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Historical Geography of Ancient India c6: Chapter I: Northern India

Historical Geography of Ancient India c6

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Chapter I: Northern India

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*Abastanoi.*—The Abastanoi corresponded to the Sanskrit Ambaṣṭhas, who were the same as the Sambastai of Diodorus, Sabarcae of Curtius and Sabagrae of Orosius. In Alexander's time the lower Akesines (Asiknī) was their territory and they had a democratic government. They submitted to Alexander (McCrindle, *Invasion of India*, pp. 292ff.; Law, *Indological Studies*, I, 31ff.).

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*Aciravatī.*—The river Aciravatī was also known as the Ajiravatī or the Airāvatī.¹ It was known to the Chinese pilgrim Yuan Chwang as A-chi-lo, flowing south-eastwards past the city of Śrāvastī.² According to I-Tsing Ajiravatī means the river of the Aji (dragon).³ This river is mentioned in the Jain texts as Erāvai.⁴ It has been identified with the modern Rapti in Oudh, on the western bank of which stood the ancient city of Śrāvastī,⁵ the third or the last capital of Kośala. If Saheṭh-Maheṭh on the south bank of the Rāpti be the modern site of Śrāvastī, it is positive that the Aciravatī of the Buddhist fame is no other than the modern Rāpti. The author of the *Daśakumāracaritam* knew this city as situated on a river which seems presumably to have been the Aciravatī or the Rāpti, though our author does not unfortunately name the river.⁶

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¹ *Avadānaśataka*, I, 63; II. 60; Pāṇini's *Aṣṭādhyāyī*, IV. 3. 119.

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² Watters, *On Yuan Chwang*, I, 398-399.

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³ *Travels*, p. 156.

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⁴ *Kalpasūtra*, p. 12; *Brihat-Kalpasūtra*, 4. 33.

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⁵ Identified with modern Saheth-Mabeth.

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⁶ Weber, *Ueber Das Daśakumāracaritam in Indische Streifen*, Berlin, 1868.

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The Aciravatī is a tributary of the Sarayū which has its origin in the Himalayan range. The long description of the origin of the five rivers Gaṅgā, Yamunā, Aciravatī, Sarabhū and Mahī from the Anotatta lake, is given in the Pali commentaries.⁷ Some five hundred rivers are mentioned in the *Suttanipāta Commentary*.⁸ Only ten of them were to be reckoned according to the *Milinda-Pañho*.⁹ Of the ten rivers¹⁰ the Aciravatī was one of the five great rivers,¹¹ which constituted the Ganges group and the rest constituted the Sindhu group. The Aciravatī was one of the sacred rivers of the Buddhist Midland.¹² As it fell into the sea, it lost its former name and was known as the sea.¹³ According to the *Saṃyutta Nikāya*¹⁴ the Aciravatī along with the Gaṅgā, Yamunā, Sarabhū and Mahī flowed, slided and tended to the east. It was a deep river as its water was immeasurable.¹⁵

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⁷ *Papañcasūdani*, Sinhalese Ed., II, 586; *Manorathapūraṇī*, Sinhalese Ed., ii, 759-60; *Suttanipāta Commy.*, P.T.S., 437-439.

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⁸ *Paramatthajotikā*, II, 437.

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⁹ Ed. Trenckner, p. 110.

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¹⁰ *Mārkaṇḍeyapurāṇa*, 57. 16-18.

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¹¹ *Pancamahānadiyo*.

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¹² *Vinaya*, II, p. 239; *Visuddhimagga*, I, p. 10.

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¹³ *Vinaya*, II, p. 239; Aṅg., V, p. 22; *Ibid.*, IV, 198-199, 202—Gaṅgā Yamunā Aciravatī Sarabhū Mahī tā mahāsamuddampattā jahanti purimāni nāmagottāni mahāsamuddo tveva samkham gacchantī.

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¹⁴ II, 135; cf. *Saṃ.*, V, 39, 134.

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¹⁵ *na sukaram udakassa pamāṇam gaṇetum*—*Saṃ.*, V, 401.

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The Buddha stayed in a mango grove at Manasākaṭa, a Brahmin village of Kośala, situated on the bank of the Aciravatī, to the north of Manasākaṭa, inhabited by many distinguished and wealthy Brahmins.¹ There was a grove of fig trees on the bank of this river.² A small stream at Śrāvastī called the Sutanu, which was visited by the Buddha’s disciple, Anuruddha, must have fallen into this river.³

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¹ Digha I, 235ff.

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² Suttanipāta Commy., I, p. 19.

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³ Samyutta, V, 297.

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The river Aciravatī flows through the districts of Bahraich, Gonda, and Basti and joins the Sarayū or Ghargharā (Gogrā), west of Barhaj in the district of Gorakhpur. According to the Chinese pilgrim Yuan Chwang it flows south-eastwards past the city of Śrāvastī.⁴ It is fed by no less than three tributaries on the left side, all in the district of Gorakhpur, and by a small tributary on the right in the same district. During the hot season it ran dry leaving a bed of sand.⁵ Two Sāvatthians, who adopted the religious life, came to this river. After a bath they stood on the sand enjoying the sunshine and talking pleasantly together.⁶ This river was crossed in rafts.⁷ It nourished wheatfields on its bank.⁸ A Sāvatthian Brahmin cut trees on its bank in order to cultivate the land. Crops grew on it but the whole crop was carried to the sea by a flood.⁹ The revered Ānanda came to this river with some monks to bathe. After his bath he stood in one garment drying his limbs.¹⁰ A Sāvatthian householder, who gave up his household life, went to the river Aciravatī, took his bath, and saw two white swans flying by.¹¹ A fisherman belonging to the village of Paṇḍupura on his way to Śrāvastī saw some tortoise-eggs (kacchapa-aṇḍāni) lying on the bank of this river.¹² The Chabbaggiya monks used to catch hold of the cows crossing this river by their horns or ears or necks or tails or spring up upon their backs.¹³ The people on the bank of this river were in the habit of casting nets for fishing.¹⁴ The early Buddhist records refer to the swimming of the cattle across it.¹⁵

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⁴ Watters, On Yuan Chwang, I, 398-99.

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⁵ Aṅg., IV, 101.

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⁶ Jātaka, II, 366—Aciravatīṃ gantvā nahātvā vālikapuline ātapam tappamānā sāraṇiyakathaṃ kathentā aṭṭhamsu.

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⁷ Vinaya, III, 63.

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⁸ Suttanipāta Commentary, P.T.S., p. 511—Aciravatīnadītīre yavam vapissāmīti khettaṃ kasati.

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⁹ Jāt., IV, p. 167—Sabbam sassaṃ samuddaṃ pavesesi.

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¹⁰ Aṅguttara, III, p. 402.

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¹¹ Jātaka, I, p. 418.

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¹² Dhammapada Commy., III, 449.

