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Cunningham's Ancient Geography of India c9: Western India.

Cunningham's Ancient Geography of India c9

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English

Contents

Western India.

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Western India, according to Hwen Thsang, was divided into three great states, named Sindh, Gurjjara, and Balabhi. The first comprised the whole valley of the Indus from the Panjâb to the sea, including the Delta and the island of Kachh; the second comprised Western Rajputâna and the Indian The *fraternities* of the Middle Ages, which were so numerous and so varied in their objects, were not all of the same origin. Some were religious, some social, some charitable, and some industrial. The religious guilds, or *gilds*, as they were often called, were associations of laymen for the purpose of performing religious duties, such as the maintenance of a chaplain, the celebration of masses, or the support of a hospital. The social guilds were formed for the purpose of mutual aid and good fellowship, and often included in their objects the relief of the poor, the sick, and the aged. The charitable guilds were established for the purpose of supporting hospitals, almshouses, and other institutions of mercy. The industrial guilds, or *craft guilds*, were associations of men engaged in the same trade or industry, and were formed for the purpose of regulating the trade, protecting the interests of the members, and maintaining the quality of their work.

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CAMPAIGN OF ALEXANDER IN SINDH B.C. 326-325 64 Miles to 1 Inch

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The craft guilds, which became so powerful in the later Middle Ages, were the successors of the earlier *collegia* of the Roman Empire. The *collegia* were associations of artisans and tradesmen, which were recognized by the state and had a legal existence. When the Roman Empire fell, these associations were largely destroyed, but the idea of association for mutual protection and the regulation of trade survived. In the early Middle Ages, the *gilds* began to reappear, and by the twelfth century they were firmly established in many of the cities of Europe.

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The craft guilds were organized on a democratic basis, and every member had a voice in the management of the guild's affairs. The officers were elected by the members, and the rules and regulations were made by the guild as a whole. The guilds had the power to fix prices, to regulate the hours of labor, and to determine the conditions of apprenticeship. They also had the power to punish members who violated the rules, and to expel those who were guilty of serious offenses. The guilds were thus a powerful force in the economic life of the Middle Ages, and they played an important part in the development of the modern industrial system.

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The decline of the craft guilds began in the sixteenth century, when the rise of the factory system and the growth of international trade made it difficult for the small, local guilds to compete with the larger and more efficient industrial organizations. The guilds were also weakened by the growth of the power of the state, which began to regulate trade and industry directly, and by the rise of the capitalist class, which sought to break the power of the guilds and to establish a system of free competition. By the end of the eighteenth century, the craft guilds had largely disappeared, but their influence lived on in the trade unions and other labor organizations of the modern world.

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Desert, and the third comprised the peninsula of Gujarât, with a small portion of the adjacent coast.

I. Sindh.

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In the seventh century Sindh was divided into four principalities, which, for the sake of greater distinctness, I will describe by their geographical positions, as Upper Sindh, Middle Sindh, Lower Sindh, and Kachh.[*] The whole formed one kingdom under the Raja of Upper Sindh, who, at the time of Hwen Thsang's visit in A.D. 641, was a Siu-to-lo or Sudra. So also in the time of Chach, only a few years later, the minister Budhimân informs the king that the country had been formerly divided into four districts, each under its own ruler, who acknowledged the supremacy of Chach's predecessors.[†] At a still earlier date Sindh is said to have been divided into four principalities by Ayand, the son of Kafand,[‡] who reigned some time after Alexander the Great. These four principalities are named Zor, Askalandusa, Sâmid, and Lohâna, all of which will be discussed presently, as they would appear to correspond with the divisions noted by Hwen Thsang.

Upper Sindh.

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The single principality of Upper Sindh, which is now generally known as Sîro, that is the "Head

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[*] See Map No. IX. [†] Postans in Journ. Asiat. Soc. Bengal, 1838, p. 93. [‡] Rashid ud din, in Renaud's 'Fragments Arabes', p. 47.

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or Upper” division, is described as being 7000 *li*, or 1167 miles, in circuit, which is too great, unless, as is very probable, it comprised the whole of Kachh Gandâva on the west. This was, no doubt, always the case under a strong government, which that of Chach’s predecessor is known to have been. Under this view Upper Sindh would have comprised the present districts of Kachh-Gandâva, Kâhan, Shikârpur, and Larkâna to the west of the Indus, and to the east those of Sabzalkot and Khairpur. The lengths of the frontier lines would, therefore, have been as follows:—on the north 340 miles; on the west 250 miles; on the east 280 miles, and on the south 260 miles; or altogether 1030 miles, which is a very near approximation to the estimate of Hwen Thsang.

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In the seventh century the capital of the province was named *Pi-chen-po-pu-lo*, which M. Julien transcribes as *Vichava-pura*. M. Vivien de St. Martin, however, suggests that it may be the Sanskrit *Vichâlapura*, or city of “Middle Sindh,” which is called *Vicholo* by the people. But the Sindhi and Panjâbi *Vich* and the Hindi *Bîch*, or “middle,” are not derived from the Sanskrit, which has a radical word of its own, *Madhya*, to express the same thing. If Hwen Thsang had used the vernacular terms, his name might have been rendered exactly by the Hindi *Bichwâ-pur*, or “Middle City,” but as he invariably uses the Sanskrit forms, I think that we must rather look to some pure Sanskrit word for the original of his *Pi-chen-po-pu-lo*. Now we know from tradition, as well as from the native historians, that Alor was the capital of Sindh both before and after the period of Hwen Thsang’s visit; this new name, therefore, must be only some variant appellation of the old city, and not that of a second capital. During the Hindu period it was the custom to give several names to all the larger cities,—as we have already seen in the case of Multân. Some of these were only poetical epithets; as Kusumapura, or ‘‘Flower City’’ applied to Pâtaliputra, and Padmavati, or, ‘‘Lotus Town’’ applied to Narwar; others were descriptive epithets as Varanâsi, or Banáras, applied to the city of Kâsi, to show that it was situated between the Varana and Asi rivulets; and Kányakubja, the ‘‘hump-backed maiden,’’ applied to Kanoj, as the scene of a well-known legend. The difference of name does not, therefore, imply a new capital, as it may be only a new appellation of the old city, or perhaps even the restoration of an old name which had been temporarily supplanted. It is true that no second name of Alor is mentioned by the historians of Sindh; but as Alor was actually the capital in the time of Hwen Thsang, it would seem to be quite certain that his name of Pi-chen-po-pu-lo is only another name for that city.

