Indian Art: A History of Indian Art from the Earliest Times up to the Third Century A.D. c12.s2.t1.39

c12.s2.t1.39

This flowery description of this idyllic land of Uttarakuru had been received from great antiquity, and is reinforced by the literary tradition recorded in the epic literature and Purāṇas. For example, in the Rāmāyaṇa, Sugrīva directs the monkey chiefs to go in quest of Sītā in the northern direction. There at the end of the earth they would find the land of the Uttarakurus. “Flowers of gold as resplendent as fire are seen there in eternal bloom imbued with divine fragrance. The beautiful trees produce garments of various kinds and costly gems which are pleasant for men and women to use in all seasons ; beds with beautiful coverlets and pleasing garlands, costly drinks and food of many descriptions and to crown this all, maidens endowed with beauty, virtue and youth”.¹