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¹³ Vinaya, I, pp. 190-91—Chabbaggiyā bhikkhū Aciravatiyā nadiyā gāvinam tarantinam visānesu pi ganhanti, kannesu pi ganhanti, gīvāya pi ganhanti, cheppāya pi ganhanti, pitthim pi abhirūhanti.

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¹⁴ Udāna Commy., p. 366.

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¹⁵ Vinaya, I, 191.

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Sāriputta, one of the famous disciples of the Buddha, took his bath in this river.¹⁶ Four daughters of a rich merchant also bathed in this river before entering into a mango-grove.¹⁷ Nuns were in the habit of bathing in this river with prostitutes being naked.¹⁸

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¹⁶ Aṅg. Commy., Sinhalese Ed., p. 315.

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¹⁷ Jāt., III, p. 137.

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¹⁸ Vinaya, I, 293—Idha bhante bhikkhuniyo Aciravatīyānadiyā vesiyāhi saddhiṃ naggā ekatitthe nahāyanti.

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A certain country monk came to the ferry on the Aciravatī and expressed his desire to cross this river before a ferryman with the help of his boat. The ferryman asked him to wait but he refused. At last he was put into his boat. Due to bad steering his robe was wet and it became dark before he reached the farther shore.¹⁹ This river could be seen from the terrace of the Kosalan king Pasenadi’s palace.²⁰ Five hundred lads who used to visit this river engaged themselves in wrestling on its bank.²¹ Viḍūḍabha, the son of king Pasenadi, met the Śākyas on its bank and completely routed them.¹ Sometimes this river became so full that disastrous floods occurred, in one of which Viḍūḍabha and his army were swept into the sea.² Anāthapiṇḍika, the great banker of Sāvatthī, lost eighteen crores of his wealth by the destructive floods of this river which swept away his hoarding on its bank.³ A merchant had a treasure buried in the bank of this river. When the bank was eroded away, the treasure was carried into the sea.⁴

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¹⁹ Jātaka, III, 228.

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²⁰ Vinaya, IV, 111-12.

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²¹ Jātaka, II, p. 96.

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¹ *Dhammapada Commy.*, I, 359-60.

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² *Dīgha*, I, 244-245; *Jāt.*, IV, 167; *Dhammapada Commy.*, I, 360.

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³ *Dhammapada Commy.*, III, p. 10—*aṭṭhārasakoṭi-dhanam*.

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⁴ *Jātaka*, I, 230—*Aciravaṇadītīre nihitadhanam nadīkule bhinne samuddam pavittham atthi*.

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Adraisti Country.—It was situated on the eastern side of the Hydraotes (Rāvī). Pimprāmā was their stronghold. The Adrijas mentioned in the Droṇaparva of the *Mahābhārata* (Ch. 159, 5) are supposed to be identical with the Adraistai of the Greeks. The Adraistai or Adhṛṣṭas are said to have bowed down before Alexander's army (*Cambridge History of India*, I, 371 and n. 2; B. C. Law, *Indological Studies*, I, pp. 21-22).

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Agaru.—It is a forest lying in the Kuru country between the Candrakānta and Sūryakānta mountains (*Vāyu*, 45. 31).

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Agrohā.—It is situated on the metalled road between Hissar and Fatehabad at a distance of 14 miles from the former. It appears to have been mentioned by Ptolemy who calls it Agara. As a result of the excavation at the site, coins, beads, fragments of sculptures and terracottas have been discovered. (For details vide *Excavation at Agrohā*, Punjab, by H. L. Srivastava, M.A.S.I., No. 61).

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Ahicchatra.—It was the capital of northern Pañcāla (*Mahābhārata*, Ādiparva, Ch. 140; cf. Rapson, *Ancient India*, p. 167). The river Bhāgīrathī formed the dividing line between the northern and southern Pañcāla. The Vedic texts refer to an eastern and western division of the country (*Vedic Index*, I, 469). Patañjali refers to it in his *Mahābhāṣya* (II, p. 233, Kielhorn's ed.). The *Yoginitantra* mentions it (2/4, pp. 128-129). According to the *Divyāvadāna* (p. 435) the capital of northern Pañcāla was Hastināpura, but the Kumbhakāra Jātaka (Cowell, *Jātaka*, III, 230) states that the capital of northern Pañcāla was Kampillanagara.

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Pañcāla was originally the country, north and west of Delhi, from the foot of the Himalaya to the river Chambal (cf. Cunningham, *A.G.I.*, p. 413, 1924 Ed.). The capital of southern Pañcāla was Kāmpilya⁵ (*Mahābhārata*, 138, 73-74) identical with modern Kampil in the Farrukhabad district, U.P. In the Pabhosā Cave Inscription of the time of Udāka (?), Bahasatimitra appears to be the king whose coins have been discovered at Ramnagar (Ancient Ahicchatra, capital of Pañcāla, Bareilly District, U.P.) and Kosam (Ancient Kauśāmbī, capital of the Vatsas, Allahabad District, U.P.). In the same inscriptions we find that Ahicchatra was ruled by Saunakāyani. The Allahabad Pillar Inscription of Samudragupta refers to a powerful king named Acyuta whose coins have been found at Ahicchatra, modern Ramnagar, in the Bareilly district, U.P. It was still a considerable town when visited by Hiuen Tsang in the 7th century A.D.⁶ This country, according to the Chinese pilgrim, was more than 3,000 li in circuit, and its capital was 17 or 18 li in circuit. The country yielded grain and had many woods and springs and a genial climate. The people were honest and diligent in learning. There were more than ten Buddhist monasteries. Deva-temples were nine in number (Watters, On Yuan Chwang, I, 331). According to Cunningham the history of Ahicchatra goes back to 1430 A.D.

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⁵ B. C. Law *Volume*, Part II, 1946, pp. 239-42.

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⁶ Smith, *Early History of India*, 4th Ed., pp. 391-392.

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The name is written as Ahikṣetra as well as Ahicchatra (Serpent-umbrella). Ahicchatra seems to be the correct form.¹ The old name of Ahicchatra is Adhicchatra (preserved in an inscription; Luders' List of Brāhmī Inscriptions, Index) which is nearer to the Greek form of Adisadra of Ptolemy, (McCrindle, Ancient India as described by Ptolemy, p. 133). It was also called Chatravatī (Mahābhārata, Ādiparva, Ch. 168). Adhicchatrā is the name found in the Pabhosā cave inscription of Āṣādhasena dated about the beginning of the Christian era (E.I., II, p. 432; Luders' List, Nos. 90 and 905; Inscription of Gautamīmitra, N. G. Majumdar, I.H.Q.). Arjuna gave the city of Ahicchatra together with that of Kāmpilya to Droṇa after having defeated Drupada in battle. Having accepted both the cities, Droṇa, the foremost of victors, gave away Kāmpilya to Drupada (Harivaṃśa, Ch. XX, 74-75). According to the Vividhatīrtha-kalpa (p. 14), Saṃkhyāvatī was the earlier name of Ahicchatra. Pārśvanātha wandered about in this town. Kamaṭhāsura, inimical to Pārśvanātha, caused an incessant shower of rains inundating the entire earth. Pārśvanātha was immersed in water up to his neck. To protect him the Nāgarājā of the place, accompanied by his queens, appeared on the scene, held a canopy of his thousand hoods over his head and coiled himself round his body. That is the reason why the town was named Ahicchatra.