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It is of importance that this identification should be clearly established, as the pilgrim places the capital to the west of the Indus, whereas the present ruins of Alor or Aror are to the east of the river. But this very difference confirms the accuracy of the identification, for the Indus formerly flowed to the east of Alor, down the old channel, now called Nâra, and the change in its course did not take place until the reign of Raja Dâhir,* or about fifty years after Hwen Thsang's visit. The native histories attribute the desertion of Alor by the Indus to the wickedness of Raja Dâhir; but the gradual westing of all the Panjâb rivers which flow from north to south, is only the natural result of the earth's continued revolution from west to east, which gives their waters a permanent bias towards the western banks.† The original course of the Indus was to the east of the Alor range of hills; but as the waters gradually worked their way to the westward, they at last turned the northern end of the range at Rori, and cut a passage for themselves through the gap in the limestone rocks between Rori and Bhakar. As the change is assigned to the beginning of Dâhir's reign, it must have taken place shortly after his accession in A.D. 680;—and as Muhammad Kasim, just thirty years later, was obliged to cross the Indus to reach Alor, it is certain that the river was permanently fixed in its present channel before A.D. 711.

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The old bed of the Indus still exists under the name of Nâra, and its course has been surveyed from the ruins of Alor to the Ran of Kachh. From Alor to Jakrao, a distance of 100 miles, its direction is nearly due south. It there divides into several channels, each bearing a separate name. The most easterly channel, which retains the name of Nâra, runs to the south-east by Kipra and Umrkot, near which it turns to the south-west by Wanga Bazar and Romaka Bazar, and is there lost in the great Ran of Kachh. The most westerly channel, which is named Purâna, or the "Old River," flows to the south-south-west, past the ruins of Brahmanabad and Nasirpur to Haidarabad, below which it divides into two branches. Of these, one turns to the south-west and falls into the present river 15 miles below Haidarabad and 12 miles above Jarak. The other, called the Guni, turns to the south-east and joins the Nâra above Romaka Bazar. There are at least two other channels between the Purâna and the Nâra, which branch off just below Jakrao, but their courses are only partially known. The upper half of the old Nâra, from Alor to Jakrao, is a dry sandy bed, which is occasionally filled by the flood waters of the Indus. From its head down to Jâmiji it is bounded on the west by a continuation of the Alor hills, and is generally from 200 feet to 300 feet wide and 20 feet deep. From Jâmiji to Jakrao, where the channel widens to 600 feet with the depth of 12 feet, the Nâra is bounded on both sides by broad ranges of low sand-hills. Below Jakrao the sand-hills on the western bank suddenly terminate, and the Nâra, spreading over the alluvial plains, is divided into two main branches, which grow wider and shallower as they advance, until the western channels are lost in the hard plain, and the eastern channels in a succession of marshes. But they reappear once more below the parallel of Hala and Kipra, and continue their courses as already described above.*

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∗ Postans, Journ. Asiat. Soc. Bengal, 1838, p. 103. † All streams that flow from the poles towards the equator work gradually to the westward, while those that flow from the equator towards the poles work gradually to the eastward. These opposite effects are caused by the same difference of the earth's polar and equatorial velocities which gives rise to the trade winds.

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In Upper Sindh the only places of ancient note are *Alor*, *Rori-Bhakar*, and *Mahorta*, near *Larkâna*. Several other places are mentioned in the campaigns of Alexander, Chach, Muhammad bin Kâsim, and Husen Shah Arghun; but as the distances are rarely given, it is difficult to identify the positions where names are so constantly changed. In the campaign of Alexander we have the names of the *Massanæ*, the *Sogdi*, the *Musikani*, and the *Præsti*, all of which must certainly be looked for in Upper Sindh, and which I will now attempt to identify.

Massanæ and Sodræ, or Sogdi.

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On leaving the confluence of the Panjâb rivers, Alexander sailed down the Indus to the realm of the Sogdi, Σόγδοι, where, according to Arrian,† “he built another city.” Diodorus‡ describes the same people, but under a different name:—“Continuing his descent of the river, he received the submission of the *Sodræ* and the *Massanæ*, nations on opposite banks of the stream, and founded another Alexandria, in which he placed 10,000 inhabitants.'' The same people are described by Curtius,* although he does not mention their names:—''On the fourth day he came to other nations, where he built a town called Alexandria.'' From these accounts it is evident that the *Sogdi* of Arrian and the *Sodræ* of Diodorus are the same people, although the former have been identified with the *Sodha* Rajputs by Tod and M'Murdo, the latter with the servile *Sudras* by Mr. Vaux. The *Sodhas*, who are a branch of the Pramâras, now occupy the south-eastern district of Sindh, about Umarkot, but according to M'Murdo,† who is generally a most trustworthy guide, there is good reason to believe that they once held large possessions on the banks of the Indus, to the northward of Alor. In adopting this extension of the territory formerly held by the Sodha Rajputs, I am partly influenced by the statement of Abul Fazl, that the country from Bhakar to Umarkot was peopled by the *Sodas* and *Jharejas* in the time of Akbar,‡ and partly by the belief that the *Massanæ* of Diodorus are the *Musarnei* of Ptolemy, whose name still exists in the district of *Muzarka*, to the west of the Indus below Mithankot. Ptolemy also gives a town called *Musarna*, which he places on a small affluent of the Indus, to the north of the *Askana* rivulet. The *Musarna* affluent may therefore be the rivulet of Kâhan, which flows past Pulaji and Shahpur, towards Khângarha or Jacobabad, and *Musarna* may be the town of Shahpur, which was a place of some consequence before the rise of Shikârpur. "The neighbouring country, now nearly desolate, has traces of cultivation to a considerable extent."*

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∗ See Map No. IX. † ‘Anabasis,’ vi. 15.

