KASHMIR 337
(iv) Shankaracharya Hill
The friend and Ramdas now started ascending the
Shankaracharya hill. The hill Js a thousand feet above the
level of the Kashmir valley. As they climbed higher and
higher, Ramdas found as if a screen was slowly being
lifted to reveal the grandiose beauty of Kashmir. They
reached the top and a sweeping look all round thrilled
Raindas with a feeling of inexpressible ecstasy. The ex-
tensive and picturesque valley was now before him. The
stately mountains tinted with a subtle blending of blue
and heliotrope and crowned by dazzling flakes of snow
were standing in all their dignity at the borders of the
valley all round, like guardian angels of the land.
The vast lakes, scattered all over the valley, scintil-
lated in the sun like huge mirrors reflecting the glory of
the mountains and the groves of trees covered with green
foliage. The Dal lake, the largest of them, at the base
of the hill on which he was viewing the scene, bore on
her placid bosom big red lotus flowers, beside which swans
gambolled and sported.
From the height Hari Parvat was seen as a small mound
of earth, the brown walls of the fortress standing out
prominently on its top. Then again the river Jhelum: she
was running in a zigzag course like a huge serpent creeping
through the enchanting valley. The grey, dull houses in
the city were visible from a long distance. What with the
flashes of water, the greenness of the vegetation, the multi-
tude mountain ranges and the clear blue sky above, the
scenery was such that his eyes feasted on the sublimity of
God's fascinating creation or manifestation.
He turned his attention to the temple. It is constructed
of blocks of granite stones, oval in shape at the top and
ending in a dome. It has a raised square platform on its
sides. A flight of stone steps leads the visitor to the
sanctum sanctorum in which the phallic emblem of Shiva,
an image about three feet high, smooth and polished,
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