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¹ Cunningham, Ancient Geography, S. N. Majumdar Ed., p. 412.

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In modern times Ahicchatra was first visited by Capt. Hodgson who describes it as the ruins of an ancient fortress several miles in circumference, which appears to have had 34 bastions and is known as the Pāṇḍu's Fort. (McCrindle, Ancient India as described by Ptolemy, p. 134). For an identification of this place, see E.I., XXVI, Pt. 2, April, 1941, p. 90. For further details see B. C. Law, Pañchālas and their capital Ahicchatra, M.A.S.I., No. 67; A.S.I.R., I, pp. 255ff.; Progress Report of the Epigraphical and Architectural branches of North-western Provinces and Oudh, 1891-92, 1ff.; B. C. Law, Some Jaina Canonical Sūtras, 169-170; B. C. Law, Tribes in Ancient India, p. 34; Beal, Buddhist Records of the Western World, I, pp. 200-201; McCrindle, Ancient India as described by Ptolemy, p. 134.

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Ajayagaḍh.—It is identical with Banda district, U.P. (Inscriptions of Northern India revised by D. R. Bhandarkar, No. 408, V. 1243).

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Ajudhan.—This ancient town is situated on the bank of the old Sutlej, 28 miles to the south-west of Depālpura and 10 miles from the present course of the river (C.A.G.I., 1924, p. 245).

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Alakanandā.—A river in the Garhwal Himalaya, a headwater of the Ganges. Her course can be traced from the Gandhamādana mountain (Bhāgavatapurāṇa, IV, 6. 24; Brahmāṇḍapurāṇa, III, 41. 21; 56. 12; Viṣṇupurāṇa, II, 2. 34. 36; Vāyupurāṇa, 41. 18; 42. 25-35). It represents the upper course of the Ganges. Its upper tributary is constituted of the Piṇḍā and another stream at the confluence of which is situated Śrinagara in Garhwal. Mandākinī is one of its tributaries, which may be identified with Kālī-Gaṅgā or Mandāgnī, rising in the mountains of Kedāra in Garhwal. The Bhāgirathī-Gaṅgā is joined on the left side by the Alakanandā at Devaprayāga (B. C. Law, Rivers of India, p. 19). The Ganges may be supposed to have assumed the name of the Gaṅgā-Bhāgirathī from the point where it is met by the Mandākinī (Law, Rivers of India, p. 21; Imperial Gazetteer of India, Vol. I, p. 125; regarding the Mandākinī, Cunningham, Archaeological Survey Report, XXI, 11).

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*Alasanda.*—It was the chief city of the Yona territory. Geiger identifies it with the town of Alexandria founded by Alexander near Kabul in the Paropanisadae country (*Mahāvamsa*, Geiger’s Translation, p. 194). It has been described in the *Milindapañha* as an island where king Milinda was born in the village of Kalasigāma (Trenckner Ed., pp. 82-83; *Cambridge History of India*, I, p. 550).

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*Amaranātha.*—About sixty miles from Islamabad lies Amaranātha, a celebrated shrine of Śiva in a cave in the Bhairavaghāṭi range of the Himalayas. It is considered holy by the Hindus. (For further details, see Law, *Holy Places of India*, p. 31.)

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*Ambaṣṭha Country.*—The country of the Ambaṣṭhas was situated on the lower Chenab. The *Mahābhārata* (II, 48, 14) and the *Bhāgavata Purāṇa* (X. 83, 23) refer to it. It is also mentioned in the *Brahmāṇḍap.* (III. 74, 22), *Matsyap.* (48. 21), *Vāyu* (99. 22), and *Viṣṇu* (II. 3. 18). Pāṇini also refers to it in one of his *sūtras* (VIII. 3. 97). As early as the time of the *Aitareya Brāhmaṇa* (VII, 21-3) they probably settled themselves in the Punjab. The *Mahābhārata* (II, 52, 14-15) mentions them as north-western tribes. They were intimately connected with the Śivis and the Yaudheyas and were settled on the eastern border of the Punjab (Pargiter, *Ancient Indian Historical Tradition*, 109, 264). During the first quarter of the 2nd century A.D. the Ambaṣṭhas are referred to by the geographer Ptolemy as the tribe which is described as settled in the east of the country of the Paropanisadai (McCrindle, *Ancient India as described by Ptolemy*, pp. 311-12). They seem to have migrated in later times to some place near the Mekala hill which is the source of the Narmadā (B. C. Law, *Tribes in Ancient India*, pp. 97, 374). For further details vide B. C. Law, *Indological Studies*, I, 31ff.

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*Andhavana.*—It was situated at Śrāvastī. The Elder Anuruddha fell ill while he was here. The monks approached him and asked him the cause of his bodily suffering (*Samyutta*, V, 302).

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*Añjana Mountain (Añjanagiri).*—It was situated in the Mahāvana (*Jātaka*, V, 133). It is mentioned in the *Rāmāyaṇa* (Kiṣkindhyākāṇḍa, 37. 5) and in the *Mārkaṇḍeya Purāṇa* (58. 11). It is also mentioned in the Jaina *Avaśyaka-cūrṇi*, (p. 516). According to the *Skandapurāṇa* (Chap. I, Śl. 36-48) it was made up of gold. It is the Sulaiman range in the Punjab. The Sulaiman mountain, known to the ancient geographers as the Añjanagiri, separates the N.W.F. Province and the Punjab (P) from Baluchistan. It overlooks the Gomal river on the north and the Indus on the south. The Takht-i-Sulaiman (Solomon’s Throne) is the highest peak (11,295 ft.). The southern part of the main range is composed of sandstones, whereas the northern part is built up of limestones. The range is pierced by a number of gorges through which run the main routes from India to Baluchistan.

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*Añjanavana.*—It was a deer park in Sāketa where the Buddha dwelt. When the Master was here, a wanderer named Kuṇḍaliya had a discussion with him on religious and philosophical topics. (*Samyutta*, I. 54; V. 73ff.).

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*Anoma.*—This mountain does not seem to have been far off from the Himalaya (*Apadāna*, p. 345).

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*Anomā*-(Chinese *Ho-nan-mo-Ch’iang*).—Anomā is the river Aumi in the Gorakhpur district. Carlleyle identifies this river with the Kudawa nadī in the Basti district of Oudh. The Buddha after leaving Kapilavastu proceeded to the bank of this river and then he adopted the life of a monk (*Dhammapada Commentary*, I, 85).