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† Journ. Royal Asiat. Soc. i. 33.

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The *Sogdi*, or *Sodræ*, I would identify with the people of *Seorai*, which was captured by Husen Shah Arghun on his way from Bhakar to Multân.† In his time, A.D. 1525, it is described as "the strongest fort in that country." It was, however, deserted by the garrison, and the conqueror ordered its walls to be razed to the ground. Its actual position is unknown, but it was probably close to Fâzilpur, halfway between Sabzalkot and Chota Ahmedpur, where Masson‡ heard that there was formerly a considerable town, and that "the wells belonging to it, 360 in number, were still to be seen in the jangals." Now in this very position, that is about 8 miles to the north-east of Sabzalkot, the old maps insert a village named *Sirwahi*, which may possibly represent the *Seorai* of Sindhian history. It is 96 miles in a direct line below Uchh, and 85 miles above Alor, or very nearly midway between them. By water the distance from Uchh would be at least one-third greater, or not less than 120 miles, which would agree with the statement of Curtius that Alexander reached the place on the fourth day. It is admitted that these identifications are not altogether satisfactory; but they are perhaps as precise as can now be made, when we consider the numerous fluctuations of the Indus, and the repeated changes of the names of places on its banks. One fact, preserved by Arrian, is strongly in favour of the indentification of the old site near Fâzilpur with the town of the Sogdi, namely, that from this point Alexander dispatched Kraterus* with the main body of the army, and all the elephants, through the confines of the Arachoti and Drangi. Now the most frequented Ghât for the crossing of the Indus towards the west, viâ the Gandâva and Bolân Pass, lies between Fâzilpur on the left bank, and Kasmor on the right bank. And as the ghâts, or points of passage of the rivers, always determine the roads, I infer that Kraterus must have begun his long march towards Arachosia and Drangiana from this place, which is the most northern position on the Indus for the departure of a large army to the westward. It seems probable, however, that Kraterus was detained for some time by the revolt of Musikanus, as his departure is again mentioned by Arrian,† after Alexander's capture of the Brahman city near Sindomana.

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∗ Thornton, 'Gazetteer,' in voce.

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† Erskine's Hist. of India, i. 388. Postans, Journ. Asiat. Soc. Bengal, 1841, 275.

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‡ 'Travels,' i. 382.

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Between Multân and Alor the native historians, as well as the early Arab geographers, place a strong fort named *Bhâtia*, which, from its position, has a good claim to be identified with the city which Alexander built amongst the Sogdi, as it is not likely that there were many advantageous sites in this level tract of country. Unfortunately, the name is variously written by the different authorities. Thus, Postans gives *Pâya*, *Bâhiya*, and *Pâhiya*; Sir Henry Elliot gives *Pâbiya*, *Bâtia*, and *Bhâtiya*, while Price gives *Bahâtia*.[*] It seems probable that it is the same place as *Talhâti*,[†] where Jâm Janar crossed the Indus; and perhaps also the same as *Mâtila*, or *Mahâtila*,[‡] which was one of the six great forts of Sindh in the seventh century.

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∗ 'Anabasis,' vi. 15.

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*Bhâtia* is described by Ferishta as a very strong place, defended by a lofty wall and a deep broad ditch.[§] It was taken by assault in A.H. 393, or A.D. 1003, by Mahmud of Ghazni, after an obstinate defence, in which the Raja, named *Bajjar*, or *Bijé Rai*, was killed. Amongst the plunder Mahmud obtained no less than 280 elephants, a most substantial proof of the wealth and power of the Hindu prince.

Musikani—Alor.

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From the territory of the Sogdi or Sodræ, Alexander continued his voyage down the Indus to

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[*] Dowson's edition of Sir H. Elliot, i. 138. [†] Journ. Asiat. Soc. Bengal, 1845, p. 171. [‡] Ibid., 1845, p. 79. [§] Briggs's 'Ferishta,' i. 39; and Tabakât. i. Akbari, in Sir Henry Elliot, p. 186.

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the capital of a king named Musikanus, according to Strabo, Diodorus, and Arrian,* or of a people named Musicani, according to Curtius.† From Arrian we learn that this kingdom had been described to Alexander as "the richest and most populous throughout all India;" and from Strabo we get the account of Onesikritus that "the country produced everything in abundance;" which shows that the Greeks themselves must have been struck with its fertility. Now these statements can apply only to the rich and powerful kingdom of Upper Sindh, of which Alor is known to have been the capital for many ages. Where distances are not given, and names disagree, it is difficult to determine the position of any place from a general description, unless there are some peculiarities of site or construction, or other properties which may serve to fix its identity. In the present instance we have nothing to guide us but the general description that the kingdom of Musikanus was "the richest and most populous throughout all India." But as the native histories and traditions of Sindh agree in stating that Alor was the ancient metropolis of the country, it seems almost certain that it must be the capital of Musikanus, otherwise this famous city would be altogether unnoticed by Alexander's historians, which is highly improbable, if not quite impossible. That the territory of Alor was rich and fertile we know from the early Arab geographers, who are unanimous in its praise.

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∗ Strabo, Geogr., xv. i. 22-34 and 54. Diodorus, xvii. 10. Arrian, 'Anabasis,' vi. 15.

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† Vita Alex., ix. 8.

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The ruins of Alor are situated to the south of a gap in the low range of limestone-hills, which stretches from Bhakar towards the south for about 20 miles, until it is lost in the broad belt of sand-hills which bound the Nâra, or old bed of the Indus, on the west. Through this gap a branch of the Indus once flowed, which protected the city on the north-west. To the north-east it was covered by a second branch of the river, which flowed nearly at right angles to the other, at a distance of 3 miles. At the accession of Raja Dâhir, in A.D. 680, the latter was probably the main stream of the Indus, which had been gradually working to the westward from its original bed in the old Nâra.[*] According to the native histories, the final change was hastened by the excavation of a channel through the northern end of the range of hills between Bhakar and Rori.

