JOURNAL
OF THE
ASIATIC SOCIETY OF
EDITED BY
/
BENGAL,
THE SECRETARIES.
VOL. XVII,
Part II. — July to December, 1848.
rlr ^imrish, d naturalists, chemists, antiquaries, philologers, and men of science, in different parts of Asia will commit their observations to writing', and send them to the Asiatic Society at Calcutta. It will languish it such communications shall be long1 inter- netted ; and it will die away if they shall entirely cease.”— Sin Wsi. Jones.
CALCUTTA :
PRINTED RY J. THOMAS, BAPTIST MISSION PRESS.
1848.
Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2016
https://archive.org/details/journalofasiatic1719asia
INDEX TO VOL. XVII
PART II.
Page
Aborigines of Central India, The. By B. H. Hodgson, Esq 550
Addendum on the Anatomy of Ailurus. By B. H. Hodgson, Esq 573
Anatomy of Ailurus, Porcula, and Stylocerus, &c. By B. H. Hodgson, Esq. 475 Arian Order of Architecture, as exhibited in the temples of Kashmir, An
Essay on the. By Capt. A. Cunningham, 241
Bal’amy’s translation of the History of Tabary, and Ghazzaly’s History of
the Prophets. By Dr. A. Sprenger, 437
Battle Field of Alexander and Porus, Some account of the. By Capt. J.
Abbott 619
Chepang and Kusunda Tribes of Nepal. By B. H. Hodgson, Esq 650
Chinese Map of India, 60
Coleoptera of Hong Kong, Notice on the. By Capt. Champion, 95th Regt. 206 Extract of a letter from Dr. Campbell, to the Hon’ble the President of the
Asiatic Society, 572
• from Lieut. R. Strachey,
Explanation of the Elevations of places between Almorah and Gangri, given
in Lieut. Strachey’s Map and Journal 527
Fragments of the History of Mooltan, the Derajat, and Buhawalpur. By
Lieut. R. MacLagan, 559
Glacier of the Pindur in Kuraaon, Note on the motion of the. By Lieut.
R. Strachey 203
Gleanings in Buddhism ; or translations of passages from a Siamese version of a Pali Work, termed in Siamese “ Phra Pat’hom.” By Lieut.-Col. J.
Low, 72
Gleanings in Buddhism, A few. By Lieut.-Col. J. Low, 591
Gum Kino of the Tenasserim Provinces, The. By the Rev. F. Mason 223
Ibn Qotaybah’s Adah al Katab,’ on Arabic Astronomy, A Passage from. By
Dr. A. Sprenger, 659
IV
Index.
Page
Ikwan al <;afa, Notice of the. By Dr. A. Sprenger, 183
Inscriptions found in Province Wellesly, on the Peninsula of Malacca, An
account of several. By Lieut. -Col. James Low, 62
- from Singapur and Province Wellesly, Note on the. By J. W.
Laidlay, Esq 66
Journey to Cho Lagan, (Rakas Tal,) Cho Mapan, (Manasarowar,) and the valley of Pruang in Gnari, Hundes, in September and October 1816, Nar- ration of a. By Lieut. H. Strachey, 98, 127, 327
The Passage from the Dhari Falls to the Hirnphal. By Capt. Fenwick, .. 210
Map of the British Himalayan Frontier in Kumaon andGurwal, Note on the
construction of the. By Lieut. II. Strachey, 532
Memorandum relative to the seven Cosis of Nepal. By B. H. Hodgson, Esq. 646 Meteoric Iron from the Kharrakpur hills, Description and Analysis of a
large mass of. By H. Piddington, Esq 538
Meteorological Register for July, 1848, 125
for August, 1848, 239
for September, 1848, 353
for October, 1848 475
for November, 1848,.. 591
for December, 1848,
Notes on the Eastern Desert of Egypt, from Gebel Afrit, by the Ancient Porphyry Quarries of Gebel Dukhan, near to the old station of Gebel Gir.
By Hekekyan Bey, 584
Notes on the Nidification of Indian Birds. By Capt. T. Hutton, 3, 681
Notice of the Kiang, By H. Walker, Esq 1
Observations made when following the Grand Trunk Road across the hills of
Upper Bengal, Paras Nath, & c. By Dr. J. D. Hooker 355
Proceedings of the Asiatic Society of Bengal, for July 1843, 121
for August, 1848, 233
for September, 1848, 472
for November, 1848, 588
■ for December, 1848, 697
Relics of the Catholic Mission in Tibet. By B. H. Hodgson, Esq 225
Report on the Salt Range, and on its Coal and other Minerals. By Dr.
Andrew Flemming 500
Resultant System for the construction of Iron Tension Bridges. By Major
H. Goodwyn, 412
Routes from Darjeling to Thibet. By A. Campbell, Esq 488
Route from Katmandu to Darjeling. By B. FI. Hodgson, Esq 634
Temperature of the Hot Springs at Peer Mangal, or Munga, or Mangear, .. 230
Tibetan Type of Mankind. By B. H. Hodgson, Esq 222
Extract of a letter from Dr. Prichard to B. II. Hodgson, Esq. 580
Index.
v
Page
Verification of the Itinerary of the Chinese Pilgrim, Hwan Thsang, through Afghanistan and India, during the first half of the 7th century of the Christian Era, By Capt. A. Cunningham, 13
INDEX TO NAMES OF CONTRIBUTORS.
Abbott, Capt. James. Some account of the Battle Field of Alexander and
Porus, 619
Campbell, A. Esq. Routes from Darjeling to Tibet, 488
. Extract of a letter to the Hon’ble the President, Asiatic Society, 572
. Letter on the Elevation of Peaks in the Himalaya, 57G
Champion, Capt. Notice on the Coleoptera of Hong Kong, .. 206
Cunningham, Capt. A. Verification of the Itinerary of the Chinese pilgrim
Hwan Thsang, through Afghanistan and India 13
, An Essay on the Arian Order of Architecture, as exhibited in
the Temples of Kashmir, 241
Fenwick, Capt. Journey of the Passage from the Dhari Falls to the Ilirn-
phal, 210
Fleming, Dr. A Report on the Salt Range and on its Coal and other Mi- nerals, 500
Goodwyn, Major H. A Resultant system for the construction of Iron Tension
Bridges, 412
Hekekyan Bey. Notes on the Eastern Desert of Egypt, 584
Hodgson, B. H. Esq. On the Tibetan type of Mankind, 222
. Relics of the Catholic Mission in Tibet, 225
■ . Anatomy of Ailurus, Porcula, and Stylocerus, 475
■ . The Aborigines of Central India . . 550
. Addendum on the Anatomy of Ailurus, 573
. Route from Katmandu to Darjeling, 634
. Memorandum relative to the seven Cosis of Nepal, 646
. On the Chbpang and Kusunda tribes of Nepal, 650
Hutton, Capt. T. Notes on the Nidification of India Birds 3, 681
Hooker, Dr. J. D. Observations made when following the Grand Trunk
Road across the hills of Upper Bengal, Paras-Nath, &c. in the Soane
Valley ; and on the Kymaon branch of the Vindhya hills 355
Laidlay, J. W. Esq. Note on the Inscriptions from Singapur and Province Wellesly, forwarded by the Hon’ble Col. Butterwortli, and Col. J. Low, 66 Low, Lieut. -Col. James. An account of several Inscriptions found in Pro- vince Wellesly, on the Peninsula of Malacca 62
■ . Gleanings in Buddhism ; or translations of passages from a Siamese
version of a Pali work, termed in Siamese “ Phra Pat’hom,” 72
. A few Gleanings in Buddhism, 591
Index.
vi
Page
Maclagan, Lieut. R. Fragments of the History of Mooltan, the Derajat,
and Buhawulpur, from Persian MSS 559
Mason, Rev. F. on the Gum Kino of the Tenasserim Provinces 223
Piddington, H. Esq. Description and Analysis of a large mass of Meteoric
Iron, from the Kharackpur hills, near Monghir, 538
Prichard, Dr. J. C. Extract of a letter from, 580
Sprenger, Dr. Aloys. Notice of the Ikhwan al 9afa 183
. Balamy’s Translation of the History of Tabary, 437
• . A passage from Ibn Qotaybah’s Adab al Katib’ on Arabic Astro- nomy, 659
Strachey, Lieut. H. Narrative of ajournay to Cho Lagan, (Rakas Tal), Cho
Mapan, (Manasarowar,) and the Valley of Pruang in Gnari, Hundds, 98, 177, 327
. Note on the Construction of the Map of the British Himalayan
Frontier in Kumaon and Gurwal 532
. Lieut. R. Extract of a letter from 578
. Lieut. R. Note on the motion of the Glacier of the Pindur in
Kumaon 203
Walker, H. Esq. Notice of the Kiaug, 1
TO THE BINDER.
The Plates will be inserted as follows : —
Page.
I. (Th e Equus hemionus) 1
II 62
III 68
IV. Map to illustrate the route of Lieut. Strachey to Manasarowav. 72
V. Map shewing the sites of Temples in Kashmir, 242
VI 244
VII 246
VIII 248
IX 248
X 252
XI 254
XII 254
XIII 258
XIV 258
XV 259
XVI 266
XVII 280
XVIII 278
XIX 276
XX 282
XXI 282
XXII 284
XXIII 412
XXIV 418
XXV 424
XXVI 428
XXVII 476
XXVIII 490
XXIX 538
XXX 539
XXXI. (Bearings from Darjeeling, &c.) 577
XXXII. (Battle Field of Alexander and Porus.) 622
XXXIII 641
XXXIV. (Feeders of the Sun Cosi.) 647
XXXV. (Man of the Chepang tribe.) 650
* '
1
JOURNAL
OF THE
ASIATIC SOCIETY
JULY, 1848.
Notice of the Xiang. — ( With Plate.)
In the month of March last a Kiang or wild ass of Tibet, arrived in Calcutta in company with a Iiill-poney, to which it had taken a fancy and followed every where. It had been sent down by the Iion’ble J. Thomason, Esq. Lieut.-Governor of the North-West Provinces, to be forwarded to England, and came originally from the plains of Tibet. The following description was taken whilst it was in Calcutta.
It is a male between 2 and 3 years old, and has either been gelt or his testicles have not yet descended. He is still partially covered with his winter coat. His general form, except the head, which is very large* is more that of a horse than an ass. Limbs slender, hind-quarters good, shoulder small and straight. Head large, nose arched, forehead flat, as far as can be perceived, covered as it is with long thick hair. Nostrils large and more terminal than in the horse or ass. Ears of medium size between the horse and ass, but more approximated at their bases than in either of those animals. The eye much more bright and intelligent than in the common ass. Mane erect, and the hair, of which it is composed, about 4 inches long : no foretop. The coat is thick, long and frizzled, something like a^-camel’s. A thick tuft at the end of the tail, which however is not confined to the tip, but extends half way up towards the base. Callosities on the forelegs, none on the hind ones. Height at shoulder 3 feet 10 inches, or 11 hands and a half. Colour ; above, isabella, with a dash of bay or fawn. Beneath, and the 4 legs, breast and nose, yellowish white. The whole of the trunk has a slight tinge of a bluish or leaden hue. The mane, dorsal line, and tuft of tail brown black ; the dorsal line expands at the
No. XIX. — New' Series. b
Notice of the Kiang.
2
[July,
rump : ears, outside isabella, inside white, tips and outer border brown black ; irides gray. He neighs like a horse.
Manners. The animal is quite unmanageable bv any one except his own saees. On the approach of a stranger he kicks or bites, and it is impossible to get near him to examine any part of his body. lie is much attached to the Hill-poney, and never leaves him or allows him to be taken away. He will eat and drink only in company with the poney, which on this account has been sent with him to England.
The Kiang is the same animal as the Dshikketaei first discovered in Siberia by Pallas and named by him Equus Hemionus. The Kiang was first seen on the plains of Tibet by Moorcroft, who says it is cer- tainly not the Gur-khur or wild ass of Sindh. The latter appears to have been considered the Equus Ilemionus in Europe, where specimens are now living in the Zoological Gardens, and in Mr. Cross’s menagerie, London, and at the Garden of Plants in Paris.
Besides the difference of habitat, there are two points which require to be settled before the identity of the Kiang with the Mild Ass of Cutcli can be satisfactorily made out. The first relates to the nature of the voice ; the second to the presence or absence of Zebra-stripes.
First with regard to the voice, the Kiang neighs like a horse, the wild ass of Cutcli brays like an ass. 2nd. There are no Zebra-stripes in the Kiang, neither in the adult nor in the foal. In the wild ass of Cutcli, transverse Zebra-stripes are seen on the shoulder in the adult, and still more in the foal. Sometimes also the shoulder-cross has been seen. In a live specimen at Mr. Cross’s there was a cross-band at the shoulder 4 inches long on each side. — Nouvelles Annales du Museum, Yol. 4, p. 117.
The habitat of the Kiang is on the high table-land of Tibet, that of the wild ass of Cutcli in the sultry plains near the mouth of the Indus.
Mr. Hodgson has described the Kiang as a new species under the name of Equus polyodon. The anterior premolar, however, upon which Mr. H. bases his new species, is found not unfrequently in the common horse, and may be seen in two of the five specimens of the head of that animal in the Museum of the Asiatic Society ; whilst in the specimen of the Kiang in the same Museum, the anterior premo- lar does not exist, nor is there any trace of it. This evidence appears conclusive that the Kiang is not a new species.
II. Walker.
1848.]
Notes on the Nidification of Indian Birds.
3
Notes on the Nidification of Indian Birds. — By Capt. Thomas Hutton, F. G. S. (Communicated by E. Blyth, Esq.)
Captain Tickell having made a praiseworthy beginning, in the April number of the Journal of the Asiatic Society for 1848, to dispel the darkness that has hitherto hung over our knowledge of this portion of the history of the Birds of India, I have thought it advisable, being in possession of a few facts bearing on the subject, to follow in the path he has so well pointed out.
No. 1. — “ Halide tus Macei, Cuv.
I notice this species because Captain Tickell has remarked that it “ never makes the slightest attempt at defending its nest, — a striking contrast to the marvellous tales we read of, concerning the Golden Eagle in the Highlands of Scotland, &c. !” This remark is correct only so long as there are eggs in the nest, for no sooner are these hatched than the temper of the bird becomes wholly changed, and it will then defend its young with fierceness and determination. The nests I have repeatedly found and robbed, both on the hanks of the Ganges and of the Sutledge, and in all cases where they contained only eggs, not the least show of resistance was made, — the old birds either sailing away with a loud querulous cry, — or sullenly remaining on an adjacent tree watching the robbery that was going on. On one occasion, however, I met with a very different reception, when my servant was attacked with an unexpected ferocity from which nothing but my gun could have saved him. The circumstance occurred in January 1832, when on my way up the country. The nest was placed near the summit of a tree growing on one of the Colgong rocks in the middle of the Ganges, and contained two half-fledged young ones. The old birds offered a most determined resistance, and without the aid of fire-arms we should decidedly have been defeated, as they dashed fiercely and fearlessly at the man in the tree, who prayed hard to be allowed to descend, and was only kept at his post by the promise of reward and fear of the cudgel. At first we had to contend with the female only, but after one or two rapid stoops and dashes at the robber’s head, which he avoided by bobbing under the nest, — finding she could make no im- pression, she suddenly uttered a shrill cry, which was responded to in the distance, and in an instant after, her mate wras seen swiftly
b 2
4 Notes on the Nidification of Indian Birds. [July,
gliding to her aid from the opposite bank of the river. The two then charged together towards the nest with the rage and fierceness of despair, and so terrified the man in the tree, hampered as he was witli the young ones, that had I not fired at and wounded the Eagles as they advanced, they would assuredly have hurled him into the river. In this manner however, after repeated attempts to come to the rescue, we managed at last to drive them off, and secure the booty. At the end of 5 weeks the young ones exhibited as nearly as possible the plumage of the bird figured by Ilardwicke and Gray as “ II. lineatus.”*
No. 2. — [“ Ephialtes scops,” (L.) :
E. spilocephalus, Blyth, (a large specimen in immature plumage).
Scops pennata, Hodgson (grey variety) :
Sc. sunia, Hodgson (rufous variety.)].
This species occurs on the Himalaya in the neighbourhood of Mus- sooree, at an elevation of about 5,000 feet, and nidificates in hollow trees, laying 3 pure white eggs, of a rounded form, on the rotten wood* without any preparation of a nest. Diameter of egg 1 ins. The
nest was found on the 19tli March.
In the 169th number of the J. A. S. for 1846, Mr. Blyth has named and described this species as “ Ephialtes spilocephalus,” giving “ Noctua auribarbis ” and “ Athene badia” of Hodgson, as doubtful synonymes.f In plumage and aigrettes the bird is to all appearance a Scops or Ephialtes, — but the wing is that of Noctua or Athene, having the 4th and 5th feathers longest — whereas in Scops, as laid down by Mr. Hodgson in J. A. S. No. 65 of 1837, — the 3d and 4th are longest. Mr. Gray, in his Catalogue of the collection presented by Mr. Hodg- son to the British Museum, gives “ N. auribarbis” of that naturalist as a synonyme of “ Athene cuculoides” of Vigors, — but it seems scarce- ly probable that Mr. Hodgson would have placed his “ auribarbis ”
* Mr. G. R. Gray, in his Catalogue of Mr. Hodgson’s specimens presented to t he British museum, erroneously gives H. lineatus as a synonyme ot the common Kite of India : but the Kites are closely allied to the Haliaeti, and immediately connected with them by the interposition of Haliastur. The ferocity of the Indian Kite when it has young in its nest must have been remarked by most residents in this country. — E. B.
t Noctua auribarbis, Hodgson, is now referred by Mr. G. R. Gray (as mentioned above) to Athene cuculoides, and Ath, badia doubtfully as the young of Alh. Bredici — E. B.
1848.] Notes on the Nidification of Indian Birds. 5
in the genus “ Noctua,” if the characters of the wing rendered it im- proper so to place it. Had such however been the case, the necessity for coining a new specific name is not apparent. This handsome little species appears to agree neither with Scops nor Athene, — for while the wing belongs to the latter genus, — the plumage, aigrettes and nude feet refer it to the former. It would now seem however that neither Scops nor Ephialtes can stand for a genus of Owls, — the first being otherwise employed in Ornithology, — while the latter is a genus in Entomology instituted by Gravenhorst. (Vide Nat. Lib. Introd. Entom.) It is therefore necessary to form a genus for these Owls.
No. 3. — “ Athene Brodiei.” (Burton).
This pretty little species is exceedingly common in the Himalayas in the neighbourhood of Mussooree and Simla, and may be heard at nightfall uttering its monotonous but not unmusical whistle of two notes oft times repeated. Like the last, it nidificates in hollow trees without any preparation of a nest. On the 11th May, I found 3 young ones and an egg just ready to hatch in a hole of a wild Cherry tree. The egg was nearly round and pure white, but being broken I could take no measurement of it. The young ones were clothed in a soft and pure white down.
In both these instances, namely, “ A. nudipes ” and “ A. Brodiei ,” the old females remained in the holes while we cut into the trees, and allowed themselves to be captured.
No. 4. — “ Caprimulgus albonotatus ,” Tickell.
C. nipalensis, Hodgson, (Gray’s Zool. Misc.)
Of this species, which is a summer visitor at Mussooree, Captain Tickell says, the eggs are — “ fleshy clay colour, sprinkled with patches of darker brownish red ; female, paler and redder.” I took 2 eggs of this bird at an elevation of 5000 feet, on the 19th April, from the bare ground beneath bushes on the side of a hill, the colour being a rich cream white with darker blotches of reddish brown or clay colour. Of one the diameter was 1] X f inches ; the other was some- what smaller.
No. 5. — “ Garrulus lanceolatus ,” Vigors.
G. gutaris et G. Vigorsii. (Gray’s 111. Ind. Zool.)
This is one of the commonest birds in the Hills, usually appearing, except in the breeding season, in small parties of 5 or 6, most probably
6 Notes on the Nidif cation of Indian Birds. [July,
comprising a family. It breeds in May and June, placing the nest sometimes on the branch of a tall oak tree (Quercus incana) ; at other times in a thick bush. It is composed of a foundation of twigs, and lined with fine roots of grass, &c., mixed with the long black fibres of ferns and mosses which hang upon the forest trees, and have much the appearance of black horse hair ; the nest is cup-shaped, rather shallow, loosely put together, circular and about inches in diameter. The eggs are sometimes 3, sometimes 4 in number, of a greenish stone-grey, freckled chiefly at the larger end with dusky, — and a few black liair- like streaks, which are not always present ; they vary also in the amount of dusky freckling at the large end. Shape ordinary. The nestling bird is devoid of the lanceolate markings on the throat, and in this stage is the “ Garrulus Vigorsii” of Hardwicke and Gray. — “ Bun-sar-rah,’> of hillmen.
No. 6. — Garrulax albogularis, (Gould.)
Cinclosoina albigula, Hodgson.
Is very common at Mussooree at all seasons, and appears in large flocks of several families united. It breeds in April and May, — placing the nest in the forks of young oaks and other trees, about 7 to 8 feet from the ground, though sometimes higher, and fastening the sides of it firmly to the supporting twigs by tendrils of climbing plants. It is sometimes composed externally almost entirely of such woody tendrils, intermixed with a few other twigs, and lined with the black hair-like fibres of mosses and lichens ; at other times it is externally composed of coarse dry grasses, and leaves of different kinds of Orchis, and lined with fibres, — the materials varying with the locality. Unlike the eggs of Crateropus, which are stated to be white, — in this species they are of a deep and beautiful green, shining as if recently varnished, and 3 in number. In shape they taper somewhat suddenly to the smaller end, which may almost be termed obtusely pointed ; the diameter 1 ^ y jjt inches. The usual number of eggs is three, though they vary some- times to one or two, — but only on one occasion out of more than a dozen, have I found four eggs. The old bird will remain on the nest until almost within reach of the hand.
No. 7. — “ Trochalopteron ? rufigularis. (Gray’s Catalogue.)
Crateropus rvf men turn, (Hodgson.)
This species differs from the last in not congregating into large and
1848.]
Notes on the Notification of Indian Birds.
7
noisy flocks, but appearing usually, according to my observation, in pairs. It breeds in May, in which month I took a nest at about 6,500 feet, in a retired and wooded glen ; it was composed of small twigs externally, and lined with the fine black fibres of lichens, like the preced- ing. The nest was placed on a horizontal bough about 7 feet from the ground, and contained 3 pure ivhite eggs. Diameter 1T9^ x ; and shape ordinary. The stomach of the old bird contained sand, seeds and the remains of wasps.
No. 8.—“ Trochalopteron ? setifer, (Hodgson and Gray, Zool. Misc.)
Cinclosoma setifer , Hodgson.
C. lineatum. Vigors?
If the colour of the eggs affords any generic character, this and the foregoing species cannot well rank together, for while in that the eggs are pure white, as in Crateropus, in this they are pale greenish blue (like those of “ Acridotheres tristis .”)* The nest is loosely and rather slovenlily constructed of coarse dry grasses and stalks externally, lined sometimes with fine grass, — sometimes with fine roots. It is placed near the ground in the midst of some thick low bush, —or on the side of a bank amidst overhanging coarse grass, and not unfrequently in exposed and well frequented places. The eggs are 3 in number, and in shape and size exceedingly variable, being sometimes of an ordinary oval — at others nearly round. Diameter varying, — ly'g- X ; — or
1 inch x Ijy ; or x -j-g-. The most usual measurement however is the second one, or 1 inch x inches.
In these three species, which have sometimes been placed in Cinclo- soma,— sometimes in Garrulax, — and again in Crateropus, — there are several points both of similarity and dissimilarity, in their habits and manners.
In the number of eggs they agree, and there is a general similitude in the construction of the nest, more so between the two first — less so between them and the last ; — in the colour of the eggs they all differ very materially ; the first congregates into large and noisy Hocks, — turning up the dead leaves and screaming and chattering together in most discordant concert. The second is most usually in pairs — some- times in a family of 4 or 5 ; — the last in pairs or family of 4 or 5, and to be seen under every bush. Its mode of flight and its note are totally unlike the other tw'o. Any one observing the birds in their native * So in Riiticilla ■phxnicurus the eggs are blue ; in R. titlnjs, white. — E. li.
8 Notes on the Nidif cation of Indian Birds. [July,
haunts, could not fail to perceive that G. albogularis and G. leucolo- phus are allied in manners, voice and habits ; — that G. rufigularis, G. erythrocephalus and G. variegatns are likewise allied, — and that Trocha- lopteron setifer vel lineatum stands distinct from all ; the three forming distinct sections of the same group.*
No. 9. — “ Acridotheres griseus,” (Horsfield.)
Maina crist alloides, Hodgson.
This is a summer visitor in the hills, and is common at Mussooree during that season, but it does not appear to visit Simla, although it is to be found in some of the valleys below it to the south. It breeds at Mussooree in May and June, selecting holes in the forest trees, gene- rally large oaks, which it lines with dry grass and feathers ; — the eggs are from 3 to 5, of a pale greenish blue ; shape ordinary, but somewhat inclined to taper to the smaller end ; — diameter 1 >» inches ; or
irtr * r£ inches. This species usually arrives from the valley of the Doon about the middle of March ; and until they begin to sit on their eggs, they congregate every evening into small flocks and roost toge- ther in trees near houses ; in the morning they separate for the day into pairs and proceed with the building of nests or laying of eggs. After the young are hatched and well able to fly, all betake themselves to the Doon in July.
No. 10. — “ Acridotheres tristis,” (Linn.?)
This too is a summer visitor in the hills, arriving with the preced- ing species. The colour and number of eggs are also the same. It is curious however to observe that w-hile Mr. Blyth and Captain Tic- kell state, that it builds in “ out-liouses, verandas and trees,” in which last, according to the latter gentleman, the nest is composed of “ twigs and grass within,” — with us in the mountains its habits are precisely those of A. griseus, and as with it, the hole of a tree is selected and lined w ith dry grass and feathers ; — on no occasion have I ever seen a nest made on the branches of a tree, and only once in any place except the hollows of large oaks ; the exception being in the chimney of my house, which the stupid bird had evidently mistaken for a hollow tree, and seemed to be amazed that all the grass and feathers dropped into it invariably fell to the bottom ; at last it contrived to place some grass
* The difficulty is to class such species as ceerulatus, ruficollis, and others of interme- diate character. My imbricatus would rank with I meatus, and numerous species in Capt. Hutton’s second group.— E. B.
1848.]
Notes on the Notification of Indian Birds.
9
on a projecting brick. Can this difference betoken a distinction in species ? I am inclined to believe it — for why in the plains should a nest be constructed among the open branches of trees,* — while in the mountains it is constructed within their hollow trunks ? If distinct, it will, I imagine, bear Mr. Hodgson’s ill- constructed name of “ A. lristoides.”f
No. 11. — “ Corvus cidminatus ,” Sykes,
[C. orientalis, Eversmann].
Occurs at Mussooree throughout the year, and is very destructive to young fowls and pigeons; it breeds in May and June, and selects a tall tree, near a house or village, on which to build its nest, which is composed externally of dried sticks and twigs, and lined with grass and hair, which latter material it will pick from the backs of horses and cows, — or from skins of animals laid out to dry. I have had skins of the Surrdw ( Ncemorhoedus thar) nearly destroyed from their depreda- tions. The eggs are 3 or 4 in number and of a dull green, thickly spot- ted over with long and sometimes confluent spots and dashes of dusky brown or blackish. Diameter 1-j9^ X 1 inch.
No. 12. — “ Saroglossa spiloptera,” Hodgson.
Lamprotornis spilopterus. Vigors.
This species arrives in the hills about the middle of April, in small parties of 5 or 6, but it does not appear to ascend above 5,500 to 6,000 feet, and is therefore more properly an inhabitant of the warm valleys. I do not remember seeing it at Mussooree, which is 6,500 to 7,000 feet, — although at 5,200 feet on the same range, it is abundant during summer. Its note and flight are very much those of the Starling (Sturnus vulgaris), and it delights to take a short and rapid flight and return twittering to perch on the very summit of the forest trees ; I have never seen it on the ground, and its food appears to consist of berries. Like our two species of Acridotheres, it nidificates in the holes of trees, lining the cavity with bits of leaves, cut by itself ; the eggs are usually 3, or sometimes 4 or 5, of a delicate pale sea green, speckled with
* Has Captain Tickell recorded this on his own personal knowledge,— or from informa- tion furnished by the natives? If the latter, I suspect Captain T. has been deceived.
t Mr. Hodgson’s specimens marked tristoicles are specifically undistinguishable from those of the plains. In those from Ceylon the general colouring is invariably deeper, but there is no other difference.— E. B.
c
10 Notes on the Nidification of Indian Birds. [July,
blood-like stains, which sometimes tend to form a ring near the larger end — shape oval, somewhat tapering ; diameter 1 Jg x[| inches.
No. 13. — “ Pomatorhinus erythrogenys,” Vigors.
P. ferrugilatus, Hodgson.
Common from 3,500 feet up to 10,000 or 12,000 feet; always in pairs, turning up the dead leaves on copse-wood covered banks, utter- ing a loud whistle, answering and calling each other. It breeds in April, constructing its nest on the ground, of coarse dry grasses and leaf stalks of walnut trees, &c. ; covered with a dome-shaped roof so nicely blended with the fallen leaves and withered grasses among which it is placed as to be almost undistinguishable from them. The eggs are 3 in number and pure ivhite ; diameter l^Xyf inches, of an ordinary oval shape. When disturbed the bird sprung along the ground with long bounding hops so quickly, that from its motions and the appearance of the nest, I was led to believe it a species of Rat. The nest is placed in a slight hollow, probably formed by the bird itself.
No. 14. — “ Pycnonotus leucogenys,” Gray.
Ixos leucogenys, Hodgson & Gray.
Brachypus leucogenys, (Hardw., Gray. 111.
Ind. Zool.
Common in the Doon all the year, and in the hills during the sum- mer. It breeds in April and May. The nest is neat and cup-shaped, placed in the forks of bushes or pollard trees, and is composed exter- nally of the dried stalks of “ Forget-me-not,” — lined with fine grass- stalks ; eggs 3 or 4, rosy or faint purplish white, thickly sprinkled with specks and spots of darker rufescent purple or claret colour ; diameter t1> ^ "Hr inches ; — diameter of nest 2\ inches and lg inch deep. Sometimes the outside of the nest is composed of fine dried stalks of woody plants, whose roughness causes them to adhere together.
No. 15. — “ Ilypsipetes psaroides,” Vigors.
Exceedingly common at Mussooree iu large flocks during the winter and spring. Iu the latter season, when the Rhododendron arboreum is covered with its bunches of deep crimson flowers, these birds may be seen thrusting their beaks into every flower in search of insects and nectar, and the forehead is in consequence then generally covered with the pollen and sweets derived from the flowers. It pairs in April and appears fond of the wild mulberries and other forest berries which
1848.] Notes on the Nidification of Indian Birds. 11
then abound in some of the glens. In March, at an elevation of 5000 feet, I saw them feeding on the wild cherries. They breed during April, May and June, making a rather neat cup-shaped nest, which is usually placed in the bifurcation of a horizontal branch of some tall tree ; — the bottom of it is composed of thin dead leaves and dried grasses, and the sides of fine woody stalks of plants, such as those used by Pycnonotus leucogenys, and they are well plastered over extern- ally with spiders’ webs ; the lining is sometimes of very fine tendrils, at other times of dry grasses, fibrous lichens and thin shavings of the bark of trees, left by the wood-cutters. I have one nest, however, which is externally formed of green moss with a few dry stalks, and the spiders’ webs instead of being plastered all over the outside, are merely used to bind the nest to the small branches among which it is placed. The lining is of bark shavings, dry grasses, black fibrous lichens and a few fine seed stalks of grasses. The diameter of the nest is 2f inches ; and 1|- inch deep. The eggs are usually 3 in number, of a rosy or purplish white sprinkled over rather numerously with deep claret or rufescent-purple specks and spots. In colours and distribu- tion of spots there is great variation, — sometimes the rufous and some- times the purple spots prevailing ; — sometimes the spots are mere specks and freckles, — sometimes large and forming blotches ; — in some the spots are wide apart, — in others they are nearly and sometimes in places quite confluent ; while from one nest the eggs were white, with widely dispersed dark purple spots, and dull indistinct ones appearing under the shell. In all, the spots are more crowded at the larger end. Diameter varying from 1 x -fg- inches, to * r! inches. “Bun luhri ” of hill-men, from a fancied resemblance of one of its cries to that of a goat.
No. 16. — “ Treron sphenurus ,” (Vigors.)
Vinago sphenura. Vigors.
Ptilonopus rnacronotus et turturoides. (Hodg., Gray.)
Treron cantillans, Blyth, (the caged bird, moulted in confinement.)
This species, which is the “ Kookla ” of the natives, arrives in the neighbourhood of Mussooree in the beginning of April, and remains during the summer to breed ; it is usually silent during the height of the monsoon, but may occasionally be heard on a bright day. It is
c 2
12 Notes on the Nidif cation of Indian Birds. [July,
probable that it migrates to the eastward on leaving Mussooree, as it does not winter in the Doon, nor does it occur there even in summer, being apparently a true hill species. In confinement it looses or does not put on the maronne mantle which ornaments the wild bird, and the plumage assumes a dull greenish-ashy hue, in which state it is the T. cantillans of Mr. Blyth.* The nest is composed of dried twigs, and the eggs are usually 2 in number and pure white, and more gracefully ovate than those of Turtur risorius. Diameter 1-^ y, if inches. The breeding season is from the end of April till the latter end of June ; the nest a slight platform, usually placed in high forest trees. In October they collect into small flocks of 6 or 8, and quit the neighbour- hood of Mussooree ; — where do they then go to ? The female differs from the male in the absence of the fulvous colour of tile top of the head and breast, and in wanting the beautiful maronne colour on the mantle and lesser wing-coverts ; the greater wing-coverts are also more broadly edged with pale yellow. I observe that Mr. Blyth states of this species that it is distinguishable from T. nipalensis, (Hodgson,) “ by having but a slight pale yellow margin to only the great coverts of the wing whereas in both male and female, the great coverts, tertiaries, and primaries are edged with that colour, although on the latter it amounts to a mere thread. These birds are very fond of the wild mulberries and other forest fruits. Gould, in his ‘ Century of Birds,’ appears to think the species is only found far within the mountains, whereas it occurs on the outer or southernmost range overhanging the Doon, from an elevation of 4,000 feet, probably to the snows. The Huryal, or T. phcenicopterus, lays a similar egg, but is confined to the plains, ranging up to the base of the mountains but never ascending them.
No. 17. — “ Tartar risorius ,” Selby.
CoJumba risoria, Linn.
T. douraca, Hodg., Gray.
This is common in the Doon at all seasons, but only visits Mussoo- ree during summer, arriving on the hills about the end of March and returning to the plains in October. It breeds in April, May and June, making a loose platform nest of dried twigs, with a few roots within ; the eggs are 2 in number and pure white ; diameter lT3ff % {-£ inches.