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*Anotatta (Chinese A-nou-ta).*—This lake may be identified with the Rawanhrad or Laṅga. It was visited by the Buddha many times (*Aṅg.*, IV, 101). According to the Shui-ching-chu this lake otherwise known as the Anavatapta (the unheated) was on the top of the Himalaya. Four rivers issued from this lake: the Gaṅgā to the east, the Sindhu to the south, the Vakṣu (Oxus) to the west and the Sītā (Tārim) to the north (Northern India according to the Shui-Ching-Chu, p. 14).

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Aṇṣumatī.—It is mentioned in the Ṛgveda (VI. 27. 5, 6; VIII. 85. 13) as a river in Kurukṣetra.

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Antaravedi.—The traditional Antaravedi mentioned in the Indore copperplate inscription of Skandagupta (466 A.D.) is the country lying between the Ganges and the Jumna¹ and between Prayāga and Hardwar. According to this inscription, a lamp was maintained in a temple of the sun (sūrya) at Indrapura out of a perpetual endowment made by a Brahmin named Devaviṣṇu (C.I.I., Vol. III). The Bulandshahar district lies actually in this Antaravedi.

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¹ Cf. Bhaviṣyapurāṇa, Pt. III, Ch. 2. Antaravedi is the doab between these two rivers. The Āryāvarta of the Sūtras and Madhyadeśa of Manu are designated, according to the Kāvyamīmāṃsā (93), as Antaravedi which extends up to Benaras (Vinasana Prayāgayoḥ Gaṅgā-Yamunayośca antaram Antaravedi).

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Anupiya-ambavana.—It was in the kingdom of the Mallas. Here Gautama spent the first seven days after his renunciation on his way to Rājagriha (Jāt., I, pp. 65-66; Vinaya, II, p. 180).

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Apava-Vaśiṣṭha-āśrama.—It was situated near the Himalayas (Yogavāśiṣṭha-Rāmāyaṇa, I). Apava Vaśiṣṭha is said to cursed Kārtyavīryārjuna for the latter burnt his hermitage.

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Arail.—This ancient village is situated on the right bank of the Jumna at its confluence with the Ganges (Allahabad District Gazetteer by Nevill, p. 221).

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Ariṣṭapura (Pali Ariṭṭhapura).—Pāṇini mentions it in one of his sūtras (VI. 2. 100). It was the capital of the Sivi kingdom. This king was educated at Taxila. He was made viceroy during the lifetime of his father and after his father's death he became king. He ruled his kingdom righteously. He built six alms-halls at the four gates in the midst of the city and at his own door. He used to distribute each day six hundred-thousand pieces of money. On the appointed days he used to visit the alms-halls to see the distribution made.

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The Sivi kingdom may be identified with the Shorkot region of the Punjab—the ancient Śivipura or Śivapura (B. C. Law, Geography of Early Buddhism, p. 52). Early Greek writers refer to a country in the Punjab as the territory of the Siboi. For further details vide B. C. Law, Indological Studies, I, 24ff.

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Aruṇācala.—This mountain is situated on the west of the Kailāsa range (Law, Mountains of India, p. 3; vide also Skandhapurāṇa, Ch. III, 59-61; IV. 9, 13, 21, 37).

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Asitañjananagara.—It was in the Kaṃsa district where a king named Mahākamsa reigned (Jāt., IV, p. 79).

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Asni.—It is a village situated about 10 miles north of Fatehpur U.P., where a stone pillar inscription has been discovered (I.A., XVI, 173ff.).

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Aśoka.—This mountain does not seem to have been far off from the Himalaya (Apadāna, p. 342).

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Aspasian territory.—It was a minor state in Alexander's time. The Iranian name Aspa corresponds to the Sanskrit Aśva or Aśvaka (Law, Indological Studies, I, p. 1). The Aspasians, as they were called by the Greeks, may be regarded as denoting some western branch of the Aśvaka or Aśmaka tribe (Cambridge History of India, I, 352, n. 3). Their country lay in Eastern Afghanistan (Law, *Tribes in Ancient India*, p. 180). According to some it was situated in Suvāstu (modern Swat Valley).¹ The Aśmakas were the first Indian people to bear the brunt of Alexander’s invasion. One of the cities of the Aspasian territory is said to have stood on or near the river Euaspla which is supposed to be identical with the Kunar, a tributary of the Kabul river.²

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¹ Raychaudhuri, *P.H.A.I.*, 4th Ed., p. 197.

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² Law, *Indological Studies*, Pt. I, 1ff.

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Aṣṭāpada.—It is a great Jain *tīrtha*. It may be identified with the Kailāsa mountain. According to the *Vividhatīrthakalpa* many sages and the sons of Ṛṣabha attained perfection.³

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³ B. C. Law, *Some Jaina Canonical Sūtras*, p. 174.

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Audumbara.—Pāṇini refers to it in his Aṣṭādhyāyī (4. 1. 173). This country may be located in the Pāṭhānkoṭ region.⁴

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⁴ For further details vide B. C. Law, *Tribes in Ancient India*, p. 355.

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Ayodhyā.—It is one of the seven holy places of the Hindus otherwise known as Ayojjhā or Ayudhā. Vinitā was another name for this city.⁵ It was the birthplace of the first and fourth Tīrthaṅkaras.⁶ Fa-Hien calls it Sha-che and according to Ptolemy it is known as Sogeda. In Brāhmaṇa literature it is described as a village.⁷ This city is also known as Sāketa, Ikṣvākubhūmi (*Āvassaka Nirjjuti* 382), Rāmapurī and Kosala.⁸ The *Bhāgavata Purāṇa* refers to it as a city (IX. 8, 19). According to the *Skandapurāṇa*⁹ Ayodhyā looks like a fish. It is one yojana in extent in the east, one yojana in the west, one yojana from the Sarayū in the south, and one yojana from Tamasā in the north. The spurious Gayā copper-plate inscription of Samudragupta mentions this ancient city, situated on the river Sarayū,¹⁰ identified with the Ghagrā or the Gogra in Oudh (*C.I.I.*, III) about six miles from the Fyzabad Railway Station. According to this inscription Ayodhyā was the seat of a Gupta *Jayaskandhāvāra* or camp of victory as early as the time of Samudragupta. It was an unimportant town in Buddha’s time.¹¹ It is mentioned in the *Rāmāyaṇa* as the earlier capital of Kosala. Some think that Sāketa and Ayodhyā were identical, but Professor Rhys Davids has been successful in pointing out that both the cities existed in Buddha’s time.¹² Ayodhyā was twelve yojanas long and nine yojanas broad according to the Jaina account.¹³ It was the birthplace of Ṛṣabha, Ajita, Abhinandana, Sumati, Ananta and Acalabhānu. Here Lord Ādiguru attained enlightenment. Kumārapāla, the king of the Cālukyas, installed a Jaina image in this city. Here still exists the temple of Nābhirāja.¹⁴ According to Alberuni, it is situated about 150 miles south-east from Kanauj. In the Buddhist period Kosala was divided into north and south. The capital of the southern Kosala was Ayodhyā.