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The true name of Alor is not quite certain. The common pronunciation at present is Aror, but it seems probable that the original name was Rora, and that the initial vowel was derived from the Arabic prefix *Al*, as it is written *Alror* in Biladûri, Edrisi, and other Arab authors. This derivation is countenanced by the name of the neighbouring town of Rori, as it is a common practice in India thus to duplicate names. So Rora and Rori would mean Great and Little Rora. This word has no meaning in Sanskrit, but in Hindi it signifies “noise, clamour, roar,” and also “fame.” It is just possible, therefore, that the full name of the city may have been Rora-pura, or Rora-nagar, the “Famous City.” This signification suggested itself to me on seeing the name of *Abhijanu* applied to a neighbouring village at the foot of the hill, 2 miles to the southwest of the ruins of Alor. *Abhijan* is a Sanskrit term for “fame,” and is not improbably connected with Hwen Thsang’s *Pi-chen-po-pu-lo*, which, by adding an initial syllable *o*, might be read as *Abhijanwapura*. I think it probable that Alor may be the *Binagara* of Ptolemy, as it is placed on the Indus to the eastward of *Oskana*, which appears to be the *Oxykanus* of Arrian and Curtius. Ptolemy’s name of *Binagara* is perhaps only a variant reading of the Chinese form, as *pulo*, or *pura*, is the same as *nagara*, and *Pichenpo* may be the full form of the initial syllable *Bi*.

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∗ See Map No. IX.

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The city of Musikanus was evidently a position of some consequence, as Arrian relates that Alexander “ordered Kraterus to build a castle in the city, and himself tarried there to see it finished. This done, he left a strong garrison therein, because this fort seemed extremely commodious for bridling the neighbouring nations and keeping them in subjection.” It was no doubt for this very reason that Alor was originally founded, and that it continued to be occupied until deserted by the river, when it was supplanted by the strong fort of Bhakar.

Præsti—Portikanus, or Oxykanus.

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From the capital of Musikanus Alexander allowed his fleet of boats to continue their course down the Indus, while he himself, according to Arrian,* marched against a neighbouring prince named Oxykanus, and took two of his chief cities at the first assault. Curtius makes Oxykanus the king of a people named Præsti† and states that Alexander captured his chief city after a siege of three days. Diodorus and Strabo call the king Portikanus. Now, these various readings at once suggest the probability that the name was that of the city, which, either as Uchcha-gâm, or Porta-gâm, means simply the "Lofty town," in allusion to its height. The description of Curtius of the "tremendous crash" made by the fall of two towers of its citadel shows that the place must have been more than usually lofty. I would therefore identify it with the great mound of Mahorta on the bank of the Ghâr river, 10 miles from Larkâna. Masson describes it as "the remains of an ancient fortress, on a huge mound, named Maihota."‡ Mahorta, which is the spelling adopted by the surveyors, is probably Mahorddha, for mahâ + urddha + grâma, or "the great lofty city," which, as pure Sanskrit, is not likely to be a modern name. This identification appears to me to be very probable, not only on account of the exact correspondence of name, but also on account of the relative positions of Alor and Mahorta with reference to the old course of the Indus. At present Mahorta is within a few miles of the river; but in the time of Alexander, when the Indus flowed down the bed of the Nâra, the nearest point of the stream was at Alor, from which Mahorta was distant 45 miles to the south of west. Hence Alexander was obliged to leave his fleet, and to march against Oxykanus.

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∗ 'Anabasis,' vi. 16. † Vita Alex., ix. 8, 26.

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The site of Mahorta must always have been a position of great importance, both commercially and politically, as it commanded the high-road from Sindh, viâ Kachh-Gandâva, to Kandahar. Since its desertion, the same advantages have made Larkâna, which is situated on the same small stream, 10 miles to the west of Mahorta, one of the most flourishing places in Sindh. The rivulet called the Ghâr rises near Kelât, and traverses the whole length of the Mula, or Gandâva Pass, below which it is now lost in the desert. But the channel is still traceable, and the stream reappears on the frontier of Sindh, and flows past Larkâna and Mahorta into the Indus. Under a strong and judicious ruler, who could enforce an economical distribution of the available waters, the banks of the Ghâr rivulet must formerly have been one of the most fertile districts of Sindh.

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The name of Præsti given by Curtius* might, according to Wilson, be applied to a people occupying the *thals*, or "oases," of the desert. He refers to *Prastha*, or *Prasthala*, as derived from *sthala*, the Sanskrit form of the vernacular *thal*, which is the term generally used to designate any oasis in Western India. But as the name is simply *Præsti*, I think that it may rather be referred to *prastha*, which means any clear piece of level ground, and might therefore be applied to the plain country about Larkâna, in contradistinction to the neighbouring hilly districts of Sehwân and Gandâva. It seems possible, however, that it may be connected with the *Piska* of Ptolemy, which he places on the lower course of the small stream that flows past Oskana into the Indus. Now Oskana is almost certainly the *Oxykanus* of Arrian and Curtius, for not only are the two names absolutely identical, but the inland position of Oskana, on a small stream to the west of the Indus, agrees exactly with that of Mahorta, which I have identified with Oxykanus. I think also that Ptolemy's *Badana*, which lies immediately to the north of the rivulet, must be the present Gandâva, as the letters B and G are constantly interchanged. In the books of the early Arab writers it is always called *Kandâbil*.

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∗ Vita Alex., ix. 8.

2. Middle Sindh.

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The principality of Middle Sindh, which is generally known as *Vichalo*, or the "Midland," is described by Hwen Thsang as only 2500 *li*, or 417 miles, in circuit. With these small dimensions the province must have been limited to the modern district of Sehwân, with the northern parts of Haidarâbâd and Umarkot. Within these limits the north and south frontiers are each about 160 miles in length, and the east and west frontiers about 45 miles each, or altogether not more than 410 miles in circuit. The chief city, named *O.fan.cha*, was situated at 700 *li*, or 117 miles, from the capital of Upper Sindh, and 50 miles from Pitasila, the capital of Lower Sindh. As the former was *Alor*, and the latter was almost certainly the *Pattala* of the Greeks, or Haidarâbâd, the recorded distances fix the position of *O-fan-cha* in the immediate vicinity of the ruins of an ancient city called *Bambhra-ka-Tul*, or the "Ruined Tower," or simply *Banbhar*, which, according to tradition, was the site of the once famous city of Brahmanwâs, or Brahmanâbâd. Hwen Thsang's kingdom of *Ofancha*, or *Avanda*, therefore, corresponds as nearly as possible with the province of middle Sindh, which is now called *Vichalo*.