* In the bird described by me as Tr. cantillans, the maronne colour is retained, and the green replaced by pearl-grey. I now believe, however, with Capt. Hutton, that it is a cage variety ofTr. sphennrus. — E. B.
1848.]
Verification ofi the Itinerary of Htvan Thsang.
13
No. 18. — “ Turtur orientalist (Latham.)
Columha meena , Sykes.
C. agricola, Tickell.
C. pulchrala, Hodg.
C.ferrago, Eversmann.
This also is a mere summer visitor at Mussooree, where it arrives early in April, when every wood resounds with its deep-toned cooing ; ■ — it is not found lower than 6,000 feet with us, — and departs in Octo- ber. At Mussooree it breeds in May, making a platform nest on tall forest trees ; the eggs are 2 and pure white ; — diameter ly^ X ]-£- inches.
No. 19. — “ Turtur suratensis,” (Gm.)
T. vitticollis, Hodg.
Columha tigrina, Temm.
Abundant in the Doon, and arrives in the hills in the end of March, leaving again in the autumn. It breeds at about 5,000 feet — and lays 2 white eggs, — diameter 1 inch X J-f. Captain Tickell says, “ eggs 2 to 6 I have never seen more than 2 in any nest.
No. 20. — Turtur senegalensis, (Linn.)
C. cambaiensis, Gm.
Arrives at 5,000 feet like the others, about March or April, departing again in Autumn ; — its eggs are 2, and pure white ; — diameter 1 inch X fl ; I have observed in this, as well as in the foregoing different species of Turtur, a tendency in the eggs to become suddenly pointed, or slightly nipple-shaped.
(To be continued.')
Verification of the Itinerary of the Chinese Pilgrim, Hwan Thsang, through Afghanistan and India, during the first half of the seventh century of the Christian Era. By Alex. Cunningham, Capt. Engineers.
The numbers are those of M. Landresse, the Editor of the Foe-kue- ki, which I retain for the purpose of easy reference. Where not other- wise specified the distances and bearings of the modern places agree with those ot ILwan Thsang. The identifications of Landresse and Lassen have their names attached to them. The other identifications have
14 Verification of the Itinerary of II wan Thsang [July,
been made by myself. My remarks are separated from the text by brackets.
No. 5 — Che-shi or Shi, situated on the river Ye. ( Tashkand or Shdsh, on the Sihun or Jaxartes — Landresse.)
Thence at 1000 li (166 miles) to the S. E.
No. 6 — Pu-kan, to the East of the river Ye. (Khwdkand, or Kolain.)
Thence at 1000 li (166 miles) to the W.
No. 7 — Su-tu-li-se-na, to the eastward of the river YrE. ( Satrustah , of Ibn Haukal. Landresse gives Osrushna, which is
the reading of Abulfeda, of Naser-ud-din Tusi, and of Ulugh Beg.) To the north-west is the great sandy desert. (This is of course the sandy waste now called Kisil-Kum.)
Thence at 500 li (83 miles.)
No. 8 — So-mo-kian, Khang-kiu or Khang — ( Samarkand — Lan- dresse.)
No. 9 — Mi-mo-ho, ( Maimorgh , — Landresse. This place is perhaps the Indikomordana of Ptolemy.)
Thence to the N.
No. 10 — Kiei-pu-tan-na or Tsao. (Probably Kohistan, t\\e Kilah Kaukdn, of Ibn Ilaukal, one day’s journey beyond Derbend, on
the road from Chagdnidn. It seems to answer to the position of the rock of Chorienes.)
Thence at 300 li (50 miles) to the W.
No. 11 — Kiu-shw'ang-ni-kia or Kuei-shwang-no. (Kesh or Shehr-i-Sabz. This town no doubt took its name from the Kuei-shang tribe of Yu-chi, as noticed by me some years ago in an article on the monograms found upon the Ariano-Grecian coins, which was published in the 8th volume of the Numismatic Chronicle of London.)
Thence at 200 li (33 miles) to the W.
No. 12 — Ko-han, Tung-an — (Perhaps Karshi, or some place to the northward of it.)
Thence at 400 li (66 miles) to the W.
No. 13 — Pu-ho, Chung-an. ( Bokhara — Landresse.)
Thence at 400 li (66 miles) to the W.
No. 14 — Fa-ti, Si-an. (This I believe to be an old name for the ferry of Char-jui on the Oxus.)
1848.]
through Afghanistan and India.
15
Thence at 500 li (83 miles) to the S. W.
No. 15 — Ho-li-si-mi-kia or IIo-tsiu. (Perhaps Alasadda Marvi, or Alexandria Margiane, the modern Men.)
From So-mo-kian, at 300 li (50 miles) to the S. W.
No. lG — Ko-shwang-na ( Kesh , as already noticed in No. 11.) At 300 li (50 miles) to the S. E. was the Iron Gate. (This is the well known Derbend-i-Ahina, commonly called Kolugha ; a proof of the cor- rectness of the identification of Kesh.)
No. 17 — Tu-ho-lo, (Tochari of Ptolemy, — Landresse.) To the north of the Oxus and to the south of the Iron Gate. (It therefore corre- sponds exactly with the Tokhdrestan of the Musalman Geographers.)
Below Tu-ho-lo lies
No. 18 — Tan-mi, on the north of the Fu-sse-su. ( Termed to the north of the Waksh-su, or Oxus river.)
Thence to the E.
No. 19 — Chhi-ao-yan-na. (Chagdnian.)
Thence to the E.
No. 20 — Hu-lu-mo. (Perhaps the Ilamurdn, of Edrisi, 30
miles to the eastward of Saganian.)
Thence to the E.
No. 21 — Iu-man, which stretches to the Oxus on the S. W. (This must he the Shuman or Nomdn of Ibn Ilaukal, the Shuman of Abul- feda, and the Sumdn of Edrisi, which was 93 miles to the eastward of Hamuran.)
Thence to
No. 22 — Kiu-ho-yan-na. (Perhaps the Andidn of Edrisi and the Alabdn of Ibn Haukal.)
Thence to the E.
No. 23 — Hu-sha. (The district of Waksh of the Mahomedan Geo- graphers.)
Thence to
No. 24 — Ko-tu-lo. (The well known district of Khutldn on the northern bank of the Upper Oxus.)
Thence to.
No. 25 — Kiu-mi-tiio, the mountains of Tsung-ling, and to the S. W. the river Fa-tsu. (These are clearly the Vail is Komedorum , and the Komedce Montes of Ptolemy, with the river Oxus to the S. W.)
16
Verification of the Itinerary of II nan Thsany [July,
(As the other names mentioned in this paragraph occur again, they are here omitted.)
To the S. W.
No. 26 — Fo-kia-lang. ( Bayhalun , to the W. N. W. of Anderab).
Thence to the S.
No. 27 — Ki-lu-si-min-kian. (Perhaps Khinjan, to the W. of
Anderab.)
Thence to the N. W.
No. 28 — Hu-pin. (Probably Mazar near Balkh.)
Thence to the W.
No. 29 — Fo-ko, bounded by the river Fa-tsu to the N. (Undoubt, edly Baktra or Balhli, and not Badaksluin as supposed by Landresse- Badakshan is called Po-tiio-tsang-na.)
Thence towards the snowy mountains.
No. 30 — Yuei-mi-tho. (Perhaps Maimuna , the Tehudiah of Edrisi, and the etotsmot ANA22A 0f Ptolemy, for which I propose to read ET0YAHMOT ANA22A.)
To the S. W.
No. 31 — IIu-shi-kian. ( Kushk , to the north of Herat, the Kasike of Ptolemy.)
Thence to the N. W.
No. 32 — Ta-la-kian. ( Talikan . — If the last identification is correct, the bearing should be N. E. ; as according to Edrisi, Talekan stood upon the high road leading from Merv to Balkh. Laudresse has identified this with the lesser Talikan, to the eastward of Balkh, a mistake into which he was led by identifying Fo-ko with Badakshan, but Hwan Thsiing particularly notices that Ta-la-kian stretched to Pho-lo-sse or Persia, on the westward.)
From Fo-ko, at 100 li (16 miles) to the S.
No. 33 — Ko-chi. (There is no map of the Balkh river in existence , this place therefore cannot be identified.)
Thence to the S. E. towards the snowy mountains.
No. 34 — Fan-yan-na. ( Bdmian , — Landresse.)
Thence to the E. over a snowy chain and the black mountains.
No. 35 — Kia-pi-she, at the foot of the mountains of Tsung-ling. (Lassen has identified this with the Kapisa of Ptolemy, and the Co piss a of Pliny, which 1 further identify with the Caphusa of Solinus, and
1648.]
through Afghanistan and India.. 17
with the Kafshan, or KushAn, of the present day.) To the
S. of the town, at 40 It (nearly 7 miles) was the town of Si-pi-to-fa-la- sse (in Sanskrit, Sweta-varsha, the “ white district,” perhaps the modem Ghorband, from the Sanskrit gaura-vartta, or “white region.”) Thence at 30 li (5 miles) to the S. mount A-lu-nao, (in Sanskrit, Aruna, “dark red.”) To the N. W. of the capital, at 200 li (33 miles) are the great snowy mountains (the Hindu Kush) and to the S. W. of the same is mount Pi-lo-so-lo, “ firm as an Elephant,” (in Sanskrit, pilu, an elephant, and sAra, strength.) To the south of Kushdn there is a small isolated hill, in Walker’s map, which is probably the mountain here mentioned.) Thence to the E. at 600 li (100 miles) over the difficult passes of the Black mountains, is the frontier of northern India, and
No. 36 — Lam-pho. Lamghan , Lassen — the district of Ptolemy’s Lambatce.
Thence to the S. E. at 100 li (17 miles) across a mountain range and a great river,
No. 37 — Na-ko-t.o-ho, surrounded on all sides by hills, and possess- ing some lofty topes built by Asoka. (Nangrihar, the Nagara or Dionysopolis of Ptolemy, and the Nysa of Alexander’s historians ; most probably BegrAm near Jallalabad. It is the Na-kie of Fa-Hian, close to which was Hi-lo, the present Hidda, where Masson opened several topes. The name of Dionysopolis was still existing at the time of Mah- mud Ghaznavi’s invasion ; for A1 Biruni mentions the town of Dinus or Dinuz , as being situated about midway between Kabul and Parashawar. I have a suspicion that the Adinahpur of Abul Fazl, Ayin Akbari, 2, 165, is only a Mahomedan alteration of the same name.)
Thence to the S. E. at 500 li (83 miles) across some mountains, to
No. 38 — Kian-to-lo. Gandhara — Lassen. The capital is called
Pu-lu-sha-pu-lo. ( Parasliawara , the Parshdwar of Abu Rihan and Baber, and the modern PeshAtoar , a name given by Akbar to denote a frontier town.) To the N, E. of the monastery of King Kia-ni-si-kia, (Kanishka) and across a large stream (the Kabul river) was the town of Pu-se-ko-la-fa-ti. (In Sanskrit, PushhdlAvati, in Prakrit, Pu/ckalaoti, the original of the Greek iUv/teXacom, as Puhkala was of the Greek ruu/cexa. It corresponds to the modern Hashtnagar or Hastinagara, which perhaps derives its name from Ast.es or Hasti, the chief of Peu- kelaotis in the time of Alexander.) To the S. E, of this was the town
D
18
Verification of the Itinerary of Hwan Thsany [July,
of Pa-lu-sha (perhaps the Nicctta of General Court’s map,) from which to the N. E. at 50 li (8 or 9 miles) stood the temple of Pi-ma, the wife of Iswara ( Bhimu , one of the many names of Durga, the consort of Siva. The temple must have been close to the present Nosliehra.) Thence to the S. E. at 150 li (25 miles) was the town of U-to-kia- han-cha, resting on the Indus to the S. with the city of Pho-lo-thu- lo at 20 li (3 or 4 miles) to the N. W. (Taking the recorded distances and bearings from Noslictra, and from Pho-lo-thu-lo, the present ruins of PartMwara or Bithor, the position of U-to-kia-han-cha, must he looked for in the neighbourhood of Nilub, which agrees with Ilwang Thsang’s measurements in two of the best maps, those of Walker and Mirza Mogal Beg. The present Attak was built by Akbar : and it is besides to the N. of the ruins of Parthdwara, instead of to the S. E. The name is usually derived from Attak, prevention ; and a silly story is added that it is so named because the Hindus are forbidden to cross the Indus. But the name of Attak belongs to the town and not to the river ; and I believe that the word has a very different signification. If the original name really was derived from art ha, prevention, it must
have been given to the place from the natural obstacle which the rocks here present to the passage of the river. But a preferable derivation in my opinion would be from ^<T, ut, much, H, trri, passing over, that is, the place of much passage, or in other words the “chief fern-.” The Chinese syllables seem to point to TJttah and not to Attak, and I suggest the above as the most probable derivation of U-to-kia-han-cha ; for the modern name of Attok is, I believe, only one of Akbar’ s numerous alterations of names, manufactured to suit the frivolous meanings at- tached to them by Musalmans.)
From thence to the N. across mountainss and rivers, at 600 li (100 miles)
No. 39 — U-ciiang-na, or “ the Garden,” capital Meng-ho-li. (This has already been identified by Lassen with XJdyuna or Uyjana , which has the same signification. The position indicated agrees wijh the modern valley of Swat, of which the capital for many centuries past has been Manylora ; no doubt the Meng-ho-li of Hwan Thsang. This identification is rendered quite certain by the mention immediately afterwards that at 250 or 260 li (40 to 43 miles) to the N. E. of the capital, and on a high mountain, was situated the spring of A-pho-lo-lo,
18-18.]
through Afghanistan and India.
19
which was the source of the Su-pho-fa-su-tu, or Swat river, in San- skrit Subhavastu , which flows to the S. W. as stated by II wan Thsang.) To the S. of Meng-ho-li, at 200 li (33 miles) was the great forest of Ma-ha-fa-na. (This is no doubt the high jungly hill now- called Ma/uiban, in Sanskrit Maha-vana, around the end of which the Indus sweeps in the neighbourhood of Derbend. From Turee, the W. peak of this well known hill bears E. 71° 3(V, and from Akora it bears E* 55° 40'.) To the W. of the capital, at 50 li (8 or 9 miles) and across the river, was a monastry built by Asoka, called Lu-yi-ta-kia, or “the red” (in Sanskrit Lohitaka.) To the N. E. at 30 li (5 miles) was the monastery of Ko-pu-to. Thence to the W. across the river there was a statue of A- fo-lu-c ri i -ti-s h e-fa- lo-p h u-s a, (perhaps Aparajiteswa- ra Bodhisatwa.) To the N. E. of Meng-ho-li, over the mountains, and ascending the Indus, at 1000 li (166 miles) and over some suspen- sion bridges, was the brook Tha-li-lo, where once stood the capital of Udguna. (Both distance and bearing point to the Dardu district of Barel on the Indus, to the south of Gilgit. The Chinese syllables are indeed only a literal transcript of Barel. Fa Hian calls it Tho-li.) Thence to the E. over mountains, at 500 li (83 miles) to No. 40 — Po-lu-lo, amidst the snowy mountains. (In No. 134, this kingdom is said to be to the S. of Pho-mi-lo or Pdmer, and to produce “ much gold.” These two bearings from Darel and Pamer point to the kmgdom of Balti or Little Tibet, which is still called Palolo by all class- es of the Dardus. It is besides famed for its gold dust. As Balti like- wise abounds in rock-crystal, the Persian Bilor, is probably derived from the name of this district ; and the Bolor mountains may perhaps mean simply the “ ciystal mountains.” The name of Bilor is not how- ever confined to Persian ; for the Chinese know Pho-li or Bilor as a synonyme of Se-pho-ti-kia, or Sphatika, ftjjfkw, “rock crystal.”
From U-to-kia-han-cha, across the Indus to the S. was No. 41 — Tan-cha-shi-lo, the boundary of India towards the north, and a dependency of Kashmir. — (This is the Sanskrit Takshasila, and Pali Takkasila, the Taxila of the Greeks, as noticed by Lassen. — It is undoubtedly the present Manikyala, which is surrounded by ruins. One of the neighbouring villages is still called Takkdla, a name of the same import as Takkasila, and most of the coins now procurable at Rawal- pindi and in the neighbouring villages are brought from Manikyala.) To
d 2
20
Verification of the Itinerary of Hwang Thsang \ July
the S. E. at 30 li (5 miles) was a monastery built by Asoka, called ac- cording to Fa Ilian, Chu-sha-shi-lo, signifying “tete coupee,” (in Sanskrit Ckutya-sira, Remusat.) — The king was named Chen-tha-lo- po-la-pho, or “moonlight” (a literal transcript of the Sanskrit Chandra- prablia.) To the S. E. of the town was a Stupa built by Keu-eang- nu, the son of Asoka. (I take this name to he a Chinese rendering of Kuloka, which is a synonyme of Jaloku, the name of Asoka’s son, who reigned over Kashmir. According to Wilford, one of Asoka’s sons was named Kulata, a name of precisely the same meaning as Jaloka and Kuloka. Fa Hian mentions only two topes at this place. 1st, — that of Chutyasira, where Buddha made an “ offering of his head,” beside which was a Vilidra or monastery of the same name — 2nd, that where Buddha made an “offering of his body” to a hungry tiger. The latter is probably that which is mentioned by Hwan Thsang as having been built by Keu-lang-nu, the son of Asoka. There is no doubt however that it is the great Manikyala tope which was opened by General Ventu- ra ; for the small silver disc found in that tope bears a short inscription of only two lines, of which the upper line reads Gomangasa, in
Sanskrit Jirft!T«3, “ of the abandoned body,” from JJW, gu/ia, abandoning, and angga, body. The great tope was therefore built upon the spot where Buddha “ abandoned his body” to a hungry tiger (abaudon- ne son corps a un tigre affame). — The smaller tope opened by Genera] Court also contained an inscription which mentions “ Kanishka, Maha- raja of the Gushang (tribe).” — It must therefore have been built either by him or during his reign. — It bears a date also, which I have not yet been able to read.)
Thence to the S. E. at 700 li (117 miles) across mountains (that is over the Salt range) to
No. 42 — Seng-ho-pu-lo, a dependency of Kashmir, bounded on the west by the river Sindh or Indus. (Both distance and bearing bring us to the position of Sanghela, between the Chenab and Ravi, which Wilford identified with the Sangala of Arrian. I could hear nothing of this place : but Sdgara or Jangala, with a small natural jhil, or sheet of water, was well known.)
From Tan-cha-shi-lo, across the Sindh to the N. to some nameless place, to the S. E. of which at 200 li (33 miles) was a great stone gate, (probably Derbend, where the Indus breaks through the mountains.)
1848.]
through Afghanistan and India.
21
Here was a Stupa built by Asoka on the spot where Sakya bad made an offering of his body. (Close to Derbend, at a place called Kabal, there are several topes.)
Thence to the S. E. amongst the mountains, at 500 li (83 miles) to
No. 43 — U-la-shi, a dependency of Kashmir. To the S. W. of the capital, at 4 or 5 li (rather more than half a mile) was a stupa built by Asoka. (This is clearly the Varsa regio of Ptolemy, and the Urasa of the Raja Taringini, a mountainous district where Sankara Varinma of Kashmir was killed by an arrow. It corresponds in position to the modem district of Rash, a part of Dliantawar where there still exist two small topes, of which one is situated within a mile of Mangali, the for- mer capital of the country. The people of Urasa or Varsa, with those of Gri/git or Gil it (as it is called by themselves) would appear to be joined together in Pliny’s Arsa-galitce, who are named as neighbours of the Peukolaitce. Mirza Mogal ‘Beg places a tribe of Urasis on the Upper Kuuar River ; and Lieut. Leach locates a clan of the same name at the head of the Alingar river.
Thence to the S. E. over mountains and iron bridges at 1000 li (166 miles) to
No. 44 — Kia-she-mi-lo, Kdsmira, — Landresse. The capital rests to the westward on a large river (the Vitasta or Beliat) where are four Stupas built by Asoka. (This is the present capital called Srinagara) . To the S. E. of the new, town at 10 li (If miles) is the ancient town. (This is the present Pdndrethdn, a corruption of Puranadhisthdna, the “old capital,” which is situated I \ miles to the S. E. of the Takht-i- Suliman. The present town of Srinagara was built by Pravarasena between A. D. 432—462. It was therefore a new town at the period of Hwan Thsang’s visit. M. Troyer in his disquisition on the Kashmiriau Chronology (Raj. Tar. Vol. II. p. 420) asks whether the Asoka of Kashmir, is the same as Asoka Maurya, the grandson of Chandra Gupta, and afterwards declares his belief that they were different persons. But the accurate Chinese pilgrim in his notice of Kashmir distinctly men- tions that one of its former rulers was Asoka, king ofMagadha. In fact we know from existing inscriptions, engraved with an iron pen on the rock for ever at Dhauli in Katak (Cuttak), at Junagiri in Suraslitra (Gujrat), and at Shah-baz-garlii to the N. E. of Peshawar, that the whole of India to the north of the Narbada, from the Indus to the mouths of
22
Verification of the Itinerary of H wan? Thsang [July,
the Ganges, was tributary to Asoka Maurya, the Sophagasenas of the time of Antiochus the great ; Subhaga being only a synonyme of Asoka.)
Thence to the S. W. across the mountains at 700 li (117 miles) to
No. 45 — Pan-nu-cha, a dependency of Kashmir. (This is not the Panjab, as generally supposed ; but Panuch or Punach, the Punch of the maps, a place which answers to the bearing and distance given by Hwan Thsang, and which was undoubtedly a dependency of Kashmir at the period of his visit.)
Thence to the S. E. at 400 li (67 miles) to
No. 46 — Ko-lo-che-pu-lo, also a dependency of Kashmir. (The distance and bearing point to the neighbourhood of Rajaori, on the Tohi river. The second and third syllables, Lo-che, are a transcript of Raja, and the last two, pu-lo, are a transcript of pur a. We thus have llaja- pur a, a name synonimous with Rajdwara, but I am unable to offer any explanation of the prefix Ko. Rajdwar was always a dependency of Kashmir).
Thence to the S. E. across the river at 700 li (117 miles) to
No. 47 — Thse-kia — to the E. of which was the river Pi-po-che, (the Vipdsa or Byds) and to the W. the river Sin-tu (the Sindhu, or Indus.) The distance and hearing bring us to the neighbourhood of Lahore and Amritsar. Now we know that the latter place was an old city named Cliek before its selection as the head-quarters of the Sikh religion, and the excavation by Guru Ram Das of the Amrita Saras or “ pool of nectar,” from which the place took its present name.) To the S. W. of the large city was the old town of Che-ko-lo. (Thi^ answers both in name and in position to the Sdka/a of the Hindus and the San- gala of Arrian. The mention of a Stupa here built by Asoka proves that Che-ko-lo was a place of note within 50 years after Alexander’s death.)
Thence to the E. at 500 li (83 miles) to
No. 48 — Chi-na-pu-ti, a place built by Chinese, where was the ancient domain of king Kia-ni-sse-kia. (The Chinese syllables appear to represent Chinavati, a place which still exists on the Cheuab river due W. from Amritsar about 90 miles. It is possible therefore that there is a mistake in the bearing of this place, “ est” for “ouest.” The perfect agreement of the two names however — is almost too remarkable
1848.]
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23
for mere accident. If there should be no mistake in the hearing I would propose the capital of Katoch or Katochin as the representative of Chi-na-pu-ti, and the fort of Kangra as the domain of Kanishka. In fact we know from Abu Rihan that Nagar-kot belonged to the de- scendants of Kanik or Kanishka ; and it is possible that the name of Kangra may in this case be only a corruption of Kanishka-garha, or Kanik-garha. According to the Mogal author Sanang-setsen, Kanika was king of Gachu or Gachi (Foe-kue-ki, 248, N.) ; in which name I. think I can recognize the Katoch or Katochin of the present day. Jalandhara is particularly mentioned as being in the kingdom of Gachu : and an inscription now existing in the city of Kangra calls the kingdom Gachchhe-Raj. Perhaps the Gaj river, which flows through the Kangra district, may also have a reference to the same name.)
To the S. E. of the great town (Thse-kia) at 700 li (1 17 miles) was the monastery of Tha-mo-su-fa-na, “foret obscure.” (This is a transcript of the Sanskrit tamasa-vana, “ dark jangal.” The distance and bearing bring us to the neighbourhood of Sultanpur and Dakhani Serai in the Jalandhar Doab ; to the W. of which places the whole country is covered noth a dense jangal.)
Thence to the N. E. at 140 or 150 li (23 to 25 miles) to
No. 49 — Che-lan-tha-lo, formerly Bralnnanical. (This is un- doubtedly the well known city of Jalandhara, one of the oldest places in India. It is the Ku or Zulindrine of Ptolemy.)
Thence to the N. W. across precipitous mountains at 700 li (117 miles) to
No. 50 — Khiu-lu-to, the boundary of India on the north, surround- ed by mountains, and close to the snowy mountains. (Both distance and bearing point to the modern district of Kulu on the upper Byas river, which agrees precisely with Hwan Thsang’s description, as the whole district is surrounded by mountains, and the ancient capital of Nagar or Makarsa is not more than 20 miles from the perpetual snow.)
Thence to the N. over the mountains at 2000 li (333 miles) was the kingdom of Mo-lo-pho or San-pho-ho. (This is most probably the kingdom of Great Tibet on the Sanpu river : in which case the bearing should be east and not north. As Hwang Thsang does not appear to have visited this place the error in the direction is pardonable.)
24
Verification of the Itinerary of II wan Thsang [July,
From Khiu-lu-to to the S. at 700 li (117 miles) across high moun- tains and a great river to
No. 51 — She-to-thu-lo, on the northern frontier of India. (This is a literal transcript of the Sanskrit Satadru, the Zadadrus of Ptolemy and the Hesudrus of Pliny. The bearing and distance point to the present Lodiana as the site of this town on the Sutlaj. Lodiana derives its name from the Afghan family of Lodi, which gave several sovereigns to Delhi : hut in the Rdmayana I find that the ancient town of Ilu-dha- na, the patrimony of the race of Ikshwaka, was situated in this position,
I believe therefore that Lodiana was only a complimentary alteration of an older name. She-to-thu-lo may have been the name of the town ; hut it seems more likely that it was only the name of the district lying along the Satadru or Sutlaj, as Sindh is the country on the Sindhu or Indus.
Thence to the S. E. at 800 li (133 miles) to
No. 52 — Piio-li-ye-tha-lo, on the frontier of central India. (The recorded hearing and distance bring us to Delhi, the ancient Indra- prastha. The Chinese syllables represent the Sanskrit Vriha-sthala, a place which is named in the Mahabharata as one of the five towns demanded as the price of peace between the Kauravas and Pandavas In the Mahabharata the names are Aristhala, Vrihasthala, &c. which in the Yeni-Samhara are changed to Indra-prastha, Ti/aprastha, &c. It seems probable therefore that V rihasthala is only another name for Tilaprastha, and Aristhala a synonyme of Indraprastha. Now Tila- prastha still exists as Tilpat, 6 miles to the S. E. of Toghlakabad, and 10 miles to the E. S. E. of the Kutb-Minar. I have a suspicion that the much disputed origin of the name of Delhi or Dilli lies in Tile- prastha. Sanskrit scholars refer the name to Di/ipa, a name
which is symplionious with As ancient Delhi undoubtedly ex-
tended over the hills about Toghlakabad, Tilprastlia, if not the actnaj capital itself, must have formed one of the suburbs of the city. That this identification is correct is proved by the following bearing and distance.
Thence to the E, at 500 li (83 miles) to
No. 53 — Moth u-lo in Central India. (This is certainly Mathura as identified by M. Landresse. I believe that there are now no vestiges of the three Stupas built by Asoka.)
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25
Thence to the N. E. at 500 li (83 miles) to
No. 54 — Sa-tha-ni-she-fa-lo. (This is undoubtedly the celebrated Sthaneswara or Thanesar, to the N. W. of Delhi. I believe it to be Ptolemy’s Batan-kaisara, for which I propose to read Satan-aisara. It is now known as the Kuru-kshetra or “ battle-field of the Kurus.” The recorded bearing should have been N. W. instead of N. E. and the distance should have been somewhat greater.)
Thence to the N. E. at 400 li (66 miles) to
No. 55 — Su-lu-kin-na, bounded to the E. by the Ganges, and to the N. by great mountains. To the E. of the capital is the river Yan- meu-na (Yamuna or Jamna, — Landresse) which flows through the king- dom. To the E. of the capital and to the W. of the Jamna was a Stupa built by Asoka. (This place would appear to be Sulora or Sa- dhaora, under the Siwalik hills to the westward of the Jamna, from whence Feroz Shah removed the well known pillar, now called Feroz Shah’s I at, which bears an inscription of king Asoka.)
Across the river on the E. bank was
No. 56 — Mo-ti-fu-lo, the king of which was of the race of Snu- to-lo (or Sudra). To the S. of the great town,' at 4 or 5 li (about three quarters of a mile) stood the monastery of the patriarch Kia-nu- po-la-pho, “ lumiere de vertu,” (in Sanskrit Guna-prahha) ; near which was the monastery of Pi-mo-lo-mi-to-lo, “ami sans tache,” (in Sanskrit Vimala-mitra .) Mo-ti-pu-lo would appear to be a literal transcript of Motipura, a very common name in India. From the position indicated by II wan Thsang this place must have been situated at or near the modern Behat, where Major Cautley excavated coins and relics of an ancient city at a depth of 1 7 feet below the present surface level of the country. The coins discovered there range from perhaps 200 B. C. to 400 or 500 A. D.
To the N. W. of this country, and on the E. bank of the Ganges, was the town of Mo-iu-lo (Maliila) where rock crystal was found. It possessed a Brahmanical temple and a holy reservoir on the Ganges, which the Indians called “la porte du Gange,” (evidently Haridwara or Vishnu’s portal, which is also called Ganga-dwdra, or “ Ganges portal.’ The mention that there was but one solitary Brahmanical temple at this now priest-swarming place in A. D. 629 — 645, is highly interesting. I believe that Haridwara is a comparatively modern name; — as iu the
E
26 Verification of the Itinerary of Hwan Thsang [July,
Megha-dutd, Kalidas mentions only Kankhala. May not Ptolemy’s Mapyapa be Vayyapa, 0r Ganga-dwara ?)
Thence to the N. at 300 li (50 miles) was
No. 57 — Pho-lo-ki-ma-pu-lo, surrounded by mountains on all sides. (This would appear to be Srinagara, the capital of Garhwal. The Chi- nese name is perhaps intended for Parakramapura) . To the N. of this principality, amongst the snowy mountains, was the kingdom of Su-fa- la-ntj-kiu-th a-lo, “ famille d’or,” (evidently the Sanskrit Sutarna- gotra) where excellent gold was found. (This is most probably the district about Toling and Garu between the Upper Satlaj and Upper Indus, celebrated for its gold dust, and now called Urna-desa or Un-des , “ Wool-country which, as described by Ilwan Thsang, has Tibet on the E. and Khoten on the N. The district of Pan-pho-lo, on the W. is probably Ladak or Mang-yul.
From Mo-ti-pu-lo to the S. E. at 400 li (67 miles) was
No. 58 — Kiu-pi-shwang-na, 2000 li (333 miles) in extent. (The distance and bearing point to the neighbourhood of Bijnor and the ruins of Ilastinapura. I caimot even guess what may be the Sanskrit equi- valent of the Chinese syllables : perhaps Kiu-pi may be Kripa.)
Thence to the S. E. at 400 li (67 miles) to
No. 59 — 0-yi-chi-tha-lo, 3000 li (500 milps) in extent, with a Stupa built by Asoka. (This name appears to be a transcript of the Sanskrit Uchchasthala, which is most likely the modern Uchchagruma or Unchagaon, called Bulandshehr by the Musalmans. i he bearing would however point to the neighbourhood ot Anopshehr and Chaudasi ; but the coincidence of name is I think too strong to admit ot much doubt as to the accuracy of my identification.
Thence to the S. at 260 or 270 li (43 to 45 miles) across the Ganges, and then to the S. W. to
No. 60 — Pi-lo-san-nu — 2000 li (333 miles) in extent. Rums of a Stupa built by Asoka. (According to the next mentioned bearing and distance from Seng-kia-she, or Samkissa, this place must have been in the neighbourhood of Karsana, an old town near Khas-ganj. The Chinese syllables probably represent the Sanskrit Pilusdna or “ Elephant’s ear-flap,” which is a synonyme of Karsana or Karisdna. It is curious that kari and hastin, names for an elephant, are derived from Kara (Greek Xeip) and hasta, both names for the hand, as well as for an elephant^ s trunk, on account of its being a handy member.
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through Afghanistan and India.
27
Thence to the S. E. at 200 li (33 miles) to
No. 61 — Kiei-pi-ti-ia, anciently Seng-kia-she, 2000 li (333 miles) in extent. To the E. of the town at 20 li (about 3} miles) was a great Stvpa. (Seng-kia-she has been identified by Remusat with the Sam- kassa of the Pali works : but the position of this old and celebrated place was first pointed out by me. Its ruins, on the E. bank of the Kali-nadi, near Aghat-Serai, are still known by the name of Samkissa.)
Thence to the N. W. at somewhat less than 200 li (about 33 miles) to
No. 62 — Ko-jo-kiu-che, Kanyahubja ox Kanoj, — Landresse. This city was also called Kusumapura or Flower-town. The king of the race of Fei-she (or Vaisya ) was named Ko-li-shi-fa-tan-na, “ accru en joie.” (This is a transcript of the Sanskrit Kalyana-
sphutana, “increase of pleasure or happiness.” As this king was a Vaisya, IIwan'Thsang must have visited Kanoj prior to the conquest of the Rathor Rajputs in about A. D. 700.) To the N. W. of the town was a Stupa built by Asoka, and to the S. E. at 100 li (16 or 17 miles), on the bank of the Ganges, was the town of Na-fo-thi-po-kiu-eo. (This agrees both in bearing and distance with the position of Nanamotv on the Ganges. The Chinese syllables appear to he intended for Nava- dhipohara, or Navadhipushkara, the “new-chief-tank.” In Nanamow we have perhaps the first half of the name still preserved in a corrupted form, the latter half being changed.)
From Kanoj to the S. E. at 600 li (100 miles) across the Ganges, and then to the S.
No. 63 — A-iu-tho, Oudh, Landresse ; — -5000 li (833 miles) in ex- tent. To the N. of the town at 4 or 5 li (about f of a mile) was a great monastery built by Asoka ; and to the W. of this was a Stupa built over the nails and hair of Tathdgata. To the N. W. of the town at 40 li (nearly 7 miles) and to the N. of the Ganges, was a temple of A-seng-kia Bodhisatwa (in Sanskrit, Asankhya) . (The distance and bearing bring us to the banks of the Ganges below Cawnpore, and close to Najafgarli. In this position there is the celebrated temple of Neona, a few miles from the Ganges ; and on the E. hank of the river between Cawnpore and Najafgarh, there is also a much frequented place of pil- grimage, of which I have unfortunately forgotten the name.)
