The Cambridge History of India, Vol. I: Ancient India v1.c15.144

v1.c15.144

The northernmost outposts of the Empire are in the valleys of Gilgit and Chitrāl, which diverge south-eastward and south-westward to the Indus and Kābul rivers. Enframing Gilgit and Chitrāl is a great angle of the loftiest mountain ridge, which may be likened, as it appears upon the map, to a pointed roof sheltering all India to the south. The south-eastward limb of the angle is the Karakoram range, and the south-westward is the Hindu Kush range. The north-western extremity of the Himālaya fits into the angle of the Karakoram and the Hindu Kush, from which it is separated by the valleys of Leh, Gilgit, and Chitrāl.