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At the present day the principal places in this division of Sindh are Sehwân, Hâla, Haidarâbâd, and Umarkot. In the middle ages, under Hindu rule, the great cities were Sadusân, Brâhmana, or Bâhmanwâ, and Nirunkot. But as I shall presently attempt to show that Nirunkot was most probably the modern Haidarâbâd and the ancient *Pattala*, it will more properly be included in the province of Lower Sindh, or *Lâr*. Close to Bâhmanwâ the early Muhammadans founded *Mansura*, which, as the residence of their governors, was the actual capital of the province, and soon became the largest city in all Sindh. In the time of Alexander, the only places mentioned are *Sindomâna*, and a city of *Brahmans*, named *Harmatelia* by Diodorus. I will now describe these places in detail, beginning with the most northerly.

Sindomâna, or Sehwân.

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From the city of Oxykanus, Alexander "led his forces against Sambus, whom he had before declared governor of the Indian mountaineers." The Raja abandoned his capital, named Sindomana, which, according to Arrian,[*] was delivered up to Alexander by the friends and domestics of Sambus, who came forth to meet him with presents of money and elephants. Curtius[†] calls the raja Sabus, but does not name his capital. He simply states that Alexander, having received the "submission of several towns, captured the strongest by mining." The narrative of Diodorus[‡] also omits the name of the capital, but states that Sambus retired to a great distance with thirty elephants. Strabo[§] merely mentions Raja Sabus, and Sindomana his capital, without adding any particulars. Curtius[||] alone notes that Alexander returned to his fleet after the capture

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[*] 'Anabasis,' vi. 16. [†] Vita Alex., ix. 8. [‡] Hist. Univers., xvii. 56. [§] Geogr., xv. 1, 32. [||] Vita Alex., ix. 8: "Rursus amnem, in quo classem expectare se jusserat, repetit."

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of the raja s strongest city, . which must therefore have been at some distance from the Indus.

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I agree with all previous writers on the ancient geography of this part of India in identifying Sindomana with Sehwân; partly from its similarity of name, and partly from its vicinity to the Lakki mountains. Of its antiquity there can be no doubt, as the great mound, which was once the citadel, is formed chiefly of ruined buildings, the accumulation of ages, on a scarped rock, at the end of the Lakki range of hills. De La Hoste* describes it as an oval, 1200 feet long, 750 feet broad, and 80 feet high; but when I saw it in 1855, it appeared to me to be almost square in shape, and I judged it to be somewhat larger and rather more lofty above the river bed than Burnes's estimate.† It was then on the main stream of the Indus; but the river is constantly changing its channel, and in all the old maps it is placed on a western branch of the Indus. In ancient times, however, when the river flowed down the eastern channel of the Nâra, Sehwân was not less than 65 miles distant from its nearest point at Jakrao, where it leaves the sand-hills. At present its water supply is entirely derived from the Indus, which not only flows under the eastern front of the town, but also along its northern front, by a channel called the Aral river, from the great Manchur lake, which is supplied by the other Nâra, or great western branch of the Indus. But as the site could not have been occupied unless well supplied with water, it is certain that the Manchur lake must have existed long previous to the change in the course of the Indus. Judging by its great depth in the middle,[*] it must be a natural depression; and as it is still fed by two small streams, which take their rise in the Hâla Lakki mountains, to the south, it seems probable that the lake may have extended even up to the walls of Sehwân, before the floods of the western Nâra cut a channel into the Indus, and thus permanently lowered the level of its waters. The lake abounds in fish, from which it would appear to derive its name, as Manchur is but a slight alteration of the Sanskrit Matsya, and the Hindi machh, or machhi, "fish." I think, therefore, that Manchur may be only a familiar contraction of machhi-wâla Tâl, or Fish Lake.

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∗ Journ. Asiat. Soc. Bengal, 1840, p. 913.

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† Westmacott, in Journ. Asiat. Soc. Bengal for 1840, p. 1209, says about 100 feet above the Arrul river, or Arol, which in his time was a branch of the Indus.

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The favourable position of Sehwân, on a lofty isolated rock, near a large lake, with food and water in abundance, would certainly have attracted the notice of the first inhabitants of Sindh. We find, accordingly, that its early occupation is admitted by all inquirers. Thus, M'Murdo[†] says, "Sehwân is undoubtedly a place of vast antiquity; perhaps more so than either Alor or Bâhmana." The present name is said to be a contraction of *Sewistân*, which was so called after its inhabitants, the Sewis, or Sabis. But in all the early Arab geographers the name is somewhat differently written, as *Sadustân*, or *Sadusân*, or *Shârusan*, of which the first two syllables agree with the Greek *Sindomana*. I therefore reject the reading of *Sewistân* as a modern innovation of the Hindus, to connect the place with the name of their god Siva. The *Sindo* of the Greek, and the *Sadu* of the early Muhammadans, point to the Sanskrit name of the country, *Sindhu*, or to that of its inhabitants, *Saindhava*, or *Saindhu*, as it is usually pronounced. Their stronghold, or capital, would therefore have been called *Saindhava-sthâna*, or *Saindhu-sthân*, which, by the elision of the nasal, becomes the *Sadustân* of the Arab geographers. In a similar manner Wilson derives the Greek *Sindomana* from "a very allowable Sanskrit compound, *Sindu-mân*," the "possessor of Sindh." I am inclined, however to refer the Greek name to *Saindhava-vanam*, or *Saindhuwân*, as the "abode of the Saindhavas."

