Studies in the Geography of Ancient and Medieval India c8.s3.107

c8.s3.107

The Mahācīna country is said to have extended from the Kailāsa-giri and from the place of origin of the Sarayū as far as Moṅga. Mount Kailāsa is that part of the Himalayan range which lies to the north of the Mānasa-sarovara and the origin of the Sarayū (Ghogra) is not far off. Moṅga and its variations appear to refer to Mongolia to the north of China. Mahācīna therefore refers to China proper.³ The suggestion is supported by the fact that in the seventh century A.D. the Chinese traveller Hiuen-tsang described his native country as ‘the Mahācīna of the Indians’.⁴