Thence to the E. at 300 li (50 miles) crossing to the N. bank of the Ganges, to
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Verification of the Itinerary of II wan Thsany [July,
No. 64 — A-ye-mu-kiei, 2400 to 2500 li (upwards of 400 miles) in extent. The capital was situated on the Ganges ; and to the S. W. of it, also upon the river, was a Stupa built by Asoka. (The Chinese syllables perhaps represent Ahimukha, “Sun-face” or “Snake-
mouth.” The distance and bearing point to the position of Dalamow, a large town on the N. hank of the Ganges.)
Thence to the S. E. at 700 li (117 miles) to the S. of the Ganges, and to the N. of the Yan-mu-na (the Yamuna or Jamna ) to
No. 65 — Po-lo-na-kia, 5000 li (833 miles) in extent. The capital is situated at the confluence of two rivers. (This is clearly Praydga or Allahabad, at the junction of the Ganges and Jamna rivers.)
N. B. — The total distance from Kanoj to Allahabad is about one- third too much. I suspect therefore that Ilwan Thsang must have taken the river route, more particularly as both of the places visited were on the bank of the Ganges. Admitting this to be correct his distances will agree very well with the distances by water.
Thence to the S. W. through a great forest at 500 li (83 miles) to
No. 66 — Kiao-shang-mi, Kausdmbi, Landresse ; 6000 li (1000 miles) in extent. Statue of Sakya by King U-tho-yan-na. ( Ydayana . The bearing should he N. W., for according to Profr. Wilson, Kaus- dmbi was upon the Ganges above Allahabad : and Fa Hian states that it was 13 yojans, or about 91 miles, to the N. W. of Benares. The modern Karra, with its extensive ruins, appears to he the most likely position of Kausdmbi, as its distance from Allahabad is about a mean between Hwau Thsang’ s 83 miles of river (60 miles of laud) and Fa Ilian’s 21 miles, that is about 40 miles from Allahabad. Close to Karra, on the E. there are two villages named Kusia and Kusia-hua.)
Thence to the N. at 170 or 180 li (28 to 30 miles) to
No. 67 — Pi-so-kia, 4000 li (666 miles) in extent. (The hearing and distance point to Salon on the Salii river, an old town iu which a few years ago was found a copper-plate grant of Govinda Chandra of Kanoj.)
Thence to the N. E. at 500 li (83 miles) to
No. 68 — She-lo-fa-si-ti or She-wei ; Srdvasti, Remusat and Landresse. In this capital reigned King Po-lo-si-na-chi-to. (This is the celebrated city of Ayodhya, on the Sarayu or Sarju river, the capital of King Prasenajita, the 61st Prince of the Solar race in descent from Rama.)
through Afghanistan and India.
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1848.]
Thence to the S. E. at 500 li (83 miles) to
N0- 69 — Kiei-pi-lo-fa-su-tu, Kapila-vastu, Lanclresse. (The po- sition of this celebrated city has puzzled every commentator ; and yet, as the honored birth place of Sakya Sinha, it ought to he one of the best known places in India. The hearing and distance point to Jaun- pur, an ancient city possessing many Buddhist buildings, one of which, the Uttdla Vihdra, still exists as the Atdla Masjid, the cloistered stories of the Buddhistical building having been left untouched by the idol breaking Musalmans. This identification also agrees with the posi- tion assigned to Kapila by Fa-Hian, who places it at somewhat more than 12 yojans, or 84 miles, to the S. E. of She-wei ; or only 3 miles more than Hwan Thsang’s distance, their bearings being the same. But in addition to the agreement of both of these authorities, I will adduce the name of the place itself, as a conclusive proof of the accuracy of my identification. The present name of Jonapura was, we know, given to the city by Feroz Shah in honor either of his cousin Jona, or of his grandfather Fakhr-ud-din Jona. This was only a slight alteration of the ancient name of Janampura or Janpur a “nativity city,” a name by which the “birth place” of the holy Sakya was probably more widely known than by the book-name of Kapila. This identification also agrees with the statements of other Chinese authors, quoted by Klaproth, that Kapila was to the N. of Benares. Ma-twan-lin gives 1480 li (247 miles) as the distance, which would carry us to the loftiest peaks of the Himalayas. There must therefore be some mistake in his distance.)
No. 70 — Lan-mo, Ramapura, Landresse. (According to Fa-Hian this place was situated at 5 yojans, or 35 miles, to the E. of Kapila almost in the exact position of Bhitari, an ancient town, which still pos- sesses an inscribed pillar of the Gupta family of about A. B. 430, just two centuries earlier than Hwan Thsang’s visit. The Chinese syllables are considered by Klaproth and others to be a transcript of Rama : but as we find Ma-tj-lan used for Maharana, perhaps Lan-mo may repre- sent Rana.* Now the ruins of Bhitari are all ascribed to a nameless
* Rdmagrdma is no doubt the original of Lan mo ; — in Pali, Ramagamo, in Siamese, Ramakham. It was one of the eight cities or kingdoms among which the reliques {sarira) of Buddha were originally distributed, and the only one from which these were not re- moved to Rajagriha. Read in connection with Fa Ilian’s account of Lan mo, the 31st chapter of the Mahavanso which leaves no room to doubt this identification. It is there stated to have been on the banks of the Ganges, — a name frequently applied to anv considerable affluent of that river. But without doing great violence to the bearings and distances of Fa hian, Lan mo cannot be identified with Bhetari which is at least 40 miles too far south to correspond with the subsequent route of that traveller to Vaisali. -Moreover Lan mo, as well as Kapilavastu, was situated westerly from Kusinagara, which Capt, C. identities with Kusia on the high betwixt Bettiah and Gorakpur. — Eds.
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Verification of the Itinerary of II wan Thsang [July,
Rani, after whom the place may once have been named. Ptolemy’s Selampura would however appear to point to the name of Rama in Sri-Rampura.)
No. 71 — Kiu-shi-na-kie-lo, Kusinagara, Klaproth and Landresse. Stupa built by Asoka. To the N. W. of the town at 3 or 4 li (about half a mile) across the A-chi-to-fa-ti (or Ajitavati ) anciently called Shi-lai-nu-fa-ti “riviere oil il v a de 1’ or” (the Swarnavati or ‘‘golden”) and on the W. bank was the forest of So-lo (or Sal trees, exactly where in Major Pennell’ s map I find a “Forest of Sal trees.”) Here also was a Stupa of Su-pa-to-lo, “bon sage,” (or Subhadra. The distance next recorded from Benares points to the mins of Kusid on the Chota Gandak river, which are described hy Mr. Liston in Prinsep’s Journal, vi. 477. The very name is the same, and the ruined tope still existing there may he that mentioned by Hwan Thsang. But we have a still more conclusive proof in the existence of an image of Buddha at this place, which is still called Mata Kunwr , in Sanskrit Mrita-Kumdra, or the “ dead Prince ;” this being, according to Fa- Hian, the very place where Sakya died, on the bank of the river Hi-li- an, in Sanskrit Iliranya, or “golden,” a synonyme of Swarnavati. Besides which Hwang Thsang, (in F. K. K. p. 237. N.) mentions that there was a sculpture at this place, in a large temple, representing the death of Sahya, which is most probably the very scidpture described by Mr. Liston, as James Prinsep states that its compartments display the various acts of Buddha’s life. Hwan Thsang also mentions a pillar at this place, which I should think night he discovered by a careful search. Kusinagara is probably the Kassidia of Ptolemy.
Thence at 500 li (83 miles) through forests to
No. 72 — Pan-lo-ni-sse ; Varanasi or Benares, Landresse. A large town on the Ganges. To the N. E. of the town and to the W. of the river Po-lo-ni (the Varana or Barna-nadi to the E. of the city) was a Stupa built by Asoka. To the N. E. of the town at 10 li (about If miles) was the “ Deer-Park,” and to the S. W. of the temple was a Stupa of Asoka. Beside it also was a Stupa where Mei-tha-li-ye (or Maitreya) received the history of Buddha : and to the W. of this was the place where Sakya Bodhisatwa received the history of Kasyapa. (The name of Varanasi is derived from Varana and Asi, the names of the two small streams between which the city is situated. According to Fa Hian there was a temple in the midst of the “ Park of the Deer of the
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Immortal.” In tlie F. K. K. — note 7. p. 307, Klaproth gives Hwan Thsang’s details at length, from which it would appear that the temple was on the bank of the Barna river. Following the distance and hearing before mentioned the temple must have stood near the village of Secrole or Sikror, where the panch-kosa or “ five-kos” route of pilgrims crosses the high road to Ghazipur. In that part of the panch-kosa there are numerous fragments of Buddhist sculpture and architecture. But the ruins aroimd Sdrndth offer a much more probable position, as the re. mains of three existing topes correspond with the three that were erected on spots rendered sacred by three events in Sakya’s life. These spots were 1st. That where Buddha seated himself and began to turn the wheel of the law. 2nd. That where he related his history to Mi-le or Mei-tha-li-ye (Maitreya) ; aud third. That where the serpent I-lo- po asked Buddha at what period he should get rid of his serpent body. Of the three existing topes only two have names. The largest is called Sdrndth which is probably a contraction of Sdranggandtlia the
“ Lord of Deer” a meaning which, if correct, must refer to the “ cerfs de 1’ Immortal” of Fa Hian. I cannot help suspecting that Ilwan Thsang’s temple was this very Stupa : for he states that the temple was more than 200 feet in height, aud that the foundation was of stone and the superstructure of brick. Now this is a very accurate description of Sarnath, of which the lower half is of stone and the upper half of brick ; the height being nearly 130 feet above the country. With a gilt arrow on the top, such as the temple is said to have borne, the height would have been fully 200 feet. The second existing tope, 2500 feet due S. of Sdrndth is called Chokandi : but this name refers properly to an octagonal on its summit with four door ways, which was built in honor of the Emperor Humayun having once seated himself there. The third tope, situated 520 feet due W. of Sarnath has no name now ; but it is that which was half pulled down by Jag at Singh, the Dewan of Cheit Singh, Raja of Benares, to furnish materials for the walls of a tank in Jagat-ganj. The relics found in it were transmitted by Mr. Duncan to the Asiatic Society : but they are no longer forthcoming, which is very much to be regretted, for as the transcript published by Wilford gives one third part of the formula of Ye dharmma, &c. incorrectly, the probability is that the same proportion of the long inscription has been read incorrectly. Wilford in his usual loose manner always refers this -inscription to the Sdrndth tope, but without any reason, further than
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Verification of the Itinerary of Hwan Thsany [July,
that it was found in the neighbourhood. In like manner the inscription on the London Monument might be called a record of the building of London Bridge.)
From thence down the Ganges to the E. at 300 li (50 miles) to
No. 73 — Chen-chu, 2000 li (333 miles) in extent. The capital is situated on the Gauges. (The Chinese syllables probably represent Chacha or Jajja ; and as the distance and bearing point to GhAzipur I cannot help suspecting that the Mahomedan name is only a corruption of Chachipura or Jajjapura. We know that Jajuvati or Chachdvati and Chachiri or Chachandi were both seats of the Cliandel Rajputs. Now Chachipura or Ghdzipura may have been another of their loca- tions ; but I have not been able to trace them heyond the Jaunpur and Azimgarh districts.) To the E. of this town at 200 li (33 miles) was the monastery of A-pi-tho-ko-la-nu “ oreille non percee,” in Sanskrit aviddhakarni, a name of the Cissampelos hexandra, which most proba- bly gave its name to the monastery. Thence to the S. E. at 100 li (1/ miles), and to the S. of the Ganges was the town of Ma-ha-so-lo (probably some place on the Muhi river, perhaps Mahasura although I know not whether such a place exists on that stream. This is to the N. of the present course of the Ganges : but hi my remarks on No. 77 I will give my reasons for believing that the course of the river, since Hwan Thsang wrrote, has gradually advanced to the S. about 20 miles.)
Thence to the N. E. across the Ganges at 40 or 50 li (7 or 8 miles) to
No. 74 — Fei-she-li, or Vaisali, Landresse. To the N. W. of the town at 5 or 6 li (about 1 mile) was the monastery where Ananda be- came an Arhan ; to the S. E. of which was a Stupa built by king Ff.i- she-li ( Visala of the solar race, the 27th in descent from the sun.) To the N. W. was a Stupa of king Asoka, and the dwelling of Pi-ma- lo-ki, “sans taclie” (in Sanskrit, Vimalaka “ the blameless.”) To the N. W. of the city was the ancient town of king Chakravarti Mahadera, and to the S. E. at 14 or 15 li (2J miles) was a great Stupa where was held an assembly of Arhans 110 years after the Nirvana. (This was the second convocation described in the Mahawanso.) Thence to the S. at 8 or 9 li (1| mile) was the monastery of She-fei-to-pu-lo (perhaps Smeta-pura, “ white town,” and to the S. E. of that at 30 li (5 miles) on the bank of the Ganges were two monasteries. (The town of V aisdli has not yet been identified with any modern position. Formerly it was believed to be Allahabad ; but since the publication of the narratives of
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through Afghanistan and India.
33
the Chinese pilgrims, its position has been looked for in the neighbour- hood of the Gandak river. The recorded distances and bearings, but more particularly that of the capital of Magadlia, which was across the Ganges to the south, point to the ruins of Bakhra and Bassar, about 20 miles to the N. of Patna. In Bassar, we still have the actual name of Vaisali, whose citizens are called Passalre by Ptolemy and Pliny. The ruins of Bassar are described by Mr. J. Stephenson (in Prinsep’s Jour- nal, iv. — 128) where he expresses his belief, in accordance with the general opinion, that these ruins are the remains “ of a large city, at a remote period inhabited by a numerous and civilized wealthy people.” At Bassar there is a brick tope still standing 40 feet in height ; and at Bakhra there is a similar brick tope with a stone pillar surmounted by a recumbent lion. The height of this pillar above the ground is only 32 feet, the circumference being 12 feet: but as the Radhia pillar is 39 feet high with a circumference of only 1 1 feet 2 inches, it seems pro- bable that there must be at least 1 2 feet of the Bakhra pillar beneath the ground. An excavation down to the base of the column would almost certainly bring to light an ancient inscription. This might be only a repetition of those found upon other pillars : but it is quite pos- sible that it might be a record of older date, perhaps of the second con- vocation which was held at this place, and which was commemorated by the erection of a Stupa.)
Thence to the N. E. at 500 li (83 miles) to
No. 75 — Fe-li-chi; in the north called San-fa-chi, 2000 li (333 miles) in extent. The capital is called Chen-chu-nu. (The Chinese syllables represent faithfully the Sanskrit V riji, 'gfaT, which is the well known name of a country, generally supposed to be in the neighbourhood of Mathura. The V riji of Hwan Thsang must however be the modern Tirhut, or Trihutya, of which one of the chief towns, situated in the position indicated, is named Jenjapura, no doubt the Chen-chu-nu of the Chinese pilgrim. The ancient name of this district was Mithila.)
Thence to the N. W. across mountains at 1400 or 1500 li (233 to 250 miles) to
No. 76 — Ni-pho-lo, Nepal, Landresse ; 4000 li (666 miles) in ex- tent and surrounded by snowy mountains. (The distance is too great but the bearing is correct. As no details are given, Ilwan Thsang does not appear to have visited this country. His erroneous distance may therefore be pardoned.) f
34 Verification of the Itinerary of II wan Timmy [July,
From Vaisdli across the Ganges to the S. to
No. 77 — Mi-kiei-tho, Magadha, Landresse : 500 lx (83 miles) in extent. To the S. of the Ganges is the ruined town of Keu-su-ma-pu- lo, or Kusumapura, “ flower town,” also called Pho-tho-li-tse, ( Pataliputra or Palibothra, tsu being a Chinese translation of putra, “son,” Landresse. Following the indications of the Chinese pilgrim, Klaproth has identified this town with the modem Patna : but the great Geographer Rennell had done the same fifty years earlier, from the measurements recorded by Pliny, apparently on the authority of Megas- thenes. That Patna is the modern representative of the ancient Pata- liputra is undoubted : but I do not believe that it occupies exactly the same position ; for according to the distances of Fa Hian and Hwan Thsang, it seems that Pataliputra must have been 1 8 or 20 miles to the north of the present town of Patna. As an analogous illustration I mav mention that the present city of Delhi, or Shahjahdndbdd, is 12 miles to the north of the Hindu city of only 650 years ago. But in this case the change seems to have been effected by the vanity of successive monarchs, who built palaces, forts, and bazars, in their own names to the N. of the old city until the present position was at length attained by Shah Julian. In the case of Pataliputra I believe that the change has been effected by the Ganges. In approaching Yaisali Ilwan Thsang states that it was from 40 to 50 li (7 or 8 miles) in a N. E. direction from Ma-iia-so-lo, on the southern bank of the Ganges. Again, on leaving Yaisali he first visits a Stupa 2\ miles to the S. E. from which he proceeds 1 \ mile S. to a monastery, and thence to the Ganges, 5 miles more in a S. E. direction. From these two detailed statements it is clear that the Ganges flowed within 8 miles of Yaisali, both to the S. \V. and S. E. somewhere near the present Siughia. Now the very same position is indicated by Fa Ilian’s distance of 9 yojans (or 63 miles) from Pa-li-an-fu or Pataliputra to the “ small hill of the isolated rock,” which is called Yn-tho-lo-shi-lo-kiu-ho, or Indrasi/aguhaby Hwan Thsang, and is placed by him close to the small town of Kiu-li- kia, the Girik of RenneH’s map, which is only 43 miles to the S. E. of Patna. The distance here is 20 miles less than the recorded one ; whilst the actual distances of two different points on the Gauges from Bassar or Vaisali are 20 miles more than the recorded ones. It seems to me therefore certain that the Gauges formerly held a more northerly
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through Afghanistan and India.
35
course by about 20 miles ; and that tlie ancient Pataliputra must have stood at the same distance to the N. of the present Patna. It is only by a supposition of this kind that the recorded distances of Fa Hian and Hwan Thsang can he reconciled with the truth. The very fact that the town, which Fa Hian had seen flourishing in A. D. 399-415, was in ruins in A. D. 629-645, seems to point to its desertion from the encroachments of the river to the south. Since then 1200 years have elapsed ; a period much more than sufficient for the production of the supposed change by the gradual and successive alterations of channel towards the south, a process which is still going on. I do not however attribute this change of course entirely to the gradual alteration of the channel of the Ganges ; for it is probable that the mention by Ma- twan-lin, that about A. D. 756 “the hank of the Ho-lang or Ganges gave way and disappeared,” refers to some sudden change in the course of the river. An extraordinary flood of the Gogra river would have been sufficient to have caused the whole amount of southing here contended for ; in proof ot which I will only cite the much greater change in the course of the Satlaj which took place about A. D. 1790. This was caused by a cataclysm of the river, which having been dammed up by a landslip near the hot springs of Seoni, 18 miles to the N. of Simla, suddenly hurst through the obstruction, and swept irresistibly over the plains until it was stopped by the high bank of the Byas at Hari-ki- patan. The new channel became a permanent one, and the junction of the Byas and Satlaj, which was formerly at Ferozpur, has since then been at Hari-ki-patan, upwards of 30 miles from the old place of con- fluence.)
(From Pataliputra Ilwan Thsang proceeds to Gaya, of which he gives many minute details, that could only be verified by personal inspection or by a very good map on a large scale. Some of them however may easily be identified : Such as the river Ni-lian-chen-na, to the E. of
Gaya, which is clearly the Nil ajm river of the Government litho- graphed map of the new road. Also the river Ma-ho to the E. of which was a great forest, is certainly the Mahona river, on the E. of which Rennell places “ Woods” extending for more than 20 miles. After some further details Hwan Thsang mentions the town of Ko-lo- che-ku-li-sse, “ demeure royale,” which is undoubtedly the ancient Rajagriha, or “ royal residence.” I remark here, as in No. 46, the occur-
f 2
36
Verification of the Itinerary of Hwan Thsang [July,
rence of the prefix Ko before the syllables Lo-che or raja. As there is no doubt whatever about the correctness of the present reading of Rajagrilia, my identification of Ko-lo-che-pu-lo with Rajapura or Rajdwari, must be equally correct. Not far from this was the small town of Ku-li-kia or Girik, the Giryek of Capt. Kittoe ; close to which was mount Yn-tho-lo-she-lo-ku-ho, or Indrasilaguha, “ In- dra’s rock-cave,” which must be the cave mentioned by Capt. Kittoe as existing in the immediate neighbourhood of Girik.)
To the N. E. at 150 or 160 li (25 to 2/ miles) was the monasterv of Kia-pu-te-kia. (The bearing points to the town of Behar, in Sanskrit Bihdra, or “ the monastery,” but the recorded distance is double the actual one. Now as the next recorded distance, supposing Behar to be the place intended, is just one half of the real one, I believe that there must have been an interchange of the two distances, an inad- vertence of such likely occurrence that I take but little liberty in adopt- ing it. An example of a similar kind occurs in Pliny — 1. vi. s. 21. where the distance between the Ilydaspes and Hvphasis is stated at 29 miles and 390 paces, while the distance between the Hyphasis and Hesidrus is given at 168 miles. Here there can be no doubt of the interchange of the two distances. In adopting this correction, the monastery of Ivia-pu-te-kia must have been only 70 li (about 12 miles) to the N. E. of Girik, which corresponds sufficientlv well with the position of the present Behar, which in Rennell’s map lies 13 miles to the N. of Girik. The name of the monastery in Sanskrit was per- haps Kapataka, “ the dove-hued,” or “ antimony-colored,” which is a good description of the dark metallic-looking stone of Gaya.)
(Thence to the N. E. at 70 li, or after correction as above, at 150 or 1 60 li, equivalent to 25 or 27 miles, and to the S. of the Ganges, was a large town. The bearing and distance point to Shunar on the Ganges. To the E. at 100 li (17 miles) amongst hills and woods, was the village of Lo-yin-ni-la. This would appear to be the RuynuUah of Reu- nell’s map, perhaps for Rohinala, situated at the junction of the Dhania river with the Ganges.)
Hwan Thsang here mentions no less than five kings of Magadha who had reigned previous to his visit. Their names are — Lo-kia-lo-a-yi-to, or Lagraditya.
Fo-tho-kiu-to, „ Budha Gupta.
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throvgh Afghanistan and India.
37
Tha-ka-ta-kiu-to, ov Takata Gupta.
Pho-lo-a-yi-to, „ Baladitya.
Fa-che-lo, „ Vajra.
Two of these Princes, namely, Budha Gupta and Baladitya, are already known to us from inscriptions and coins, and a third, Vajra, is known from coins alone, but the others are mentioned nowhere else to my knowledge.
In 1842 I had already identified Chandra Gupta, or “moon-cherish- ed,” with the Yu-gai, or “moon-beloved,” of the Chinese authors, who was reigning in A. D. 428. Afterwards in 1843, when I first pro- cured a copy of the Foe-kue-ki, I extended this identification to the line of Princes mentioned above, and at the same time I arranged the whole dynasty chronologically according to the various data which were then known. Thus according to the inscription on the gateway of the Suchi tope near Bliilsa, Chandra Gupta was reigning in the year 79} of the Gupta era — and, following the record of the Kuhaon Pillar, Skanda Gupta died in 1 33 of the same era : whilst, according to the Eran Pillar, Buddha Gupta was reigning in 1 65 of the Gupta era. Besides these three distinct dates of their own era, we have the year of Yu-gai, A. D. 428, already mentioned, and the period of Siladitya’s reign im- mediately preceding Hwan Thsang’s visit. With these data to guide me the chronological arrangement of the different Princes of the Gupta dynasty already known to us from coins and inscriptions and from the faithful though brief records of the Chinese writers, was an easy task. As by this arrangement the accession of Gupta, the founder of the dynasty, appeared to have taken place in the first half of the 4tli cen- tury of our era, it very soon struck me that the G^ipta era was most probably the same as the Balabhi era ; more particularly as it is certain that Ujain and Surashtra were subject to the Guptas, whose silver coins are of the same type, weight and fabric with those of the undoubted coins of Balabhi. This identification of the two eras appeared so pro- bable that I at once adopted it. Lastly, in January 1847, on receipt of Reinaud’s “ Fragmens Arabes et Persans, &c.” I found, to my equal wonder and delight, a decided proof that my identification of the two eras was correct. According to Abu Rihan al Biruni, who accompanied Mahmud Ghaznavi to India, the year 1088 of Vikramaditya, or the year 953 of Sake was the year 712 of the Ballaba era, and also that of the
38
Verification of the Itinerary of Hwan Thsang [July,
Guptas. This it not the place for the discussion of all the points bear- ing upon this period of history. It will be sufficient to mention here only a few of the dates established by this discovery for the further verification of the truth of the Chinese Pilgrim’s narrative. As the Balabhi era began in A. D. 319, Chandra Gupta’s date of 79} is equi- valent to A. D. 398f. Skanda Gupta’s death took place in 133 + 319 — 452 A. D., and Budha Gupta was reigning in 1G5 + 319 = 484 A. D. Now, according to Ma-twan-lin, Siladitya died between the years 642 and 648, say in 645 A. D. and as Ilwan Thsang says that he reigned 60 years, his accession must be dated in A. I). 585. We have thus a period of 101 years to be divided between the three reigns of Takata Gupta, Baladitya and Vajra, together with the latter portion of Budha Gupta’s reign, that is between nearly few reigns, which yields the natural term of somewhat more than 25 years for each reign. For the period between 452 A. D. the date of Skanda’s death, and 480. A. 1). the probable period of Budlia’s accession, or for 28 years, we have the reigns of Deva Gupta, of the Asirgarh inscription, and Lagraditya of Hwan Thsang. Thus from A. I). 452 to 585 we have six Princes amongst whom to divide a period of 133 years ; which gives an average of rather more than 22 years for each reign. But this average will be lessened by adding the two reigns of Kumara and Skanda : for as Chandra Gupta was reigning in A. D. 428 we may safely assume A. 1). 430 as the period of Kumara’s accession. We thus have A. D. 430 — 585 = 1 55 years, to be divided between 8 Princes, which yield upwards of 19 years for each reign, — a natural term within the limits of the European averages.)
From Lo-yin-ni-la (or Rohinahi) to the E. amongst great moun- tains and forests at 200 li (34 miles) to
No. 78, Yi-lan-nu-po-fa-to, 3000 li (500 miles) in extent. The capital is situated on the Ganges, and near it is Mount Yi-lan-nu, which vomits forth smoke so as to darken both the sun and the moon. (The bearing and distance point to the Fort of Mongir, but the Chinese syllables seem to represent the Sanskrit Hirana-parvata, or “ red-hill,” a name which may have been applied to it on account of the flames which must have burst forth occasionally along with the smoke mentioned by Hwan Thsang. The existence of two hot springs, the Sita-kund and the Raki-kund, within a few miles of Mongir, shows that
1848.] through Afghanistan and India. 39
this part of the country was once subject to volcanic action. There cannot therefore be any good reason for doubting Hwan Thsang’s rela- tion, more particularly as the present name of the place, Mauna-giri, or the “ quiet hill,” would seem to allude to a former period of volcanic noise and activity. I am aware that the Brahmans refer the name to Mudga-giri, which however can scarcely he the original of the present spoken form of Mongir.)
Thence following the S. bank of the Ganges to the E. at 300 li (50 miles) to
No. 79 — Chen-pho, BMgalpur, Landresse. The capital to the N. rests on the Ganges, and to the E. of it at 40 or 50 li (6 or 8 miles) S. of the Ganges was an isolated hill surrounded by water. (The ancient name of Bhagalpur was Champapura, and as the distance and bearing agree with those of Hwan Thsang the identification of M. Landresse is undoubtedly correct. The isolated rock surrounded by water must be one of those in the neighbourhood of Kahalgaon (Colgong), although the recorded distance is much too small. I would propose to read 1 40 or 150 instead of 40 or 50 li : this distance would bring us to the well known rock of Patharghatta, below Kahalgaon.)
Thence to the E. at 400 li (66 miles) to
No. 80— -Ko-chu-wen-ti-lo, also named Ko-cheu-ko-lo, 2000 li (333 miles) in extent. On its northern side, not far from the Ganges, was a large brick tower. (The bearing and distance point to the ruins of Gaur, the former capital of Bengal. The Chinese syllables perhaps represent the Sanskrit Kachchha-vetra, the “ reedy marsh,”
and Kachchlia-gurha, “ surrounded by marshes,” or Kachcliha
Gaurha, the “ swampy Gaurh,” to distinguish it from the hilly Gaurli near Kashmir. In the syllables Ko-lo I recognize the name of Gaurh, ji^. The only apparent objection to this identification is the fact that Gaur now stands some 10 or 12 miles from the northern bank of the Ganges ; whilst Ko-cheu-ko-lo would seem to have been on the south- ern bank of the river. But it is well known that Gaur was originally on the bank of the Ganges, and that the gradual desertion of the river has led to the ruin of the city within the last 300 years. It seems to me however highly probable that one of the principal branches of the Ganges once flowed to the northward of Gaur, through the channel now called Kalendri, which connects the Kusi and Mahananda rivers. If this
40
Verification of the Itinerary of II wan Thsang [July,
supposition of a northern channel of the Ganges flowing between Ganr and Malda should not be admitted, then Hwan Thsang’ s statement must be wrong, for I have no doubt of the correctness of my own iden- tification of the places. A similar mistake is made by the most accu- rate of all travellers, Moorcroft, who says that Shah-dera is situated on the left bank of the Ravi.* Gaur is probably the Aganagora of Pto- lemy, situated just above the head of the Gangetic Delta. This may be the Sanskrit Aganya-Gaurha, the “ countless Gaurh,” in allu-
sion to the multitude of its inhabitants.)
Thence crossing the Ganges to the E. at 600 li (100 miles) to
No. 81 — Pan-na-fa-tau-na, 400 li (166 miles) in extent. To the W. of the town at 20 li was the monastery of Pa-shi-pho (in Sanskrit Pushpa, “ flower,”) and close to the town was a Stupa of Asoka. (The Chinese syllables woidd seem to represent the Sanskrit m«TQn«r, Pdm- pasthdna, or Pdmpathdn, “ river-town,” and as a great river was after- wards crossed to the eastward, the place must have been situated some- where on the Brahmaputra river, at or near the present Chilmari.)
Thence to the E. at 900 li (150 miles) to
No. 82 — Kia-ma-leu-pho, 10,000 li (1,666 miles) in extent. The people of this country were unconverted, and had built no monasteries. The King was a Brahman named Keu-ma-lo, and sumamed Pho-se- ko-lo-fa-ma (that is, his name was Kumdra, and his title was Push- kalavarmma,) or perhaps rather Pushkal a-brahtna, as Varmona is a Kshatriya’s title.) His kingdom was the ancient Kamrup, the country of Ptolemy’s Tamerce, and now called Asam, from the conquering Raja Chu-kapha, who took the title of Asama or “ unequalled.” The dis- tance mentioned by Hwan Thsang points to the neighbourhood of Gohati as the position of the capital, which is perhaps the Tugma Metropolis of Ptolemy. It is clear that Kamrup comprehended the whole of what is now known as Asam, for Hwan Thsang proceeds to state that amongst the mountains to the E. there was no great king- dom ; and that in two months the southern frontier of the Chinese
* Travels, Vol. 1. p. 107. 1 have a suspicion that this is a mistake of the Editor, and not of Moorcroft himself — for Professor Wilson has certainly not done full justice to Moorcroft, no doubt owing to the confused state of the papers. Thus the description of the piers of the Kashmirian Bridges is transferred to the pillars of the Jama Masjed. It is no wonder therefore that Thornton was puzzled. A new edition of Moorcroft, unmutilated, would be of more value than any other single book of travels that I know .
41
1848.] through Afghanistan and India.
district of Shu could be reached by very difficult and dangerous roads.)
Thence to the S. at 1200 or 1300 li (200 to 212 miles) to
No. 83 — San-ma-tha-tho, 3000 li (500 miles) in extent : a low country on the sea-shore. Near the town was a stupa built by Asoka. (The bearing and distance point to Sunargaon, the ancient capital of the Dhaka district, which lies low and extends to the sea-shore as described by Hwan Thsang. The first half of the name of Sunargaon or Sundari-grama, seems to be preserved in the Chinese syllables San- ma. The greater part of the Sundarbans or Sundari-vana, “ Sundari- jangals,” was formerly comprised in the Dhaka district. The town of Sunargaon was therefore probably so named from its being the capital of the Sundari district, which is no doubt the Kirrhadia of Ptolemy, or the country of Kirdtas, f^TT«T, barbarians living amongst woods and mountains.)
Thence to the N. E. on the sea-shore and in the midst of mountains and vallies was the kingdom of She-li-cha-tha-lo. (Unless there is some mistake in the mention of the sea-shore, this place must, accord- ing to the bearing and distance, be identified with Silhet or Srihata. But I would prefer reading to the S. E., which would bring us to Chaturgrdma, or Chittagaon, a district situated on the sea-shore, and abounding in woods and vallies. The name also seems to agree with this identification, as the Chinese syllables are probably intended for Sri-Chatura .)
Somewhat farther to the S. E. in a corner of the great sea was the kingdom of Kia-ma-lang-kia. (The bearing, and the position in an angle of the sea-coast point to the neighbourhood of Cape Negrais, and the shores of Arracan. In fact the last two Chinese syllables seem to be only a transcript of Rakhang, which is the proper name of Arracan.)
Beyond that to the E. wras the kingdom of To-lo-po-ti (most pro- bably the ancient Pegu.) Still farther to the E. was the kingdom of Shang-na-pu-lo ; (perhaps Siam, or Syamapura, the Samarada of Ptolemy.) Still more to the E. was the kingdom of Ma-ho-ciien-pho (or Mahachampa, most probably the present Kamboja, of which the district along the sea-coast is still called Champa.) Thence to the S. W. was the island-kingdom of Yan-ma-na. (The bearing points to Java , the Yava of Sanskrit, and the Jabadii Insula of Ptolemy.)
42
Verification of the Itinerary of FLvodn Thsdng [July,
From San-ma-tha-tiio to the W. at 900 li (150 miles) to
No. 84 — Tan-ma-li-ti, or Tamralipti, Landresse : 1400 or 1500 h (233 to 250 miles) in extent. The capital, situated on the sea-shore, enjoys much commerce both hy land and water. Near it is a Stupa built hy Asoka. (The identification of M. Landresse is certainly cor- rect ; as both hearing and distance point to Tamluk, which is the modem representative of Tamralipti.)
Thence to the N. W. at 700 li (11/ miles) to
No. 85 — Ko-lo-nu-su-fa-la-na, from 4400 to 4500 li (733 to 750 miles) in extent. Near the town was the monastery of Lo-to-wei-chi, “ argile ronge” (in Sanskrit rakta, or in Hindi rata, red, and achala, earth :) not far from which was a Stupa built by Asoka. (The Chinese syllables appear to represent either the Sanskrit Karanasuvama, “ the golden field,” or Karna-suvarna, “the golden ear.” The bearing and distance point to the districts of Pachet and Birbhum on the Damuda river, where Ptolemy places his Sahara, in which name we probably have the Suvarna of Ilwan Thsang.)