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⁵ *Āvassaka Commy.*, p. 244a.

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⁶ *Āvassaka Nirjjuti*, 382.

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⁷ *Aitareya Brāh.*, VII, 3ff.; *Sāṅkhyāyana Śrauta Sūtra*, XV, 17-25; cf. *J.R.A.S.*, 1917, 52 note.

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⁸ *Vividhatīrthakalpa*, p. 24.

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⁹ Chap. I, 64-65.

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¹⁰ Cf. *Vinaya*, II, 237; *Aṅ.*, IV, 101; *Saṃ.*, II, 135; *Udāna*, v. 5.

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¹¹ *Buddhist India*, p. 34.

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¹² B. C. Law, *Geography of Early Buddhism*, p. 5.

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¹³ *Vividhatīrthakalpa*, Ch. 34.

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¹⁴ B. C. Law, *Some Jaina Canonical Sūtras*, p. 173.

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Ayodhyā seems to have been included in the kingdom of Puṣyamitra Śuṅga. An inscription found here mentions the fact that Puṣyamitra performed two horse sacrifices or *aśvamedhas* during his reign.¹⁵

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¹⁵ *E.I.*, XX, p. 57.

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The Chinese pilgrim, Fa-Hien, who visited Ayodhyā in the 5th century A.D., saw the Buddhists and the Brāhmaṇas not in good terms. He also saw a tope there where the four Buddhas walked and sat.¹ Another Chinese pilgrim, Yuan Chwang, who visited India in the 7th century A.D., after travelling more than 600 li and crossing the Ganges to the south, reached the Ayudha or Ayodhyā country. According to him, Ayodhyā was the temporary residence of Asaṅga and Vasubandhu. He says that Ayudha is Sāketa, i.e., Ayodhyā. The country yielded good crops, was clothed with luxuriant vegetation and had rich fruit orchards and genial climate. The people had good manners and active habits and devoted themselves to practical learning. There were more than 100 Buddhist monasteries and more than 3,000 brethren, who were students of Mahāyāna and Hīnayāna. There were 10 deva temples and the non-Buddhists were few in number. Within the capital was the old monastery in which Vasubandhu composed various śāstras. There was a hall in ruins where Vasubandhu explained Buddhism to princes and monks who used to come from other countries. Close to the Ganges was a large Buddhist monastery with an Aśoka tope to mark the place where the Buddha preached his excellent doctrine. Four or five li west from this monastery was a Buddha relic tope and to the north of the tope were the remains of an old monastery where the Sautrāntika-vibhāṣā-śāstra was composed. In a mango grove 5 or 6 li to the south-west of the city was the old monastery where Asaṅga learnt and taught. The three Buddhist treatises referred to by Yuan Chwang were communicated to Asaṅga by Maitreya. Above 100 paces to the north-west of the mango-grove was a Buddha relic tope. Asaṅga, according to the pilgrim, began his religious career as a Mahīśāsaka and afterwards became a Mahāyānist. Vasubandhu began his career in a school of the Sarvāstivādins. After the death of Asaṅga, Vasubandhu who composed several treatises, expounding and defending Mahāyānism, died at Ayodhyā at the age of 83.²

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¹ Legge, Travels of Fa-Hien, pp. 54-55. ² Watters, On Yuan Chwang, I, pp. 354-9. ³ Rāmāyaṇa, p. 309, vs. 22-24. ⁴ Ibid., p. 6, vs. 90-98. ⁵ Ibid., p. 114, v. 32. ⁶ S. Stevenson, Heart of Jainism, pp. 50-51; Sam., III, 140ff.; Sāratthappakāsinī, II, p. 320. ⁷ Rāmāyaṇa, p. 387, v. 36. ⁸ Mahābhārata, 241. 2; Vāyu, 99, 270; Matsya, 50, 77; Vāyu, 85, 3-4; Agni, 272, 5-7; Kūrma, I, 20, 4-6; Harivaṃśa, 11, 660; Padma, V. 8, 130-62, etc., etc.

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According to the Rāmāyaṇa, Ayodhyā was a city, full of wealth and granaries of paddy. It had spacious streets and roads, well-watered and decorated with flowers. It had lofty gates furnished with doors and bolts. It was fully protected. It was the home of skilful artisans and craftsmen. It contained palatial buildings, green bowers and mango-groves. The city was rendered impregnable being surrounded by a deep ditch filled with water. A large number of pinnacled houses and lofty seven-storied buildings existed there. It was a crowded city and frequently resounded by musical instruments. This city had Kamboja horses and mighty elephants.³ In the Mahābhārata, it is called ‘puṇyalakṣaṇa’ that is, endowed with auspicious signs. It was a delightful spot on earth.⁴ According to the Rāmāyaṇa there were four grades of social order at Ayodhyā, e.g., the Brāhmaṇas, the Kṣatriyas, the Vaiśyas and the Śūdras. They had to fulfil their respective duties and obligations.⁵

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Ayodhyā is important in the history of Jainism and Buddhism.⁶ The succession to the throne of Ayodhyā was generally determined according to the law of primogeniture in the Ikṣvāku family.⁷ Ayodhyā had many well-known kings.⁸ The kings of Ayodhyā were connected with the Vaśiṣṭha family. The Vaśiṣṭhas were their hereditary priests.¹ The kingdom of Ayodhyā rose to great eminence under Yuvanāśva II and especially his son Māndhātṛ.² The supremacy of Ayodhyā waned and the Kānyakubja kingdom rose into prominence under its king Jahnu. The Haihayas overcame Ayodhyā and the foreign tribes settled there after its conquest. Ayodhyā again became famous under Bhagīratha and Ambarīṣa Nābhāgi.³ Daśaratha sought the help of the rustic Ṛṣyaśṛnga from Aṅga.⁴ The eastern and southern kings and kings of the distant Punjab were invited to Daśaratha’s horse sacrifice at Ayodhyā. Ayodhyā and the Vaśiṣṭhas had no association then with the brahmanically élite region, as Pargiter points out.⁵ The Kathāsaritsāgara refers to the camp of Nanda in Ayodhyā.⁶ The Yoginītantra mentions this city (2/4, pp. 128-129). The Pali texts refer to some more kings of Ayodhyā.⁷ A large number of coins were found at the site of Ayodhyā. For further details vide Law, Indological Studies, Pt. III.

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¹ Viṣṇu, IV, 3. 18; Padma, VI, 219, 44.

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² Mahābhārata, III, 126.

