the art of hair dyeing and cosmetics, and the reader should consult people skilled in those areas. That said, he lived several centuries after VarÃÂhamihira, and therefore, could not understand certain concepts, leading to deficiences in his commentaries. For example, he wrongly interprets the term gana (republican states) as samà «ha or saá¹ÂghÃÂta (groups).
Sometime before 1861, Hendrik Kern (1833-1917) edited Utpala's commentaries on Bá¹Âhatsaá¹Âhitàand Bá¹ÂhajjÃÂtaka from the manuscripts, at Albrecht Weber's recommendation. He extracted a long list of technical terms from the texts; this list was included in Böhtlingk and Roth's Petersburg Sanskrit-Wörterbuch (1855-1875) and the Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English dictionary (1872), which became a standard reference for Sanskritists.