Thence to the S. W. at 700 li (117 miles) to
No. 86 — U-CHA, 7000 li (1167 miles) in extent. Stupas built by Asoka. On its south-eastern boundary and on the sea-shore was the town of Che-li-ta-lo (in Sanskrit Jalastha/a, the present JaUswara or Jalcsar) much frecpiented by maritime merchants. (The bearing and distance point to the districts of Midnapur and Singhblium on the Sabanrika river, which have the town of Jaleswara to the S. E. as described by Ilwan Thsang. Perhaps the ancient name of the district is preserved in Echagarh on the Sanbanrika river, 120 miles to the N. W. of Jalesar.
To the S. at 20,000 li (3,333 miles) was the kingdom of Seng-kia- lo, where was the tooth of Foe, &c. (This is the Island of Ceylon or Sinhala-dwipa, which still possesses an elephant’s grinder, that is devoutly believed to be the tooth of Buddha. The distance is much exaggerated even by the longest land route.
From U-CHA through a forest to the S. W. at 1200 li (200 miles) to
No. 87 — Kung-iu-tho, 1000 li (167 miles) in extent. The capital is situated on a steep part of the sea-shore. Language, peculiar : reli- gion, not Buddhistical. Ten small towns. The bearing and distance
1848.]
through Afghanistan and India.
43
point to the district of Katak or Cuttack, and the neighbourhood of Kanarak, where the black Pagoda stands.)
Thence to the S. W. across a great desert and through a thick forest at 1400 or 1500 li (233 to 250 miles) to
No. 88 — Ko-ling-kia. Kalinga, Landresse : 5000 li (833 miles) in extent. Few true believers (Buddhists), many heretics (Brahmanists.) To the S. near the town was a Stupa built by Asoka. (The identifica- tion of M. Landresse is undoubtedly correct, although the distance is somewhat exaggerated. The name of the country is preserved in the Kalingum promontorium of Ptolemy ; and the chief town of the dis- trict, Chicacul, is Ptolemy’s Kohala.)
Thence to the N. W. over mountains and through forests at 1800 li (300 miles) to
No. 89 — Kiao-sa-lo, 6000 li (1000 miles) in extent. The king is a Kshetriya. The people are black and savage. (The bearing and dis- tance point to the district of Gandwana, the present Nagpur or Berar, of which the principal ancient cities were Garha, Mandala, and Ratan- pur. The last of these answers to the position recorded by Hwan Thsang. The name of Kosala is preserved by Ptolemy as “ Kosa, in qua est adamasA )
Thence to the S. at 900 li (150 miles) to
No. 90 — An-tha-lo, Andra, Landresse ; 3000 li (500 miles) in ex- tent. The capital is called Phing-khi-lo. Language, peculiar; manners, savage. The extensive and important Buddliistical ruins of Amaravati, to the W. of Nagpur. These ruins are still undescribed, a fact which reflects no small discredit both upon the British Government, which possesses the country, and upon the Asiatic Society which possesses Col. Mackenzie’s MSS. drawings and inscriptions. The latter are particularly valuable and interesting, as they refer to a period prior to the date of Hwan Thsang’ s visit, when Buddhism was struggling with Brahmanism but was still predorn hiant. The most modern of these inscriptions says that “ Place is not to be given to the disputer of Buddhism.” It must therefore be older than A. D. 600 — while the more ancient ones, from the shape of their characters, certainly reach as high a date as the beginning of the Christian era.” The Andrce Indi are mentioned in the Pentingerian Tables, and the Andhras of Magadha are recorded in the P min as. Andhra is also
44
Verification of the Itinerary of Ilwdn Thsdng [July,
one ot' the ancient names of Telingana, or the country between the Kistna and Godavari rivers. This however answers to the Great Andhra of Ilwan Thsang, which is mentioned by Hwan Thsang in the next article.
Thence to the S. at 1000 li (10/ miles) to
No. 91 — Ta-na-ko-tiise-kia, also called Great An-tha-lo ; 6000 li (1000 miles) in extent. Inhabitants, black and savage. To the E. of the town on a mountain was the monastery of We-pho-shi-lo, “ montagne orientale,” and on the W. was the monastery of A-fa-lo- shi-lo, “ montagne accidentale.” (These two names are the Sanskrit purvva-sila, or “ eastern mountain,” and apara-sila, or “western moun- tain.” This country, as mentioned above, corresponds with the modern Telingana, between the Godavari and Kistna rivers, of which Warankul was the capital for many centuries. Hamilton erroneously states that Warankul was built in A. D. 1067, for it appears to have been the capital of the Adeva Rajas in about A. D. 800 ; and I have little doubt that it is the Korunkula of Ptolemy.)
Thence to the S. W. at 1000 li (167 miles) to
No. 92 — Chu-li-ye, from 2400 to 2500 li (400 to 417 miles) in ex- tent. People savage, fierce and heretical. Temples of the Gods. To the S. E. of the town a Stupa built by Asoka. To the W. an ancient monastery, where lived the Arhan Wen-ta-la “ superieur,” (in Sanskrit Ultra. The bearing and distance point to the “neighborhood of Karnul on the Tungabhadra River.”
No. 93 — Tha-lo-pi-chha, 6000 li (1000 miles) in extent. The capital is Kian-chi-pu-lo, Kanjeveram, Landresse. The language and letters are somewhat different from those of central India. The capital is the birth-place of Tha-ma-pho-lo (gardien de la loi) Phou- sa (in Sanskrit Dharmma-Pdla Bodhisatwa.) To the S. of the town was a great Stupa built by Asoka. (The name of the country is cer- tainly the Sanskrit Dravira or Dravida, of which the most cele-
brated city is Kdnchipnra or Kanjeveram. The language and letters are Tamul.)
Thence to the S. at 3000 li (500 miles) to
No. 94 — Mo-lo-kiu-tho, or Chi-mo-lo, 5000 li (833 miles) in ex- tent. The people are black and savage. On the S. this kingdom is bounded by the sea, where stands the mountain of Mo-lo-ye, to the E.
through Afghanistan and India.
45
1848.]
of which is Mount Pu-tha-lo-kia, from which there springs a river that, after winding round the hill falls into the sea. To the N. E. of this moun- tain is a town from which people emhark for the southern sea and for Ceylon. (I am unable to offer any equivalent for the Chinese syllables, unless Chi-mo-lo be a transcript of Komari or Cape Comorin. There can be no doubt that the district intended is the ancient Madura, and the Madura regia, Pandionis of Ptolemy, now called the southern Car- natic : but the distances from Kanchipuram and from Ceylon (next mentioned) are exactly double the actual measurements.)
Thence to the E. at 3000 li (500 miles) to
No. 95 — Seng-kia-lo, Ceylon, Landresse. (The various particulars related by Hwan Thsang agree with the details of the Mahawanso : such as the conversion of the people to Buddhism in the first century after the Nirvana of Buddha, and their division, two centuries afterwards, into two sects.)
From Tha-lo-pi-chha (or Dravira) to the N. through a wild forest at 2000 li (333 miles) to
No. 96 — Kung-kian-na-po-lo, Kan/cara, Landresse ; 5000 li (833 miles) in extent. To the N. of the town is a forest ofTo-LO, of which the leaves are used for writing upon throughout India. To the E. of the town is a Stupa built by Asoka. (The Chinese syllables represent exactly the name of Kankanapura, the modern Concan, an extensive district on the W. coast of India. The distance from the capital of Dravira points to the position of the celebrated town of Kalbarga, which was the capital of a Hindu principality before the Mahomedan invasion. Perhaps Mudgal, which is called Modogulla by Ptolemy, may have been the capital of the Kankan in the time of Hwan Thsang : although there can be no doubt of the antiquity and celebrity of Kal- barga. The To-lo is clearly the Tali tree, the leaves of which are still used for writing upon. It is erroneously called the Talipat tree by book-makers, as Tdlipatra means the “leaves of the Tali,” and not the tree itself.)
Thence to the N. W. through a wild forest at 2400 or 2500 li (400 to 417 miles) to
No. 97 — Ma-ha-la-tho, Maharatta, Landresse : 6000 li (1000 miles) in extent. The capital to the W. rests upon a large river. (Judging from the distance the chief city of Maharashtra must have
46 Verification of the Itinerary of Hivun Thsdng [July,
been at or near Burhanpur on the Tapti. This town is in the very heart of the old Mahratta country, and from its vicinity to the celebra- ted fortress of Asirgarh, I have little doubt that it was once the capital of the country. Its present name is derived from Burhan Nizam Shah ; but the town is mentioned by Ferishta as a place of consequence during the reign of Ahmed Shah, the father of Burhan Shall.)
Thence to the W. at 1000 li (16 7 miles) across the river Nai-mo- tho (in Sanskrit Narmada , the Namadus Fluvius of Ptolemy, and the Narbada of the present day, to
No. 98 — Pa-lu-ko-chkn-pho, 2400 to 2500 li (400 to 41/ miles) in extent. The people live by sea-trade. (The position, on the northern bank of the Narbada, and in the vicinity of the sea, point to the seaport of Baroch, the Barygaza of Ptolemy and the Briyu gacha of the Hindus. The Chinese syllables seem to represent Briyu champa, in which the first half of the Hindu name is correctly preserved.)
Thence to the N. W. at 2000 li (333 miles) to
No. 99 — Ma-lo-pho, 6000 li (1000 miles) in extent. The capital is situated to the S. E. of the river Mu-ho. (This is undoubtedly Malava or Malwa, of which the ancient capital was Dhar or Dhdrana- gar, situated to the S. E. of the upper course of the Muhi river, the Mats of the Periplus, as stated by Hwan Tlisang. But both the dis- tance and the bearing are wrong ; as the latter should be N. E. and the former should be only 1000 li (or 16/ miles) which is the exact distance between Baroch and Dhar.) In all the five Indies, adds Hwan Thsang, the two chief kingdoms for study are Malwa to the S. W. and Magadha to the N. E. The history of the country mentions that a king named Shi-lo-a-ti-to (or Siladitya) reigned there for 60 years. To the N. W. of the town at 20 li (upwards of 3 miles) was a town of Brahmans. At the period of Hwan Thsang’ s visit therefore Buddhism was still prevalent in Malwa.)
Thence to the S. W. embarking and then turning to the N. W. at 2400 to 2500 li (400 to 417 miles) to
No. 100 — A-cha-li, or A-tho-li, 6000 li (1000 miles) in extent. (This description seems rather vague : but by first travelling from Dhar to the S. W. to Baroch, and thence sailing along the coast till opposite
1848.]
through Afghanistan and India.
47
Satara, a distance of about 400 miles, would have been passed over. Satara may perhaps be the place designed by Hwan Thsang, but^ with- out a second clue, it is impossible to determine this name with any precision.)
From Ma-la-pho to the N. W. at 300 li (50 miles) to
No. 101 — Khi-cha, 3000 li (500 miles) in extent. Without a king, being a dependency of Malwa. (From its vicinity to the capital of Malwa, this place could only have been a very small principality, per- haps Khachrod, 56 miles N. hy W. from Dhar.)
Thence to the N. at 1000 li (167 miles) to
No. 102 — Fa-la-pi, 6000 li (1000 miles) in extent. Here is much merchandize from distant countries. Asoka built Stupas at this place. The king is a Kshatriya of the race of Shi-lo-a-ti-to (or Siladitga) of Malwa. The king of Ko-jo-kiu-chi ( Kanyakuhja or Kanoj) named Tu-lu-fho-pa-tho (or Dhruvabhatta ) is also of the race of Siladitya. (Jacquet’s identification of Fa-la-pi with the celebrated Balahhi, the ancient capital of Gujrat, ^undoubtedly correct. Hwan Thsang’s bearing should therefore have been S. W. instead of N. The mention that the king of Kanoj was a Kshatriya is especially valuable for the history of India, for hy a reference to No. 62, we find that when Hwan Thsang was at Kanoj the king was a Vaisya. A change of dy- nasty had therefore taken place during the time occupied by Hwan Thsang in travelling leisurely from Kanoj to Balahhi. There can he no mistake about the king’s caste ; for the Vaisya Raja was named Kalya- nasphutana, whereas the Kshatriya Raja was called Dhruvabhatta.)
Thence to the N. W. at 700 li (117 miles) to
No. 103 — A-nan-tiia-pu-lo, Anantapura , Landresse. 2000 li (333 miles) hi extent. Without a king, being a dependency of Malwa. (It it impossible to believe that any place to the W. of Balahhi could have belonged to Malwa. The hearing should therefore most probably be either N. or N. E. instead of N. W. This would point to the neighbourhood of Anhalwarapatan and Ahmadnagar. The former place however formed part of the kingdom of Balahhi : hut it may have been temporarily annexed to Malwa at the period of Hwan Thsang’s visit.)
From Fa-la-pi to the W. at 500 li (83 miles) to
No. 104. — Su-la-tho, Surat, Landresse: 4000 li (667 miles) in extent. The capital rests to the W. on the river Mu-yi. Through
48
Verification of the Itinerary of Hwdn Thsang [July,
this country lies the natural road towards the western sea : and the peopleware fond of maritime enterprizes. Near the town is mount Yeu- shen-to. The Chinese syllables represent the Sanskrit Surashtra in its spoken form of Suratha. M. Landresse is wrong in identifying this with Surat, which is a modern town. According to II wan Thsan" the capital must be looked for in the neighbourhood of Junagarh, a place which we know to have been one of the chief cities of the peninsula of Gujrat.
From Fa-la-pi to the N. at 1800 li (300 miles) to
No. 10. >. — Kiu-che-lo, 5000 li (833 miles.) Heretics, numerous: believers, few. The capital is named Pi-lo-ma-lo. (Both bearing and distance point to the modern district of Jodhpur or Marwar, of which one of the principal ancient cities is B/irmer, no doubt the Pi-lo-ma-lo of Hwan Thsang, as its position corresponds exactly until the descrip- tion. The name of the district would appear to have been Ghijara, or Gurjjara-rashtra, the “ country of Gujars.” In 1 1 wan Thsang’ s time therefore this name could not have comprized the peninsula, which was then known under the name of Surashtra. It would be interesting if we could trace the period of the extension of this name to the peninsula. I have a suspicion that it must have taken place after the establishment of the Ralitors in Marwar, when the original inhabitants of Gujara, being dislodged and pushed to the south, sought refuge in Surashtra , to which they gave their own name.)
Thence to the S. E. at 2800 li (4G7 miles) to
No. 10G — U-che-yan-na, Ujjayitii, Landresse, 6000 li (1000 miles) in extent. Stupa : the “ site of Hell,” built by Asoka. (This is no doubt the once celebrated Ujain, as identified by M. Landresse. “ Hell” was the name of a prison built by Asoka before his conversion to Bud- dhism, and which he afterwards destroyed.)
Thence to the N. E. at 1000 li (1G7 miles) to
No. 107. — Chi-chi-to, 4000 li (GG7 miles) in extent. The king is a Brahman, and devoutly believes in the “Three precious ones.” (The distance and bearing carry us into the heart of Bundelkhand, to the kingdom of Chach&vati or Jajavati, and its capital Kajuraha, which are both noticed by Abu Rihan al Biruni. Kajuraha is no doubt the Kragausa Metropolis of Ptolemy. The mention that the king was a Brahman points to a period prior to the establishment of the Chaudel
49
1848.] through Afghanistan and India.
Rajputs, which we know must have taken place somewhere about A. D. 700.*
Thence to the N. at 900 li (150 miles) to
N0. 108.— Ma-yi-she-fa-lo-pu-lo, 3000 li (500 miles) in extent. Heretics who do not believe in Buddha. (The Chinese syllables repre- sent exactly the Sanskrit Maheswarapura, but I know of no place ot this name to the N. of Bundelkhand. Perhaps Bhuteswara, on the Jamna, may be intended : for Bhuteswara and Maheswara, being both well known names of Siva, are of course interchangeable ; and as the distance and bearing agree with those recorded by Hwan Thsang) it is probable that my proposed identification may be correct : more especi- ally as the Brahmanical celebrity of Bhuteswara agrees with the mention that the place was in the possession of “ heretics” who believed not in Buddha.)
From Kiu-che-lo (or Gujara, Marwar) to the N. through a desert and across the Sin-tu (or Indus) to
No. 109. — Sin-tu, Sindh, Landresse, 7000 li (1167 miles) in extent. The capital is Pi-chhen-pho-ptj-lo, (perhaps Pushpa-pura, or “ Flower town,” a very common name for Indian cities. It appears to be the Pasipeda of Ptolemy.) Asokahere built many stupas. (No distance is given, but as the city was situated on the Indus, the bearing is suffi- cient to indicate the town of Alor, which we know to have been the capital of Sind, within a few years after Hwan Thsang’ s visit. I should prefer rendering the Chinese syllables by Viswa-pura ; but Pushpa- pura appears to be the more likely name, as it is a very common term for Indian cities. Thus both Kanoj and Pataliputra were also called Kusumapura, a synonyme of Pushpapura, which in its Pali form of Pup- pha-pura, was the common name of Palibothra amongst the Buddhists.
Thence to the E. at 900 li (150 miles) passing to the E. bank of the Indus to
* Lieut. Maisey in his account of Kalanjjar, ( J. A. S. B. — 1848— p. 188) errone- ously states that the Chandel Rajas of Mahoba were of Brahmanical descent ; hence, saye he, “ the title of Brimh.” He has apparently been misled by the vulgar pronun- ciation of Barm, which is the spoken form of Varmma, “ armor,” a name peculiar and
appropriate to the Kshatriya class. Varmma, lias nothing in common with
Brahma. If symphony alone is allowed to guide etymology, bhram or “ black bee, ”mav equally lay claim to a descent from Brahma; but, unfortunately for the bee, its name is spelt MRT, Bhramara. Both coins and inscriptions spell the name Varmma.
H
50
Verification of the Itinerary of II wan Thsang. [July,
No. 1 10. — Meu-lo-san-pu-lo, 4000 li (667 miles) in extent. Nu- merous worshippers of the Gods : but few Buddhists. (There can be no doubt that the Chinese syllables represent Mallisthanpura, or Mal- thdnpur, now Multan. The bearing should therefore have been N. E. and not E. The distance also is too little.)
Thence to the N. E. at 700 li (117 miles) to
No. 1 1 1. — Po-fa-to, 5000 li (833 miles in extent.) Four stupas of Asoka and twenty temples of heretics. (Judging from the bearing and distance the Chinese syllables may possibly be intended to represent Pak-patan, an old place also called Ajudhan, and which is perhaps the Ardone of Ptolemy. This identification is however only a guess ; for both Harapa and Chichawatin agree equally well with the position indicated, and as the Chinese syllables Fa-to most probably represent the Sans- krit Vati, perhaps Chichawatin may be the true position.)
From Sin-tu to the S. W. at 1500 or 1600 li (250 to 267 miles) to
No. 112 — A-thian-pho-shi-lo, 5000 li (833 miles) in extent. The walls of the capital, which is called Ko-chi-she-fa-lo (or Kach- cheswara ) are close to the river Sin-tu (or Indus), and also not far from the shore of the Great Sea. Without a king, being a dependency of Sind. Here Asoka built six Stupas. The recorded distance points to the modem peninsula of Kachh, of which Kotasir is one of the prin- cipal towns. Its position agrees exactly with that given bv Hwan Thsang, and the modem name is perhaps only a slight corruption of the ancient one, although a different meaning is now attached to it. The name of the district would appear to be Adhipasila ; the “ king’s mountain,” or the “ king’s rock.” I have a suspicion that the two names have been interchanged : Kachcheswara being the proper name
of the country, and the original of Kachckha or Kachh, of the present day.
Thence to the N. at less than 2000 li (about 330 miles) to
No. 113 — Lang-ko-lo, in Western India: many thousands of li on every side. The capital is called Su-tu-li-she-fa-lo. This country is on the shore of the Great Sea. It has no king, being a dependency of Persia. The alphabetic characters are like those of the Indians, but the language is somewhat different. In the town is a temple of Mdhe- swara. (The bearing and distance both point to the island of Astofa, the Asthdla of Ptolemy, and the Thdra of Edrisi. This name is easily
through Afghanistan and India .
51
1848.]
recognizable in the Chinese syllables, which are a literal transcript of Astuleswara, the “ Lord of Astula,” an appellation of Siva, as husband of Astula or Durga. The name of the district, Lang-ko-lo-was, is pro- bably derived from Lakorian , an ancient town now in ruins, a little to the northward of Khozdar. The district would therefore correspond with the modern Baluchistan.)
Thence to the N. W. to
No. 114 — Pho-la-sse, Persia, Landresse. Many tens of thousands of li in extent. The capital is called Su-la-sa-tang-na. This country on the N. W. touches Fe-lin. (The name of the capital appears to have been Surasthan, no doubt the Ram-Seristan of Ibn Haukal, of which the ruins still exist on the Helmand, just above its junction with the Hamiin. Fe-lin is of course Europe, or the country of the Firingis or Franks, called Plii-ling by the Tibetans, from whom the Chinese perhaps derived the name.)
From A-thian-pho-shi-lo (or Kachchh ) to the N. at 700 li (117 miles) to
No. 115 — Pi-to-shi-lo, 3000 li (500 miles) in extent. Without a king, being a dependency of Sind. To the N. of the town at 15 or 16 li (24 miles) in a great forest, is a Stupa several hundred feet in height built by Asoka ; and near it to the E. is a monastery built by the Arhan Ta-kia-ta-yan-na. (The bearing and distance point exactly to the ruins of Naserpur and Nerunkot, close to the present Haiderabad. The Chinese syllables perhaps represent Patasila, the “ exten-
sive rock,” or the “expanse of stone,” a name of the same import as Patala, “the extensive abode;” the common acceptation of Patala, is iJTtTT«T, or “ Hell,” in allusion to its low position in the Delta of the Indus. The Tibetans however give it a much more natural etymology. They call the town, ' h' <2J, Potdla, the “place of boats,” or the “ Haven.” But as Potala was also the name of a hill, Hwan Thsang’s syllables may be rendered Potasila, “the Boat-hill,” which when applied to the rocky Nerunkot, would be as appropriate a name as Potala or “ Boat-place.” There can be no doubt that it is the Patala of the Greeks. Even now it stands at the real head of the Delta, at the point of divurgence of the Guni river, which must have been the eastern branch down which Alexander sailed. The determination of this point we owe chiefly to Hwan Thsang’s distances.)
h 2
Verification of the Itinerary of II wan Thsang [July,
52
Thenee to the N. E. at 300 I'd (50 miles) to
No. 1 1 G — A-pan-chha, 2400 to 2500 li (400 to 41/ miles) in extent.
Without a king, being a dependency of Sind. Stupa built by Asoka. ( J udging by the bearing and distance the place intended must be the celebrated Brahmandbdd, which was rebuilt as Mansura. It is the “Brahman city” of the historians of Alexander, and the Harmatelia of Diodorus, which I believe to be derived from the Sanskrit Brahmas- thala, in its spoken form of Brahmathala. The Chinese syllables would however appear to bear some resemblance to Uckha or lick but that town is more than 300 miles distant.)
Thence to the N. E. at 900 li (150 miles) to
No. 117 — Fa-la-nu, 4000 li (66/ miles) in extent. It is a depen- dency of Kia-pi-she (or Kapisa, now Kushun.) The language has a slight analogy with that of central India. It is said that on the west- ward amongst the mountains it stretches to Ki-khiang-na. (Hwan Thsang has now crossed the frontier of Sindh, and entered the territory dependent on Kapisa or Kushdn. His bearing must therefore be wrong as well as his distance ; for by following them we only reach the neigh- borhood of Aror, the capital of Sindh. But by comparing his further progress towards Kapisa, and by taking his distances and bearings from that place, together with the name of the district itself, it seems most probable that the country around the Bolan Pass must be intended. The Chinese syllables are indeed a faithful transcript of Bolan ; and although the distance is just double that recorded by Hwan Thsang, yet the fact that the pilgrim was proceeding from Sindh to Kabul almost proves the correctness of my identification, as the Bolan Pass was the nearest route that he could have followed. But when joined to the absolute identity of name, I think there can scarcely be a doubt as to the correctness of the identification.)
Thence to the N. W. across great mountains and large streams, and past several small towns at 2000 li (333 miles) on the frontier of India, to
No. 118 — Tsao-kiu-tho, 7000 li (1167 miles) in extent. Language and letters peculiar. Stupas built by Asoka. Temple of the God Tsu-na, who came from Mount A-lu-nas (. Aruna , the “ red,”) near Kapisa. (Taking the next recorded bearing and distance from Hu- phi-na or Hupian, Tsao-kiu-tho must be the district of Arachosia
53
1848.] through Afghanistan and India.
on the Arachotus river. The Chinese syllables indeed seem to point to this name. The old capital of Arachotus or Alexandropolis, was situat- ed on the Arachotus river ; but its distance from Hupian is much too great. Ghazni would appear rather to have been the capital visited by Hwan Thsang, as it lies on the high road to Kabul.)
Thence to the N. at 500 li (83 miles) to
No. 119 — Foe-li-shi-sa-tang-na, 2000 li (333 miles) from E. to W., and 1000 li (16 7 miles) from N. to S. The capital is called Iiu- phina. The king, of the race of Thu-kiuei (or Turk, Landresse) is at- tached to the Three Precious Ones. (The Chinese syllables represent Parashasthdna, the modern Panjhir or Panjshir valley, where Ptolemy places the Parsii and their two towns Parsia and Parsiana. The capital is undoubtedly the present Hupian near Charikar, which was the position of the celebrated Alexandria ad Caucasum, called by Stephen of Byzantium, Alexandria Opiane. I have discussed this sub- ject in my article upon Ariano-Grecian Monograms published in the Numismatic chronicle of London.)
Thence to the N. E. over mountains and rivers, and passing by ten small towns, to the frontier of Kapisa, one reaches the great snowy mountains, and the Pho-lo-si-na chain. This is the highest peak of Jambu-dwipa. From thence a descent of three days to
No. 120 — An-tha-la-fo, the ancient country of the Tu-ho-lo (or (Tochari), 3000 li (500 miles) in extent. Without a king, being tri- butary to the Turks. (This place has already been identified by Pro- fessor Lassen with Anderab to the N. of the Hindu Kush. The Pho- lo-si-na chain is clearly the Paropainsus of the Greeks, called Parnessus by Dionysius Periegesis. That Hwan Thsang’ s appellation is the correct one is proved by the Zend name of Mount Aprasin, which is accurately preserved in the Parrhasini of Pliny, and in the Parrhasii of Strabo and Solinus. The celebrated Greek name of Parnassus appears to have been only a fond alteration of the true name by the soldiers of Alexander’s army in remembrance of their own famous mountain.)
Thence to the N. W. through vallies and over hills and past many small towns at 400 li (67 miles) to
No. 121 — Huo-si-to, ancient country of the Tochari, 3000 li (500 miles) in extent. Without a king, being tributary to the Turks.
54
Verification of the Itinerary of H wan Thsang [July,
(This must be some place on the Ghori river between Baghalan anil Kunduz. The Chinese syallables appear to represent some name like Kliosta, but as we possess no detailed maps of this part of the country it is almost impossible to identify this place, as well as several others mentioned by Hwan Thsang.)
Thence to the N. W. over hills and through vallies, and past several towns, to
No. 122. — Hu-o, formerly belonging to the Tochari. "Without a king, being tributary to the Turks. (This is most probably Khulm.)
Towards the E. at 100 li (17 ipiles) is
No. 123. — Meng-kian, formerly belonging to the Tochari. With- out a king, being tributary to the Turks. (The bearing and distance point to the neighbourhood of Yang-Arek, near which are the ruins of an ancient town, which may probably be the Meng-kia of Ilwan Thsang.)
Thence to the N. is
No. 124. — A-li-ni, formerly belonging to the Tochari. It lies upon both banks of the Fa-tsu (or Oxus) and is 300 li (50 miles) in extent. (This is undoubtedly the Walin of Ibu Ilaukal, the Urwalin of Edrisi, and the Welwaleg of Ulugh Beg. According to Edrisi (1. 475) it was 2 days journey to the E. of Khulm, and 2 days to the W. of Telikan, which agrees with the position assigned to it by Hwan Thsang. This wonld place it about the mouth of the Kunduz river, where there still exists a Fort called Kilah Zdl. Now Ibn Haukal writes the name Zudlin, as well as Walin. It is probable therefore that Kilah Zal is the identical place mentioned bv all these writers. Its position on the Oxus would of course secure for it the possession of land on both sides of the river, as stated by Hwan Thsang.)
Thence to the E. is
No. 125. — Ko-lo-hu, formerly belonging to the Tochari. It stretch- es to the Oxus towards the N. (I believe this to be the modem dis- trict of Kunduz Proper, which is bounded to the N. by the Oxus.)
To the E. across a chain of hills and past several districts and towns at 300 li (50 miles) to
No. 126. — Ke-li-se-mo, formerly belonging to the Tochari, 100 h (17 miles) from E. to W., and 300 li (50 miles) from N. to S. (The bearing and distance point to Tdlikun.)
1848.]
through Afghanistan and India.
55
Thence to the N. E. is
No. 127. — Po-li-ho, formerly belonging to the Tochari ; 100 li (17 miles) from E. to W. and 300 li (50 miles) from N. to S. (This is perhaps the old city of Barbara, now in ruins, at the mouth of the Kokclia river.)
From Ke-li-se-mo, across the mountains to the E. at 300 li (50 miles) to
No. 128. — Sse-mo-th a-lo, formerly belonging to the Tochari, 3000 li (500 miles) in extent. The rule of the Turks has very much changed the habits and locations of the people. (The recorded data point to the neighbourhood of Tishkdn, on the high road between Talikan and Fai- zabad.)
Thence to the E. at 200 li (33 miles) to
No. 129. — Po- tho-tsang-na, formerly belonging to the Tochari* 2000 li (333 miles) in extent. The king is firmly attached to the belief of the Three Precious Ones. (The hearing and distance point to Faizd- hdd, the capital of Badakshdn, of which latter name the Chinese syl- lables are only a transcript.)
Thence to the S. E. at 200 li (33 miles) over mountains to
No. 130. Yiu- po-kian, formerly belonging to the Tochari, 1000 It (167 miles) in extent. The language is slightly different from that of Badakslian. (This is probably Yawal on the Wardoj river.)
Thence to the S. E. across a mountain chain by a dangerous road, at 300 li (50 miles.)
No. 131. Kitj-lang-nu, formerly belonging to the Tochari, 2000 li (333 miles) in extent. Without religion, there being hut few Buddhists. The people are savage and ugly. The king believes in the Three Preci- ous Ones. (Judging from the data this must be the present Firganue, close to the mines of lapis-lazuli. In fact the Chinese syllables would seem to represent some name being similar to this one.)
Thence to the N. E. by a mountainous and difficult road at 500 li (83 miles) to
No. 132. — Tha-mo-si-thiei-ti, or Thian-pin, or Hu-mi, formerly belonging to the Tochari. From 1500 to 1600 li (250 to 267 miles) from E. to W., and only 4 or 5 li (about three quarters of a mile) from N. to S., and situated between two mountains on the river Oxus. The people have green eyes, different from those of all other countries.
56 Verification of the Itinerary of Hvoan Thsang [July,
(The bearing and distance point to the Wakhan valley, which agree exactly with the description of Hwan Thsang ; for from the Sir-i-kol lake to the junction of the Shakh-dara, the Oxus is I/O miles in length, measured direct on Wood’s map ; to which must be added one half more for the windings of the stream, making a total length of 255 miles. From Ishkashm to Kundut, the valley of Wakhan is from “ a few hun- dred yards to a mile in width.” The average width is therefore some what more than half a mile, as accurately stated by Hwan Thsang. This is one more proof that the measurements of the Chinese pilgrim are generally correct. The name of Ilu-mi is no doubt derived from the Hien-mi tribe of Tochari, whose name is still preserved in Amv, the modem appellation of the Oxus. Wakhan is mentioned by I bn Haukal, Edrisi and Marco Polo, and it is, I believe, the V anda-banda regio of Ptolemy.)
No. 133. — She-khi-ni, 2000 li (333 miles) in extent. The capital is called Wen-ta-to. This country is to the N. of the Great Snowy Mountains. (She-khi-ni is the Shakhnan of the present day, and the Sakinah of Ibn Haukal and Edrisi.)
To the S. of Wakhan and the Great Mountains is
No. 134. — Shang-mi, 2500 to 2600 li (41 7 to 433 miles) in extent. The letters are the same as those of the Tochari ; but the language is different. The king is of the race of She. The religion of Buddha is held in great honor. (This can only be the valley of Chitral, w ith the lateral vallies of Kafiristan. The name was perhaps derived from the Indo-Scythian tribe of Shwang-mi.)
To the N. E. over the mountains by a dangerous road, at 700 h (117 miles) is the valley of Pho-mi-lo, (or Varner , Laudresse) which is 1000 li (167 miles) from E. to W. and 100 li (17 miles) from N. to S. and is situated between two snowy mountains. There is the great lake of serpents, which is 300 li (50 miles) from E. to W. and 50 li (upwards of 8 miles) from N. to S. It is in the midst of the Tsung Sing mountains. (This is the well known lake of Sir-i-kol, at the source of the Oxus and in the district of Pamer.)
To the S. of Pamer, across the mountains is the kingdom of the Po-he-lo (or Bo/or, Landresse) which produces much gold. The S. E. part of the district is inhabited. (This is the kindom of Bahi or Little Tibet, which is called Palolo by the Dardus. From this name
1848.]
through Afghanistan and India.
57
has been derived that of the mountain range of Bolor, and perhaps also that of be/or or “ rock crystal.”)
Thence beyond the snowy mountains and glaciers is No. 135. — Ko-phan-to, 2000 li (333 miles) in extent. The capital is situated on a high mountain, close to the river Si-to. The king takes the title of Chi-na-thi-pho-kiu-ta-lo, “race du dieu du soleil de la Chine” (or China-deva-gotra.) The Si-to, or Sita, is the river of Kashgar; and the district appears to he that ofSir-i-kol, of which Tag- armi is now the largest town.)
Thence descending the Tsung Sing to the E. and crossing other mountains at 800 li (133 miles) to
No. 136. — U-SAi, 1000 li (167 miles) in extent. On the S. it stretches to the river Sita. The letters and language somewhat resemble those of Kashgar. Buddha is held in honor. Without a king being tributary to Ko-phan-to. To the W. of the town at 200 li (33 miles) is a great mountain. (This appears to answer to the district of Yangi- Ilisar. It is probably the Auzakia of Ptolemy.)
Thence to the N. over lonely mountains at 500 li (83 miles) to No. 137. — Kie.-sha, Kashgar, Landresse ; 5000 /* (833 miles) in extent.
Thence to the S. E. crossing the river Sita, the Great Sands, and a mountain chain, at 500 li (83 miles) to
No. 138 — Cho-keu-kiax 1000 li (167 miles) in extent. The letters are the same as those of Kiu-sa-tan-na, ( Ku-sthdna or Kotan, Remu- sat,) but the language is different.
