The Ancient Geography of India. I. The Buddhist Period, including the Campaigns of Alexander, and the Travels of Hwen-Thsang c5.s1.t3.10

c5.s1.t3.10

The position of Ortospana I would identify with Kabul itself, with its Bala Hisár, or “high fort,” which I take to be only a Persian translation of *Ortospana*, or *Urddhasthána*. It was the old capital of the country before the Macedonian conquest, and so late as the tenth century it was still believed “that a king was not properly qualified to govern until he had been inaugurated at Kabul.”† Hekatæus also describes a "royal town" amongst the *Opiai*,* but we have no data for determining either its name or its position. It seems most probable, however, that Kabul must be intended, as we know of no other place that could have held this position after the destruction of Kapisa by Cyrus; but in this case Kabul must have been included within the territories of the *Opiai*.