The Geography of the Puranas c8.71

c8.71

Within a radius of 120 miles Nangā Parbāt surpasses all other summits by more than 9,000 feet, while the Everest is surrounded by a cluster of peaks which hide its immense height. As a detached peak it is the first to catch the early Sun's rays in the morning and the last to do so in the evening. Its snowy peaks therefore appear twice a day as a huge mass of red flame against a dull sky. It is a scene that is not grasped or taken in at once, but after a while the stupendous grandeur of the view is appreciated. It is quite overwhelming in magnitude: it is in fact one of the finest spectacles that Nature offers to the gaze of man. It is no wonder that the Purāṇas sum up the scene by associating it with the term Dhūmralohita or red or fiery smoke.