Thence to the E. across a chain at 800 li (133 miles) to No. 139 — Kiu-sa-tan-na (or Kotan, Rernusat), commonly Wan- na. The Hiung-nu call it Iu-sian the other barbarians Ku-tan, and the Yin-tu, Kiu-tan. It is 4000 li (667 miles) in extent.
Thence at 400 li (67 miles) to
No. 140 — Tu-ho-lo, or the ancient country of the Tochari. (This is no doubt the district of Khor in Great Tibet, for the chief tribe of the Tochari was the Kuei-shang of the Chinese writers, the Korano of the coins, and the Chaurancei of Ptolemy.*)
Dr. Taylor identifies Ptolemy’s ChuuranaA with the Garos of Asam, although they are placed immediately to the E. of the Byltx, or people of Balti, or Little Tibet I observe with regret that Mr. B. II. Hodgson ' seems to admit the correctness of Dr,
I
58
Verification of the Itinerary of II wan Thsang [July
Thence to the E. at GOO li (100 miles) to
No. 141 — Che-ma-tan-na, or land of Ni-mo. (Perhaps Chan- thdn, the district inhabited by the Chatce Scythce of Ptolemy.
Verification of II w tin Thsdng’s view of Buddhism.
It may perhaps be urged against Hwan Thsang that, as a zealous follower of Buddha, he has exhibited altogether a much too favorable view of the state of the Buddhist religion in India at the period of his visit. But fortunately, we possess the independent testimonies of two different authors, the one a Brahman, and the other a Musalman, whose statements fully corroborate the news of the Chinese pilgrim, and vouch for the entire truthfulness of his narrative. The Brahman is Kalhana
Taylor’s identification of Asam with the Serica of the ancients. This is a point that in my opinion is wholly without proof, or even probability. It is indeed true that Asam and Serica both produced silk : and equally true is it that there was a river in Macedon and another in Monmouth, and that there were salmons in both, but this proves nothing : for Asam was certainly apart of “ India extra Gangem,”as was also Great Tibet, includ- ing the whole of the country on the Sanpu river. Thus Elddna is Galddn, Sagoda is Sliigatze, Adisagx is U-Tsang or Lhussa, and the Daona Flavins is the Dihong River. The Dabasx are the people of Diihus, or Central Tibet, that is of Lhassa.and the Damasi Montes, are the hills of Ddbus. A glance at the map will show the correctness of these identifications ; but we have also the fact that the kings of Great Tibet from B. C. 250 were Indians of the family of Lichchavi of Vaisali. This alone was sufficient to warraut Ptolemy in including Tibet within “ India extra Gangem.” I cannot enter into any details here ; but I may mention that the routes from India to Tibet appear to have remained unchanged since Ptolemy’s time : for Tosale Metropolis, is most probably Tassisudon, the capital of Botan ; and Tugma Metropolis must be the capital of Asam ; whilst Mareura emporium is Amarapura the capital of Ava. The Seres were certainly the Ouigours whose name is preserved in the Oichardes Fluvius and Oichardte, in the ltaguri, Thagurus Mons, and Thogara, all of which are only various spellings of Ouiguri or Ouigours. They were called Kiao-chang or “ Waggoners” by the Chinese, which term we also find preserved in the Essedones of Ptolemy and Ammianus, in the Heniochi of Pliny, and in the Harmatotrophi of Pomponius Mela : all of which are only literal translations of the Chinese name. The Seres must not therefore be confounded with the Sinx, for the latter were the people of China Proper, the former of Chinese Tartary. A few minor identifications may also be mentioned, such as : the Psitaras fluvius of Pliny is the Su-Turini, or river of Yarkand : the Sizyges are the people of Sui-Ching : — the Damnx are the people of Manas, the Asmirxi are the people of Urumtsi or Bish- balig ; — and the Throani or Tharrani are the people of Turfdn.
1848.]
through Afghanistan and India.
59
Pandit, the author of the early portions of the Raja Taringini or Sanskrit history of Kashmir. According to him
In about A. D. 560, Galuna the minister of Vikramaditya built a Vihdra, or Buddhist monastery. T. 3. — SI. 476.
Between A. D. 594 and 630, Ananggalekha, the Queen of Durlahha, built a Vihdra. T. 4. — SI. 3.
Between A. D. 680 and 689, Prahdsa-Devi, the Queen of Chandra- pira, built a Vihdra. T. 4. — SI. 79.
Between A. D. 693 and 729, Raja Lalitdditya built a great Vihdra and a Stupa in Hushkapura, and in another place he built a great Chaitya, as well as a Vihdra. T. 4. — SI. 188-200. He likewise erected a great copper image of Buddha. T. 4. — SI. 203. His Prime Minister also, named Changkuna, a Turk from Bhukhara, built a Stupa, a Chaitya and a Vihdra. T. 4. — SI. 211-215. And the Physician Isanachandra, the Minister’s brother-in-law also built a Vihdra. T. 4. —SI. 216.
Between A. D. 751 and 782, Raja Joyapira erected images of the three Buddhas (the “ three precious ones” of Hwan Thsang) as well as a very large Vihdra. T. 4. — SI. 506.
Between A. D. 854 and 883, Raja Avanti Varmma, for the space of ten years, prohibited the slaughter of every living thing. T. 5. — SI. 64.
In A. D. 933, Raja Parfha with his family took refuge in the Vihdra of Sri-Chandra, where he was fed by the Srdmanas, or Bauddha mendi- cants. T. 5. — SI. 427.
And between A. D. 950 and 958, Raja Kshema Gupta abolished the worship of Buddha and burned the Vihdras. T. 6. — SI. 72.
The Musalman Author is Beladori, who states that
“The Indians give the name of Bodd to every object of their wor- ship, and they also call an idol Bodd.” Remand’s Fragmens, &c. pp. 193, 194.
Again, after the concprest of Nirun in A. D. 711 “Mahomed bin Kasim was met by some ‘ Samaneens,’ ( Srdmanas or Bauddha mendi- cants) who came to sue for peace.” Remands Fragmens, p. 195.
From these passages of Beladory we see that Buddha was still the chief object of worship in Sind some 60 or 70 years after Flwau Thsang’ s visit ; and that Srdmanas and not Brahmans were employed
i 2
CO
Chinese Map of India.
[July,
by the people as mediators with the Musalman Conquerer. The state- ments of Kalhana are perhaps more interesting though not more deci- sive ; for they show that Buddhism continued to be honored by kings and ministers until the middle of the 10th century, at which time the Buddhists were persecuted by Kshema-Gupta. It is true that several of the Kashmirian Princes also erected fanes to Siva and other Brah- manical deities. But this proves no more than that Brahmanism and Buddhism were both flourishing together in Kashmir at the same time. Perhaps these Princes had the same feeling upon the subject of religion as the Frenchman, immortalized by Smollet, who made his obeisance to the statue of Jupiter in St. Peter’s at Rome, saying, “O Jupiter, if ever you get the upper hand again, remember that I paid my respects to you in your adversity.” Even so the Kashmirian Rajas appear to have halted between two opinions, and to have erected temples and statues ot both religions, in the hope that one of the two must be right.
Chinese Map of India.
As an appropriate accompaniment of Capt. Cunningham’s interesting paper on the route of Hwan thsang, the Editors insert the annexed Chinese Map of India, originally copied by M. Klaproth from the Great Japanese Encyclopedia for the illustration of the Foe koue ki. Al- though in some particulars it differs from the narratives of Hwan thsang and Shy fa hian, being the compilation of some unknown Chi- nese geographer, who probably gathered his materials from many and conflicting accounts, it will be found both useful and interesting at a time when public attention is directed to China for the most authentic particulars of the early history of this country.
One of the principal difficulties in identifying the routes of these tra- vellers arises from the uncertain length of their metrical standard the li, which has been variously estimated at from |tli to i a mile. Xor is this difficulty altogether removed when the Indian measure, or yojana, is employed. For though it is probable that in ancient times the princi- pal high-roads were accurately measured, yet the length of the yojana seems to have varied in different parts of India precisely as we find the
1848.]
Chinese Map of India.
G1
Zeros (of which it is a multiple) to vary at the present day. Thus, Cap- tain Cunningham by comparing the distances of well identified positions in the north-western parts of India, has determined the length of the yojana to be there about 7 English miles : hut on applying this stand- ard to Fa hian’s distances in Magadha, it will be found by nearly half too great. For if we protract that traveller’s route from She wei (Oude) to Pa lian fou (Patna), and assume 7 miles for the length of the yojana , we shall place the site of the latter town somewhere in the neighbourhood of Burdwan. But if we determine the value of the yojana in Magadha in the same way as Capt. C. has done in the north-west, that is from the actual distances of well determined positions, we shall find it not greatly to exceed 4 or 4]- miles ; a value which corresponds well with all Fa hian’s distances in Behar, and facilitates the identification of all his stages from Oude downwards. Thus the direct distance from She wei to Kiu i na lde, is by protraction, 30 yojanas ; measured on Arrow- smith’s map (Oude to the banks of the Gandak), 120 miles; — from Patna to Giriyek, 9 yojanas according to Fa hian, or 40 miles on the map ; — from Giriyek to Kia ye (which by the way, is neither modern Gaya nor Bauddha Gaya, but an ancient town * near Barabar), is a little less than 4 yojanas or 27 miles, bringing us exactly to the banks of the Falgo ; and so on.
That this valuation of the yojana is founded upon a true and ancient Indian standard may be inferred from the following remarks of Wilford. After quoting Pliny’s account of the distance of Palibothra from the confluence of the Ganges and Jamna, he remarks that “ Megastlienes says the high ways in India were measured, and that at the end of a certain Indian measure (which is not named, but is said to be equal to ten stadia ), there was a cippus or sort of column erected. No Indian measure answers to this but the brahmani or astronomical kos of four to a yojana. This is the Hindu statute koss, and equal to 1.227 British miles. It is used by astronomers and by the inhabitants of the Punjab ; hence it is veiy often called the Punjabi koss ; thus the distance from Lahor to Multan is reckoned to this day 145 Punjabi, or 90 common koss.”j~ It is worthy of remark that the length of the yojana in
* Ram Gaya ? may we commend the investigation of this point to Capt. Kittoe, whose intimate acquaintance with that neighbourhood points him out as best qualified for the task ' t As. Res. Vol. V. p. 274.
G2 Inscriptions found in Province Wellesley . [July,
the north-west, as determined by Capt. Cunningham from Fa hian’s distances, namely, within a fraction of 7 miles, bears nearly the same proportion to the Magadhi yojana as the common does to the Punjabi koss. The learned Colebrooke makes the standard koss 2.25 miles, and the computed koss one half of that, or a mile and an eighth.
According to Chinese translators of Buddhist works there were three kinds of yojana employed in India ; the great yojana of 80 li, used for the measurement of level countries, where the absence of mountains and rivers renders the road easy ; the mean yojana of 60 li, used where rivers or mountains oppose some difficulties to the traveller ; and the small yojana of 40 li, adapted to those countries where the mountains are precipitous and the rivers deep. This show's that we must not ap- ply an invariable standard to the every portion of these pilgrims’ routes ; but rather seek to determine its local value, where practicable, by the distance of well identified spots in each neighbourhood.
An account of several Inscriptions found in Province Wellesley on the Peninsula of Malacca. — By Lieut. -Col. James Low M. A. S. B. and C. M. R. A. S.
(A.) Consists of a group of seven inscriptions now extant on the rather weather-worn and sloping side of a granite rock at a place named Tokoon, lying near to the center of the Province, or almost directly east of Penang town. The whole probably appertain to one period and the same subject.
The rock wras pointed out several years ago to Mr. Thomson the Government Surveyor by some Malays, but he examined it hastily, as it was covered with jungle and long grass, and it was not until a consi- derable time had elapsed that I accidently learned from him its existence. I had before this passed for years consecutively close to the spot, vet such was the apathy of the villagers, or their ignorance, that no hint was given to me about the rock ; and this induces me to mention that owing to this indifference and to the suspicious conduct of the native chiefs.
CHINESE MAP of INDIA
Sh<4Vi*uf lh( rouJr of Human (/man
PE IN Tor I
R8nauwo\
ICO. KOI v
1848.] Inscriptions found in Province Wellesley. 63
I have been left almost entirely to rely on my personal research and that of persons trained by me for the purpose, when endeavouring dur- ing the past twelve or fourteen years to penetrate through the darkness which shut out from common view the archaiology of the countries around me.
I had some difficulty in reaching Tokoon, although mounted on my elephant, owing to several almost impassable jheels or payas, as they are here termed. My people had built a small hut of jungle wood and palm leaves, and after assuring myself of the value of the inscriptions, men were set to clear away the jungle and to dig up the ground to some distance around the rock. But I was disappointed in my expec- tation of finding ruins and other marks of temples and an ancient popu- lation.
The inscriptions were copied by me with the utmost care, the task having occupied the greatest portion of the mornings and evenings of three days.
I did not attempt to make a facsimile, as I had no proper materials, and had not succeeded with Capt. Kittoe’s plan. But I can safely say that the approach to a facsimile is perhaps as near as it would be possible to make it. The letters are very, indeed unusually, large and thick, for ancient inscriptions, but this peculiarity rendered the task, comparatively easy. Finely powdered and very dry chalk was cast loosely over the inscription until all the letters were filled. The chalk was then brushed off the surface of the stone with a bunch of feathers, and thus the lines of words became clear and legible.
The length of the largest inscription is that of the paper on which it has been copied, and as now forwarded (about ten feet) .
That the style of letter is of Indian origin seems to me quite obvi- ous, but it contrasts a good deal with the inscription B. (fig. — .) Our Brahman and Buddhist Priests here are so stupid that I have not been able to derive any assistance from them, and although I can trace some of the letters, I think, to inscriptions published in the Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal, I have not ventured to attempt the decypher- ing of them.
(B.) I discovered this inscription while engaged in excavating some old ruins on a sandy side in the northern district of this Province. It has been engraved on a sort of slate and seems to form
64 Inscriptions found in Province Wellesley. [July,
part only of a much larger inscription, for that portion of stone which I have got, appears to have been the upper portion of one of those pil- lars which are set up in the areas of Buddhist temples. I have the pleasure of forwarding a facsimile of this record made with cloy, which is perhaps, a novel mode. The clay was fine potter’s earth and sand well beaten up along with chopped gunnee bag cloth. The stone was oiled and the clay was pressed on it and afterwards dried in the shade.
The Copy was made by me in the following manner. Finely pulveriz- ed and dry brick-dust was (as the chalk was in the former instance, the stone being then blackish,) thrown over the face of the stone, and then lightly brushed off with feathers. The letters now appeared sharp and distinct, over these was pasted (with wafers at the edges) a sheet or slips of the “ stylographie manifold writer paper” — and the letters were lightly impressed on this paper with a soft pencil, and when the sheet was removed any slight omissions were filled in.
I have in vain tried to discover the remaining portion of the stone.
I may observe that a copy of this inscription was, so far back as 1836, forwarded by me to the lamented James Prinsep, who in his reply ob- serves : — “ I see it is legible enough. Thus, on the right hand side of the stone following the letters are Ma ha ta vika Buddha na ra kta vri- tti kanaya vrinni. On the left side, sarova smin sarova tha sarova sidvaya cha santa. On the body next to the Kulsa, va na tarclichaya tti karnnna janchana kan me karino. If I had the facsimile instead of a copy I woidd have handed you the meaning at once. It is Sanscrit, not Pali, as we see by the karmma. The style of letter is nearly that of the Allahabad No. 2. Compare with the Ilala Cauara, published a few months ago.” 13 th June, 1837.
As I have not been able to get the numbers of the Journal for the above year, I cannot refer to this Ilala Canara record ; I may however observe that although I have satisfied myself that the Sivaic worship prevailed on this coast somewhere about the 13tli century, still I have reason to believe that the Buddhist religion was co-existent, or at least contemporaneous with it. Indeed, a mysterious kind of connection seems to have existed betwixt Buddhism and the cult of Siva, which it would be desirable to have traced to its beginning. To mo it seems that the period most probably was that when schismatic Buddhists had already
65
1848.] Inscriptions found in Province Wellesley.
overstepped the mere boundary of ratiocination and had fairly recon- ciled the two religions, at least for a while, and until the time when Buddhism was discarded altogether. The occurrence of the word Bud- dha in the inscription points to his worship, and the spire in the centre is the seven-tiered one of the Indo-Chinese Dagopas.
I have not by any means closed my researches, the obstacles to these, as I have elsewhere observed, being numerous, so that further arcliaiolo- gical discoveries may possibly yet be made.
(C.) — Are Sanscrit verses, out of some book on religion most likely, in alto relievo, on the bottom and the four sides of a brazen ornamented dish, which was found by me amid some ruins of ancient temples in Province Wellesley. They were copied by a man of the Brahmanical tribe.
(D.) — Are impressions taken from two apparently Deva Nagri letters, imprinted on a large brick which I found in one of the ruins.
(E.) — Are two coins one of copper and the other of some mixed metal, which last decrepitates on being submitted to the blowpipe.*
I found one of these in the Keddah country, close to the British frontier, and in the bed of a clear stream. My attention was attracted by quantities of broken pottery there ; and after my people, about twenty in number, had laboured for several days in sifting and searching, I picked two or three coins myself out of one of the baskets, a circum- stance which I am induced to mention in order to obviate any doubt which might arise regarding their genuineness. I visited the place a few months ago for a second search but found no more coins.
The second coin was found by me under the foundation of the ruins of a small brick building ; this last not however appearing above the surface of the ground. The spot is in the northern part of the Province. There were several hundreds of these coins in a metallic cup. From the emblems on them I consider them Buddhist coins.
The figure on the coin I have conjectured to be that of some Hindu deity. But the chief Priest of the Hindu Temple at Penang insists that it represents a king. I cannot make out the obverse.
While about to close these notes the Journal of the Society for February last has reached me. In this number I observed that in-
* These two coins contain exactly similar impressions, t Page 154.
K
GC Note on the Inscriptions from Singapur, §-e. [July,
quiries have been made regarding the inscription at Singapore describ- ed in the Journal, Yol. VI. p. 680, and that the Hon’ble Colonel Butter- worth, C. B. supposes that I may have some portions of the stone on which it was engraved.
I was an unwilling and pained witness to the demolition of that me- morial of long past ages, my petition to have it spared being met by the reply that it was in the way of some projected bungalow. On the explosion taking place I crossed the river from my office and selected such fragments as had letters on them. The Hon. the Governor, Mr. Bonham, sent to ask me to preserve a piece for him, and this is the portion alluded to by Col. Butterworth.
As the fragments were very bulky I had them, at considerable cost, gradually chisselled by a Chinese into the shape of slabs. But they are still ponderous. It happens however that the smaller fragments only contain the most legible (if the term is even here really applicable) parts of the inscription, the rest being nearly quite obliterated, and I have therefore selected them to be presented to the Society. It seems to me that this Singapore Inscription (to which I have alluded in a paper presently to appear in the Journal of the Eastern Archipelago) may probably date from an early century of our era, and I would merely here suggest that any one who may set about decyphering it may derive assistance by adverting to inscriptions which may have been discovered at the ancient Bijanagara in Orissa, or Cuttack, or wider still, along the coast of central Kalinga.
Note on the Inscriptions from Singapur and Province Wellesley, forwarded by the lion. Col. Butterworth, C. B. and Col. J.
Low. By J. W. Laidlay.
The great interest expressed by the late James Prinsep and other antiquarians in the remarkable inscription at Singapur induced me, as mentioned in a former number of this Journal, to apply to the present esteemed Governor of the Straits Settlements, the Hon. Col. Butter- worth, C. B. to secure for the Society’s Museum any fragments that might remain after the gothic exploit alluded to by Col. Low ; a request he was pleased very kindly and promptly to comply with. Since then
67
1848.] Note on the Inscriptions from Singapur, 8,'c.
Col. Low lias forwarded several other pieces ; and though in possession of hut a small portion of the original inscription, and that evidently not the most legible, I felt hound, in justice to the obliging donors, to bestow some labour in attempting to decypher at least its character.
In his brief notice of this inscription (J. A. S. Vol. \ I. p. 680) Mr. Prinsep remarks : “ Numerous have been the enquiries about this inscription, numerous have been the attempts to procure a copy of it from some of the constant visitors to the Straits for amusement or the benefit of their health. By some I was assured that the letters were evidently European, and the inscription merely a Dutch record. Others insisted that the character was precisely that of the Delhi pillar, or that of Tibet. While the last friend, Lieut. C. Mackenzie, who kindly undertook the commission, gave it up in despair at its very decayed state, which seemed utterly beyond the power of the antiquarian ; and in this he was quite right. Nevertheless a few letters still remain, enough to aid in determining at least the type and the language, and therefore the learned will be glad to learn that Dr. William Bland, of PI. H. S. Wolf, has at length conquered all the discouraging difficulties of the task, and has enabled me now to present a very accurate fac- simile of all that remains any way perceptible on the surface of the rocky fragment at Singapur. The following note fully explains the care and the method adopted for taking off the letters, and I have nothing to add to it, but my concurrence in his opinion that the charac- ter is the Pali, and that the purport therefore is most probably to re- cord the extension of the Buddhist faith to that remarkable point of the Malayan Peninsula. I cannot venture to put together any connected sentences or even words ; but some of the letters, the g, l, h, p, s, y, &c. can be readily recognised ; as well as many of the vowel marks.”
The condition of the inscript ion was, indeed, far worse than I supposed, and seemed to preclude all hope of decyphering the characters. By a fortunate expedient however, and by very patient study, I have been able to make out sufficient to determine its language and probable date with tolerable certainty. The method I adopted, and which may be useful in similar cases to others, was to strew finely powdered charcoal* over the surface of the stone, and sweep it gently to and fro with a feather so as to fill up all the depressions, the very slightest of which * Animal charcoal is better than vegetable, as being specifically heavier.
k 2
68
Note on the Inscriptions from Singapur, §-c. [July,
was thus rendered remarkably distinct by the powerful contrast of colour. By this means and by studying the characters in different lights, I have succeeded in decyphering so much of three of the fragments as is de- picted in plate III.
It will be seen from the plate that though many of the characters resemble the square Pali in form, and hence misled Prinsep to conclude that the inscription was in the Pali language, yet others, and these amongst the most distinct, hear no resemblance whatever to that tvpe. We may safely infer therefore that the language is not Pali ; an infer- ence in which I am borne out by Mr. Ratna Paula, whose knowledge of that language renders his opinion conclusive. As the character could not he identified with that of any of the published Singalese inscriptions, I was induced to compare it with the alphabets of the Archipelago, and I find it to be identical with the Kawi or ancient sacred and classical language of the Javanese, specimens of which may be found in Welhelm von Humboldt Ueber die Kawi Sprache, vol. 2, and in Sir S. Raffles’s History of Java. We have also in our museum a very fine inscription in that character, which has been taken by many for a peculiar form of Sanskrita. With the alphabet of this language, as gathered from similar inscriptions, I can identify all, or nearly all, of the characters ; but of course no clue to the purport of the inscription can be obtained without some knowledge of the language itself.
Fig. 1, seems to have been from the upper part of the inscription, and is entirely omitted in Prinsep’ s lithograph as effaced. Figs. 2 and 3 I cannot identify with any portion of Prinsep’ s plate, much on the right hand side of which seems to have been so distinct, that I.makeno doubt had that portion been available, we might have easily transcribed continuous sentences.
The much larger fragment forwarded by Col. Butterwortli, still remains to be deciphered ; but I confess I feel little inclination for that barren labour until there appear some probability of the language being translated. Meanwhile we may conjecture with probability that the inscription is a record of some Javanese triumph at a period anterior to the conversion of the Malays to Muhammadanism, and the following notice of this monument in a work entitled “ The Malayan Penin- sula,” by Capt. Begbie, Madras Artillery, may assist us in approximat- ing its era :
<1*
^ myrut-t t <
^ r>r» t r ..
> tg55> (LMMSil ^fefer- $•* ’i HSrnTOH^ u*'tm$ .ny.p)«TVE^jEfi5 u>i '4%^8s*o-fei> uimsTfb'! an M»t» M# .- ® 5 ; \,-t ^SnjUN
? p : ! * > i ■£> it? U
P_Rlb :.;jj &jy
|iiS S uiPi.u •><■ ' *
X ^ff;S / :
v S’Wv tram g V ?
68
was thus re By this me succeeded picted in p It will l resemble tl that the i amongst tl We may si ence in wb of that la could not inscription Archipcla' sacred am may he fc vol. 2, am museum a by many this langu or nearly of the in language
Fig- 1,
and is enl 3 I canm right lian doubt hat continuoc
The n remains t barren la translate* inscriptic
to the co notice ol
sula by Capt. Begbie, Madras Artmery, may «=
ing its era :
HI tt]TJTIVAHWWV
1848.] Note on the Inscriptions from Singapur, 69
“The principal curiosity of Singapore is a large stone at the point of the river, the one face of which lias been sloped and smoothed, and upon which several lines of engraven characters are still visible. The rock being, however, of a schistose and porous nature, the inscription is illegible. It is said that Sir Stamford Raffles endeavoured, by the application of powerful acids,* to bring out the characters with the view of decyphering them, but the result was unsuccessful. Where such an eminent person has failed, it may be thought presumptuous in me to hazard a conjecture on the subject of the language in which the inscription was penned, but I may perhaps be permitted to make an attempt to throw some light upon a subject so confessedly obscure. Re- sorting to the Malayan annals, which, clouded as they undoubtedly are by fable and allegory, yet contain many a valuable piece of information, we find therein mention made of three remarkable stones at Singhapura. (I omit the legends attached to the first two, as altogether inapplicable here.) The third, though first in order of record, I have reserved for the last to be brought forward, because I am inclined to think that the evidence is fully presumptive in favor of its being the stone now visible at Singapore ; it is to be met with at pages 62 and 63 of the Annals.
“The preceeding pages inform us that in the reign of Sri Raja Vicrama, there was a redoubtable champion of the name of Badang. Several remarkable feats of strength are recorded of him, hut I will merely select the one in point. The fame of Badang having reached the land of Kling, the Rajah of that country despatched a champion, named Nadi Vijaya Vicrama, to try his strength with him, staking seven ships on the issue of the contest. After a few trials of their relative powers, Badang pointed to a huge stone lying before the Rajah’s hall, and asked his opponent to lift it, and to allow their claims to be decided by the greatest strength displayed in this feat. The Kling champion assented, and, after several failures, succeeded in raising it as high as his knee, after which he immediately let it fall. The story then says that Badang, having taken up the stone, poised it easily several times, and then threw it out into the mouth of the river, and this is the rock which is at this day visible at the point of Singhapura, or Tanjong Singhapura.”
* The stone is a hard siliceous sandstone, upon which this process, if ever adopted, would have no effect.
70 Note on the Inscriptions from Sinyapur, §c. [July,
“ After some other recitals, the annals state that “after a long time, Baclang also died, and was buried at the point of the straits of Sin- ghapura ; and, when the tidings of his death reached the land of Kling, the Rajah sent two stone pillars, to be raised over his grave as a monu- ment, and these are the pillars which are still at the point of the bay.”
“ Now, the first two instances are totally destitute of presumptive evi- dence ; the last is, on the contrary, full of it. At the mouth of the river there is a large rock, which is concealed at high water, and on which a post was erected four or five years ago by, I believe, Captain Jackson of the Bengal Artillery, to warn boats of the danger ; this is the rock fabled to have been hurled by Badang. He is said to have been buried at the point of the straits of Singhapura, the scene of this wonderful exploit ; and there, the very spot where this record is to he still seen, the Rajah of Kling, who had been so serious a loser by it, ordered his monument to be erected.” (page 355-358.)
In this idle legend, it is by no means improbable that the name of the reigning prince is preserved, although the attendant circumstances are altogether fabulous. The kingdom of Singapura was founded, ac- cording to Malayan accounts, in A. D. 1160 ; and from that time up to 1250, when the whole of the Peninsula was converted to Maliamma- danism, was subject to frequent invasions from the Javanese. The Rajah Yikrama mentioned in the foregoing extract, reigned from A. D. 1223 to 1236, and his era is very likely that also of the inscription. At all events we may he certain that the present inscription is not less, and cannot be much more, than 600 years old. Its preservation for so long a period may he ascribed in a great measure to its protection from the action of the weather by the tropical vegetation which concealed it, perhaps for cen- turies. “ You remember,” writes Ur. [Montgomerie, “ the situation of it on the rocky point on the south side of the entrance of the Singapore Creek. That point was covered with forest trees and jungle in 1819, and the stone was brought to notice by some Bengal clashees who were employed by Captain Flint, R. N. (the first Master Attendant ;) the men on dis- covering the inscription were very much frightened, and could not be induced to go on with the clearing, which, if I recollect right, was com- pleted by Chinese under the stimulus of high wages. Mb at a pity ’tis that those who authorized the destruction of the ancient relic were not prevented by some such wholesome superstition!”
1848.]
Note on the Inscriptions from Singapur, fyc.
71
Of the remaining inscriptions furnished hy Col. Low the first set (A) are in Pali, and are represented in figs. 1 to 7 of Plate IV. Figs. 1 and 2 seem to form a continuous sentence, fsrun
7J flit (^T) TTT^ ^ (?) ^ (?) faw (?) of which
Babu Rajendralal Mittra has been good enough to supply the follow- ing Sanscrit and English version.
OTITO TTT? WSffa rj W TwfvfW TTvt: ^er^f^TST I Translation.
“ I acknowledge the enemies of the contented king Ramaunibha and the wicked are ever afflicted.”
The inscriptions marked B were published by Prinsep in the 4th volume of the Journal from Col. Low’s own fac similes, but without any attempt to translate them. The drawings, and especially the admirable clay impressions now sent, enable us to decypher the character without any difficulty and to supply a correct fac simile of the original. This method of taking impressions has I believe been employed by Capt. Kittoe also. It answers admirably ; and though it represents the cha- racters inverted, this inconvenience is met by observing their reflexion in a looking glass. The subjoined versions are likewise supplied by Babu Rajendralal :
Fig. 8.
“ This is said by Mannikatha, the protector of all great Buddhas.” Fig. 9.
“ In every form of life knowledge becomes manifest every where and in every way.”
Fig. 10.
“ (That) Karma (religious action originating in the hope of recom- pense) which sports with passion, is the cause of transmigration.”
Fig. 11 is mutilated and unintelligible.
Of the monagrams upon the Tookoon rock and upon bricks, we can make nothing, hut we give fac similes of them in the plate.
The Sanscrit lines (C) on the brass ornamented dish, are as follow :
|
“ Savita, 1399.”
Gleanings in Buddhism.
[July,
“ Malta Sramana,” (repeated four times on tlie sides of the dish.)
|
“Sri Malia Sramana is acknowledged to be the mightiest of the mighty sect of Sri Dasavala” (a name of Buddha).
The copper coin is much corroded, but is easily recognised as anci- ent Ceylonese. The inscription Srimat Sahasa Malia,
is legible enough, and enables us to identify the coin with one published by Prinsep in PI. XX. Vol. VI. of the Journal. This prince reigned, according to the late Mr. Tumour, from A. U. 1200 to 1230 ; and his eoins are, I believe, pretty numerous.
Gleanings in Buddhism ; or translations of Passages from a Siamese version of a Pali work, termed in Siamese “ Phra Pat’hom with passing observations on Buddhism and Brahmanism. Bg Lt.-Col. James Low', M. A. S. B. and C. M. R. A. S.
“ Several years after he had become a Priest, Buddha ascended to Tavatinsa,* a mountain which touches with its summit the Constellation of the Alligator, in order to visit the spirit of his mother. He there solaced her with hopes of happy transmigrations when her allotted period in this heaven should have expired, and iu order to prepare her for these, he desired her to repeat certain Bali formulae, which he had brought from the earth for her use. They are as follow, being taken from the Bali work, Phra D'hamma chetphra Kamphi.
Phra Sanggha.
■ Phra Wibhang.
Phra T’harjanok.
Po\
Kattha Wat’ho.
Ya.
Pa.
Trayastrinsa , in Sanscrit.
nir.
E^r
% <6
HU
or hu
^ .Cl , j
rU^elTW^
//
f* ^ ’o X tf r’G^t H1 ^ d>
r®
IF
"Z-rvc/z.
UJ
.r/ez.
1848.]
Gleanings in Buddhism.
73
“ Buddha next weighed his mother in the balance against the Pal (personified), and having found the beam equipoised, he set forth on his return ; just three months subsequently to his arrival, when Indra learned his intention he summoned to his presence Mattuli, and directed him to prepare a golden ladder, which might reach from the gate of his heaven down to Jumbo Dwip.”
This may remind us of the armillary sphere of Zoroaster and of Jacob’s ladder. “On the 1 6th day of the eleventh month Buddha began his descent. The procession befitted the splendor and dignity of Indra’s court. This Devatta himself accompanied it, bearing on his shoulder the holy Pat'ha or vase. The Brahma, from the heavens of the Brah- ma Pari Sachcha, the Brahma Parohita, and the Maha Brahma, also attended, sending forth loud blasts from their conch shells, or sanghci.
When the great Saviour reached the earth this grand cavalcade of ministering Devattas departed, and Buddha was welcomed back by a mighty concourse of all ranks of the people, eager to listen to his dis- courses on virtue and religion. Such is (observes the writer) the effi- cacy of the Pali, that several Buddhist Priests, who had retired to a cave jn order to recite passages from it, were astonished to find hundreds of bats tumbling down dead from the roof. Their spiritual essences (for bats may contain migrating souls), thus purified by the holy word, soared to the heaven called Hemanarate, where they became Devattas. Those who wish to listen to Bali discourses must perform ablutions, and dress in white garments. Then taking incense and sweet-scented woods (burning them) and having covered them with a cloth, they will perform the usual puja. After having heard the Pali they should take a vessel of water and pour out a libation upon the ground to Thorani, the god- dess of earth.”
I described on a former occasion the places visited by Buddha,* and the publication of the Mahawansa since that time, has elucided the subject more clearly.
“ Buddha, after arriving at the country Phaya Sali Sawat, the king of which entertained him munificently, entered a Buddhist monastery. Here he informed his brother-in-law Ananda that his hour was at hand, inculcating on him that he should not quit the world at the same time, but continue to establish the faith.”
♦ T. R. A. S.
I,
Gleanings in Buddhism.
74
[July,
“ When it became known that the divine Buddha was about to leave the world, the four elements forsook their tasks, the heavens and the earth shook, and Meru, that king of mountains, bent like a sapling before the wind, as if giddy with apprehension, while the rivers rushed along with unwonted force. Buddha at length went into the house of a goldsmith, who directed a feast to be prepared for him.” It appears that “ this divine person while in some previous condition of existence had slain a Rakhasha named Mara, but in self defence. This wretch Mara having entered the assembly, changed his body into a poison and insinu- ated himself into a joint of pork which had been set before Buddha The latter was aware of the trick, but as he courted his fate, he partook of the meat and soon after expired.”
Were it not that the Buddhists themselves do not countenance the supposition, we might be induced to conclude that Buddha had been poisoned by his enemies, the heretics.
