The Ancient Geography of India. I. The Buddhist Period, including the Campaigns of Alexander, and the Travels of Hwen-Thsang c5.s3.t1.4

c5.s3.t1.4

At the time of Hwen Thsang’s visit, Jâlandhar itself was the capital, which he describes as from 12 to 13 *li*, or upwards of 2 miles in circuit. Its antiquity is undoubted, as it is mentioned by Ptolemy as Kulindrine, or Ktulindrine, which should probably be corrected to Sulindrine, as the *K* and Σ are frequently interchanged in Greek manuscripts. According to the Padma Purâna,‡ the city of Jâlandhara was the capital of the great Daitya king Jalandhara, who became so powerful by virtue of his austerities as to be invincible. At last, however, he was overcome by Siva, through a disgraceful fraud, and his body was devoured by the yoginis, or female demons. But the conclusion of the legend is differently given in the local Purâna,* which states that he was overwhelmed and crushed to death by a mass of mountains which Siva placed upon him. Flames then sprang out of his mouth, which was under Jwála-mukhi; his back was under the upper part of the Doâb, which is still called Jálandhara-pitha, or Jálandhar-pith, by the people; and his feet were under the lower part of the Doâb at Multân. Akbar partially adopted this version of the legend when he named the different Doâbs after the enclosing rivers, by calling the land between the Satlej and Biâs the Doâb-i-Bist Jálandhar, or Bit Jálandhar, instead of the Sab Doab, which it should have been if he had placed the initial of the eastern river first, as he did in the names of the Bâri and Chaj Doâbs.