Travels in the Mogul Empire (Bernier) 19.5
Travels in the Mogul Empire (Constable) 19.5
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19.5.1
Leaving this lake, I went in search of a spring, considered an object of curiosity. It bubbles gently and rises with some force, bringing with it a certain quantity of very fine sand, which returns the way it came; after which the water becomes still a moment or two without ebullition and without bringing up sand, and then bubbles as before. May this edifice be as firm as the foundations of the heavens, May it be the most renowned ornament of the universe, As long as the Monarch Zayn Ibad holds festival therein May it be like the date of his own reign, — 'happy.' The numerical value of the letters in khurram (happy) is 847, which is the year of the Hijra it is intended to record, equivalent to A.D. 1443, 1444, during which Zayn-ul-Abidin (the Zayn Ibad of the inscription, for both have the same meaning, viz., Ornament of the Adorers) ruled in Kashmir.
19.5.2
According to tradition, in the vicinity of the Wular Lake once stood a city of which the Raja was Sudrasen. By reason of the enormity of his crimes the waters of the lake rose and drowned him and his subjects. It was said that during the winter months, at low water, the ruins of a submerged idol-temple might be seen rising from the lake. Zayn-ul-Abidin constructed a spacious barge, which he sank in the lake, and upon which he laid a foundation of bricks and stones till it rose high enough to be level with the water. Upon this he erected a mosque and other buildings, and gave the islet the name of Lanka. The expense of the work was defrayed by the fortunate discovery of two idols of solid gold which had been brought up from the lake by divers. On the completion of Lanka the King ordered a great festival to be held, wherein large sums were distributed among the poor. Verses were written by the poets to commemorate this event, and among these the inscription under notice by Ahmad Allamah, Kashmiri, was engraved upon a stone and placed on the mosque. See pp. 54, 55, Proc. As. Soc. Bengal for 1880; also pp. 16-20 Jour. As. Soc. Bengal, Part I. 1880, Notes on an inscription found upon a stone lying near the ruins of a Masjid on Lanka Island, Wular Lake, Kashmir, By Major H. S. Jarrett, B.S.C.
19.5.3
Al-Badaoni alludes to the Lanka island in his Muntakhab-ut-Tawarikh as follows: 'Sultan Zain-ul-'Abidin, whose history has been written succinctly in my abridgment of the history of Kashmir' (see p. 393, footnote *) 'had sijarib of stones thrown into the water' [of the Lake], 'and built thereon a stone throne so lofty and grand that the like of it has not been seen in all the provinces of India.'—P. 398, Ed. Bib. Indica As. Soc. Bengal, 1889. and with the same effect ; thus continuing its motion at irregular intervals. But the wonder, they say, consists in this, that the least noise made, either by speaking or knocking the feet against the ground, agitates the water and causes it to run and bubble in the manner described. I discovered, however, that its movements are influenced neither by speaking nor knocking, and that its action is the same whether you make a noise or are silent. As to the real cause of the water rising in this manner, I have not reflected sufficiently upon the subject to give you a satisfactory solution ; unless it be that the sand by returning continues to obstruct the narrow channel of this small and weak spring, until the water thus opposed and closed in makes an effort to raise the sand and open a passage ; or it may rather be, that the wind pent in the channel of the spring rises at intervals, as is the case in artificial springs.
19.5.4
When we had sufficiently examined this fountain, we ascended the mountains, for the purpose of seeing an extensive lake, in which there is ice, even in summer, which the winds heap up and disperse, as in a frozen sea. We then passed through a place called Sengsafed, that is to say, Whitestone, remarkable for producing in summer every kind of flower, the same as in a well-stored garden; and for a circumstance said to have been observed from time immemorial, that when many persons visit this spot and make much noise and agitate the air, a heavy shower of rain invariably descends. Whether this be generally the case or not, there can be no doubt that a few years ago, when Sengsafed was visited by Chah-Jehan, the whole party was in danger of perishing in consequence of the violent and extraordinary rains which fell, although he had issued orders that no unnecessary noise should be made. This fact will remind you of the aged hermit's conversation with me on the summit of Pire-penjale. I was pursuing my journey to a grotto full of wonderful congelations, two days' journey from Sengsafed, when I received intelligence that my Navaab felt very impatient and uneasy on account of my long absence.
19.5.5
I regret that I can give you only imperfect and scanty information concerning the surrounding mountains. The subject has much occupied my thoughts since my arrival in this country; but I can meet with no congenial mind, with no person of observation and research, who possesses much knowledge of the matters about which I wish to be informed. What I have learnt I shall, however, communicate.
19.5.6
The merchants who every year travel from mountain to mountain to collect the fine wool with which shawls are manufactured, all agree in saying that between all the mountains still dependent upon Kachemire there are many fine stretches of country. Among these tracts there is one whose annual tribute is paid in leather and wool, and whose women are proverbial for beauty, chastity, and industry. Beyond this tract is another whose valleys are delightful and plains fertile, abounding in corn, rice, apples, pears, apricots, excellent melons, and even grapes, with which good wine is made. The tribute of this tract is likewise paid in wool and leather, and it sometimes happens that the inhabitants, trusting to the inaccessible nature of the country, refuse payment; but troops always contrive to penetrate, and reduce the people to submission. I learn also from the merchants, that in the more distant mountains, which have ceased to be tributary to Kachemire, there are other beautiful tracts and countries, where the inhabitants are white and well-formed, and remarkable for their attachment to their native land, which they seldom quit. Some of these people have no King, nor even, as far as can be discovered, any religion; though certain tribes abstain from fish, and consider it unclean.
19.5.7
I shall add what was related to me a few days ago by a fine old fellow, who married a descendant of the ancient kings of Kachemire. At the period when Jehan-Guyre was making a diligent search after all persons connected with the royal family, this old man effected his escape to the mountains last mentioned, accompanied by three domestics, scarcely knowing whither he was going. Wandering from place to place, he found himself at length in the midst of a small but beautiful district, where he was no sooner known than he experienced a cordial reception. The happy man was laden with presents, and in the evening the handsomest girls were presented by their parents, and he was entreated to make his choice from them, that the country might be honoured with his offspring. My friend proceeded to another district in the vicinity and was received with equal kindness and respect: the evening ceremony was different, however, in one particular; as the husbands brought their wives, not the fathers their daughters; observing that their neighbours were simpletons in having supplied him with the latter, because the children might not continue in their household, but must follow the footsteps of the daughters' future husbands.
19.5.8
Some few years since there existed great dissensions in the royal family of Little Tibet, a country bordering on Kachemire. One of the pretenders to the crown having applied secretly to the Governor of this kingdom for assistance, the latter was commanded by Chah-Jehan to afford all the succour he might need. The Governor accordingly invaded Little Tibet, slew or put to flight the other competitors, and left this prince in undisputed possession of the throne, subject to an annual tribute of crystal, musk, and wool. Thus circumstanced, this petty King has not well been able to avoid paying his personal obeisance to Aureng-Zebe, bringing with him some of these articles as presents; but he is come with so wretched a retinue that I should never have taken him for a person of distinguished rank. My Navaab invited this personage to dinner, hoping to obtain some information concerning those mountainous regions. He informed us that his kingdom was bounded on the east by Great Tibet; that it was thirty or forty leagues in breadth; that he was very poor, notwithstanding the crystal, musk, and wool, which he had in small quantities; and that the opinion generally entertained of his possessing gold mines was quite erroneous.