‘‘Thus Buddha entered Nivan, — the earth groaned from its inmost caverns, the holy Ganges wept with her waters, — the plains became parched with grief, the forests shed their leaves, and all nature felt the shock. This ever memorable event occurred in the kingdom of Samoula Raja (Samala ?)
“ Then came Indra, and the Devattas down to the spot. The Rishii also assembled along with the Naga and Nagi. Garuda was also there.
“ The body of Buddha was now got ready for the funeral pvre. Ample rolls of white cloth, with sweet-scented woods were prepared and a Maratapa (q. a type of the sthupas ?) or pyramidal bier, was constructed to hold the body.
“ When fire was applied to the pile it would not burn — not even when held by Princes and Chiefs. A shower of the montha flowers fell from heaven. In the meantime Phra Katsop, (Kassapa, a favourite disciple of Buddha, who subsequently, as it is supposed, conveyed his doctrines to China,) arrived at the pile, when fire instantaneously burst forth from the body of Buddha, and consumed it with exception of the hones. A heavy rain then fell, and washed away the ashes from the bones. 1 Samoula Raja placed the relics in a golden vase, and deposited them in a Chaitya (a pyramidal temple) .
Soon after these events king Ajatasatru (Ajatasattu) of Rachakhru (Rajagrilia in Behar, he is said in the A. R. to be brother of ij
1848.]
Gleanings in Buddhism.
75
Crishna, or Bala,) invaded Kosinnarai (Kusinarake, Kusumapuri or Raja- matty where the Maha Raja often resided* and said by Wilford to be Patna), where Samoula Raja governed. His, Ajatasattu’s army was com- posed of the troops of one hundred and one countries.”
[This hyperbolical mode of describing numbers is also common both to the Burmans and Siamese.]
“ These forces posted themselves in seven lines of blockade around Kusinarake, and Ajatasatru despatched a herald to demand the relics from Samoula Raja, or to stand a storm, should he refuse to deliver them up ; and the latter was just preparing to march out of the town and give battle to the enemy, when Thoula, a Brahman, urged the great risk attending an attack on so superior a force, and the sin of waging war in such a cause, when much blood must be spilt. He then pro- posed to negociate and bribe off the enemy, and as the king acquiesced, the Brahman conciliated Ajatasatru by giving to him a large portion of the relics.”
I will stop here to remark that this Brahman must have been a Bud- dhist, if we are to judge from the humanity , not the policy of his advice.
“ Four more kings arrived afterwards, and obtained relics arid gifts ; Indra descended on purpose to decide on the respective claims of these Potentates to the Dhatha, or Dhato, or relics.
Some time after the death of Buddha, Mali Raja, the king of a cer- tain country, arrived at Kusinarake, and solicited a portion of relics, but Samoula Raja replied that he had come too late, and advised him to gather some of the ashes. He took the advice, and having collected enough he returned home and deposited them in a splendid Chaitya.”
* A Buddhist Priest of Bankok gave me a description of the city of this name, which, he said is to be found in the Bali works Dhato Webhahang and Maha Parin Mirana. But he considered it as having been a Siamese city. They have indeed a province and city, so called, having taken the name from the Pali, and which they affirm was an inde* pe dent Government before Siam became united under a king. I suppose it to have included the province of Kanburi, a place of some note in former days. The present city or town so named lies further south than the ancient one, the population having been driven south by the inroads of the Burmans. Kusinarake is said to have been seven yojanas in length, with nearly the same breadth, was fortified, had spires on the walls, these last being 8 cubits high and was encompassed by a deep fosse. [Kusinagara was on the banks of the Gandak not far from Bettiah . Kusumapura was another name for Patahputra, or Patna,— Eds.]
l 2
76
Gleanings in Buddhism.
[July,
It appears that there were eight kings who received relics. But the Brahman just alluded to, proved himself to be a zealous Buddhist, for he “ secreted a relic in the tuft of hair on the top of his head.” “ Indra perceived the theft and purloined the treasure, unknown to the Brahman ; which he carried to Tavatinsa and assigned to it a chamber in a bright fane in the constellation of the Alligator. When the Brah- man discovered his loss he raved and tore his hair, but tried to console himself by searching at the burning place in the hope of procuring a few cinders of the body of Buddha. But every remnant had been swept of by Mali Raja, with the exception of some very fine ashes. These had been licked up by a cow. The Brahman followed the ani- mal and collected its dung. This Brahman ever afterwards held cow- dung in veneration and often daubed it over his body !!!”
If there be no other better reason for the Hindu practice of the present day of smearing the body with cow-dung, the above may not perhaps be an unplausible one, although derived to them from an unor- thodox source.
“ Kasapa likewise concealed a relic in his mouth. Raja Naga also secured the left upper canine tooth, and constructed over it a magnificent Chaitya in his empire, Patala.”
Kusinarake is described in the Pali, (but I have not seen the work, and here only rely on an extract given to me in Siamese,) as having extended seven yojana in length, and having nearly the same breadth. The gates were numerous. The walls were eight cubits high, and were surrounded by spiral turrets, and a deep fosse encompassed the whole A king or raja named Moulara, founded the dynasty here, which was carried on through twenty successive reigns at the least, until the ap- pearance of Buddha, when Baramma Chakka reigned (Vicramaditya, perhaps.)
This king possessed seven precious things or gems, which like those belonging to the court of Vicramaditya according to Wilford in his paper in the Astatic Researches, and which were necessary for his state. But the poet is omitted. These were. — A white elephant endowed with reason : — a horse of pure pedigree : — a Muniratanang : — the Chakkra: — a Muntri or Prime Minister : — a General and a beautiful Queen.
“ Ajatasatru inclosed the relics in a magnificent casket, and placing it in a superb howda on an elephant, retraced his steps.
1848.]
Gleanings in Buddhism.
77
“ This Raja had before the occurrence of these events been instigated by Devadatta, brother-in-law of Buddha, to conspire against the life of his own parents. Stung with remorse, he had vowed to proceed, after he should have obtained the relics, on various pilgrimages and wander- ings in the desert and forests, to endeavour to atone in some degree for his wickedness.
“ The Raja had spent seven years in this manner when Indra despatch- ed his Minister, Wessandkam, requiring Ajatasatru to return forthwith to his kingdom and not to molest the peasantry by quartering his fol- lowers upon them. His Majesty obeyed the high injunction, and return- ed to Raj agriha. He here proclaimed his intention to raise a glorious Chaittya in honor of Buddha to hold the relics he had obtained from Samoula Raja.”
Indra, whose presence appears equally indispensible where great Indian hierarchical events are to he celebrated and recorded as in the struc- ture of its history and romance, “ descended from his bright abode, escorted by a glittering host of 99,991,909 Devattas, blowing trumpets and beating sonorous instruments. He soon fixed upon a spot for the relic temple, and by the efficacy of powerful spells, he surrounded the site with lines of defence composed of invisible elephants and of other wild beasts.”
“ Ajatasatru having found a propitious moment took a slab of precious stone and wrote or engraved thereon, “ May a poor Prince find this.” He then engraved the following sentence upon a plate of gold : — “ He who was poor did not see Buddha, — for this reason he was poor, although he reigned over an extensive empire.”
The slab and the plate were then placed below the golden box which enclosed the relics, and all were deposited beneath a splendid fane.
“ Ajatasatru, or Chatta-satru, died without leaving any legitimate children, and the kingdom of Rajagaha or Rajagriha (or as it seems also to be here meant Inthapattha or Indrapreshta, or Indrapuri, or Ayodia, where had also resided a king of Pataliputra*) had no legitimate ruler for the space of three lives.”
Awadi is another name given to this country.
“Ajatasatru w7ent to the infernal shades, because his evil deeds outweighed his good actions. Yama siezed him, and imprisoned him * Voh XI. As. Res. p. 62.
78
Gleanings in Buddhism.
[July,
in an adamantine apartment, which was guarded by whirling fierv cha- kras. There he remains in the hell Kumbhira. Devadhatta was precipi- tated into the hell called Airchi where he stands fast, being fixed by huge transverse iron spits.
“ Ajatasatru could not escape the punishment due for his offences, notwithstanding his pilgrimages ; and although he had directed to be constantly recited the Pali Sanghayanai, and the Malta Chattaand P'hra D’hamma, and even had distributed all his treasure in charity.”
“ In the year of Buddha 220 (or B. C. 323) the kingdom of In- thapatha was governed by a Prince named Raja D’hammasokarat, (D’hammasoka Raja or Asoka.) He was just and humane, so that the country flourished under his rule.*
“ This king having learned that relics of Buddha had been buried at some fonner period in his dominions, sent people in search of the build- ing which had been erected over them, but no vestige could be found. At length an old Priest related that when he was a boy he had been sent by his father to make offerings of flowers and fruits at a temple, the site of which he then pointed out. His Majesty was highly gratified, but desirous of ascertaining the truth of the Thero’s account before he should act upon it, he ordered the holy B’hikhuni, or Sibvls to be assembled and consulted.”
I have witnessed this mode of trying to ascertain future events, practised in Canara, and the custom also prevails in Siam, where it was probably imparted by Brahmans. A sacred dance, in the instances which I saw, was performed, during which spirits were invoked to de- scend, and were further incited thereto, by offerings of dressed meat, and the burning of huge waxen candles and perfumes.
When the Siamese Priestess, or a young man dressed as one, under the name of T’haau Phasing, has continued to dance for a good while, or until it is believed the spirits are approaching, she encloses with her hands the flame of the candle, and when she ceases to feel any heat from it the inspiration it is supposed has begun. Her body is then agitated by
* Much of what is contained in these accounts will be found closely to agree with the Maliawanso, but where synchronism exists, I have thought it best to give the whole, such being at least a verification from records preserved at a great distance from Ceylon of its history above named.
1848.] Gleanings h\ Buddhism. 79
a holy frenzy, and when fully inspired, she predicts, as her consultors believe, the future.
I have elsewhere described the ceremony which I saw at Jemulabad in Canara.* On reference to the Mahawanso (p. 34,) we find that Dhammasoka in B. C. 321 had constructed splendid dagobas throughout his kingdom, and (in p. 35) that he went in procession on a great festival day, to the temple built by himself.
“ Besides the eight Priestesses thus summoned by Dhammasoka, there were many astrologers in attendance. The united predictions of the whole were so favorable, that the king was confirmed in his belief in the Thero’s veracity. The Priestesses now led the way to the spot indicated and His Majesty instantly set a multitude of people to dig up the ground.
Before the day had closed, however, the greatest number of these labourers had died (magnified to 80,000) owing to their having been too impure in mind for so holy a task.”
“ The king desisted from his attempt and lamented over such a loss of human life. In this emergency he prayed to Indra, and this bene- ficent Devata sent down Phetsalukan his Minister, (the Harinar- guneshi of the Jainas, perhaps, f) who appeared in form of an elegant youth bearing his bow and quiver of arrows. The king admired the bow, and inquired to what country he belonged.
The disguised Devatta replied that he came from a great distance, and that his bow was endowed with miraculous powrer ; offering at the same time to exhibit these if his Majesty w'ould direct people to dig again at the same spot as before, and refusing all offers of reward if successful. The king gladly renewed his attempt to excavate the ruins. The spirits which Indra on a previous occasion had set to guard the Chaittya now closed round in terrific array. But Indra’ s minister told them to recol- lect that the same power which placed them there could remove them. Thus admonished they speedily vanished, and the Devatta returned to Indra’ s heaven.
The king and his people dug again with increased vigor, and soon reached the cavity which contained the relics. And now a glorious apparition amazed the spectators. A Devatta, clothed in heavenly vest- ments and seated on a superb horse, richly caparisoned, arose from the * Paper in the J. A. S. t 4s. Res. Vol. 2.
80
Gleanings • in Buddhism .
[July,
excavation, holding in his hands the golden vase. This he delivered to the king. The lamps in the cavity still burned brightly and the flowers bloomed and diffused their fragrance around.*
When His Majesty had perused the inscription on the precious stone left by Ajattasatru, he angrily exclaimed : —
“ Am I then a poor man or prince, I the King before whom tributary nations bow the knee ?”
He had no sooner finished this speech than he dashed the slab on the ground and broke it to pieces.
He next read the inscription upon the plate of gold, and regretted his haste in destroying the slab, while he admired the humility of the prince who had penned the inscriptions, j"
When His Majesty had returned to the city, he called a council of priests, astrologers, and wise men or pundits, in order that they should fix upon an auspicious site for a magnificent Chaittya in which the regained relics might be placed. Cut this council did not feel competent to decide so momentous a case, and the king was at last obliged to go into the forest and consult the Tapassa Sokkhalibutta and Thera Malai. These holy persons informed him that there was a much holier Thera still, named Utt’hak’hut, whose abode was below the waters, and that it would be by his aid alone that the new Chaittya could be surrounded with the requisite invisible walls of defence. |
Raja Naga§ now felt his palace becoming warm, and immediately
* This mention of a horse seems to me to have reference to the funeral customs of Tartary or Scythia.
t This is an important passage, as the Chinese and Trans-himalayan Buddhists insist on making Asoka a contemporary of Sakya Muni ; and in the ^ 3j ('Hdsangs
■nS)
blun ), 28th volume of the Mdo, there is a legend of his meeting Asoka when a child and receiving from him a handful of earth, as alms, in his begging pot. (Schmidt, Der IFeise und der Thor, vol. 2, p. 217.) The same story is alluded to by Fa hian, Chapter xxxii. ; in commenting upon which in the recent reprint of that work, we have ventured to doubt if there exist any counterpart of this legend in Pali, or among the Buddhists of the south. It is impossible in the present state of our knowledge to account for the extraordinary anachronism of the Chinese who make Sakya the contemporary of Muh- Wang (B. C. 1000 — 945) and of Asoka; but it would be no difficult matter to show that their chronology contains in itself ample materials for its own complete refutation. — Eds.
| This Utt’hak’hut is doubtless the Assak’hutta Thero mentioned ;ii the Milanda Raja.
§ “ Whose abode is in Patala.” — As. Res.
1848.]
Gleanings in Buddhism.
81
emerged above the earth to see who wanted his assistance, but he had hardly done so, when Supanna or Garuda pounced upon him, and was bearing him off in his talons towards Simphali, when a young priest clapped his hands so loudly that Supanna dropped Raja Naga, who was much bruised by his fall to the earth. But the priests quickly restored him with healing unguents ; and being angry that the honor of having saved him belonged to a noviciate, they punished him by getting Dhammasoka to send him in search of Utt’hakhut.
“ The young priest proceeded accordingly to the bank of the river (Ganges) and invoked the ancient man to come forth. It was not long before the sage appeared and displayed to the astonished youth a body shrivelled like a blasted sapling, and bending Binder the load of centuries. When the ancient learned that his aid was wanted, he took the sacred vase under his arm and proceeded to the palace of Dhammasoka. Here he found numbers of Arahans or Priests of the superior grade of merit waiting to receive from the King their wonted daily bounty or alms. These priests pointed out the sage to the Khig as an exceedingly holy person. But although his majesty was surprised at his withered ap- pearance, he paid him no particular attention then. He was desirous however of putting to the test his reputed sanctity, and told his mahout that when the sage should appear next morning, he should push the war-elephant at him. Accordingly the mahout rushed next morning with the elephant upon the sage Tapassa, who quite unconcernedly turned his body a little so that the animal plunged his tusks into the ground, one on each side of him. The Tapassa then turned round, and patted the elephant thrice on the temples, when it was instantly changed into a stone figure. The King could not fail now to credit the power of the sage, and he therefore asked him to be his spiritual guide, also to restore the elephant to its original state, and assist in establish- ing the Chaittya. Utt’hakhut consented, and then drove off Garuda, so that Raja Naga might also grace by his presence the consecration of the new temple.
“ All these preliminaries having been duly arranged, a Chaittya was built, consecrated and fortified, and a portion of the relics was buried underneath.”
“ Dhammasoka now wished to bestow the remaining relics upon the Princes of other countries, wrho on being acquainted with his desire
M
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quickly arrived and received them. On that day there was a terrible earthquake, and Meru waved to and fro like a tree before the storm. Indra attended the ceremony of division, and the Rakshas hurried to the scene in the hopes of being able to destroy the relics, and the Chaittya also. These Rakshas were preceded by a furious tempest ; but Utt’haklmt perceived their advance, and having invoked the aid of Biuldha, he wrapped the vase which he held under his arm, in a sheet, and threw it at their chief. The vase became a dog, which instantly clung to the Rakslia’s neck, and then dying produced so intolerable a stench that he fled howling through the world, calling aloud for help. But no one would assist such an evil-disposed race. However, the Devattas advised him to ask Utt’hakhut to take compassion upon him. The Raksha took this advice, and having been relieved from his misery, he became contrite.”
The narrative here breaks off, and another, which apparently ought to have been first in order, commences.
“ There was a king of the country of Thonthaburi, named Singharaa (Singlia Raja) who had within his dominions a famous Chaittya, in which there had been deposited a tooth of Buddha.”
This country is evidently Dantapura, and the king is Singha, or Sinha Raja, son of Mango.*
“ It happened that a king of Chattubadi coveted this precious relic, lie therefore despatched a large army against that country. But Singha Raja refused to give up the relic, which, besides its inestimable value, had, he urged, been long in possession of his family. He therefore signified to the Maha Raja that he would march out next day and give him battle, adding that His Majesty had no right to demand the relic. Next morning accordingly at dawn, Singha Raja mounted his huge war ele- phant, clothed in dazzling armour of proof, he shone like a star conspicuous at the head of his troops he advanced on the Maha Rajah’s force, and he soon singled out the latter from his bright mail, and ad- dressing him, inquired why he had invaded the country to obtain a relic, when he might have had a share had he gone to Kosiuarake when the relics were being divided ?”
This appears to be a sort of anachronism, because if this was the tooth relic now preserved in Ceylon, it was conveyed there in A. D.
* Described in the late llon'ble Mr. Tumour’s Malian ansa.
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310, not as might be inferred from this account, within a life time after Buddha’s death.
The Malia Baja replied that he was not at the time aware that Bud- dha had entered Nivan or Nirvana.
Singha Raja then invoked all the supernal ‘powers to aid his arm, and directed his elephant to he furiously urged against the great king’s. Both armies rushed to battle, and the two kings long contended hand to hand ; at length Singha Raja with one blow of his sabre rolled his adversary’s head on the ground, the body remaining on the elephant. The troops of the Maha Raja now fled and were pursued with great slaughter.
“ Three years after this battle a king of Hemantha Phara, confederated with the Princes of four other countries, who having united their forces to his, and thus formed an army of three hundred thousand men, marched to attack Singha Raja in order to compel him to deliver up the relic.
On arriving before Dantapura the allies encompassed it with trenches, and then sent a herald to summon the king to resign the relic. Singha Raja requested three days for deliberation, which were accorded.”
It would appear however that Singha Raja foresaw that resistance would cause the loss of his kingdom ; for, continues the account, the unfortunate Prince being thus driven to extremity and disdaining to fly or to yield up the precious tooth, determined to save his honor by perishing sword in hand. He visited his queen, called his children around him, and communicated to them his resolve.
Her Majesty impressed upon the king that resistance to such a power would he vain, and urged him to assume the garb of a priest and to fly with his family to another country, carrying with him the sacred relic. That opposition to such a host resembled an attempt to quench fire without water, or like an ember on which a deluge was ready to pour. His Majesty however continued firm, and observed that it would ill- comport with the dignity which had descended to him from his ances- tors were he to shun the impending conflict without making an effort to defend his kingdom ; that the sword was in his hand and could not be sheathed.
He than solemnly enjoined the queen, that in case of his death (or defeat) she should disguise herself as a priestess and seek refuge in a monastery. Next, turning to his son Thont’ha Kuman and to his
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daughter Ilemachala, he desired them, in either of these events, to dress themselves like peasants to secrete the relic about their clothes and to fly to the coast. Here they should embark on board of a vessel and proceed to Lanka, the king of which country had long expressed an ardent desire to possess a* relic. lie added that the time had now arrived, as predicted by Buddha, when Dantapura was to fall to the arms of five invading kings. He then delivered the relic to the Princt, and Princess, and prepared for battle. He first took the bath, then clothed himself in the refulgent armour which had before dazzled the eyes of his foes. On his head was a splendid tiara, and he held in his hand a ponderous mace. After a bloody fight in which the Singha Raja was slain, the enemy gamed the day. The queen obeyed the injunctions of her deceased husband, while the prince and princess escap- ed in disguise to the coast, where they embarked in a vessel and sailed for Lanka (Ceylon).
It may be noticed in passing that Raja Singha does not hint even at the practice of burning widows, one which Buddhists must have abhorred. So that although we find in the Mahawanso that this tooth relic was carried to Ceylon by a Brahman Princess, she and her parents most probably were Buddhists. “ After a voyage of three months* a tempest assailed the ship and it foundered with all on board excepting Thont’ha Kuman (probably Dantakumara in Pali), and Hemachala who, still retaining possession of the relic, floated on cocoanuts to the shore.
They reached it at a place called the Diamond Sands (or that Sai Keo in Siamese) hut I have not yet been able to procure a complete version of the original Bali work so cannot specify its title or the place here alluded to.
Here being afraid they dug a pit, and hid the relic and also concealed themselves for three days, subsisting on fruits and roots.”
These Diamond Sands were probably those on the shore near to the present site of Jagannath, which latter has been supposed either to have been originally a Buddhist shrine, or to have been erected near to, or on the more ancient site of one. In the Mahawanso (p. 24,) we find it stated that “ the right canine tooth relic was brought to Ceylon by a Brahman Princess from Kalinga in the year B. 853 or A. D. 310.” The account now digresses a little and is tinged with the marvellous.
* This must be an error.
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“ There was at the period of this shipwreck a celebrated priest called Barommat’het Thero or Thera, who resided on the hill, Assakano, one of he lowest ranges of Meru. He happened to be deeply abstracted in devotional contemplations, the force and efficacy of which were such that they lifted him up into the air. While thus soaring aloft, his eye was arrested by dazzling rays of light which were cast upwards from the Diamond Sands. Whereupon he instantly descended and called to the Prince and Princess to come out of their place of concealment. They related to him their sad tale, which induced him to descend into the kingdom of Raja Naga. But the snake-king on his approach rolled himself away beyond the Chakkawan, or horizon. The Thero however, compelled the Naga’s subjects to bring him back. It seems that this Raja Naga had purloined the relic unknown to the Prince and Princess, but the Thera obliged him to deliver it up. He then returned to the Diamond Sands and restored it to the brother and sister, inform- ing them at the same time, that a vessel would touch there in three days and convey them to Lanka, and bidding them invoke him should they encounter any accident. The vessel, as predicted arrived, and a flag being hoisted on shore, a boat from the vessel landed and took off the Prince and Princess. A few days only had passed in the voyage hence towards Lanka, when a furious storm assailed the vessel, at the instigation and desire of Raja Naga, who wanted to regain the relic. The captain of the vessel then invoked the Devattas, but without effect, so that he began to suspect that the storm was owing to the presence of the Prince and Princess (who were strangers to him), and he was on , the point of throwing them overboard. But they called on the Thero, who soon appeared in the form of Supanno, or Garuda, and assuaged the gale.* The captain or commander of the ship and his crew wor- shipped him, and then he departed. The vessel reached Lanka in three months.”
Fa Ilian relates in his account of his voyage home from Ceylon that the brahman merchants of the vessel he sailed in wanted to get rid of him in the same manner and for a similar reason.
It is probable that the two vessels above alluded to came from Tamaliti. We cannot account for the voyage having lasted three months, unless by supposing that the time occupied in escaping to the coast is included in it.
* Garuda is himself fond of occasionally rather of raising than abating a storm.
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The Siamese have placed the Diamond Sands near Ligor, and the ignorant amongst them, including most of the priests, consider this history as one of that country ; and some of the latter were much mortified when I pointed out the absurdity of the supposition. The accounts however which they have of the history of Buddha and of Buddhism, afterwards closely accord with the Ceylonese Maliawanso, and other Indian Pali writings.
“When the ship cast anchor at Lanka the commander took his passengers on shore at a place where there was a temple called Loha/c Phra Satsi, and where presided the chief priest or Sangliara, whose name was Tliassakam Phra Muni, and who was allied to the royal family of Lanka. This priest hospitably received the strangers. When night arrived, an extraordinary light spread over the temple, and the astonished priests found that it emanated from the place where the Prince and Princess reposed. The latter then disclosed their names and the cause of their arrival, saying that they must deliver the relic into the hands of the king. A young priest was therefore despatched to acquaint his Majesty with the fortunate occurrence, who happened to be then eight yoj ana distant on a hunting excursion.* He no sooner however received the information than he was seized with a holy fer- vour, and dismounting from his elephant he walked seven of the eight yojanaf to his palace, and was lamed by the exertion. The roval pair, a brother and sister, were now presented to him, and he allowed them a retinue of 500 persons and a suitable establishment to uphold their state.
By his Majesty’s orders a brick and mortar Chetti or Chaittya, or pyramidal building, was constructed and was adorned inside | with precious stones. The relic brought by the Prince and Princess was then deposited in it with great solemnity.
Three years had passed away when the king of Lanka perceived from an ancient prophesy that in seven years from that date a certain king, Dhammasoka Raja, would erect a temple at “ The Diamond Sands." He likewise recollected that there were tw o Dona of the relics of Bud- dha still concealed in the country of Raja Naga. He therefore direct -
* Yet the killing of animals was forbidden by his faith, t This cannot be the yojana which is reckoned at 9 miles, t The receptacle for relics probably.
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ed a holy priest to go and bring their relics, hut the messenger had no sooner reached Raja Naga’s palace, than the latter whispered to his brother* to fly with the relics to Meru and hide both himself and them. This being done he told the priest that he knew not where the relics were. But the observant priest had noticed the Raja’s brother putting the relics into his mouth or swallowing them on his departure, the more effectually to conceal them. He accordingly followed him to Meru, where he found him coiled up and fast asleep with his jaws wide open. He drew forth the relics without awaking him, and returned with them to Lanka. Soon after this Raja Naga arrived in the form of a handsome youth, and solicited a few relics from his Majesty, which were bestowed upon him accordingly.”
His Majesty now ordered a golden ship to be made. It was one cubit long, and one span broad. The relics were put into a golden cup, this was placed in a vase, and the whole were put into the golden ship.
A wooden ship was next built having a breadth of beam of seven long cubits.”
(The length, judging by such a breadth would be about 200 feet.)
“ When built this vessel was loaded with bricks and mortar, and abimdance of provisions and necessaries, with gold and silver, were placed on board. Four golden jars were made for the occasion, and they were filled with the poison of snakes.
T’hont’ha Kuman and Hemachala, being desirous of revisiting their country, the king of Lanka sent along with them ambassadors to one of the five kings, (he) who now ruled there, requesting him to show every sort of attention and respect towards them. Two hundred young men and one hundred damsels]' were also embarked, and many learned priests availed themselves of this opportunity of spreading their religion (the Buddhist.)
The vessel reached the Diamond Sands in five months,]; and the Prince and Princess then went on shore accompanied by the priests (of Buddha.)
* Nephew in the Mahawanso, pp. 188, 189, where a longer account is given. It is moreover stated that the enshrining of these relics took place in Ceylon.
f Labourers apparently.
t Ihis might have been an alteration by the Siamese, perhaps in order to make it appear that Ligor was the destination of the vessel, but more probably it is merely a clerical error.
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The golden ship and its holy contents were carried in procession upon the heads of thirty men, to a spot which the astrologers had fixed on.”
(These astrologers were, we may believe. Brahmans, for this tribe had not then become prominently distinct as religionists until a much later period, and many were Buddhists.)
“ A square excavation was then dug to the depth of a tall man’s height, and proportioned according to the instructions contained in the sacred books. Water was next poured into the vase so as to float the golden ship, and the whole, as before enumerated, were deposited at the bottom of the excavation .”
In a former description the relics were placed in the centre of the building. In the Mahawanso they are noticed as occupying a compart- ment of the famous Anarudlia temple, on a level with that ledge or part of the basement where flowers were offered ; being thus considera- bly above ground.
At each corner of the square ajar or vase (emblematical perhaps of the four elements) was placed underneath and filled with the venom of snakes. Four priests of known sanctity consecrated the spot, and a tablet of stone with an inscription upon it was fixed upright in the pit, its front facing the north.* Its import was that “The King of Lanka has order- ed this inscription in the language of Lanka [Magadlri ?] to be placed under the Chaittya as a memorial of the erecting of the same ; and of there having been four holy priests sent by him to superintend its con- struction and consecrate it in due form.”
The materials were then landed, the pit was filled up with stones ; and on this foundation the Chaittya was quickly built.
The vessel now set sail for Dantapuri, which it reached in a little more than three months. + The ambassadors of the king of Lanka landed here along with the Prince and Princess. The two latter were treated (by the ruling Prince) with much distinction, and remained in that country.
The ship returned to Lanka in forty days, j;
* This I take to he a clerical error, and that N. E. if not E. was the direction.
t An exaggeration for the purpose before noticed, if not a clerical error.
f This is nearer the mark, perhaps, therefore the foregoing lengths of voyages are cle- rical errors. Perhaps the stay at the temple is included in the time so stated.
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An Account of Dhammdsoka, Raja of Awadi.
B. C. 321. “ King Dhammasoka Raja, the lord of earth and sky, go- verned the country of Awadi with strict justice ; and pursued the humane and munificent course which great Princes ought to follow.
In the midst, however, of prosperity and abundance the kingdom was suddenly afflicted by a sweeping pestilence. The king consulted his astrologers, and they advised him to emigrate with his people to another quarter. His Majesty accordingly set out with all his family, and he was followed by the largest portion of his subjects. Of these followers thirty-one thousand were able-bodied men, [31,000,]* who had their wives, children and effects with them.
This body journied to the southward, and wandered about for seven months, when it formed a temporary encampment in the jungle. Houses for the priests were here constructed, especially for two (princi- pal ones) named Buddha Ivamphean, and Achan Buddha Sakon. A temple was likewise erected here and a tank dug.j*
Several years prior to these events Raja Naga had paid a visit to the temple at the Diamond Sands, and as a memorial of his having done so he left a precious stone fixed in the fork of a tree.
This temporary residence of the king was not far distant from the above temple, although he was not aware of it. Indra therefore felt himself called on to lend his aid. By his order his minister having assumed the appearance and dress of a peasant, stationed himself near to a spot where a hunter was watching to kill deer for the king’s table.]: He contrived to bring one before the hunter, who wounded it with an arrow. It went slowly away and the hunter followed it to the Dia- mond Sands, where it left him benighted. He mounted a tree for pro- tection during the darkness, and early next morning he was forcibly attracted by the glare of the jewel left by Raja Naga. He speedily secured the rich prize and returning presented it to the king, and described the nature of the place where he had found it. His Majesty
* Which would give a total of about 155,000 in all, so that if this account be true, and if it was the famous Asoka who is here brought forward, we may suppose that he only changed his capital for a while for a more healthy spot, t I cannot find any thing in the Mahawanso respecting this wandering of Asoko. t The eating of animal food had not then. been prohibited.
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sent there an artist to make a sketch of the temple, and the vicinity, and finding both inviting proceeded in person to the spot. lie march- ed with a large retinue and arrived in seven days at a place where water and fish were abundant.* Next day he mounted his horse and reached the Golden Sands. Here he and his people were encountered by huge crows, which tried to drive them away. His Majesty during the ensu- ing night had a dream in which Devattas appeared to him, and said that underneath the temple were relics which had been deposited there by order of a king of Lanka. Next day the king directed people to dig into the Chaittya, but the crows (or spirits in their shape) compelled them to desist. The king therefore returned to his camp.
It is related that the younger brother of this Raja lived in Lansaka, and that sickness still prevailed amongst his own subjects. The son of the Raja died here, which added to his afflictions. A year afterwards the Maha Thera arrived at the camp, and the king having inquired from whence he had come, he replied that he had been engaged during the previous seven years, in the traversing various regions, disseminatin': religious instruction to their inhabitants.
His Majesty, again accosting the priest, observed that the spot where his cam]) now was had been found unhealthy, and requested that his lordship would favor him with the best advise as to where he should remove. The Thera then sprinkled holy water about the camp and the contagion ceased, and he afterwards advised His Majesty to remove and settle at the Diamond Sands. Accordingly Indra sent Maha Tuli to attend to the wishes of Dhammasoka Raja.
It happened that at this time Raja Naga with seven heads and as many tails, guarded the Chaittya. But no sooner had the king, accom- panied by Maha Tuli and a large retinue approached close to it, that this mighty snake king was observed to be majestically disentwining himself from the huge folds with which he had encompassed the relic shrine.
As he wound off, he left a deep impression on the ground ; which Ilis Majesty perceiving, he directed stakes to be driven into the line at inter- vals, and it was within this circuit that he subsequently founded a city.
The king now ordered six thousand (6000) men to prepare bricks, and large parties to dig up the soil and clear away the forest.
* Some river or lake.
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Dhammasoka reignecl (or staid) quietly here for seven years ; but still mortified and unhappy because he had not been able to reach the relies, for he desired to place them in a more splendid Chaittya.
[I may here remark that the disinterring of relics appears to have been a favorite act of piety, and curiosity, combined, on the part of successive kings or dynasties.
In this way perhaps, the remains of many temples dedicated, if we are to credit the Chinese travellers Fa Ilian and others, to the third Buddha or Kassapo, may have been swept away. At any rate many of the oldest Chaittyas in honor of Buddha the 4th, the present one, may thus have been destroyed.]
“ His Majesty accordingly offered a high reward to any one who should find the relics and disinhume them. But this proved of no avail.”
I do not know what to think of the recital closely following the above. It is doubtless the same in the Pali, as names in it are preserved, at least Bali words according to Siamese pronunciation.
“ It so happened that in this dilemma a Butra or Putra of the king of Rom, named Kakabhasa, who happened to be trading to the country of Takkasila, encountered a violent storm. He had five hun- dred souls on board, who supplicating the gods, were rescued from death. The ship with much difficulty reached close to the Diamond Sands, and observing signs of population cast anchor with a view to refit.
The king recollected of having once heard that the people of Rom were deeply skilled in working spells, and acting under the belief that they were, he asked the commander of the vessel to assist him in driving off the spirits which guarded the Chaittya.
The commander having adopted precautions by erecting a stockade at the mouth of the river for his own security in a strange region ; and having first had his ship repaired by his Majesty’s artificers, prepared to exorcise the spirits.
The king now refrained from all food which was of the sorts not allowed to priests, dressed himself in white garments, and slept under a canopy of cloth, and indeed conformed to all the rules for proceeding on such occasions as is contained in astrological books.”
When the procession arrived at the temple the crows began their attack, but the first charm set them to flight, and with them vanished
n 2
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and departed all the other spirits. The relics and jars were then easily dug up along with the gold. The king inquired of the Roman if he might take the gold, when the latter replied that it should not be sepa- rated from the relics during their stay on the earth. To impress His Majesty with his veracity, he took a bambu four cubits long and thrust it into one of the jars, when many snakes instantly raised their heads aloft. He next took another bambu and pushing it into the same jar the snakes disappeared.
The king had prepared a temporary abode for the relics and jars, consisting of nine several successive stories.*
It was now determined to erect another Chaittva, and a spot for it was accordingly selected.