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∗ Westmacott, Journ. Asiat. Soc. Bengal, 1840, p. 1207.

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† Journ. Royal Asiat. Soc., i. 30.

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It seems strange that a notable place like Sehwân should not be mentioned by Ptolemy under any recognizable name. If we take Haidarâbâd as the most probable head of the Delta in ancient times, then Ptolemy's *Sydros*, which is on the eastern bank of the Indus, may perhaps be identified with the old site of Mattali, 12 miles above Haidarâbâd, and his *Pasipeda* with Sehwân. The identification of Ptolemy's *Oskana* with the *Oxykanus*, or *Portikanus*, of Alexander, and with the great mound of Mahorta of the present day, is, I think, almost certain. If so, either Piska or Pasipeda must be Sehwân.

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Hwen Thsang takes no notice of Sehwân, but it is mentioned in the native histories of Sindh as one of the towns captured by Muhammad bin Kasim in A. D. 711. It was again captured by Mahmud of Ghazni in the beginning of the eleventh century; and under the Muhammadan rule it would appear to have become one of the most flourishing places in Sindh. It is now very much decayed, but its position is so favourable that it is not likely ever to be deserted.

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*Brâhmana, or Brâhmanâbâd.*

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From Sindomana Alexander "marched back to the river, where he had ordered his fleet to wait for him. Thence, descending the stream, he came on the fourth day to a town through which was a road to the kingdom of Sabus."* When Alexander quitted his fleet at Alor (the capital of Musikanus) to march against Oxykanus, he had no intention of going to Sindomana, as Raja Sambus, having tendered his submission, had been appointed satrap of the hilly districts on the Indus.† He must therefore have ordered his fleet to wait for him at some point on the river not far from the capital of Oxykanus. This point I would fix somewhere about *Marija Dand*, on the old *Nâra*, below Kator and Tajal, as Mahorta, which I have identified with the chief city of Oxykanus, is about equidistant from Alor and Kator. Thence, descending the stream, he came on the fourth day to a town, through which there was a road to the kingdom of Sambus. From Marija Dand, the point where I suppose that Alexander rejoined his fleet, the distance to the ruined city of Brâhmana, or Brâhmanâbâd, is 60 miles in a direct line by land, or 90 miles by water. As this distance could have been accomplished with ease in four days, I conclude that *Brâhmana* was the actual city of Brahmans which is described by Alexander's historians. The king of this city had previously submitted, but the citizens withheld their allegiance, and shut their gates. By a stratagem they were induced to come out, and a conflict ensued, in which Ptolemy was seriously wounded in the shoulder by a poisoned sword.* The mention of Ptolemy's wound enables us to identify this city with that of *Harmatelia*, which Diodorus describes as the "last town of the Brâhmans on the river."† Now, Harmatelia is only a softer pronunciation of *Brâhma-thala*, or *Brahmana-sthala*, just as Hermes, the phallic god of the Greeks, is the same as Brahmâ, the original phallic god of the Indians. But Brâhmana was the old Hindu name of the city which the Muhammadans called Brâhmanâbâd; hence I conclude that the town of Brahmans captured by Alexander corresponds both in name and position with the great city of Brâhmanâbâd.

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∗ Curtius, Vita Alex., ix.

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⁸ "Alexander . . . rursus amnem, in quo classem exspectare se jusserat, repetit. Quarto deinde die, secundo amne, pervenit ad oppidum. quâ iter in regnum erat Sabi."

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† Arrian, 'Anabasis,' vi. 16: τῶν ὁρίων Ἰνδων σατράπην.

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∗ Curtius, Vita Alex., ix. 8.

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† Hist. Univers., xvii. 56.

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The narrative of Arrian after the capitulation of Sindomana is unfortunately very brief. His words are "he attacked and won a city which had revolted from him, and put to death as many of the Brahmans as fell into his hands, having charged them with being the authors of the rebellion."* This agrees with the statement of Diodorus, who mentions that Alexander "was satisfied with punishing those who advised the resistance, and pardoned all the others." From a comparison of the three narratives, I infer that Harmatelia, or Brâhmana, was in the dominions of Musikanus; for Curtius states that the king of this city had previously submitted to Alexander, while Arrian says that he had revolted, and Diodorus adds† that Alexander punished the advisers of the rebellion. Now, all these facts apply to Musikanus, who had at first submitted, and then revolted, and was at last crucified, "and with him as many of the Brahmans as had instigated him to revolt." This identification is of some importance, as it shows that the dominions of Musikanus must have embraced the whole of the valley of the Indus down to the head of the Delta, with the exception of the two outlying districts of Oxykanus and Sambus, under the western mountains. This extension of his dominions explains the report which Alexander had previously received from the people, that the kingdom of Musikanus "was the richest and most populous throughout all India." It also explains how Sambus was at enmity with Musikanus, as the southern territories of the latter were bounded on the west by those of the former. The king of this city, where Ptolemy was wounded by a poisoned arrow, is called *Ambiger* by Justin,[*] which was probably the true name of Musikanus, the chief of the Musikani, in whose territory Brahmana was situated.

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∗ 'Anabasis,' vi. 16. 'Ὁ δὲ καὶ ἄλλην πόλιν ἐν τούτῳ ἀποστᾶσαν εἷλε, καὶ τῶν Βραχμάνων . . . ὅσοι αἴτιοι τῆς ἀποστάσεως ἐγένοντο, ἀπέκτεινεν.

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† Hist. Univers., xvii. 56.

