Studies in the Geography of Ancient and Medieval India c8.s3.93

c8.s3.93

The country called Khurāśana (Khorashan) is described as extending from the Hiṅgu-pīṭha, i.e. Hiṅgulāja, upto Makkeśa. Makkeśa, ‘lord of Mecca,’ is an imaginary Śiva-liṅga at Mecca, the most sacred of the Muslim holy places. According to a popular Bengali tradition, apparently influenced by the Tantras, in an underground room underneath the floor of the Kaaba at Mecca there lies Śiva in deep sleep; pious Hindus are never allowed to approach him; if, however, a devout Hindu could place on his head a *bilva-patra* only once, the god would at once rise up and destroy all the Muhammadans of the world.