The ground for the foundation was a square of eight large cubits [48 feet each side] and it was excavated to the depth of eight cubits,” [12 feet, for I suppose it to be the short cubit, as the large one is not mentioned.] “ At the bottom of this foundation a small canty was con- structed of bricks and mortar two cubits deep” [breadth not specified, say 3 feet square], “ and water tight (after being shut up).
When all had been arranged the two chief priests before named raised up the golden ship on their heads, while each poison vase was carried by thirty men. Then three priests, assisted by the Roman com- mander, consecrated the Fane, and deprecated wrath and every ill on the head of the sacrilege ous wretch who should dare to molest the holy precincts. They prayed that the water in the reservoir should ever continue to float the golden ship, that the candles and incense should never cease to burn, nor the flowers to bloom, until the expiration of the five thousand years of the era of Buddha should have expired and a new era have begun. Thakhaphasa or Kakabluisa now directed all the people to remove to a little distance, after which he recited the one hundred and eight Bali invocations ; these being over, the spirits which had been scared away speedily resumed their posts.”
I may merely notice in passing that the boat is the type of the earth, the Argha of the Hindus, or rather are we not to consider that they had it from the Buddhists, as the latter may have derived it either directly or indirectly from the Egyptians, amongst whom it was the cymbium.j'
* Seven is the most common number. t Indian Antiquities of Maurice.
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Osiris, according to Plutarch, was the Commander of the Argo, and was represented by the Egyptians by a boat carried on the shoulders of men.* * * §
This Ossa Navicularis, as Mr. Mam-ice observes, was carried at Egyp- tian solemnities by 80 men. Then there was the mystical boat of Isis, which according to Lactantius was adored in the same country. It was the cup of the sun in which Hercules they say traversed the ocean. The Suivi again worshipped Isis in form of a ship.f
A golden float, crescent-shaped, but less round, was an emblem of the ark.-f Iswara is called Argha-natha or the Lord of the boat-shaped vessel.]; There was also the Vitzliputula of South America, who was carried in an ark like Osiris and the Jurar of Peru boasted of their descent from the sun and moon, that is from Noah, and the ark worship- ped in conjunction with these luminaries. § Faber says that the ark was frequently described by the antients as the allegorical consort of the principal Arkite Deity. ||
The Argha is with the Hindus a type of the Yoni, the cymbium of the antients, and in it were made offerings of fruits and flowers. It means a cup or dish, boat-shaped, used for offering fruits or flowers to deities.* A third part of the worship of Bacchus consisted in carrying about an ark.j~
A mare was a symbol of the ark, and we find a horse coupled with the relics in the excavation of one of the Chaittyas just described ; a horse was one of the most usual symbols of Noah. J
“The Phonecian word Aron denotes either an ark or a cofiin. In scripture it is the ark of the covenant or a boat, which last was borne aloft on the shoulders of the priests exactly in the same manner as the Baris of the Egyptian Ogdoad.§ We cannot I think wonder at this last resemblance, seeing that Moses had just left the practice behind him
* As. Res. and other works — Wilford quoting- Tacitus.
t Key to Hindu Chronology.
t Wilford.
§ Faber’s Cabiri, Vol. I. p. 170, and Franklin quoting him.
|| Do. Do. p. 79.
IT J. A. S. B. Vol. VIII. p. 274, el seq.
* Ibid, Vol. VI. p. 521, et seq.
t Faber’s Cabiri, Vol. II. pp. 332, 333. + Ibid, Vol. I. p. 100. § Ibid, Vol. I.
pp. 226, 227.
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in Egypt, unless we first doubt if lie had fairly repudiated the God of the Egyptians. He retained many of their practices undoubtedly when they did not militate against his monotheism.
“ But” observes this erudite author, “ the ark was considered in the light of a coffin, as it was supposed to contain the relics of universal nature .” Here is a curious coincidence with the Buddhist custom just detailed by our Pali author.
The Malays of the Keddah coast of the present day use a painted boat at marriage ceremonies. The bridegroom and bride are placed in it, and it is carried in procession on the shoulders of men.
This seems to me to be clearly a remnant of their original worship, which I have found to have been chiefly that of Siva ;* thus so far proving the connexion betwixt Mahadeva and the Arglia.
The Arn Breitli, or Car of the ancient Irish was, according to Faber, “ the ark of the covenant.” The antients in memory of the ark carried about a small navicular shrine, and sometimes even built their temples in the form of ships. Then we have the gothic Skidbladner, a ship,+ and Col. Valency describes an ancient Temple near Dundalk in Ireland in the shape of a galley.
In the Bah work Milintha I find three kinds of religious edifices mentioned ; —
Parib’ho’k’ha Cheti, built it is supposed at the spots where Buddha had halted during his journies for refreshment.
In these parts of Buddha’s dress and other things are kept as relics.
Dhattu Cheti, Dagobas, for the relics of Buddha, or shiral buildings,
Dhamma Cheti, being an edifice in which the sacred books were to be preserved.
The Cheti or Chaittya, is truly a Mausoleum, varying from a dome to bell-shaped, or to a truncated cone, or a building more or less pyra- midal, and almost, perhaps, always, placed on a square pedestal. Where the type originated I will not pretend to say, but there is a wide field for conjecture in the regions of western mythology.
The Chetti, is the Manakyala, — the Tope, the Burj, Dagob Dagoba
* An account of some of the Indo-Chinese nations (Journal of the Indian Archi- pelago) by me.
t Faber’s Cabiri, Vol. 1. p.219, apud Coll, de rebus Hiber. of Vallency, Yol. V. p. 460.
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of Sanscrit, the Dhatugurbha and the Sthupa. The Tnloea makes it like a Drum, with a swell in the middle.
Tibetian Dagobas are generally square based pyramids, but some have conical and others circular bases.
In the Calcutta Journal for 1819, a writer (Manatho) states that the ruins of a mighty temple then existed near Mirzapore in the district of Benares, and that it seemed to he upon the same plan as the temple of Boro Bodor in Java. There were also two statues there. Query — Has this temple been explored ?
In the Pali work Ratana Kalapa, we have under the head of Oheti or Dagobas,
1 . Upachara Clieti, eight cubits (long ?)
|
2. Patimar D’hatii, |
12 |
do. |
|
3. Semo Sanghang, |
4 |
do. |
|
4. Uposatha, |
11 |
do. |
|
5. Cheti Buddho Dliatu, |
16 |
do. |
“ When the foundation had thus been prepared a pit was dug (in front of) the Chaittya to the depth of four cubits and a half. Into this there was let down a pillar of stone six cubits long, about I ] measures [or 8 feet] of which remained above ground.* This upper part faced the Esan6 or north-east, and at intervals of a cubit, two other similar stones were placed in the same manner. Eight pillars were likewise erected around the temple so disposed as to correspond with the four cardinal points and their subdivisions.”
In the cave of Islamabad a Mausoleum was found in a compartment of the depth of three cubits, and three cubits in breadth or diameter. In it were images, a vessel of brass and two hones. f Thus proving that it was of Buddhist origin, although this does not seem to have been a Dagoba.
“A rod of iron was set upright from the centre of the offset of the intended spire, and the latter was then built around it. The whole building was composed of brick and mortar, and was plastered with stucco. The total height of the Chaittya was upwards of thirty-six large cubits [200 feet.]”
It is rather singular that the Indo-Chinese Buddhists yet persist in
* I am not quite satisfied as to these measurements, they are stated rather obscurely.
t As. Res. Vol. IX.
96
Gleanings in Buddhism.
[July,
tliis dangerous custom of supporting one half only of their Dagobas with iron rods, and this too while they have learned enough of science as to lead them to place on the pinnacles of these rods small glass phials as nonconductors. Their preservative properties would I should suppose be of small amount.
“ The stucco having been put on the Dagoba was guilded from top to bottom, and the four chief priests constructed eight figures of Ara- hau (the head of a powerful Buddhist sect), and placed them in the area of the temple in the attitude of adoration of Buddha. Representa- tions of elephants were likewise made and fixed with their heads direct- ed from the temple.”*
“ The Prince of Rome now set sail and departed.”
“When the people of the neighbouring comitries heard of the fame of this new Chaittya they flocked to it in order to make offerings. They came in carriages and on elephants,” (and in other ways) “ and some even cast gold under the ground for those who should afterwards find it. The Princes of these states also brought their offerings, and before departing they erected small Chaittyas, but not having any sur- rounding pillars (pariwenas.)
“The king of Lanka being desirous of knowing what had become of the temple at the Diamond Sands, despatched P'lialiti and Phalabui, who were men of rank, to that place. They were provided with gifts of gold, silver, and precious commodities for Dliammasoka Raja.
When they had waited upon this king they acquainted him that the two young Princes of Lanka had quarrelled at a cockpit where white men were present, (probably Turks or Arabs,) and that both had died of the wounds they had received, and their father the king had sent their ashes and bones with a request that His Majesty would allow these to be disposed of thus. They were all to be pounded up with mortar into a paste, and of this two busts or images were to be formed, one of Phra Sri Dhatta” [or Buddha, when a Priuce,] another of his consort Bhimb’ha, and a third of his son, Rahura. Two figures were also to be made resembling the deceased Princes, one of which would occupy the right hand, and the other the left hand of the image of Phra Sri Dhatta. They also expressed the king’s desire, that an
* I shall also given along with these fragments of Indian History, a few notes respect- ing Buddha and these Arahans, or Arahat.
1348.]
Gleanings in Buddhism.
y:
image of Buddha of the same materials, and one of each of the two descriptions of lions, should be formed, and that the before mentioned images having been added to them the whole should be placed in a Vihan or temple to be specially built for the purpose, and that when all this had been effected, the circumstances should be recorded upon a tablet of stone. To these requests Dhammasoka readily assented and they were accordingly complied with.”
It was a great oversight of the Buddhists when they first admitted im- ages, not of Buddha, into their Vihans. I say not of the 4th Buddha, for his statue must have been coeval nearly with his worship, and it is pro- bable that statues or images of previous Buddhas existed. Although as he had been a Prince and a mortal his votaries could hardly have re- quired to be so reminded. I am not aware of the precise period when subsidiary images were introduced, but I suspect that if Buddha had, as Fa Ilian’s account would imply, and the Buddhist scriptures forcibly insist on an immediate predecessor (Kassap’o,) whose Chaittyas were even then extant, the admission of such images most probably took place before Sakya Muni appeared.* In whatever manner, or at what- ever period it really happened, the existence of any images in the tem- ples beyond those of Buddha, no doubt greatly helped the Brahmans, not only when they began to scan the path to hierarchical pre-eminence, and to sap the foundations of Buddhism, but when they eventually had established a body of heretics or schismatics within even its own Vihans ready to tolerate if not to adopt a more extensive polytheism, and thus to render the final subversion of Buddhism easy and certain.
* In the gorgeous description contained in the Pali Mahawanso of the relic receptacle j of the Maha Sthupo. “At the farthest points of the four sides were represented (depicted) thefourgreat Mythological Kings[Query — Heroes apotheosized?] Dattaruttho, Virulo, Verupakkho and Wessawanno, also 33 Dewos and 33 Princes, 28 chiefs of Yakkhas. This was in B. C. 127. These were subordinate to a golden image of Buddha, and near to it stood one of Mahibrahma, bearing the parasol of dominion. (One) of Sakko, the inaugurator with his Chank, Pinchasikho with his harp in hand, Kalanago and his band of singers and dancers, [whicli however priests are forbidden to listen to or to look on,] the hundred armed Maro (death. )1 The description of the relic chamber, however, differs from the accounts which have just been given, in which last the relics are placed deep under ground for the sake of concealment, apparently, whereas in the Maha Sthupo they were enshrined in a receptacle considerably above the level of the ground.
1 Tumour’s Mahawanso, transl. p. 182.
o
98 Narrative of a Journey to Cho Lagan, $ c. [July,
In the various accounts above given in the text of the erecting of Chaittyas we cannot fail to remark the care taken on every occasion to record religious events on stone or metal, and these accounts would have bean some proof of this custom even if we had not known of the nume- rous Buddhist inscriptions, which are extant, especially those of the very Prince last named, Asdka [unless there wefe two of that name] which have of late years been brought to light by our indefatigable orientalists in India.
“After a while Phra P’hutthi Monthean, a holy priest of Buddha, arrived from Lanka in a vessel bringing with him a pipal tree, -which he privately planted unknown to anybody. Another personage after this sailed to the Golden Sands, but was wrecked there and lost most of his effects. But he built a Chaittya and a Vihan before he departed.” [The Siamese call him Nai song chbm.]
Narrative of a Journey to Cho Lagan ( Rdlcas Tat), Cho Mapan ( Mdnasarowar) , and the valley of Pritang in Gnari, Hundes, in September and October 1846. By Henry Strachey, Lieut. GGth Regt. Bengal N. I.
Ashot — 10 th September 1846. — At this place I met two fakirs late from Manasarowar. No. 1, a surkhi-colored Sunydsi, deponeth that walking over Ltpu-Dhiira into Taklakot, he was forthwith appre- hended, abused, beaten, and put in confinement for that ni<dit : the next morning he was brought up and scrutinized before the Sirdar of the place, who at last allowed him to proceed on his pilgrimage, but under the surveillance of a Hunia,* who accompanied him to the lake, whence he was marched straight back again after performing his ablu- tions, permission to make the Parharma (religious circuit), or to eo on to Kailas, being steadily refused. The Sunyasi was rather an intelli- gent, smart and decent looking person ; which qualities, I presume, ren- dered him the more obnoxious to the “ suspicion of being suspect- ed” for a Sikh or Feringi spy ; he was also guilty of a fine black beard — a distinctive mark of the “ out-side Barbarian,” which the Hunias of Gnari have held in great fear and aversion ever since the invasion of
* An inhabitant of Hundes.
1 848. J Narrative of a Journey to Cho Lay an, fc. 99
their country by the bearded Sikhs in 1841. The hurried way in which deponent was hustled through Pruang prevented his observing any- thing worth record.
Fakir No. 2. — A Joyi, black with dirt, and half fool; he accordingly inet a better reception than the Sunyasi, and was allowed to extend his pilgrimage to Kailas without hindrance ; yet he was a year in Byans before he could effect his entrance into Pruang ; for last season there was an absolute interdict against all Fakirs, and a companion of the Jogi then returned in despair, without accomplishing the object for which he had come from the uttermost parts of India. Deponent says that Hundes is a “ Bahut sundar jay ah ; per nahxn, — yhds nahtn, — siwa pathar aur baraf Icuchh nahm!”* beyond which he can give no lucid information.
These pilgrims are said to be the only two who have succeeded in reaching Manasarowar, via Byans, during the last two years ; — encou- raging for me, the third !
Kela , 15th Sept. — 15 days from Almora, might have been done in 10, but for the great heat in the low vallies and a touch of sickness (partly caused by that) which precluded much exertion, detaining me also three days at Petoragarh. The valley of the Kali proved not quite so bad as my apprehensions ; the first part is certainly low and hot enough, the jungle dense and rank in the extreme, grass and wild hemp ten feet high, through which we had to butt, heads down, in places where the path had not been cleared ; Sal, Sissoo and Toon trees, with wild Plantains and Cucumbers, denoting a very tropical climate. But this does not extend much beyond the mid- dle of the second stage ; at Dharchula, (2/50 feet above the sea, b. t.), the valley expands into a pleasant level, well cleared of jungle, and cultivated with rice. The scenery hereabouts is fine, the valley flanked by noble hills, on the west side by the base of Chipula. Thence on to Kela is not quite so clear and open, but the ground rises gradually into a cooler climate ; the road all the way easy. Relagarh, a ravine with a small stream, forms the boundary between the Rdjbdri of Askot and j the district of Kela.
The village of Kela comprises a good extent of well cultivated land, terraced out of a huge hill side that rises in a steep uniform slope for * i. e. very beautiful place, no trees, no grass, nothing but rock and snow.
o 2
100
Narrative of a Journey to Cho Lagan, fyc-
[July,
thousands of feet above the confluence of the Dhauli or Gori (the river of the Darina valley), with the Kali ; the houses, or huts rather, seem very few and mean. The opposite side of the valley in Doti,* * * § is of the same character.
Here I find Durga Datt Patwdri, f (Governor, that is,) of Kela, Darina, Cliaudans and Byans ; one Khasia% and three Blwtia dis- tricts, containing altogether some fifty villages — on a salary of five rupees per month ; an erratum , one would suppose, for fifty.
The Patwari informs me that there has been a murrain among the cattle in Darina this year, which has carried off all the kiue, and half the goats and sheep ; from the reports which have reached him, he judges that there are not a dozen Zholus% left in the whole of Darma, and that I should probably be unable to get half that number for my expedition across the snow. Lata, Budha\\ of Baund, a village of Dar- ma, reported that they had 52 head of cattle in his village last vear, and the murrain has destroyed every one of them. The danger of infection still lurking in the villages precludes the introduction of fresh stock from Ilundes this year. Under these circumstances I must abandon my intention of going through Darma, as a few baggage cattle are absolutely indispensable for a prolonged expedition across the passes, in which, as we have to avoid villages and inhabited places, myself and party must subsist solely on what provisions, &c. we can take with us. They say also that the road up to Darma is in a very bad state, and in one or two places rendered all but impassable by landslips ; not that it becomes me to be particular in that respect ; my difficulties lie the other side of the snow.
I had expected to get a tent from the Bhotias here, but I am now told that the people of Darma and Byans have no such luxuries, being content with what shelter they can extemporize with blankets amongst their Karpach (sheep saddle bags).
* The Province of Nipal which borders on Kumaon.
t Superintendent of a district in Kumaon.
X The Hill-people of the lower Himalaya.
§ The cross-bred kine between the Yak of Tibet and the Indian cow.
|| Commonly pronounced Burha, the Headman of a village, or more frequently, a set of villages. This term is equivalent to Kumin, Syana, and Tokdar, and is chiefly used in the eastern Pergunnahs of Kumaon. The tenure connected with these titles is called Burha chari, Kuniin-chari, &c.
1348.] Narrative of a Journey to Cho Lagan, fyc. 101
The Jwdris* * * § have very fair tents, of cow-hair cloth, in one of which I found good accommodation (for myself and half a dozen Bhotias) in my expedition across the Jwar Pass, last June. The Byansis certainly have less need of these things, as their traffic lies mostly among the villages of Pruang, and but a short distance from their own homes. Tent, or no tent, I now proceed through Byans, going by Kunti and the western pass, thence making the lakes (if nothing go wrong), and returning through Pruang, by Lipu Dhiira, the eastern pass, into Lower Byans. My first plan had been to go by Darma and return by western Byans, in order to see both of the Bhotia valleys ; but the season is now so far advanced, that unless my journey on the other side were curtailed of its fair proportions, there would be an even chance of my finding the Western Ghat of Byans impassable from snow, by the time of my return, whereas Lipu Dhiira will be safe probably, for the next month or two.
Patwari says that the remnant of the Sikh invaders of Gnari, who made their escape into Kumaon, came over Lipu Dhiira in the month of December 1841. All the other Ghats would have been absolutely impassable at that time of year.
Receive a letter from Hirdu Budha, Thokdarf of Chaudans, to the effect, that hearing I am going to Darma, he requests that I will abandon that route and come his way instead ; no reason whatever is offered for the said request. But the Patwari explains that the Bho- tias of Darma, Chaudans, and Byans have heard that the Sahib L6g frequently drop a good deal of money in visits to Jwar and Niti,J and often ask him why he does not exert his influence to bring part of this lucrative traffic their way.
16 th September. — Descend from Kela, cross the Dhauli (now unfordable) by a Sdnga,§ and enter Chaudans, up a long and steep ascent, the distance from Kela to Titila, though no more than 4^ miles by the Map, occupying me 5-g- hours, of which half an hour may have been rest. The hill enveloped in clouds, and myself drenched with mist and rain, I could see little or nothing of the coun-
* Inhabitants of J war, the Alpine valley of the Gori.
t Head of a hill district.
t A village of Garhvval giving its name to one of the passes into Tibet.
§ A timber-bridge of a construction common in these mountains.
102 Narrative of a Journey to C/io Lagan, « )e. [July,
try, but an entire change of climate and botany indicates a much higher elevation than Kela, and to my great relief, rice cultivation has disappeared. Ilirdu Budha tells me that nothing now remains of the old Fort, if ever there was one, (the Titlakot of the map) on the top of the hill, one or two hundred feet above the village of Titila.
The people of Chaudans are all Bhotia, carrying on a limited traffic with Pruang via Eastern Byans.
On the road to-day I met many Dunals, men of Diing, a pati or subdivision of Doti opposite this, bringing salt and borax from Brans. They are not Bhotia, but Khasia, i. e. people of K.ias-des, which in days of yore included all the hill country of which the inhabitants were of mixed caste, and impure to the genuine Hindus of Lower India ; but the Ivhasias themselves now rather affect to reject the name, and pass it on to the Bhotias, who bear much the same relation to them, that they do to the pure Hindus, the Bhotias being a cross-breed, pro- bably, between the Khasias and the Iluuias of Iluudes.
Thermometer at 5J i\ m. 58°, boiled at 198°. Elevation of Titila 8000 feet above the sea. The village of Sosa is some 250 feet lower, ltain at night.
1 7th September. — Leave Titila, and after a march of 4} miles by the map, occupying near 6 hours, encamp on the Syankwangarh, now a considerable stream, under the village of Bunbun, at the foot of Rholing-Dhura, the crossing of which constitutes the greater part of this march. The ascent is long but easy, probably three thousand feet in perpendicular elevation, though the summit of the pass may not be more than 2000 feet higher than Titila (owing to some intermediate descent of the road), or 10,000 feet of absolute elevation. The whole hill is clothed with very fine forest, mostly Ilorse-chestunt trees, with undergrowth of Ningala (Arundinaria falcata?) much resembling that on the Munsliari side of Kalamundi,* on the road from Girgaou, (the summit of which is 9200 feet above the sea,) aud these two are by far the finest specimens of forest that I have met with in these hills ; the Horse-chestnuts being tall, straight and clean timbers of considerable size. The north side of Rholing-Dhura is of the same character as the south, with a descent of some three thousand feet to Syankwangarh. My encampment here may be 750 feet lower than Titila, i. e. 7J50 * A pass and range between the valleys of the Uori and Itannganga.
103
1848 ] Narrative of a Journey to Clio Lagan , fyc.
feet above the sea, and the village of Bunbun a little above the Garli, 7500 feet.
Thermometer 60° at sunset. Thick clouds and mist all day, rain at night.
18 th September. — Morning so rainy that my companions advise a halt, to which I object ; leave Syankwang, and in three quarters of an hour reach the village or hamlet of Gala, 1 j miles distant, where, after all we are stopped by the rain, which increases with promise of continu- ance, and the Nirpania-Dhura ahead is said to be steep and very troublesome in foul weather.
Gala is a mere hamlet with two or three houses, at present uninhabi- ted, and a few fields cultivated by the Zemindars of Rung, a neighbour- ing village. The vacant cottages accom modate myself and party much better than the cutcha hunting run up for me at Syankwang, which would have been miserable quarters indeed in this weather. It is fortu- nate that I would not take the advice of my friends to stay there this morning.
Thermometer outside at 4 p. m. 55°. I judge the elevation of this place to be about the same as Bunbun, 7500 feet.
The rain continues all day and all night without intermission.
\tyth September. — -Still raining and the whole hillside completely enveloped in cloud.
Sumhyaki, son of Hirdu, the Tokdar, who has accompanied us from Titila, with laden sheep, &c. for Pruang, objects to proceed in such weather as this; so do I. We heard the sound of a considerable landslip somewhere in the vicinity this morning. In heavy rain the passage of Nirpania-Dhura is rendered unsafe by showers of stone, which it is difficult to see and avoid when the air is obscured by mist.
Patwari Durga, a well educated man in the Hindu fashion assures me that Hiundes, the “snow country,” is a mistake, originated if I remember rightly, by Professor Wilson, and since currently adopted.
The true name is Himdes, svr^'sr, from ^girr, the “ Hun,” aboriginal inhabitants of the country north of the Himalaya, and not derived in any way from T%tt, Him, snow. Mention of the country and people is to be found in the Mahabharat, Mdrkandia Parana, and other of the Sanskrit books which treat of the mythological history of this part of the world : both Ilun and Tatar appear as allies of the “ Rdkshasa,”
104 Narrative of a Journey to Clio Lagan , $-c. [July,
(now llulcas) in their battles with the gods or demigods, about the In- dian Olympus, Kailas. The great Hungarian scholar, Csoma de Kurds, I have heard was endeavouring to trace the origin of his own nation, the European Huns, in this quarter.
Our word Tibet (of which Thibet is a gratuitous corruption) was in- troduced to Europe I believe by Marco Polo, and to India probably by the Mahomedan invaders and rulers from the North ; it appears more than once in the Geographical statements of Abul Fazl, Ayin Akbary ; and the word is probably of Turki origin, “ Tibbit," being the term now in use with the Usbeks of Yarkand for Pashm, the wool of the shawl goat. I am not aware of any authentic instance of the acknow- ledgment of the name Tibet by the natives of the country. Turner says distinctly that it is called by the inhabitants “ Pue,” or “ Pue- Koachini ,” i. e. snowy region of the North. “The land of Tiburut,” in the letter of Soopoon Choomboo to Warren Hastings, dated ICth November 1781, (Turner, Appendix III.) is clearly the work of the Persian translator, whose style is conspicuous throughout that com- position ; and Turner’s allusion (in a note to his introduction) to “ the pronunciation of this name in Bengal, as well as Tibet," though seem- ing to imply the use of the -word by the nations of the latter country, may with probability be ascribed to the same origin as Soopoon Choom- boo’s expression, as it may be observed that Turner frequently applies to persons and things of Tibet Hindustani names which must have been derived from his interpreters. Continued rain all day and night.
“IDth September. — This morning looking a little clearer, or not quite so foul, I prepared to start, but by the time we were ready the rain had set in again as hard as before, and put a stopper on the intended move.
Weather continued bad all day, but towards sunset, the dense enve- lope of cloud and mist began to break a little, disclosing glimpses of blue sky, also of a very dismal looking snowy ridge to the east, Nam- jung and Liugaru, inferior spurs of the great mountain A'pi, on the opposite side of the river. A fine starlight night succeeded, with un- clouded sky, inspiring hopes for the morrow.
21 st September. — Fair weather at last, and we resume our journey. I did not find the passage of Nirpania-Dhura quite so troublesome as the accounts of my native guides had led me to anticipate, but a little experience of this part of the Himalaya soon accustoms one to very
Narrative of a Journey to Cho Lagan , fyc.
105
1848.]
queer places. The ascent is tolerably steep, the path mostly in steps, but in good order. The proper name of this ridge appears to be Gala, a base-spur from the snowy mountain, which the map (incorrectly I believe) calls Gula-Ghat ; the eastern extremity of it where crossed by the road, is subdivided by two shallow ravines into three minor ridges, the first from Chaudans, called Yergnachim ; the second Birdong, thence is a good view into the valley of the Kali up to Budlii ; and the Bird Tyungwe-Binaik, which is the boundary between Chaudans and hyans : these differ little in height, and may average 3000 feet perhaps above the village of Gala, i. e. 10,500 feet absolute elevation above sea level. The name Nirpania*-Dhura has been applied to this hill by the Khasias, because, in dry weather, no water is to be found on it, and the ascent is rather thirsty work. The ascent of Nirpania from the south merely leads to an equal descent on the north side, some 3000 feet down to Golam-La, this side of the Najangar ; and the path here is, if any thing, steeper, in narrow steps all the way, looking rather precipit- ously into the bed of the Kali,. which is many thousand feet below. The summit of the pass must be near a mile in prependicular height above the river. Half way down to Golam-La is a small resting-place for goats, &c., called Dandanliyar, a miserable little ledge on the hillside, in a jangle of wild hemp, dock, and nettles. The hill is too steep and rocky to be very well wooded, though it is not deficient in vegetation . I observed some indifferent specimens of Silver Fir, ( Picea Pindrow ? or Webhiana .?),f by the Bhoteas called Woman, with the exact pro- nunciation of that English word.
Cypress (Cupressus torulosa), by the Khasias called Saro, by the Bhoteas Tangshin , a name which in other districts I understand they apply indiscriminately to any tree of the Fir or Pine species.
Yew, ( Taxus baccata,) Khas : Thunir, Bhot : Nhdrey.
Birch, (Be tula bliojpatra,) Bhot : Shale-shin.
Rhododendron, ( R . campanulatum.) Khas : Buronj or Burdns, Bhot : Talc-shin.
Bamboo-cane, (Arundinaria falcata ? Khas : Ningala , Bhot : Kwey.
* “ Nir," without ; “ pani," water.
t For the few Botanical names mentioned in my Journal, I am indebted to Major Madden, of the Artillery, at Almora ; but mistakes in the application of them (if any) are entirely my own.
P
106 Narrative of a Journey to Cho Layan, fyc. [July,
Sycamore, (Acer Sterculiaceum,) Khas : Kamiah , Bhot : Kanshin. From the knotty parts of this tree, they make the coarser sort of tea- cups used iu Hundes and Bhot,* termed Lahauri Doha; the better sort, Talua Doha, are made from the Patgnalia, another of the maple tribe (Acer oblongum), which grows on the Southern hill ranges, such as the Gagar.f &c., and is very abundant at Naini Tal.
White Dog-rose, (Rosa sericea,) Khas : and Bhot : Sephala, the leaves of which are rather fragrant, like sweet Briar, the fruit a large round Hip, edible, (but not worth eating.)
A ground-Raspberry (Rubus nutans) Bhot : Sinjang, and the fruit Sinjang Lo, orange-coloured, with a pleasant acid flavor ; the plants I saw grew on the ground like strawberries.
An Orchis (Satyrium Nepalense) Bhot ; Phung, with small rose- coloured flowers rather fragrant ; the Bhotias sometimes eat the root, raw or cooked.
On the descent of Nirpania, I saw some monkeys which the Khasia Hindustanis of my party asserted to be the same as the Langur of the plains. I venture to doubt this, as these animals, (Bhot : Kholi) ap- pear to have tufts at the end of their tails, and make a grunting noise, unlike what I remember of the Langur, though otherwise they are much the same.
The march from Gala to Golam La, not more than 5 miles on the map, took us near G hours, exclusive of stoppages for rest, &c.
Golam La, a mere encamping-ground, marked by a large (Gneiss) rock standing out of the hillside, overhangs the confluence of the Najan-gar with the Kali, which is from 1,500 to 2000 feet below ; the declivity almost precipitous. The Najan-gar comes from a great snowy mountain visible through the head of the glen ; this is marked Gula-gliat on the map, but Sumhyaki, Sayanaj of the Titil-sosa, calls it Yirgnajang, which has some aflinity to the name of the river rising from its base. The Najan-gar is a most impetuous torrent, falling in cascades rather than rapids, over a very steep rocky bed, through a deep ravine flanked with precipitous mountains.
Steep and lofty mountains rise immediately on the East side of the
* Cis-alpine Himalaya, inhabited by Bhotias.
t The outer high range in Kumaon piopcr, overlooking the plains.
j (Sage.) Ilead-man of a hill village.
1848.]
Narrative of a Journey to Cho Lagan, fyc.
107
Kali, reducing the valley to a mere gigantic ravine ; -which is the cha- racter of it, in fact all the way from Relagar. Opposite to the Najan- gar, an inferior spur with a little comparatively level ground on its top, affords a site to the village of Thin, now apparently deserted. Behind this rises the ridge of snow seen from Gala ; Namjung, on the left, close over the Kali, and Lingaru to the right, some 18,500 feet high. The great Peak of Ypi behind, though 22,799 feet in height, is quite concealed by the proximity of its lofty base. The Thampa- gar, immediately south of the hill of Thin, rises from a glacier under Lingaru, plainly distinguishable from Golam La, by its form, dirty color, aud situation below the lowest limit of the snow which lies on the ridge above.* These glaciers are well known to the Bhotias, under the term Gal, a non gal-endo, perhaps, as they never melt like the supe- rior snow.
The Peaks of Byaus-Rikhi I think, are visible up the valley of Byans : only partially snowed though near 20,000 feet in height, which is owing to the steepness of their rocky summits, I imagine.
Clouds aud a little rain in the evening ; Thermometer at sunset 60° ; night fine.
22 d September. — Morning fair, Thermometer at 7|- A. m. 52*° ; boiled to 1980 ; elevation of Golam La 8000 feet. The village of Thin, on the other side of the river, is about the same height.
Leaving Golam La, we descend a thousand feet or so, by a steep path, and cross the Najan-gar, by a small Sanga, a mile above its con- fluence with the Kali. The stream is unfordable at present, rather on account of its great fall aud rapidity of current, than for the volume of water ; in the mile between the bridge and the confluence the fall must be 500 feet. The path continues, often in steps, and rather precipi- tously, round the shoulder of Pomayyar, a base-spur from Yirgua- jang, thence descends and crosses the Malpagar, a small fordable rapid, close to its confluence with the Kali. Just above this point, on the side of Pamayyar, is Jambe-Odvar, a large cave, said to be capa-
* It is surprising that the existence of these Himalayan Glaciers, with which the snowy range here abounds in all directions, should be questioned or doubted even now, in the 30th year of British possession of Kumaon ; it is equalled only by the perpetual snow line on the southern face of these mountains being fixed by Humboldt at 1 1 ,700 feet, an ele- vation at and above which we have luxuriant vegetation, and flourishing agricultural villages.
p 2
108 Narrative of a Journey to Clio Lagan, 8,-c. [July,
ble of giving shelter to five hundred laden sheep and men in proportion ; being out of the way I did not see it. Another great ascent from Malpagar ; the path still precipitous and in steep steps, along the side of Chantirong : the summit, Umdognyir, a minor rocky projection not half way up the mountain side, reaches an elevation of 9,300 feet perhaps, some half a mile vertically above the river. Thence a descent again, not over easy, to the bank of the Kali, a mile or two along which brings us to Lamare, a small level encamping-ground, close on the river side, with boulders of rock, ( Ld ?)
The Kali here may be 1 00 feet across and looks as though it would he fordable but for the violence of the current.
A man from Kunti says that snow has fallen in his village lately, and that the Kunti passes have probably got more than enough of the same.
This day’s march, about 5 miles by the map, occupied me 6y hours, besides half an hour for rest, &c. In the lower parts of the ground, near the bed of the river, I found the sun very hot.
Thermometer at sunset 6 1^°, boiled at 198°, (same as Golam La) elevation 8000 feet ; evening cloudy with a little rain.
23c? September. — Leave Lamare, path easy, ascends a little, and con- tinues above the river bank under the side of Yirtashin ; a mile on crosses a small gar,* theTakti, and at two miles descends to the Palan- gar, a considerable rapid crossed by a Sanga near its confluence with the Kali. This gar comes through a deep ravine from Tokong, a snowy ridge, of which the opposite side gives rise to the gar of Shela in Darma, and there was once a pass this way, but dangerous, and disused since lives were lost there some years ago. This Tokong must be a secondary spur from Yirgnajang, the Gula Ghat of the map.