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It is much to be regretted that none of the names preserved by Ptolemy can be certainly identified with this city of the Brahmans. *Parabali* corresponds with it in position, and partly also in name, as the first two syllables, *Parab*, are not very different from *Baram*, and the termination, *ali*, may represent *thala* of *Brahmathala*, or *Harmatelia*. After Ptolemy's time we know nothing of Brâhmana until the Muhammadan conquest, a period of nearly six centuries. From the native histories, however, we learn that Brahmana was the chief city of one of the four governments[†] into which Sindh was divided during the rule of the Rais dynasty, or from A.D. 507 to 642, and that it continued to be so until the accession of Dâhir in A.D. 680, who made it the capital of the kingdom, after the destruction of Alor by the Indus. In A.D. 641 Sindh was visited by Hwen Thsang, whose account has already been noticed. He found the kingdom divided into the four districts, which for greater distinctness I have named Upper Sindh, Middle Sindh, Lower Sindh, and Kachh. The first has already been described in my account of Alor. The second, *O-fan-cha*, I have just identified with *Brâhmanâbâd*. M. Stanislas Julien transcribes the Chinese syllables as *Avanda*, for which it is difficult to find an exact equivalent. But I have a strong suspicion that it is only a variation of the name of *Brâhmana*, which was pronounced in many different ways, as Bâhmana, Bahmana, Bâbhana, Babhana, Bambhana.* Speaking of Mansura, which we know was quite close to Brâhmanâbâd, Ibn Haukal adds that the Sindhians call it *Bâmiwân*,† which Edrisi alters to *Mirmân*.‡ But in his list of places in Sindh, Edrisi adds after Mansura the name of *Wândân*, or *Kândân*,§ which I take to be only a various reading of Bâmanwâ, or, as the Sindhians would have pronounced it, *Vâmanwâ*, and *Vânwâ*. The Chinese syllable *fan*, which is the well-known transcript of *Brahma*, is a notable example of this very contraction, and tends to confirm the opinion that *Avanda* is but a slight variation of *Bâhmanwâ*, or *Brâhmanâbâd*.

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∗ Justin, Hist., xii. 10.

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† Postans, Journ. Asiat. Soc. Bengal, 1838, pp. 93-96.

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∗ See Dhauli inscription of Asoka for Bâbhano, Babhana, and Bambhana : edicts iii. iv. viii. ix., in Journ. Royal Asiat. Soc., vol. xii.

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† Sir Henry Elliot 'Muhammadan Historians of India,' p. 63.

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‡ Jaubert's 'Edrisi,' i. 162.

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§ Jaubert's 'Edrisi,' i. 160.

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Shortly after the Muhammadan conquest *Brâhmana* was supplanted by *Mansura*, which, according to Biladuri, was founded by Amru, the son of Muhammad bin Kâsim, the conqueror of Sindh,[*] and named after the second Abasside Khalif *Al Mansûr*, who reigned from A.D. 753 to 774. But according to Masudi,[†] it was founded by Jamhur, the governor of Sindh, under the last Omnicad Khalif, A.D. 744 to 749, who named it after his own father *Mansûr*. The new city was built so close to *Brâhmanâbâd* that Ibn Haukal, Abu Rihân, and Edrisi, all describe it as the same place. Ibn Haukal’s words are, ‘‘Mansura, which in the Sind language is called *Bâmiwân*.’’[‡] Abu Rihân states that it was originally called *Bamanhwâ*, and after-

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[*] Reinaud, ‘Fragments Arabes;’ and Jaubert’s ‘Edrisi,’ i. 162. [†] Sir Henry Elliot’s ‘Muhammadan Historians of India,’ p. 57. [‡] Sir Henry Elliot’s ‘Muhammadan Historians of India,’ Dowson’s edition, p. 34; and Jaubert’s ‘Edrisi,’ i. 162. ‘‘Le nom de la ville (Mansura est Indien *Mirimân*.’’ In Gildemeister’s ‘Ibn Haukal,’ this name is *Tâmirman*, which is an obvious mistake for *Bâmiwân*, or *Bâmanwâ*.

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wards *Hamanâbâd*, for which we may read *Bahmanabad*, by simply adding an initial B, which must have been accidentally dropped. It was situated on the eastern branch of the Mihrân, or Indus, and was 1 mile in length, and the same in breadth, or just 4 miles in circuit. Its position is approximately fixed in the neighbourhood of Hâla, by the number of days' journey in the routes to different places. It was 12 days from Multan, 8 from Kandâbil, viâ Sehwân, and 6 days from Debal, viâ Manhâbari, which was itself 4 days from Mansura. It was therefore at two-thirds of the distance from Multan to the mouth of the Indus, or very nearly in the same parallel as Hâla.

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Now in this very position the ruins of a large city have been discovered by Mr. Bellasis, to whose zeal and energy we are indebted for our knowledge of this interesting place. The ruins are situated near an old bed of the Indus, at 47 miles to the north-east of Haidarâbâd, 28 miles to the east or east-north-east of Hâla, and 20 miles to the west of the eastern Nâra.[*] The place is known as *Bambhra-ka-thûl*, or "the Ruined Tower," from a broken brick tower which is the only building now standing. The present appearance of the site, as described by its discoverer, is "one vast mass of ruins, varying in size according to the size of the original houses."

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∗ Journ. Asiat. Soc., Bombay, v. 413; and Thomas's Prinsep, ii. 119. Eastwick's 'Handbook for Bombay,' p. 490.

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Its circumference, measured by a perambulator, is within a few yards of 4 miles. But besides the great mound of *Bambhra-ka-thûl*, there is, at a distance of about 1½ mile, "the distinct and ruined city of *Dolora*, the residence of its last king, and 5 miles in another direction is the ruined city of *Depur*, the residence of his Prime Minister, and between these cities are the ruins of suburbs extending for miles far and wide into the open country." The great mound of *Bambhraka-thûl* is "entirely surrounded with a rampart, mounted with numerous turrets and bastions." In the time of Akbar there were "considerable vestiges of this fortification," which Abul Fazl* says "had 140 bastions, one *tanâb* distant from each other." The *tanâb* was a measuring rope, which the emperor Akbar ordered to be changed for bambus joined by iron links. Its length was 60 *Ilâhi gaz*, which, at 30 inches each, give 150 feet for the *tanâb*; and this multiplied by 140, makes the circuit of the city 21,000 feet, or very nearly 4 miles. Now it will be remembered that Ibn Haukal describes Manṣura as being 1 mile square, or 4 miles in circuit, and that Mr. Bellasis's measure of the circumference of the ruined mound of *Bambhraka thûl* was within a few yards of 4 miles. From this absolute correspondence of size, coupled with the close agreement of position, which has already been pointed out, I conclude that the great mound of *Bambhra ka thûl* represents the ruined city of *Mansura*, the capital of the Arab governors of Sindh. The Hindu city of Brâhmana, or Brâhmâ-nâbad, must therefore be looked for in the neighbouring mound of ruins now called *Dilura*, which is only 1½ mile distant from the larger mound.