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³ Vāyu, 88, 171-2; Padma, VI. 22, 7-18; Liṅga, I, 66, 21-22, etc.

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⁴ Rāmāyaṇa, I, 9 and 10.

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⁵ Ancient Indian Historical Tradition, p. 314.

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⁶ Tawney’s Ed., I, p. 37.

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⁷ Jātaka (Fausboll), IV, pp. 82-83; Vamsatthappakāsinī (P.T.S.), Vol. I, p. 127.

c6.114

Ayomukha.—According to Cunningham it was situated 30 miles south-west of Pratāpgarh.⁸

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⁸ C.A.S.R., XI, 68; C.A.G.I., pp. 443ff., 708.

c6.116

Ālavī.—It has been identified by Cunningham and Hoernle with Newal or Nawal in the Unao district in U.P. Some have identified it with Aviwa, 27 miles north-east of Etawah.⁹ There was a temple called Aggāḷava close to the town of Ālavī where the Buddha once dwelt. Many female lay disciples and sisters came here to hear the truth preached.¹⁰

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⁹ B. C. Law, Geography of Early Buddhism, p. 24.

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¹⁰ Jātaka, I, 160.

c6.119

Apayā.—It is a river mentioned in the Ṛgveda (III. 23, 4) flowing between the Dṛṣadvatī and the Sarasvatī. Some have identified it with the Āpagā as a name for the Ganges. It is near the Sarasvatī, according to Zimmer.¹¹ It is a small tributary flowing past Thaneswar. It is known to some as a branch of the Chitang river.¹² This river is also mentioned in the Mahābhārata (III. 83, 68).

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¹¹ Altindisches Leben, 18.

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¹² J.R.A.S., 1883, p. 362.

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Badarī.—According to the Varāha Purāṇa (141. 1) it is a secluded place in the Himalayan region. There are two holy places here called Indraloka and Pañcaśikha (141. 10; 141. 14). The Padma Purāṇa (Ch. 133) mentions Sārasvatatīrtha in Badarī.

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Badarikārāma.—The Kosam Inscription of the region of Mahārāja Vaiśravana refers to this locality situated in the vicinity of Kauśāmbī (E.I., XXIV, Pt. IV, p. 147). It was a Buddhist retreat where the Master once dwelt. Here the elder Rāhula set his heart on the observance of the rules of monkhood (Jāt., I, 160; III, 64). An elder named Khemaka while dwelling here fell very ill. At this time many elders staying at the Ghositārāma sent one of them named Dāsaka to him, enquiring how he managed to bear pains (Saṃyutta, III, 126ff.).

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Badarikāśrama.—The Mahābhārata (90. 27-34) refers to it. It also mentions Badarikātīrtha (85. 13; cf. Padma Purāṇa, Ch. 21; Tīrthamāhātmya). The Yoginītantra (2. 6. 167ff.) mentions this hermitage. According to Bāṇa’s Kādambarī Arjuna and Krishna visited it (p. 94). According to the Skanda Purāṇa (Ch. I, 53-59) a sinner becomes free from sins by visiting this holy place. Here a great pūjā (worship) is held, but no worship is held for six months every year when it is covered with snow (Padma Purāṇa, Uttarakhanda, 2. 1. 7).

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Badrināth.—It is in Garhwal. It is a peak of the main Himalayan range, 55 miles north-east of Śrīnagara. Near the source of the Alakanandā the temple of Nara-Nārāyaṇa was built on the west bank. This temple is said to have been built by Śaṅkarācārya in the 8th century A.D. (Law, Holy Places of India, p. 18; Imperial Gazetteers of India by W. W. Hunter, pp. 287ff.).

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Banskhera.—It is about 25 miles from Shajahanpur where a plate of Harṣa was discovered (E.I., IV, 208).

c6.127

Barbarika (the Barbarei of Ptolemy).—It is evidently the Barbaricum or Barbaricon emporium mentioned in the Periplus of the Erythraean Sea. It was a market town and a port situated at the middle mouth of the Indus. It was one of the towns of the islands of the Indus delta (McCrindle’s Ancient India as described by Ptolemy, Ed. Majumdar, p. 148).

c6.128

The country of the Barbaras (Barbaradeśa) seems to have extended to the Arabian Sea. The Mahābhārata connects the people of Barbaradeśa with the Śakas and Yavanas (Mahābhārata, Sabhāparva, XXXI, 1199; Vanaparva, CCLIII, 15254; Śāntiparva, CCVII, 7560-61). The Mārkaṇḍeya Purāṇa (LVII. 39) places them in the Sindhu country, and the Bṛhat-saṃhitā refers to them as north or north-west tribes. (For further details, see Law, Tribes in Ancient India, p. 92).

c6.129

Basahi.—It is a village two miles to the north-east of the headquarters town of the Bindhuna tahsil in the Etawah district, U.P. An inscription has been found here, which opens with an invocation to Viṣṇu and then gives the genealogy of the family from Mahīālā to Madanapāla (I.A., XIV, 101-4).

c6.130

Baṭeśvar.—It is a town in the Agra district on the right bank of the Jumna, 35 miles south-east of Agra, containing an ancient mound (E.I., I, 207).

c6.131

Bāhudā (Bāhukā or Bahukā).—Pargiter identifies this river with the modern Rāmagangā which joins the Ganges on the left near Kanauj (Pargiter, Mārkaṇḍeya Purāṇa, pp. 291-92). Some have identified it with the river Dhavalā, now called Dhumela or Burha-Rapti, a feeder of the Rapti in Oudh (N. L. Dey, Geographical Dictionary, p. 16). There was another river of this name in the Deccan (Mahābhārata, Bhīṣmaparva, 9, 322; Anuśāsanaparva, 165, 7653; Rāmāyaṇa, Kiṣkindhyākāṇḍa, 41, 13). The sage named Likhita had his severed arm restored by bathing in this river, which was accordingly named Bāhudā (Mahābhārata, Śāntiparva, 22; Harivaṃśa, 12). The Mārkaṇḍeyapurāṇa (Ch. 57) connects this river with the Himalayas along with the Gaṅgā and Yamunā. According to the Śivapurāṇa Gaurī was turned into the river Bāhudā by the curse of her husband Prasenajit. The Bāhudā is also called the Bāhukā according to the Majjhima Nikāya (I, p. 39). The Buddha bathed in this river. Many people could remove their sins by taking their bath in it. (Ibid., I, p. 39). It is also mentioned in the Jātaka (V. 388ff.) along with Gayā, Doṇa and Timbaru; the last two cannot be identified.

