Early History of the Dekkan down to the Mahomedan Conquest c15.5

c15.5

Trade and commerce must also have been in a flourishing condition during this early period Ships from the western countries came, according to the author of the Periplus, to Barugaza or Bharukachchha, the modern Bharoch, and the merchandize brought by them was thence carried to the inland countries Onyx stone in large quantities from Paiṭhan, and ordinary cottons, muslins, mallow-coloured cottons, and other articles of local production from Tagara, were carried in waggons to Barugaza and thence exported to the west Paiṭhaṇ is placed by the author of the Periplus at the distance of twenty days' journey to the south of Barugaza, and is spoken of as the greatest city in Dakhinabades or Dakshiṇâpatha, and Tagara, ten days' east of Paiṭhaṇ ¹ This town has not yet been identified Its name does not occur in any of the cave inscriptions, but it is mentioned in a copper-plate grant of the first half of the seventh century, and princes of a dynasty known by the name of Śilâhâra call themselves "sovereigns of Tagara, the best of towns," in all their grants Some have identified it with Devagiri and others with Junnar, but in both cases its bearing from Paiṭhan as given by the Greek geographers has not been taken into account I have elsewhere discussed the question, and have proposed Dhârur in the Nizâm's territory as the site of the ancient city The other sea-port towns mentioned in the Periplus are Souppara, the modern Supârem or Supârâ near Bassein and the Śorparaka of the inscriptions and the Purâṇas, where interesting Buddhistic relics were dug out by Mr Campbell and Paṇḍit Bhagvânlâl, Kalliena, the modern Kalyâṇ, which must have been a place of great commercial importance since a good many of the donors whose names are inscribed in the caves at Kânheri and some mentioned in the caves at Junnar were merchants residing in Kalyân,² Semulla identified with Chembur by some and with Chaul by others, Mandagora, very likely the same as the modern Mândâḍ, originally Mandagaḍa, situated on the Râjapurî creek near Kuḍem where we have the caves, Palaipatmai, which probably was the same as Pâl which is near Mahâd, Melizeigara, the second part of the name of which can at once be recognized as Jayagaḍ and which must be identified with that place whatever the first part Meli may mean, Buzantion, and others Buzantion is probably the Vaijayantî³ of the inscriptions, but with what modern town it is to be identified it is difficult to say Vaijayantî is mentioned in the Kadamba copper-plates translated by Mr Telang,⁴ and was most probably some place in North Kânara [43] In a grant of the Vijayanagar dynasty, Mâdhava, the great counsellor of king Harihara, is represented to have been appointed viceroy of Jayantîpura He then conquered Goa and seems to have made that his capital⁵ Jayantîpura is said to be another name for Banavâsî In the Sabhâparvan of the Mahâbhârata, Banavâsî is spoken of as if it were the name of a country, and immediately after it, Jayantî is mentioned as a town⁶ If then Jayantî and Vaijayantî were two forms of the same name, Vaijayantî was probably the modern Banavâsî, or perhaps in consideration of the facts that the name of Vaijayantî occurs in an inscription at Kârlı and also that the Greek geographers in mentioning the places of note on the coast could not have run at once from Jayagaḍ to the southern limit of North Kânarâ, Vaijayantî may be identified with Vijayadurg But these objections are not of very great weight