Exalted Utterances - Udāna (KN 3)

1: Bodhivaggo - 15
1.9 The Discourse about Those with Knotted Hair
Thus I heard: at one time the Gracious One was dwelling near Gayā,
on Gayā Peak.
Then at that time many knotted-haired ascetics, in the cold Winter
nights, in between ‘the eights’, at the time of the snowfall, 28 in the
Gayā (river), were plunging out, and plunging in, were plunging out
and in, were sprinkling (water), and were offering the fire sacrifice,
(thinking): “Through this there is purity.”
The Gracious One saw that those many knotted-haired ascetics, in the
Winter nights, in between ‘the eights’, at the time of the snowfall, in
the Gayā (river), were plunging out and plunging in, were plunging out
and in, were sprinkling (water), and were offering the fire sacrifice,
(thinking): “Through this there is purity.”
Then the Gracious One, having understood the significance of it, on
that occasion uttered this exalted utterance:
28 "The eights" (aṭṭhakā) refers to the eighth day after three of the Full Moons
in Hemanta, i.e. at the coldest time of the year, at which times there were
festivals when the brāhmaṇas worshipped their ancestors (see SED, aṣṭakā).
Antaraṭṭhake therefore means between these times. See BHSD, s.v. aṣṭakarātri
(on Lalitavistara 251.6) and CPD s.v. atthakā, anatraṭṭhaka. The
Commentary says that aṭṭhakā means the last four days in Māgha and the
first four in Phagguṇa, in the season of Sisira, which shows an unexpected
ignorance of brāhmaṇical festivals, and is certainly wrong.