The valley of the Kali now expands a little and gives site to the village of Budhi, (the first and lowest of Byans, and the single village of Sub-Alpine Byans, as it might be termed) on the right bank, above the confluence of the Palangar. Here I see a good-sized Walnut tree (Juglans regia) by the Ilhotias called Kds-shin ; a large Barberry, Ivhas : Chotra, Bliot : Ndchi-shin (Berberis aristata), fruit worth- less ; sweet red-flowered Buckwheat (Fagopyrum vulgare ?) Khas : Ogal, Bliot, Palti, and the bitter white (or yellow) flowered sort * Mountain-stream.
1848.] Narrative of a Journey to C/to Lagan, § c. 109
(F. esculentum ?) Klias : Phdpar, Bhot : Bliey ; Turnips, Khas : Salgam, Bhot : Chankan ; Amaranth, red and white ; and Tobacco in flower. The above crops are well advanced but not quite ripe yet : the two last (Amaranth and Tobacco) do not grow above this.
The people of Budhi are all Bhotias, but in site and climate the village belongs rather to the Sub-Alpine regions, like Chaudans, though it lies north of the great snowy mountain Api. Its elevation is 8750 feet.
Immediately above Budhi a steep hill ridge advances from the moun- tain side on our left (N. \V.) and extends across the width of the valley, leaving hut a narrow passage for the river, close under the mountains on the opposite bank. The ascent, though considerable (some 1750 feet) is tolerably easy, by a fair smooth path, much better than any part of the road this side of the Dhauli, the lower boundary of Bhot, in this quarter. The summit, Cheto Binaik, at an elevation of about 10,500 feet, is the entrance to upper Byans.
On the ascent of the hill some alteration is apparent in the style of vegetation ; new species of Fir and Pine take the place of other trees, and the undergrowth of weeds, &c. diminishes. At the top the change of scenery and climate is complete, sudden and most agreeable, from the narrow dark ravine of the lower Kali, with its damp and stagnant atmosphere, to an open sunny Alpine valley, with a fair expanse of comparative level. The lower parts of the valley towards the river are occupied with villages and cultivation ; thence forests of Fir, Pine, and Birch, slope up to the base of the surrounding mountains, which rise on all sides in noble castellated walls of rock crowned with snow, and towering into the clouds; the extreme snowy summits are hidden by the prominence of their lofty outworks. If perfection of climate and scenery could compensate for inconvenient seclusion and uncivilized condition of its people, this place would afford a most delightful sum- mer residence ; the top of the hill, or the northren slope of it facing the Bhotia valley, would give many fine sites for a house or standing camp.
A gradual descent leads over sloping upland clothed with fine close turf, on which Chanwrs* and Zhobus are grazing ; then through clean open forest of silver Fir (Picea Pindrow or Webbiana, Bhot : Woman , and Pine (Pinus excelsa) Khas : Raisalla, Bhot : “ Lam-shin * Indian name for the Yak of Tibet.
1 10 Narrative of a Journey to Clio Lagan, fyc. [July,
Weeds and jungle give place to flowers and neat shrubs ; a fine Larkspur; Juniper (Juniperus squamosa) Khas : Padbank, Bhot : Pamd (in Jwar they call this Bit ) ; another sort of Juniper with sharp thorny leaves exuding rauk turpentine, (J. religiosa) Bhot : Lhdla, a wil- low-leafed shrub, the branches covered with small round yellow berries, a strong (edible) acid, (Hippophae salicifolia) Bhot : Tdrvca-chuk.
The road passes through Garbia, the first village of Upper Byans ; the houses are mostly two-storied but ill-built affairs, and disfigured with a quantity of poles stuck about them (for ornament or superstition ?) in all directions ; they are flat-roofed. The elevation of Garbia is, accord- ing to Webb, 10,2/2 feet.
The fields here contain Barley (Hordeum coeleste) Khas : TJa-jo ; Bhot: Chdmd ; Wheat, Bhot: Ndphal ; Turnips, and the two Buck- wheats, all ripe or ripening.
A little beyond Garbia stands the remnant of what was once the vil- lage of Chindu, now one or two houses, aud a few fields, standing on the top of a narrow shelf of ground which the encroachment of the river is fast driving to the wall of rock behind. The base of this valley (like that of upper Jwar) is formed by an accumulation of old alluvium and debris from the surrounding mountain-sides, in strata of considerable ag- gregate thickness and loose consistency ; through which the river appears to have cut its present channel, three or four hundred feet below the site of the villages, and to the great danger of those which are too near its bank. The Clieto hill above Budhi is in fact the abrupt termina- tion of this elevated bed of detritus, forming southward an acclivity of 2000 feet or more (in vertical height) ; to the east and north-east, where the river breaks through, it appears in cliffs and landslips many hun- dred feet high.
From Garbia the road decends to the bed of the river, .and crosses by a substantial Sanga, a little above the confluence of the Tinkar, which is a large stream (not much inferior to the maiu body of the Kali) coming in two branches from the east and north-east.
We encamped on level ground by the river side, a little above the bridge and under a steep bank, on the top of which is the village of Changrew.
The Kali now turns abruptly to our left (N. W.), through a defile of steep rockv mountains, the natural grandeur of which is raised to sub-
Ill
1848.] Narrative of a Journey to Cho Lagan, fyc.
limity by the veil of clouds that obscures the more distant and lofty parts, and so increases the apparent magnitude of the whole.
Thermometer at 4 p. m. 60 , boiled at 194£° ; elevation 10,000 feet. Changrew perhaps may be at the same height as the summit of Cheto Benaik, 10,500 feet.
The Bhotias of Chaudans, who accompanied me thus far, here took their leave. I found them a civil and cheerfully working set of people, and had no trouble whatever from them. Sumhyaki is a stout, amiable and modest youth, deserving of more encouragement than the bottle of rum and handful of tea which I was able to give him. The men of upper Byans were assembled to relieve the Chaudansis, and equally ready to give every assistance, with Zhobus, ponies, and porters for my baggage.
Patwari Durga Datt having inducted the Buddhas and Saydnas, old and wise, into some idea of my designs on the lakes, they volun- teered assistance, but also their own plan of operations, which after much discussion, I was obliged to reject as incomplete and unsatisfactory, their idea being to smuggle me past Taklakhar to Manasarowar, and thence straight back again, which would involve much risk of stoppage on the way out, before reaching the Lakes at all, and leave Rakas Tal, and its communication with the Sutlej (if any) unexplored. Not till late in the evening, I got hold of the right man, Rechung or Recliu, Padhan of Kunti, from whom I derived information which decided me in adhering to my original intention of going his way. According to Rechu, there are two Passes at the end of the Kunti valley ; Lank- pya Dhiira, on the extreme North West, and Manksliang, a little lower down and more easterly ; both of them affording direct commu- nication to the South and West shores of Rakas Tal, and round that lake, either way, to Manasarowar, without passing through such popu- lous places as Pruang. The Lankpya Pass, in Rechu’ s opinion, is not stiffer than the “ Lipu Lekh” of eastern Byans ; though he can’t speak to the state of the snow upon it at present, as none of his people have crossed the pass since the bad weather, in which snow fell in the village of Kunti, and which proves to have been identical with the con- tinuous rain which detained us at Gala on the 18th, 19tli and 20th instant. The Kuntiyals are the only people here who know any thing at all about the passes of western Byans ; all the other Byansis are
112
Narrative of a Journey to Cho Lagan, fye.
[July,
absolutely ignorant, even of the names of the Dhuras,* their traffic lying almost exclusively with Pruang via the Lipu Pass, which is a more convenient route for all the lower villages.
Thermometer at sunset 5G° ; clouds and a little rain at ni^ht.
24 th September. — Thermometer at sunrise 47° (water the same temperature) ; weather fair.
The Bhdtias being rather dilatory in mustering one or two requisites that I want for the Passes and II undes, I have to halt this dav.
In the morning I paid a visit to Changrew, up a steep hill, which forms a sort of elevated terrace at the foot of the great rockv moun- tain Kelirong, within the angle made by the confluence of the Tinkar with the Kali. The acclivity is clothed with Pine, Juniper, Dogrose, &c. &c. Changrew is much the same sort of village as Garbia ; its elevation, according to yesterday’s estimate (500 feet above my camp on the river bank) 10,500 feet; it is unfortunately situated on the top of very unsafe ground, which is gradually descending by a huge land- slip into the bed of the Tinkar, every year carrying away some yards of the village lands. The Tinkar below, is a good sized stream, at this time of year requiring a sanga for the passage of it. Six or seven miles up this river, and under Kelirong, is the village of Tinkar, and beyond that a pass of the same name (here at least, — the Dhiira probably has a proper name of its own), which communicates with Jidikhar, one of the villages (and as the “ Khar ” imports, once a fort) of Pruang, on the Karnali, a few miles below Taklakhar. A mile or so above its termination in the Kali the Tinkar receives a tributary of some size, the Nampa-gar, which comes from the East and South- East out of two glaciers, the Southern one visible from Changrew, at the base of the snowy mountains Nampa and A'pi. Changrew and Tin- kar belong geographically to Byaus, and are inhabited by Bhotias, the same in every respect as the other Byansis, and sharing in the traffic with Pruang by the Lipu Pass. It was a mistake leaving this little valley to the Gorkhas, when the rest of the district was brought under British rule ; the true frontier line was the range of snowy mountains on the East, Tinkar, Nampa, and Api, on the other side of which lies the district of Manna, the northernmost division of Doti, and the inha- bitants of which, like those of Dung, next south, are Khasia and not * Dhiira— d high mountain-pass.
1848.] Narrative of a Journey to Cho Lagan, <j’c. 113
Bhotia. A case occurs on the opposite frontier of northern Garhwal, not unlike this of the Tinkar valley, but otherwise disposed of. “ Nag- poor occupies the Dooab between the Mundakhnee and Alaknunda, branches of the Ganges uniting at Roodur-Pryag. From Tirjoo-ke- Narain near Kedarnatli, however, there stretches down from North to South a high range of mountains lying a few miles to the west of the Mundakhnee, and the intervening space is occupied by two or three Khalsa villages of Nagpoor, but chiefly by the Suda-burt puttees of Purkundee, Bamsoo and Mykhunda, rent-free endowments of the Kedarnath shrine. In former years of the British rule, there arose some doubt whether this tract of country, being west of the river, did not properly belong to the Raja of Gurhwal’s reserved territory, but as it was proved always to have formed a constituent part of Pergunnah Nagpoor, the claim of the Raja was disallowed.” (Batten’s Report on the Revenue settlement of Gurhwal, Appendix, para. II.)
Jashpal Budha of Changrew appears to be one of the most decent and intelligent of the Byansis. lie considers it the misfortune of his village that it was excluded from the British territory, though their condition has been a good deal improved, he says, since they have been allowed to pay their revenue dues to the Gorkhali Vakil at the Bages- war Fair (an arrangement suggested by the late Commissioner Traill I believe), instead of suffering the visitations of a Tehsildar ; but he complains that no abatement of the Government demands has been made for the loss of whole fields of their village by landslips.
The district of Manna lies to the south (by east) of Byans, as Dung does from Chaudans. There was formerly a pass from the top of the Marma valley into the valley of the Tinkar by the Nampa Dhura and Gar ; but this has become impracticable, and the Marma people going to Pruang (with which they have some little traffic) have now to come round through Dung and Chaudans, for they are also snowed up on the north and north-east, having no practicable passes that way into Pruang. Marma has iron and productive copper mines : the people bring copper pots, &c. to Dharchula for barter with the Chaudansis and Byansis : they have a Rajbar ; his son, Amar Sing, has come to Dharchula occasionally.
Beyond Marma again, eastward and separated by snowy mountains (which are also impassable, I suppose, else the Marma people would go
Q
114 Narrative of a Journeij to Clio Lagan, § c. [July,
that way, as being the more direct into Pruang) lies the district of Dhiili, which is the Alpine part of Bazingia, having direct communica- tion and considerable traffic with Pruang via Jidi-khar.
Dhiili, is said to have but one single village of Bhotias, all the rest of the people being Khasia.
Bazingia is ruled by a Raja, now Gajraj Sing, who married a daugh- ter of the Maharaj Raj Rajindra s(h)ali Bikram of Nipal.
Beyond Bazingia, still further east, are Ilumla (north) and Jumla (south) through which flows the Ivarnali after leaving Pruang ; and in Jumla it receives another branch, the Beri (or Blieri) whence the united river goes by the name of Beri-karuali.
Dense clouds and rain all this afternoon ; the hut of bare mats which the Bhotias have made for me (very clumsily) is by no means comforta- ble in this weather. Rain continues all night.
‘loth September . — Morning still cloudy, but rain stopped. 'We con- tinue our journey towards Ivuuti. The road turns off to our left (N. W.) following the course of the Kali, and passing over some verv rough and steep ground, a ruinous bank of landslip formed by the channel which the river has excavated through the loose strata of the valley bottom. The mountains rise close on either side in fine precipitous walls of rock, the clay slate formation common to these Alpine regions, the stratification of which has been violently disturbed, contorted, and broken into thousands of castellated crags, the variety of the colors, many shades of red, grey and purple, adding to the picturesque effect. The mountain to our right is Ivelirong ; in the map its upper part is called Byans Riklii, and the lower part Kourtekh. Byans Rikhi is the proper name, not of the mountain, but of the gentleman supposed to dwell on the top of it, who appears to be identical with the great Rishi or sage Vyasa or Vyas-deva, reputed author of the Mahabharat, and sundry Purans, &c., and Byans seems to be nothing else than the modern form of the old Sanskrit name Vyasa.
Hirkun (or Ilurkun) Budha of Garbia, Tokdar of Byans, who accompanies me as Cicerone, &c. asserts that some of the Bhotias have climbed up this mountain for three days and not got to the top (the elevation of which is near 20,000 feet.)
Hereabouts are Jakti on the N. East, and Siti on the S. West bank of the river, hamlets cultivated by the Garbials ; they have suf- fered much from landslip, and are not permanently inhabited.
13-18.]
Narrative of a Journey to Cho Lagan, § c.
115
Crossing a small Garh, Ilangchu, which rises from the base of Ivelirong, we pass through Tala-Kawa, a hamlet of one or two houses, the land cultivated by the Gunjials, for which they pay rakam * to the Gurkhali government. It is a very picturesque place, with a pretty expanse of open fields bordered by copices of Pine, but the corn, now under the sickle, is very poor looking stuff. Here the goose- berry makes its appearance, by the Byansi Bhotias called Guldum, which is also the Hunia name for the Bisehir grapes (and the Apricot too) ; the Jwari name for the gooseberry is Sirgochi : also the wild Apple Tree (Pyrus baccata) bearing a very small red crab, no bigger than a wild cherry. Both of these fruits are quite worthless.
The hamlet of Tala-Kawa, is a mile or two higher up, round the corner, on the road to Lipu-Lekh, which here turns off to the right.
Hereabouts we met a nondescript sort of person, late from Pruaug, a native of Lamjung, in western Nipal on the river Gandaki, called also the Kali and the Saligrami. Below Lamjung is Betia, above it is Shama, an Alpine district inhabited by Buddhist Bhotias, and communi- cating by snowy Passes with Iliindes, which is there, as here, level table-land. This gentleman was not wanting in assurance, but could give no very clear account of himself, or of the countries through which lie had travelled. He called himself a pilgrim, but looked more like a “Chevalier d’ industrie.” With difficulty I extracted a few particles of information from him ; he says that the two principal communica- tions between Nipal and Iliindes are by Kirong in the western, and Nyanam in the eastern quarter, the former of which (also written Kee- roo) is known to Indian Geography and is about north of Ivhatmandu ; and the latter should be either another name of Kuti, which is the Lhassam frontier village on the road from Ivhatmandu to Digarcha, &c, or else some place close beyond, that though I cannot find such a name in any other autliorties. From the “ Geographical Notice of Tibet” (J. A. S. No. 4, 1832) by Csoma de Kurds, I afterwards found that Myan~ am is the name of the district. These are frontier posts, commanding the Passes of Nipal, each in charge of two Zungpun appointed from Lhassa, and acting jointly like the Grapan of Gnari. Deba Phundu, the late Zungpun of Pruang, is now gone to Kirong in the joint office. Kirong must be lower than Pruang, as it has trees and other signs of a
* Revenue,
Q
9
11G Narrative of a Journey to Clio Lagan, §-c. [JULY»
more temperate climate. Kham is a country of great extent, north and east of Lhassa ; the present Zungpun of Pruang is a Khampa (a man of Kham) from some place 20 days north of the capital, south of Digar- cha, and Lhassa is the country of Lho, the people (Lhopa or Lhoba) Buddhist Bhdtias, of Tibetan character, ruled by their own Lamas. This is the country, which, after the Hindus, we call Bootan, Bhutan, the country of the Daeb or Deb Raja, or the Deba Dharmma, the same visited and described by Turner, who unaccountably omits to give the proper name of it. “ Lulumba,” as Kishen Kant Bhose has it, Asiatic Researches, 1823, Vol. 15, Art. Ill, is merely “ Lho-lungba,” i. e. “the country of Lho, and the “Lobath” mentioned in Soopoon Choomboo’s letter to Warren Hastings, lGth November 1781. Tur- ner, Appendix III. is probably a corruption of the same by the Persian translator. The “ Kumbauk” there mentioned along with “Lobah,” and alluded to by the same name, in other parts of Turner’s account, is also, in my opinion, a similar confusion of the country, “ Kam ,” with its inhabitants, “ Kharn-pa (the latter corrupted to “ Kumbak.)
By the valley of the Karnali, there are no great snowy ridges to be crossed between Humla and Pruang ; so that the route is much easier and practicable, longer than the other in the range of the Nepalese and British Himalaya ; nevertheless, in the height of winter the Humla Pass gets snowed up and becomes difficult or dangerous.
Descending from Tala-Kawa, the Kunti road crosses the Kali, the smaller branch of the river from the N. East, by a small Sanga 150 yards above its confluence with the Kunti-Yankti, which is the larger branch from the north-west. The Kali at this point has a bed 150 yards wide, but contracting into much narrower limits a mile further up, and the stream is now all but fordable, though in the height of the rains it swells so much as to carry away the bridge here, and the road then has to cross higher up. The Kunti-Yankti is a third larger than the Kali, both in size of channel and volume of water, and nearly four times the length from source to confluence ; notwithstanding which the eastern aud smaller branch has given its name to the united river. The name of the Kali is said to be derived from the Kalapani springs, erroneously reputed the source of the river, but in fact unimpor- tant tributaries merely ; and both are so called from the dark coIof of the water ; but even in this respect the Kali is exceeded by the Kun-
117
1848 ] Narrative of a Journey to Clio Lagan, §-c.
ti-Yankti ; such are the foolish contradictions of Hindu Geography. This eastern Kali, however, is now the actual boundary between the British and Nepalese territories, and according to the Bhotias of the place, has always been so ; therefore the map also, though theoretically right, is practically wrong in giving the name of Kali to the western river, the Kunti-Yankti, and drawing the red boundary line along it.
Having crossed the Kali, the road now enters on a fine expanded valley of considerable length. At this end the flat and habitable, if not culturable ground at the bottom must exceed half a mile in breadth ; it consists of the same accumulated alluvium and debris that I noticed at the entrance of the valley between Budhi and Garbia, through which the river cuts a deep and modern-looking channel, leaving, mostly on the east bank, pretty extensive levels for villages and cul- tivation, but the fields do not appear thriving ; the surface of the ground is very stony and the soil probably not so fertile as to com- pensate for the backwardness of climate and lazy slovenly tillage of the Bhotias.
The first village here is Gungi ; the houses, as usual here, ill-built, flat-roofed, two (and some three) storied.
In the fields are Phaphar cut, and wheat ripe ; wild plum trees, Bongbale, witli fruit like that of the English sloe, and apple trees, covered with miserable little crabs. The north-east end of the village land has been devastated by a great landslip which came from the neighbouring mountain, Tipai, 3 years ago, covering the fields with a flood of stony debris.
On the opposite side of the river is the village of Napalcliu, situated on the Per-Yankti, a deep gar coming from Namjuug (the 2nd of that name) a snowy mountain to the south-west.
Prom Kelirong we hear the sound of an avalanche, Iliunra, which the Byansis call Rhi.
Two miles further on is Nabhi, a village like the others, with a good expanse of ripe wheat in the fields; and opposite to Nabhi, Ronkali, on the Dangnung-Yankti, which comes from a snowy ridge on the south-west, Ronkongper, through a deep ravine, dividing the mountain side. A pass across the Ronkongper, now dangerous and disused, once led into the Pelangar below Budhi ; it was by this route that Byans was entered by Rudurpal, former Rajbar of Ascot, and by him
1 18 Narrative of a Journey to Cho Lagan, $-c. [July,
subdued and annexed to the Raj of Kumaon under the Gorkhas. The Dangnung is a good sized Yiinkti, with several Sangas thrown across it for the intercommunications of the village, which lies on both sides of the stream ; and a bridge over the Kunti river connects Nabhi with Ronkali. An immense flood of debris brought down by the Dangnung, and by a huge landslip from Sildu, the mountain imme- diately north of it, has driven the Kunti river close under an ad- vancing spur of the opposite mountain, here a wall of bare rock, the passage round which is rather precipitous, but not particularly difficult or dangerous, the road being built up with some care. Indeed it has appeared to me all along that the Chaudans and Ryans Rhdtias have their roads and bridges in much better order than the Jwaris, and the natural difficulties of Upper Chaudans are perhaps greater than those of Jwar, always excepting the road from Milam to Dung, an impractica- ble landslip, than which nothing can be worse.
Two miles more along the river bank lead to our encampment on Mangdang, a small level under the mountain Chachala, cultivated by the people of Rongkoli ; opposite is Relakang, a similar hamlet of the Nadhiyal, at the foot of a low hill spur which advances into the valley from the mountain Shangdoli, well wooded with Pine and Birch. This hill and a huge rocky mountain N aid, on the right hand, intercept further view up the Kunti valley north-west.
This day was cloudy, but without rain. Thermometer at 4^ p. m. 5G° ; boiled at 192°, elevation of Mangdang 11,750 feet.
2 6th September. — Morning fair, Thermometer at sunrise 47°.
Down the valley is a very fine view of the great snowy mountain A'pi, and as we ascend towards Kunti, the Peak of Nampa is dis- closed adjoining Api on the north east, the whole an immense mass of pure snow, without-flaw for a mile of vertical height, and nowr beauti- fully illumined by the rising sun. I have not yet seen such a fine spe- cimen of perfect snow on the face of the Himalaya. Half a mile from Mangdang the road crosses the Nahl Yankti, a small stream from the mountain of that name ; on the opposite side of the river is Ganka, a stream rising in a glacier under a snowy mountain. The valley of the Kunti now contracts in width, the lower slopes of the mountains on both sides leaving little or no level ground at the bottom. The road goes along the east bank of the river, over steep and rough accumula-
1848.] Narrative of a Journey to Cho Lagan, 8)-c. 11!)
tions of debris from the hill side above ; the Kunti here is shallow, but rapid, and 50 or 60 feet wide ; the water much discoloured, either in fact or in appearance, from the dark slate or limestone rocks over which it rushes.
"We cross the remains of an old snow bank in the bed of the river, the first met in this journey.
The Pine trees are now getting scarce ; Birch continues and other shrubs ; Red Currant (Ribes glaciale), Bhot : Mangle, fruits small and insipid; Black Currant (II. acuminatum), Bhot: Dongole, fruit equally worthless, said to be very abundant under Vpi and Nampa ; Tarwa- Chuk (Hippopliae salicifolia) the berries of which are a palatable acid when quite ripe, otherwise disagreeably sour ; Dog-rose, white and red (Rosa sericea and Webbiana), Sephala and Gor-Sephala ; the Vibur- num (V. cotinifolium), Khas: Gkiyah, Bhot: Rotohle, with purple berry, which grows in the lower hills also at considerable elevation ; and Wormwood (Artemisia) , Bhot : Pankima, scenting the air with its fragrance.
Cross Nampa (the 2d) a small garh from glacier, and snowy moun- tain of the same name ; see marks of the Brown Bear, Barji. Further on cross two or three small streams coming from the mountain Shale - shiram, and on the opposite side of the river are two larger Garhs, Selasiti and Khurkulum,” from mountains of the same names.
Here we are met by some of the men of Kunti come out for Istik- bal, Kiti joiut-Pudhan, with Rechu (who has accompanied us from Chingrew), Tanjan, brother, and Tashigal, son of Rechu, the two last young men and boy, clean, well dressed and smart looking, with a pony gaily equipped in embroidered saddle cloth and bell-collar ; they are as decent looking as the best of Jwari Bhotias, and a marked excep- tion to all the rest of the Byansis that I have seen, who are shabby and dirty, “ usque ad nauseam but they are merely got up for occasion I suppose, and will soon relapse into the general degradation of dirt.
The valley now opens again ; the mountains on our right hand recede a little and then come round with a fine theatrical sweep to the north- ward, enclosing a good expanse of tolerably level ground around the village of Kunti. On the other side of the river, the Pecliko comes through a deep ravine from a glacier, under Gyue Dhura, by which
120 Narrative of a Journey to Cho Lay an, <j’r. [July,
there is a pass into Sela of Darma ; this route is practicable and still in use ; cross Ilikong, a stream coming from a glacier under the snowy mountain Kariye, through a very deep channel iu the low ground of the valley bottom, which, the same here as lower down, consists of deep accumulations of debris from the surrounding hill sides.
The Kunti crops, Ua-jo and Pliapar, are just reaped : the barley was somewhat damaged by the suow which fell here for three days, the 18tli to 20th instant, and yet they say the injury has been less than what they usually experience from frost, which most years sets in, at this village, before the harvest is reaped. Pass through the village of Kunti, the houses ill built, iu 2 or 3 wretched stories, resting against the slope of the hill side, and cross the Hianre, which is a stream like the Ilikong, coming from the mountain Gunye through a deep ravine in the lower ground ; it drives several watermills, Ghato, erected along the bank, the machinery consisting of a single horizontal wheel with ob- lique floats, or vanes, against which the stream is directed through a small wooden trough, and this construction is probably preferable to that of two movements, vertical and horizontal ; the loss of power iu the oblique action being no worse than the excessive friction in the others, and the single wheel more economical and lasting ; the whole concern is contained in a mill house (Ghato-chim) some 6 feet cube.
The proprietors of these mills take 2 seers of flour from each 20 Nali (about 30 seers) of grain ground for their neighbours.
Thermometer at 4 p. m. 57° ; boiled at 190° ; elevation 13,000 feet, which probably exceeds that of any other village in the British Hima- laya.
The appearance of Kunti agrees with my estimate of its elevation ; the mountain sides round about have a scanty covering of brown ill looking grass with a little Juniper and Dama, the height of a thou- sand feet or so, above which is bare rock aud thin snow. On the other side of the river the mountains throw out some inferior spurs of hill, on which are scanty Birch trees, degenerating to mere shrubs, and the highest of them not .500 feet above the level of the village.
Evening cloudy, with a little rain ; Thermometer at sunset 47° ; not particularly comfortable in my hut of bare mats.
(To be continued.)
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PROCEEDINGS
OF THE
ASIATIC SOCIETY OF BENGAL,
For July, 1848.
At a meeting of the Asiatic Society of Bengal held at the Town Hall on Wednesday evening, the 5th of July, 1848, J. W. Colvile, Esq., President in the Chair,
The accounts and vouchers for the preceding month were submitted.
The proceedings of the last meeting were read.
Dr. J. McClelland and Lieut. J. H. Maxwell having been dulv proposed and seconded at the May meeting, were ballotted for and elected members.
Mr. Edward Colebrooke, Pleader Sudder Dewanny Adawlut, was named for ballot at the August meeting, proposed by Mr. Colvin, seconded by the President.
Read letters —
From A. Allen, Esq. Officiating Secretary to the Government N, W. Provinces, dated Agra, 3 1st May, forwarding copy of a Journal of the passage from the Dharee falls to the Hereuphal (Nerbudda), by Capt, Fenwick, late of the Nizam’s service.
From the same, dated 28th June, received the 5th July, forwarding an account of observations made by Lieut. R. Strachey, Engineers, on the motion of the glacier of the Pindur in Kumaon.
From Capt. Thuillier, regarding the form of publication of the "Meteorological Register kept in the Surveyor General’s Office, also for- warding the Register for June.
From Mr. Hodgson, Darjeeling, enclosing copy of a letter to Capt Cunningham on Himalayan Geography.
From the same, a memorandum on the Tibetan type of mankind.
From Mr. Frith, identifying the insect, of which a drawing was lately ' received from Brigadier Stacy, as the larva of a species of Locusta, Gen. Acantliodes.
From Capt. Hutton, notes on the nidification of Indian birds.
R
122 Proceedings of the Asiatic Society. [July,
From Capt. Kittoe, fowarding a Sanskrit inscription from Behar, with note by Mr. Laidlay.
From Capt. A. Cunningham, the sequel of his essay on the route of the Chinese pilgrim Hwan Thsang through Affghanistan and India, during the first half of the 7th century.
From Colonel Low, communicating four essays and papers : —
1 . An account of inscriptions from the Malayan peninsula.
2. Translations from Bali works.
3. Gleanings in Buddhism.
4. General observations on the contending claims to antiquity of Brahmans and Buddhists, with copies of inscriptions, fac similes of coins, &c.
From the Rev. Mr. Mason, on the Gum Kino of the Tenasserim Provinces.
From the Librarian, Rnjendralal Mittra, respecting Wilford’a An- cient Geography, with reference to Mr. Elliot’s late communication.
From Mr. F. Gomes, reporter to the Ilurkaru, asking whether Re- porters for the public press might be permitted to attend the Society’s meetings.
The question having been referred to the meeting was decided in the negative.
A coin from Lieut. Thurburn, several from Colonel Low, copies of inscriptions from the Malayan provinces, two stones from Capt. Frazer of Engineers inscribed with the celebrated formula “ Om ! mani padma, hom,” in Tibetan and Ranja characters, were exhibited on the table, for which the thanks of the Society were voted to the respective donors.
The communication from the Council regarding Mr. Blyth having been renewed in the terms last proposed, —
Mr. Blyth read a reply to the strictures of the Section of Natural History on his alleged neglect of his duties as Curator.
The Secretary read a letter from Mr. Ileatly stating that Mr. Blyth had been long exonerated from the charge of the fossils by the Coun- cil of the Society.
The President then proceeded to take the sense of the meeting on the several propositions of the Council, the 1st, “ that the Report made by the Section of Natural History on Mr. Blyth’s reference be received, read and laid upon the table,” having been already carried into effect.
2. Proposed by the Council, “ that the Society must decline to for- ward or support the application of Mr. Blyth to the Court of Direc- tors for an increase of salary or a retiring pension.”
Upon this an amendment was proposed by Mr. Newmarch and seconded by Capt. Champneys — “that the Society forward Mr. Blvth’s application to the Court of Directors with their recommendation in its support.”
1848.] Proceedings of the Asiatic Society, 123
After much discussion the amendment having been put to open vote and there appeared
For amendment, 8
Against ditto, 11
The proposition of the Council was then put to open vote and there appeared
For proposition, 12
Against, 8
The proposition was accordingly carried.
The 3rd proposition having been read, “ that the Society cannot acquit the Curator of serious neglect of duty in permitting the collec- tions of shells, fossils and insects to fall into the state of dilapidation in which the same are now found to be,” —
The general sense of the meeting was declared to be that the neglect of the fossils should not be included in the censure.
This word having been withdrawn, the proposition was put to the vote and lost.
The 4th proposition having been read, “ that the Section of Natural History be requested to adopt measures for the restoration and re-arrangement of these collections.”
Mr. Mitchell moved as an amendment, seconded by Capt. Champneys,
“That a sub-committee, consisting of Messrs. Frith, McClelland, and Newmarch, be appointed to adopt measures to restore and re-arrange the collections.”
Dr. McClelland having declined to act on this committee, the amend- ment was put to the vote and lost, and the original proposition carried.
The 5th proposition for the printing and circulation to members of the documents submitted in this enquiry having been already acted upon, the 6th was read,
“ That the thanks of the Society be voted to the Section of Natural History for the service they have rendered to the Society by their investigation of reports upon the manner in which the duties of the Curator have been discharged.”
This proposition having been put to the vote was carried by a majo- rity.
The Librarian having submitted his monthly report the meeting adjourned.
J, W. Colvile, President.
J. W, Lai quay, Secretary,
124
Proceedings of the Asiatic Society. Library.
The following books have been received since the last meeting : — ■
Presented.
The Silurian System, founded on Geological Researches in the counties of Salop, Hereford, Radnor, Montgomery, Carmarthen, Brecon, Pembroke Monmouth, Gloucester, Worcester, and Stafford ; with descriptions of the Coal-fields and overlying Formations. — By R. J. Murchison, 1 vol. 4to. and a map. — By J. W. Grant, Esq.
The History of the Reformation of the Church of England, by Gilbert Burnet, D. 1). 2 vols. Rl. 8vo. — By the same.
The Ileimskringla ; or, Chronicle of the Kings of Norway. Translated from the Icelandic of Snorro Sturleson, with a Preliminary Dissertation, by Samuel Laing, 3 vols. 8vo. — By the same.
The Quarterly Journal of the Geological Society of London, No. 14. — By the Society.
Zeitschrift der Deutschcn Morgenlandischen Gesellschaft, herausgegeben von dur Geschaftsfuhrern. Zweiter Band I. und II. luft. — By the Editor.
Zakarija Ben Muhammed Ben Mahmud el Camvini’s Kosmographie. Zweiter Theil, De Denkmaler der Lander. Aus den Handscriften des
Iln. Dr. Lee und den Bibliotheken zu Berlin, Gotha und Leyden, herausgege- ben von Ferdinand Wiistenfeld. Gottengen 1847, 1 vol. 8vo. — By the Editor.
The Calcutta Christian Observer for Aug. 1848. — By the Editors.
The Oriental Baptist, No. 20. — By the Editor.
The Journal of the Indian Archipelago, Vol. II. No. VI. — By the Editor.
Meteorological Register kept at the Surveyor Geneual’s Office, Calcutta, for the month of June, 1848. — By the Deputy Surveyor General.
Tatwabodhini Patrika, No. 60.— By the Tatwabodhini Sobha.
The Upadeshaka, No. 1/. — By the Editor.
Exchanged.
The Athenaeum, No. 10/2.
Journal Asiatique, No. 52.
The London, Edinburgh, Dublin, Philosophical Magazine, No. 216.
Purchased.
Calcutta Review, Nos. III. and IV.
The North British Review, No. XVII.
The Annals and Magazine of Natural History, Second Series, No. 5.
Comptes Rendus Ilebdomedaires des Seances de l’Academie des Sciences- Nos. 14 to 17.
Meteorological Register kepi at the Surveyor General's Office , Calcutta, for the Month of July, 1848.
Lilt, tr 33' 28.33" N. Luna, till- 23' 42.84" East. Hag. Variation 2‘ 28' 3(1" East. Mag. Dip. 27" 45'.