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∗ 'Ayin Akbari,' ii. 115. Gladwyn's translation has 1400 bastions, which would give to the city a circuit of 40 miles; the MSS. have 140. The Ilâhi gaz contained 41½ Sikandari *tangkas*, and as the average breadth of 62 Sikandaris in my collection is ·7234 inches, the length of the Ilâhi gaz will be 30·0211 inches. Mr. Thomas, ii. 123, found exactly 30 inches.

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Mr. Bellasis, the discoverer of these ruins, has identified the great mound with Brâhmanâbâd itself; but to this it has been justly objected by Mr. Thomas* that amongst the multitudes of mediæval coins found during the excavations, "the number of Hindu pieces was very limited, and that even these seem to be as casual contributions from other provinces, of no very marked uniformity or striking age." The local coins consist exclusively of specimens of the Arab governors of Sindh, with the name of Mansura in the margin; and so far as I am aware, there is not a single piece that can be attributed to any of the Hindu rajas of Sindh. It is therefore to be regretted that Mr. Bellasis did not make more extensive excavations in the smaller mound of Dilura, which would probably have yielded some satisfactory evidence of its superior antiquity.

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∗ Prinsep's 'Essays,' vol. ii. p. 121, where all the local coins are most carefully described and attributed.

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According to the native histories and traditions of the people, Brâhmanâbâd was destroyed by an earthquake, in consequence of the wickedness of its ruler, named *Dilu Rai*. The date of this prince is doubtful. M'Murdo has assigned A.H. 140, or A.D. 757,* as the year in which *Chota*, the brother of *Dilu*, returned from his pilgrimage to Mekka; but as Mansura was still a flourishing city in the beginning of the tenth century, when visited by Masudi and Ibn Haukal, it is clear that the earthquake cannot have happened earlier than A.D. 950. *Dilu* and *Chota* are said to have been the sons of *Amir*, the *Rai* or ruler of Brâhmanâbâd. But it is difficult to believe that there were any Hindu chiefs in Brâhmana during the rule of the Arabs in Mansura. The fact is that the same stereotyped legend is told of all the old cities in the Panjâb, as well as of those in Sindh. Shorkot, Harapa, and Atâri, are all said to have been destroyed on account of the sins of their rulers, as well as Alor, Brâhmana, and Bambhura. But the same story is also told of *Tulamba*, which we know to be false, as I have been able to trace its downfall to its desertion by the Râvi, at a very recent date. The excavations of Mr. Bellasis have shown conclusively that Brâhmana was overwhelmed by an earthquake. The human bones "were chiefly found in doorways, as if the people were attempting to escape; others in the corners of the rooms; some upright, some recumbent, with their faces down, and some crouched in a sitting posture.'* The city was certainly not destroyed by fire, as Mr. Richardson notes that he found no remains of charcoal or burnt wood, and that the old walls bore no traces of fire. On the contrary, he also found the human remains crushed in the corners of the rooms, as if the terror-stricken inhabitants, finding their houses falling about them, had crouched in the corners and been buried by the falling material.† Mr. Richardson also picked up a brick which had "entered cornerways into a skull, and which, when taken out, had a portion of the bone adhering to it." His conclusion is the same as that of Mr. Bellasis, "that the city was destroyed by some terrible convulsion of nature."

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∗ Journ. Royal Asiat. Soc., i. 28.

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† Ibid., v. 423.

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The local coins found in the ruins of *Bambhra ka-tul* belong to the Arab governors of Mansura, from the time of *Jamhur*, son of *Mansûr*, the reputed founder of the city, down to *Umar*, the contemporary of Masudi.‡ It was therefore in existence during the whole of that time, or from A.D. 750 to 940, or even later.

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‡ Thomas in Prinsep's 'Essays,' ii. 113.

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This agrees exactly with what I have already noted, that the city was still flourishing when visited by Masudi and Ibn Haukal in the first half of the tenth century; and I would therefore assign its destruction to the latter half of that century, and not earlier than A.D. 970. It is true that Mansura is mentioned by Abu Rihân in the beginning of the next century, and at a still later period by Edrisi, Kazvini, and Rashid-ud-din; but the last three were mere compilers, and their statements accordingly belong to an earlier age. Abu Rihân, however, is entirely original, and as his knowledge of the Indian language gave him special facilities for obtaining accurate information, his evidence is sufficient to prove that Mansura was still existing in his time. In speaking of the itinerary of Sindh, he says,* "From Aror to Bâhmanwâ, also named el Mansura, is reckoned 20 parasangs; from thence to Loharâni, at the mouth of the river, 30 parasangs." Mansura therefore still existed when Abu Rihân wrote his work, about A.D. 1031; but as it is mentioned by only one author in the campaigns of Mahmud of Ghazni, it is almost certain that it no longer existed as a great fortress, the capital of the country, otherwise its wealth would have attracted the cupidity of that rapacious conqueror. I conclude, therefore, that Mansura was already very much decayed before the accession of Mahmud, and that the earthquake which levelled its walls and overthrew its houses, must have happened some time before the beginning of the eleventh century. It is probable that most of the inhabitants who escaped the great catastrophe would have returned to the ruined city to look after their buried property, and that many of them again reared their houses on the old sites. But the walls of the city were fallen, and ther weas no security; the river was gradually failing, and there was a scarcity of water; and the place was altogether so much decayed, that even in A.H. 416, or A.D. 1025, when the conqueror of Somnâth returned through Sindh, the plunder of Mansura was not sufficient to tempt him out of his direct march; so he passed on by Sehwân to Ghazni, leaving the old capital unvisited, and even unnoticed, unless we accept the solitary statement of Ibn Athir, that Mahmūd on this occasion appointed a Muhammadan governor to Mansura.

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