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Bāhumatī.—The Bāhumatī (Majjhima Nikāya, I, 39) may be identified with the Bāgmatī, a sacred river of the Buddhists in Nepal. Lassen identifies Kakanthas of Arrian with the river Bāgmatī of Nepal. Bāgmatī is also called Bāchmatī, as it was created by the Buddha Krakucchanda by the word of mouth during his visit to Nepal. Its junction with the rivers Maradārika, Maṇiśrohi, Rājamañjari, Ratnāvali, Cārumatī, Prabhāvatī and Triveṇī form the tīrthas (holy places) called Śāntā, Śaṅkara, Rājamañjarī, Pramodā, Sulakṣaṇā, Jayā and Gokarna respectively (Varāhapurāṇa, Ch. 215; cf. Svayambhūpurāṇa, Ch. V). On the bank of the Bāgmatī river stands Vatsalā (Nepīlmāhātmya, Ch. I, 39).

c6.133

Bārāṇasī.—See Kāśī.

c6.134

Belkhara.—It is a village situated about 12 miles south-east of Chunar in the Mirzapur district, U.P. The Belkhara stone pillar inscription has been discovered in this village, which is incised on a stone pillar, above which there is a small figure of Gaṇeśa.¹

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¹ A.S.R., XI, 128ff.; J.A.S.B., 1911, pp. 763ff.

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Bhaddavatikā.—This market-town lay on the way from the Pārileyyaka forest to Śrāvastī. After spending the rainy season at Sāvatthī, the Buddha went out on a begging tour and came here. Near this market-town there was a grove where the Master dwelt. From this town he went to Kosambī.²

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² Jātaka, I, 360.

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Bhadraśilā.—It was a rich, prosperous, and populous city. It was 12 yojanas in length and breadth and was well-divided with four gates and adorned with high vaults and windows. In this city there was a royal garden.³ According to the Bodhisattvāvadāna-Kalpalatā the city was situated to the north of the Himalayas (5th Pallava, pp. 2 and 6). This city later came to be known as Takṣaśilā because here the head of Candraprabha who was its ruler was severed by a beggar Brahmin.⁴

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³ Divyāvadāna, p. 315.

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⁴ R. L. Mitra, N.B.Lit., p. 310.

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Bharadvāja-āśrama.—The sage Bharadvāja had his hermitage which was situated at the confluence of the rivers Gaṅgā and Yamunā at Prayāga or Allahabad.⁵ Rāma himself admitted that this hermitage was not far from Ayodhyā.⁶ It was visited by Rāmacandra on his way to Daṇḍakāraṇya and he sent Hanumān to Bharata.⁷ Rāma together with Lakṣmaṇa and Sītā came here. They then duly greeted the sage and informed him that they were going in exile for fourteen years to fulfil the pledge of their father. Bharata in course of his wanderings in quest of Rāma came here with his family-priest Vasiṣṭha. King Divodāsa being defeated in the fight with the Vitahavyas sought refuge in this hermitage.

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⁵ Rāmāyaṇa, Ayodhyākāṇḍa, Ch. 54, V. 9.

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⁶ Ibid., Sarga 54, V. 24.

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⁷ Ibid., Adikāṇḍa, 1 Sarga, V. 87.

c6.145

Bharga.—The country of the Bhargas became a dependency of Vatsa with Sumsumāragira as its chief town.⁸ Some place it between Vaiśālī and Śrāvastī, but the location of the place is uncertain.

c6.146

⁸ Aṅg., II, 61; Vinaya, II, 127.

c6.147

Bhāṣkarakṣetra.—It is mentioned in the inscriptions on the copper-plates from Nutimadugu. It is Hampi in the Bellary district.⁹ N. L. Dey has identified it with Prayāga without assigning any definite reason to his identification.¹⁰

c6.148

⁹ E.I., XXV, Pt. IV.

c6.149

¹⁰ Geog. Dict. of Ancient and Mediaeval India, 2nd ed., 32.

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Bhesakaḷāvana.—It was in the neighbourhood of Sumsumāragiri or Sumsumāragira of the Bhargas where the Buddha stayed.¹¹ It was also known as Kesakaḷāvana.¹² It was an important Buddhist retreat and early centre of Buddhist activity in the Vatsa country. This park evidently belonged to Prince Bodhi who became an ardent lay supporter of the Buddha.¹³

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¹¹ Aṅg., II, p. 61; III, p. 295; IV, pp. 85, 228, 232, 268; Majjhima, II, 91; Jātaka, III, 157; Majjhima, I, 513ff.

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¹² Majjhima, II, 91; Jāt., III, 157.

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¹³ Majjhima, I, 513ff.

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Bhītargaon.—It is in the Kanpur district containing a big temple. This village, also known as Bhitrigaon, is situated halfway between Kanpur and Hamirpur, 20 miles to the south of the former place and 10 miles to the north-west of Kora Jāhānābād.¹⁴

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¹⁴ A.S.I., Annual Report, 1908-9, pp. 5ff.

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*Bhitari.*—This village, mentioned in the Bhitari stone pillar inscription of Skandagupta, is situated about five miles to the north-east of Sayyidpur, the chief town of the Sayyidpur tahsil of the Ghazipur district.¹

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¹ *C.I.I.*, Vol. III.

c6.158

*Bhitā.*—It has been identified with the old Biṭbhaya-paṭṭana, a town mentioned in the *Viracarita* as having flourished at the time of Mahāvīra. This text refers to Biṭbhaya-paṭṭana as the seat of king Udayana who embraced Jainism.² The ancient remains of Bhitā near Allahabad have been described by Gen. Cunningham who visited the site in 1872.³ For further details vide *A.S.I., Annual Report*, 1909-10, p. 40; 1911-12, pp. 29-94.

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² *Allahabad Dist. Gazetteer*, by Nevill, p. 234.

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³ *A.S.R.*, Vol. III, 46-52.

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*Bhṛgu-āśrama.*—The *Mahābhārata* calls it Bhṛgutīrtha. The sage had his hermitage at Balia in the Uttara Pradeśa, situated at the confluence of the Ganges and the Sarayū. Here Paraśurāma regained his energy which was taken away by Rāma Dāśarathi.⁴ King Vitahavya is said to have fled and taken shelter in this hermitage. Through the good grace of Bhṛgu king Vitahavya became a Brahmin.⁵

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⁴ *Mahābhārata*, III. 99. 8650.

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⁵ Cf. Matin, *Eastern India*, II, 340.

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*Bilsad.*—This village otherwise known as Bilasand occurs in the Bilsad stone pillar inscription of Kumāragupta. It consists of three parts, eastern Bilsad, western Bilsad, and Bilsad suburb, situated about four miles towards the north-west of Aligunj in the Etah district.⁶

c6.165

⁶ *C.I.I.*, Vol. III.

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*Bithur.*—It is situated 14 miles from Kanpur and contains the hermitage of sage Vālmīki.

