CHAPTER III 5 7

but their disturbances in the neighbourhood, the rumblings of which must have
been heard within the national confin.es of India, tempted the poet to make his
hero venture out a punitive expedition across the close border, and then turn to
the south east, conquer the Kambojas, and cross the Himalayas, annexing the land
of the Kiratas, the Utsavasanketas and the Kinnaras on his way down, accepting tri-
butes from the king of Assam (Kamarupas), and thus complete and secure the
Indian boundary. Thus it is that aftei the conquest of Aparanta Raghu has to
look up to north and the north-west. And since Malwa, Saurastra and Thar
lay within the natural confines of India, Kalidasa does not make Raghu conquer
them. But the Paraslkas had to be vanquished for they lay on the way and were
fighting the Hunas lately settled in the basin of the Oxus. The two fighting
nations must be made to taste the valour of one, who, himself an uncommon -
hero, was bent further on proving the fact that the land was his.

Persia, like to-day, was noted for its vine creepers,1 draksdvalayabh/lMtsu,
the word being still current in the language of the Baluchis for the grapes of the
smaller variety. While, speaking of Ariana Wilson says, "Aria will be restricted
to the tract from about Meshd to the neighbourhood of Herat, a position well
enough reconcilable with much that Strabo relates of Aria, its similarity to Mar-
giana in character and productions, its * mountains and well-watered valleys in
which the vine flourished, its position as much to the north as to the south of
the chain of Taurus of Alburz, and its being bounded by Hyrkania, Margiana,
and Bactriana on the north, and Drangiana on the south."2 Persia was also
noted for its precious skins by Kalidasa (ajinaratnaf as also by the Per/pfas, which
refers to coats of skin, imported at AduUs from the vicinity of Persia. About
these SchoflF says, "originally these were of rough skins with hair left on; later
they were imitated in Mesopotamia "by a heavy woollen fabric, suggesting the
modern frieze overcoat, which was largely exported."4

From Persia Raghu proceeded due north (Kauberim) along the Hindukush
and emerged right iato the valley of saffron in the basin of the Oxus stum-
bling on the Hunas.

Hffpas

Proceeding northward Raghu reached the settlement of the Hunas -on the
banks of the Oxus and its tributaries. While identifying the river Vanksu with
the Oxus the reasons for accepting the reading VanksTi for Sindhuk&xt already been
given. We have also referred there fo the passage of Kslrasvami (a commenta-
tor on the Amarakosa and writing abcut the second half of the i ith century A. D.)
in which he has alluded to the settlement of the Hunas who were vanquished by
Raghu. He has also, in way of illustration, quoted from the *&aghuvamsa (the
context of Raghu's conquest) the line * dudhwwvdjina$ skandhdnllagna, T&inktimake-
saran? We have to locate here properly the habitat ^of the

IV. 65.
2 Ariana Antiquities > p. 150.
JL«far.,IV. 65.
The Peripfas of the Erytbrean Sea9 p. 70,