He
Took Also Into Consideration, That Since The Year 1211 Chingis Khan's Glory
Had Spread Over The Whole World.
Ye-liu Ch'u-ts'ai's calendar was not
adopted in China, but the system of it is explained in the Yuen-shi, in
the section on Astronomy and the Calendar.
"In the year 1267, the Mohammedans presented to Kubilai their astronomical
calendar (wan nien li, i.e.), the calendar of ten thousand years. By
taking this denomination in its literal sense, we may conclude that the
Mahommedans brought to China the ancient Persian system, founded on the
period of 10,000 years. The compilers of the Yuen-shi seem not to have
had access to documents relating to this system, for they give no details
about it. Finally by order of Kubilai the astronomers Hui-Heng and Ko
Show-King composed a new calculation under the name of Shou-shi-li
which came into use from the year 1280. It is thoroughly explained in the
Yuen-shi. Notwithstanding the fame this system generally enjoyed, its
blemishes came soon to light. In the sixth month of 1302 an eclipse of the
sun happened, and the calculation of the astronomer proved to be erroneous
(it seems the calculation had anticipated the real time). The astronomers
of the Ming Dynasty explained the errors in the Shou-shi-li by the
circumstance, that in that calculation the period for one degree of
precession of the equinox was taken too long (eighty-one years). But they
were themselves hardly able to overcome these difficulties." (Palladius,
pp.
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