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*Brahmapura.*—It is the ancient capital of the Chamba State in the Punjab. It contains three ancient temples of which the largest is of stone and dedicated to Maṇimaheśa, an incarnation of Śiva, the second temple of stone is dedicated to Narasinha or the Lion incarnation of Viṣṇu, and the third, mostly of wood, is dedicated to Lakṣmaṇadevi. According to Cunningham Brahmapura was another name for Vairāṭapaṭṭana. The climate of the place is said to be slightly cold and this also agrees with the position of Vairāṭa. Hiuen Tsang describes the kingdom of Brahmapura as 667 miles in circuit. It must have included the whole of the hilly country between the Alakananda and the Karṇāli rivers.⁷ Brahmapura was also known as Po-lo-lih-mo-pu-lo.⁸ According to Cunningham Brahmapura existed in the districts of Garhwal and Kumaon. In these districts reigned the Katur or Katurī rājās connected with Kortripura of Samudragupta’s Allahabad Pillar Inscription.⁹

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⁷ *C.A.G.I.*, 407ff.

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⁸ Watters, *On Yuan Chwang*, I, p. 329.

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⁹ *J.R.A.S.*, 1898, 199; *C.A.G.I.*, 704.

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*Buri-Gaṇḍak.*—It has its origin in the hills of Hariharpur in Nepal. The first western tributary which it receives to the north-east of Matihārī in the district of Champaran, is nothing but a united stream of six rivers. It meets the Ganges west of Gogri in the Monghyr district. For further details, vide B. C. Law, *Rivers of India*, p. 24.

c6.172

*Caṇḍapahā.*—It is a village in the Kosamba-paṭṭala, which was granted by Karṇadeva to the Paṇḍita Śāntisarman.¹⁰

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¹⁰ *E.I.*, XI, pp. 139ff.; see also *J.R.A.S.*, 1927, pp. 694ff.

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*Candrabhāgā.*—The *Apadāna*, a Pali canonical text, refers to it¹¹. According to the *Milindapañha* (p. 114) this river issues forth from the Himavanta (Himalayan region). The Jaina *Thānamga* (5. 470) mentions it along with other four. The Candrabhāgā or Chenāb appears to flow just above Kishtwar as a confluence of two hill-streams. From Kishtwar to Rishtwar its course is southerly. It flows past Jammu, wherefrom it flows in a south-westerly direction forming a doab between it and the Vitastā (Jhelum). It is the same river as the Rgvedic Asiknī, Arrian's Akesines and Sandabaga or Sandabal of Ptolemy. According to the Mārkaṇḍeyapurāṇa there were two rivers of this name. The Mahābhārata also seems to support the same contention¹ but it is difficult to identify the second stream. The Padmapurāṇa² mentions this river.

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¹¹ Pp. 277, 291.

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¹ Bhīṣmaparva, 9, 322-27.

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² Uttarakhaṇḍa, vs. 35-38.

c6.178

Candrāvatī.—It is situated in the district of Benares on the left bank of the Gaṅgā, where two copperplates of the Gāhaḍavāla dynasty were discovered.³

c6.179

³ I.H.Q., March, 1949.

c6.180

Cāvala.—This mountain has been described to be not far off from the Himalaya.⁴

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⁴ Apadāna, p. 451.

c6.182

Chamba.—This district includes the valleys of all the sources of the Rāvi and a portion of the upper valley of the Chenab between Lāhul and Kāṣṭwār. The ancient capital was Varmmapura.⁵

c6.183

⁵ C.A.G.I., pp. 161-162.

c6.184

Chatarpur.—This village existed near Sheorajpur, 21 miles north-west of Kanpur where a copperplate inscription of Govinda Candradeva was discovered.⁶

c6.185

⁶ E.I., XVIII, p. 224.

c6.186

Cina.—The Nāgārjunikoṇḍa Inscription of Virapuruṣadatta mentions it. It lay in the Himalayas beyond Cilāta or Kirāta. Himavantapadesa is stated to be the Cinarattha in the Pali Sāsanavaṃsa (p. 13).

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Citrakūṭa (Pali Cittakūṭa).—This beautiful mountain finds its place among the holy places mentioned in the Padmapurāṇa (Ch. 21—Tīrthamāhātmya). It is known in the Jaina Bhagavatī-Ṭīkā (7. 6) as Cittakuḍa. According to Kālidāsa it appears like a wild bull playfully butting against a rock or mound.⁷ It stood at a distance of 20 miles (10 krośas) from the hermitage of the sage Bharadvāja.⁸ The Uttaracaritaṃ (Act. I, 24) refers to the road on the bank of the Kālindī leading to the Citrakūṭa mountain. It is the modern Citrakūṭa, a famous hill, lying 65 miles west-south-west of Allahabad.⁹ It is situated about four miles from the modern Citrakūṭa railway station. It lay to the south-west of Prayāga. The Apadāna (p. 50) vaguely locates it to be not very far off from the Himavanta. The Gaḍhwā stone inscription refers to it.¹⁰ The Bhāgavatapurāṇa mentions it as a mountain (v. 19, 16). The Lalitavistara (p. 391) refers to it as a hill. It was a pleasant spot.¹¹ It was a spotless place.¹² It existed in the Himalayan region and it had a golden cave and a natural lake.¹³ It was noted for its waterfalls (Raghuv., XIII. 47).

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⁷ Raghuv., XIII, 47.

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⁸ Rāmāyaṇa, Ayodhyākāṇḍa, Sarga 54, v. 28.

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⁹ J.R.A.S., April, 1894, p. 239.

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¹⁰ C.I.I., Vol. III.

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¹¹ Jātaka, II, 176.

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¹² Jātaka, VI, 126.

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¹³ Jātaka, II, 176; III, p. 208.

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It has been identified with Kāmptānāthgiri in Bundelkhand. It is usually identified with the mountain of the same name in the Banda district, U.P., about 20 miles north-north-east of Kalinjar.¹⁴ The Mahābhārata (III. 85. 56) associates it with Kālañjara. As regards its identification we may also refer to A.S.R., XIII and XXI and J.R.A.S., 1894.

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¹⁴ J.R.A.S.B., Vol. XV, 1949, No. 2, Letters, p. 129.

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According to the Rāmāyaṇa¹⁵ Rāma dwelt on this hill situated on a river called the Payasvinī (Paisunī) or Mandākinī. He came here after crossing the Yamunā while returning from the hermitage of Bharadvāja. It was 3 yojanas distant from Bharadvāja-āśrama.¹ This beautiful mountain was an abode of many geese living in the golden cave which it contained,² some of which were swift and some golden.³ A king set out for this mountain being instructed to observe the moral law, to rule the kingdom righteously and to win the hearts of the people.⁴ The Kālikā-purāṇa (79. 143) points out that a mountain called Kajjala stands to the east of the Citrakūṭa.

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¹⁵ Ayodhyākāṇḍa, Ch. 55.

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¹ Ayodhyākāṇḍa, LIV, 29-30.

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² Jātaka, V, 337; Jāt., II, 107; V, 381.

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³ Jātaka, IV, 212, 423-424.

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